:00:21. > :00:25.Hello and welcome to Politics Scotland. Coming up: Mike Russell
:00:25. > :00:31.is still standing, but the Education Secretary continues to be
:00:31. > :00:36.under pressure over the college funding do battle. Let me make it
:00:36. > :00:41.clear my apology is full and unreserved. It should not have
:00:41. > :00:46.happened. The Scottish Government set out their goals to attract more
:00:46. > :00:50.international conferences to our shores - that is the debate at
:00:50. > :00:54.Holyrood this afternoon. Ahead of crucial talks on the
:00:54. > :00:59.European Union budget which starts tomorrow, just how hard should
:00:59. > :01:03.David Cameron fight? The Education Secretary offered a
:01:03. > :01:08.full and unreserved apology yesterday for giving the wrong
:01:08. > :01:12.information on college funding. Tomorrow, the issue will once again
:01:12. > :01:15.be in the spotlight. The Liberal Democrats called for a debate on
:01:15. > :01:20.further education and say there must be a fresh vote on funding,
:01:20. > :01:26.given the revised figures. I am joined by a political commentator
:01:26. > :01:32.this afternoon, George Kerevan. Let's look at this story and Mike
:01:32. > :01:39.Russell. He is still standing, but there seems to be a considerable
:01:39. > :01:44.amount of pressure on them. I have to confess that I spent 25 years
:01:44. > :01:52.teaching in higher education. It is an issue close to my heart. Sadly I
:01:52. > :01:58.have to say it does not set it head on fire. Whether there is anger in
:01:58. > :02:02.the general public as there is Ben Holyrood, I do not think so. The
:02:02. > :02:07.opposition parties have to be careful how they play this. If they
:02:07. > :02:11.make the story about Mike Russell, privately he will know years and I
:02:11. > :02:16.think clever guide, quite upfront, if they make it about time rather
:02:16. > :02:22.than further education, then people outside of Holyrood will get
:02:22. > :02:29.confused. It has to be about further education and the further
:02:29. > :02:34.education funding strategy. Because I think it is that we, I do not
:02:34. > :02:44.think Mike Russell's job is on the line at all. They seem to be key
:02:44. > :02:45.
:02:45. > :02:49.main -- keeping up pressure. There is a debate tomorrow. The Liberal
:02:49. > :02:53.Democrats are calling for those revised figures, a fresh vote on
:02:53. > :02:59.those revised figures. Based J students need to know the real
:02:59. > :03:04.figures. Do you think the real figures are out there? -- face-
:03:04. > :03:09.saver students need to know. There should be a debate because further
:03:09. > :03:13.education is an important subject. The Scottish Government operates on
:03:13. > :03:18.a three-year former spending plan. We know what the budget was for
:03:18. > :03:22.last year, we know what it was for this year. It was a modest one
:03:22. > :03:31.million increase. At the end of last year there was some money left
:03:31. > :03:36.over so the Scottish Government got some of that money and they gave an
:03:36. > :03:41.extra boost to further education. If you look at what was spent in
:03:41. > :03:45.total last year, there is more than the planned total for this year.
:03:45. > :03:50.You would you that as a cut but it was not in the real sense. It was
:03:50. > :03:56.clear how much money there was in the kitty. Colleges have to know
:03:56. > :04:00.what is coming. I do not think there is a lack of clarity on a
:04:00. > :04:04.five-year education level. The question is what is the future of
:04:04. > :04:10.further education? The debate is quite a good thing to have. Just
:04:10. > :04:16.this afternoon, some new figures came out. Mr Salmon's corrected a
:04:16. > :04:21.Holyrood report. The actual figure is 11,000 now. Labour put out a
:04:21. > :04:26.press release saying Salmon's lies instinctively. They have heat that
:04:26. > :04:34.on the college issue and they're taking advice over independence. Do
:04:34. > :04:39.you think there is a credibility problem appearing here? We have had
:04:39. > :04:47.an SNP Government for five years on the Paul Stewart still commands
:04:47. > :04:53.quite a favourable opinion amongst the Scottish public. -- the Pohl's.
:04:53. > :04:58.I think we forget that. They have been in power for a long time. As I
:04:58. > :05:02.said earlier, the opposition parties seem to make politics about
:05:02. > :05:08.the people rather than the policies. Does that work in Scotland? I don't
:05:08. > :05:12.know. Labour used the word today of liar. That is pretty strong. Do
:05:12. > :05:21.people really think the First Minister lies all the time? I do
:05:21. > :05:26.not think so. The actual story about the number of jobs and
:05:26. > :05:30.renewables, it is impossible to calculate to the person. We will
:05:30. > :05:40.have to leave it there. As we have been discussing, the
:05:40. > :05:47.Mike Russell apology, let's see that. Hewitt ended a -- Hugh Henry
:05:47. > :05:57.had asked why he had not resigned. Last week's inaccurate statement
:05:57. > :05:57.
:05:57. > :06:03.was not based on what was said, but an understatement in 2011-12.
:06:03. > :06:10.Although this additional funding was added in, I acknowledge this
:06:10. > :06:15.end the debate last week. And I do so here again today. At the weekend,
:06:16. > :06:24.we were encouraged to focus on the substantial issues facing colleges,
:06:24. > :06:27.including funding. I welcome the debate currently underway. Let me
:06:27. > :06:35.make clear again that my apology is full and unreserved. It is to the
:06:35. > :06:39.whole chamber, including to Mr Henry. It should not have happened.
:06:39. > :06:43.Presiding Officer, there should have been a full statement by Mike
:06:43. > :06:53.Russell. Apologising in this way shows are content for the Scottish
:06:53. > :06:53.
:06:53. > :06:58.Government. Can I ask that you released two MSPs -- to MSPs the
:06:58. > :07:04.original letter released a year by Mike Russell. Can I say, this is
:07:04. > :07:09.that question to the current secretary. In relation to letters
:07:09. > :07:14.that are sent to me, that is not for me to release them. That would
:07:14. > :07:18.be for the Minister himself. If you could now concentrate on a question
:07:18. > :07:22.to the Cabinet secretary, I would be grateful and so would the rest
:07:22. > :07:27.of the chamber who are waiting to hear from you. Certainly, Presiding
:07:27. > :07:31.Officer. The Ministerial Code says any error should be corrected at
:07:31. > :07:37.the earliest opportunity. Mike Russell misled that Scottish
:07:37. > :07:44.Government in June, despite a -- knowing there are real figure since
:07:44. > :07:47.February. Why has it taken him this long to apologise? In terms of Mr
:07:47. > :07:53.Henry's request for a statement I have indicated not only am I
:07:53. > :08:03.responding to this Ayrshire and offering a full and unreserved
:08:03. > :08:06.
:08:06. > :08:10.apology. -- to this issue. I shall be entirely open in that debate as
:08:10. > :08:17.I am now. Can I say that matters of the ministerial code and offer me,
:08:17. > :08:20.those are matters for the First Minister. I do not ask why the
:08:20. > :08:24.ministerial code had not been applied. The question I asked is
:08:24. > :08:28.why had it taken the Cabinet secretary five months to apologise
:08:28. > :08:32.and he has ignored that. The ministerial code also says that
:08:32. > :08:36.Ministers who knowingly mislead Parliament will be expected to
:08:36. > :08:41.resign. Mike Russell knew in June he had misled his Parliament when
:08:41. > :08:44.he said there is no reduction in funding in 2012-13. He then
:08:45. > :08:49.knowingly misled this Government again next Wednesday when he said
:08:49. > :08:55.he had never said there were no cuts. He has knowingly misled his
:08:55. > :09:01.Government, not once, but twice. Presiding Officer, why has Mike
:09:01. > :09:07.Russell not offered his resignation? The answer again -- I
:09:07. > :09:12.gave was given in good faith. I have apologised for that answer as
:09:12. > :09:18.it was erroneous. I have a polished twice in the statement and I
:09:18. > :09:22.apologise again for that answer. -- apologised. It was given in good
:09:22. > :09:32.faith. In terms of the debate and discussion of this issue, I made it
:09:32. > :09:34.
:09:34. > :09:38.clear last week, that I have always acknowledged the budget fall in the
:09:38. > :09:42.spending period. That is why I have fought so hard to get any additions
:09:42. > :09:46.within the budget and those revisions have been designed to try
:09:46. > :09:51.and help the situation. I shall continue to seek those. Mike
:09:51. > :09:54.Russell there. Now MSPs from Scotland's three
:09:54. > :09:58.largest opposition parties will want to plan to find agreement on
:09:58. > :10:03.what powers might be devolved to Holyrood if Scots vote no to
:10:03. > :10:07.independence. The leader of their Devo Plus group Jeremy Purvis, said
:10:07. > :10:17.voters needed to know how Scotland will be governed if it remains in
:10:17. > :10:19.
:10:19. > :10:25.the Union. We think people want a clear choice. N R report, it is
:10:25. > :10:31.showing how exactly that can be brought about. How parties who do
:10:31. > :10:37.not support independence can coalesce around it. And what the
:10:37. > :10:42.result would be if the referendum result is no. What is the idea?
:10:42. > :10:46.think a clear statement of a new Union were the Scottish Parliament
:10:46. > :10:51.as a strengthened position is accountable, it is permanent and
:10:51. > :10:55.cannot be abolished by Westminster unless abolishes itself. It has a
:10:55. > :10:59.much stronger footing for the people of Scotland. It is important
:10:59. > :11:06.and that can be the outcome that can be delivered after the next UK
:11:06. > :11:10.General Election. Hard to get there, of course. We need to be clear so
:11:10. > :11:16.people understand that. That is why we're arguing the parties the to
:11:16. > :11:18.come together. This can be advanced in advance of the vote so people
:11:18. > :11:24.are clear what the consequences of a No vote would be.
:11:24. > :11:31.Jeremy Purvis talking to our political correspondent Neil
:11:31. > :11:41.O'Gallager. Let's go to Westminster -- Holyrood now to get some
:11:41. > :11:55.
:11:55. > :12:00.response. We have Linda Fabiani, I think it is a helpful
:12:00. > :12:06.contribution to the bait. I think the danger here is that those with
:12:06. > :12:09.then the pro-independence camp have been trying to cast this as a
:12:09. > :12:13.question between the independence of the status quo. I do not think
:12:13. > :12:17.it has ever been that. With the contribution that the Liberal
:12:17. > :12:21.Democrats have made through the steel Commission and the recent
:12:21. > :12:25.work by Ming Campbell, we have shown that we are developing ideas
:12:25. > :12:28.for taking forward around renewed devolved settlement. I think as an
:12:28. > :12:32.opportunity for the Labour Party and the Conservative Party to
:12:32. > :12:36.develop their thinking and I think the report from their reforms
:12:36. > :12:41.Scotland is a very helpful contribution to that. It goes
:12:41. > :12:48.beyond the three main parties involved in the better together
:12:48. > :12:52.campaign. I would say I would be encouraging SNP members and
:12:52. > :12:56.supporters to be joining that process, as indeed I with those of
:12:56. > :13:02.no political affiliation. You're talking about developing these
:13:02. > :13:06.lines. But two years out from the referendum, the party should have
:13:06. > :13:08.more pay at two present to the people of Scotland was Mark I think
:13:08. > :13:18.what they're Scottish Liberal Democrats have put forward through
:13:18. > :13:23.the Campbell Commission has been recognised. The other parties are
:13:23. > :13:28.undertaking their own pieces of work. I think that is going to have
:13:28. > :13:32.to come together to demonstrate to those advocating against
:13:32. > :13:36.independence this isn't the end of the process. There are ideas they
:13:36. > :13:46.are developing a stronger union that reflects the interests of all
:13:46. > :13:47.
:13:47. > :13:51.Talking there about the other parties developing their work, Hugh
:13:51. > :13:55.Henry. You have your commission. It has only met once and the folk were
:13:55. > :13:59.only appointed two months ago. Look what the Liberal Democrats have
:13:59. > :14:03.already produced. Labour have not done very much to produce this
:14:03. > :14:08.coherent argument to the people of Scotland for post-referendum.
:14:08. > :14:11.Labour has a substantial record in terms of delivering devolution of
:14:11. > :14:15.powers to Scotland and the Scottish Parliament. We will come forward
:14:15. > :14:19.with proposals following the work of the devolution commission. We
:14:19. > :14:23.won't agree on every bit of detail with the other parties, but if we
:14:23. > :14:28.can agree on some of the fundamentals that will chime with
:14:28. > :14:32.the vast majority of Scotland who don't want to separate from the UK
:14:32. > :14:36.and they want us to get on in the Scottish Parliament with the job we
:14:36. > :14:43.were elected to do. Do you think there is a chance that the throw
:14:43. > :14:47.pro-union parties could set out a joint vision, or is it unlikely
:14:47. > :14:53.I think there is a good chance we can set out general statements of
:14:53. > :14:57.intent. We may not be able to agree on specifics. I hope we can work
:14:57. > :15:01.together. We may disagree with them with what they are doing in the UK
:15:01. > :15:11.Government but as for as Scotland is concerned we are all agreed that
:15:11. > :15:11.
:15:11. > :15:14.we are better staying within the United Kingdom and not separating.
:15:14. > :15:20.Linda Fabiani, the Liberal Democratsing are having a refusal
:15:20. > :15:23.of a vision to set out post- referendum if there is a no vote
:15:23. > :15:27.but you would be worried if there was a joint vision, because put to
:15:27. > :15:32.the people of Scotland, you would be worried about how they would
:15:32. > :15:37.react to that? Absolutely not. The anti-independence parties have had
:15:37. > :15:41.lots of commissions, we have had commissions and we now have the
:15:41. > :15:44.Ming Campbell commission and the Devo Plus Commission, the Labour
:15:44. > :15:48.Devolution Commission and even Ruth Davidson for the Conservatives is
:15:48. > :15:51.talking about another body to look at what could happen if there was a
:15:51. > :15:56."no" vote. Well the reality is if they were really serious about this,
:15:56. > :16:00.they would be putting something concrete there and saying - this is
:16:00. > :16:03.what we will legislate for and we have reached agreement. They cannot
:16:03. > :16:08.reach agreement amongst them. They owe it to voters to be saying - if
:16:08. > :16:13.you vote "no", this is what is on offer. They backed out of even the
:16:13. > :16:18.very idea of a second question, despite harping on about it. The
:16:18. > :16:25.public ZIt cannot be taken seriously. The public did. Another
:16:25. > :16:31.issue we have been covering this afternoon, Linda Fabiani, that of
:16:31. > :16:35.Mike Russell. We are hearing today that Antonis Samaras had to -- Alex
:16:35. > :16:42.Salmond had to correct numbers about working in renewables and
:16:42. > :16:46.people say that Psalm Monday is talking distinctively about the
:16:46. > :16:50.advice problem. Do you think there is a credibility gap? No, we are
:16:50. > :16:53.looking at a concerted effort to try to discredit Scotland's
:16:53. > :16:58.Government and the First Minister. This is the First Minister of
:16:58. > :17:02.Scotland. People should have more respect than running around with
:17:02. > :17:07.loose language. Mike rust rust apologised fulsomely yesterday for
:17:07. > :17:11.having made an error. -- Mike Russell. And for having stated in
:17:11. > :17:15.good faith figures he subsequently found out to be erroneous. He
:17:15. > :17:18.apologised many times yesterday. I was there and heard it. He has
:17:18. > :17:22.agreed with the Liberal Democrat call to have a deby the about
:17:22. > :17:27.colleges this afternoon. I don't know what more the opposition
:17:27. > :17:31.parties want from Mr Russell. He has been upfront and straight about
:17:31. > :17:36.the mistake he made. Hugh Henry we have that debate tomorrow. Are you
:17:36. > :17:40.going to let this issue lie now and focus on substantive oosh ues on
:17:40. > :17:43.further education or will you keep the ball running? -- issues?
:17:43. > :17:46.have always been focused on the real issue, which is the damage
:17:46. > :17:50.that Mike Russell is doing to Scotland's colleges. It is not just
:17:50. > :17:53.us. Because increasingly staff employed in Scotland's colleges are
:17:53. > :17:57.saying they have no confidence in Mike Russell because of the cuts
:17:57. > :18:02.and because of the damage that he is inflicting. But you know, there
:18:02. > :18:05.is also an issue here that needs to be resolved and this is - if you
:18:05. > :18:08.stand up and give false evidence within the Scottish Parliament,
:18:08. > :18:13.then surely that must mean something. You cannot be allowed
:18:13. > :18:18.just to say whatever you want in order to avoid being confronted by
:18:18. > :18:22.the truth. The latest issue involving the First Minister also
:18:22. > :18:27.involves him arranging for the report of the Parliament to be
:18:27. > :18:34.doctored so that it reflects what he wanted to have said, rather than
:18:34. > :18:43.what he actually said. Now we have Mike Russell braisingly, and Alex
:18:43. > :18:46.Salmond as well, brazenly inanothering the ministerial code.
:18:46. > :18:51.Liam McArthur. Time to move on, the Liberal Democrats have that debate
:18:51. > :18:54.tomorrow. You called for it. Is it time to move on and focus on the
:18:54. > :19:00.big issues on further education or are you going to keep the pressure
:19:00. > :19:08.on Mr Russell? I think Hugh Henry is right. We have been consistently
:19:08. > :19:14.foe cousining on the issues in the sector -- focusing. This debate is
:19:14. > :19:16.necessary. Nevertheless what we saw in this last week in the Chamber,
:19:16. > :19:20.very much reflects what the Education Committee has been
:19:20. > :19:23.experiencing over recent weeks. have been trying tirelessly to get
:19:23. > :19:26.to the bottom of the figures the Government is presenting after
:19:27. > :19:30.having similar problems this time last year with the budget. So I
:19:30. > :19:35.think what we have seen in the chamber is a reflection of the
:19:35. > :19:38.confusion that lies behind a lot of these figures and the college
:19:38. > :19:43.sector is going through very serious challenges at the moment,
:19:43. > :19:48.not just in terms of having its funding reduced but also in terms
:19:48. > :19:51.of mergers being forced upon colleges often at a pace that is
:19:51. > :19:56.pretty unreasonable, alongside a whole series of Government
:19:56. > :20:02.commitments as well. I must stop you there. I think the problem is
:20:02. > :20:07.that Mike Russell does have a credibility issue. OK, thank you
:20:07. > :20:09.all very much. We have run out of time. Thank you for joining me. Now
:20:09. > :20:13.George Kerevan our political commentator for the afternoon is
:20:13. > :20:16.still with me. Let's focus on the Devo Plus report here. You have
:20:16. > :20:21.been having a look through it. Do you think it is likely we could
:20:21. > :20:28.come up with a joint statement from the three pro union parties? You
:20:28. > :20:31.know well before the referendum? The first thing to say is that
:20:31. > :20:36.Frankenstein has risen from the grave, Devo Plus is back. A funny
:20:36. > :20:41.thing happened the other week, when David Cameron and Alex Salmond
:20:41. > :20:47.agreed the single question, I was surprised by the number of
:20:47. > :20:51.particularly in the business community, who said Devo Max is a
:20:51. > :20:59.good idea, it is a shame we can't talk about it. Now it is back. The
:20:59. > :21:03.initial report isn't as good as it seems. It is largely from the stuff
:21:03. > :21:08.produced by Reform think-tank. It says transfer income tax and krp
:21:08. > :21:14.racial tax to Scotland. Good idea. -- corporation tax. It is private
:21:14. > :21:21.enterprise work by some of the MSPs it. Doesn't really have the support
:21:21. > :21:25.of the three main unionist parties. We have to say it is devo Plus Devo
:21:25. > :21:28.Max back on the agenda but still we have to wait for some really hard
:21:28. > :21:33.agreement by the main parties. Let's turn our attention to what is
:21:34. > :21:38.going on in the Chamber this afternoon. Business tourism. Trying
:21:38. > :21:41.to attract more conferences to Scotland. You are a former Chair of
:21:41. > :21:44.the Edinburgh business board. You were involved in building the
:21:45. > :21:49.Conference Centre in Edinburgh. How critical is this in terms of
:21:49. > :21:52.bringing in investment from outside? Well business tourism, big
:21:52. > :21:55.business conferences, professional conferences, it is the Holy Grail
:21:55. > :21:58.of the visitor industry. These people spend a lot of money and
:21:58. > :22:03.quite a few nights and once they have done their conference they go
:22:03. > :22:07.off and play golf and visits the Highlands. You definitely want that.
:22:07. > :22:10.But so does everybody else. It is motherhood and apple pie issue.
:22:11. > :22:15.Nobody I assure you will be against having more visitors. It is the
:22:15. > :22:19.question of how you get them there. At the moment, the big impediment,
:22:19. > :22:24.apart from the weather, is the air passenger duty, the tax that you
:22:24. > :22:28.pay when you lie on an aeroplane to Scotland. In particular there is a
:22:28. > :22:31.higher band for business travellers and that really discriminates
:22:31. > :22:35.against business conferences. Unless something is done about,
:22:35. > :22:40.that it is hard for Scotland to compete. Thank you for just now.
:22:40. > :22:48.Let's cross to the Chamber and find out pwh what is going on in that
:22:48. > :22:52.debate, -- out what is going on in the company of Michael Buchanan.
:22:52. > :22:56.The tourism minister, Fergus Ewing is being questioned on this
:22:56. > :23:02.particular issue. In the last few minutes he has produced a found
:23:02. > :23:08.demonstrate that one of those pounds is turned into �53. That is,
:23:08. > :23:18.he says, the investment in a new fund when it comes to the MICE
:23:18. > :23:20.
:23:20. > :23:26.programme, not the furry an marblgs meetings, conference and events. --
:23:26. > :23:30.ury animal. -- fury animal. Let's hear what he has to say. I would
:23:30. > :23:33.like to say, however, that I'm in the claiming any particular great
:23:33. > :23:37.credit for this. The credit goes to the people who organise the
:23:37. > :23:44.conferences, who arrange them, who secure them, who put in a power of
:23:44. > :23:50.work and I would particularly like to pay tribute to Scott Taylor and
:23:50. > :23:54.his team and Hans Riskman at the international Edinburgh Conference
:23:54. > :23:59.Centre and Lucy Martin at Marketing he had inbrup and the Chambers of
:23:59. > :24:05.Commerce who play a great role and my friends at Glasgow City Council
:24:05. > :24:09.with whom I work closely in relation to these matters but also
:24:09. > :24:12.Glasgow airport and Amanda Macmillan who will roll out the red
:24:12. > :24:17.carpet for the leaders of conferences and also those at
:24:17. > :24:21.universities who play a key role in bringing so many of the conferences
:24:21. > :24:24.to Scotland. People who work in the royal colleges, who have influence,
:24:24. > :24:28.who can persuade their colleagues in these types of organisations
:24:28. > :24:32.that Edinburgh, Glasgow or other places would be great locations for
:24:32. > :24:35.their colleagues to meet and celebrate and discuss their matters.
:24:35. > :24:41.So, presiding stpe, I have not covered anything I meant to, there
:24:41. > :24:44.are about eight or 12 pages we will leave to some other time. --
:24:44. > :24:47.Presiding Officer. I'm sorry to disappoint members. But I very much
:24:47. > :24:54.look forward to the debate and I have pleasure in moving the motion
:24:54. > :24:58.in my name. I call on Ken Mackintosh to speak
:24:58. > :25:01.and move the amendment. Ten minutes, please. Thank you,
:25:01. > :25:04.Presiding Officer and can I thank the minister for his opening
:25:04. > :25:08.contribution, despite the disappearing coin trick and the
:25:08. > :25:12.shameless playing to the gallery and the two caveats on Labour's
:25:12. > :25:16.amendment, I do welcome his comments. I think like the - and
:25:16. > :25:19.support for the acommendment - like the two recent debates we have had
:25:19. > :25:23.on tourism there is a general consensus around this Chamber and
:25:23. > :25:26.Scotland that we need to do more to recognise the importance of tourism,
:25:26. > :25:31.business tourism in particular. In fact, Presiding Officer, in a week
:25:31. > :25:34.which has brought rather gloomy and depressing news on business
:25:34. > :25:37.prospects and on the Scottish economy generally, it is good to
:25:37. > :25:42.have the opportunity this afternoon here in the Scottish Parliament it
:25:42. > :25:47.talk about one area where there is clearly great potential for growth
:25:47. > :25:52.and which manages at least to somewhat buck the downward friend
:25:52. > :25:58.during the recession. The closure of Comet follow a number of high
:25:58. > :26:06.street retailers which have gone under and the decision by Vion to
:26:06. > :26:10.close its UK operation merely adds salt to the wound, with the loss of
:26:10. > :26:14.1,700 jobs, so it is more important that we have a renewed focus on
:26:14. > :26:17.employment from this Government and Parliament and with a emphasise on
:26:17. > :26:21.diversifying and supporting our manufacturing sector. But we should
:26:21. > :26:25.respond to these difficulties by putting an even greater emphasis on
:26:25. > :26:28.making sure we make the most on expanding sectors such as business
:26:28. > :26:31.tourism. I think it is worth reminding ourselves of the
:26:31. > :26:34.importance of this industry to Scotland. We have had a number of
:26:34. > :26:39.debates about tourism in general and the Scottish Government's
:26:39. > :26:45.motion highlights the 2.9 billion in value added it is now worth to
:26:45. > :26:52.the Scottish committee. -- Scottish economy. Business tourism accounts
:26:52. > :26:57.for 20% of the total tourism expenditure to Scotland and 2.6
:26:57. > :27:01.million business trips were made to Scot fland 2011. But perhaps as
:27:01. > :27:07.important -- to Scotland in 201 1. But perhaps as important is
:27:07. > :27:12.business visitors spend twice as much as traditional holiday
:27:12. > :27:16.visitors and their custom is less prone to seasonal highs and lows,
:27:16. > :27:21.making it very important for the hotel sector for capacity all year
:27:21. > :27:26.around and there is also the added incentive as business tourists
:27:26. > :27:31.returning again as holiday makers. I'm sure we are all aware of the
:27:31. > :27:34.competing effect in the main overseas markets, America, germ ni,
:27:34. > :27:38.Scandinavian countries, Netherlands and France. -- Germany. It is
:27:38. > :27:44.perhaps worth highlighting one another statistic, and this is that
:27:44. > :27:49.the rest of the UK, including Scotland itself accounts for throw-
:27:49. > :27:54.quarters of total exspend tour. I think that union dividend is an
:27:54. > :27:58.important point to be bear in mind. I the news from the minister the
:27:58. > :28:02.conference bid fund has started to attract new business tourism to
:28:02. > :28:06.Scotland this. Scheme, funded by Scotland's cities is a good example
:28:06. > :28:09.of collaborative working between our cities and Visit Scotland which
:28:09. > :28:12.is already showing results. It is the work done by those cities I
:28:12. > :28:15.want to turn to. It is clear they have been the driving force in
:28:15. > :28:18.attracting business visitors. Yes, business tourism has been somewhat
:28:18. > :28:28.affected by the financial recession but it is recovering and it is
:28:28. > :28:29.
:28:29. > :28:34.expected to grow, unlike many other That has not happened by accident.
:28:34. > :28:39.That has happened because a strong leadership from the City Council
:28:39. > :28:43.itself. The leader of Glasgow City Council has estimated that in the
:28:43. > :28:48.first six months of the current financial year alone, conventions
:28:48. > :28:52.and business to some have brought �120 million to Glasgow's economy,
:28:52. > :28:57.the same as they had achieved in the whole of the previous year.
:28:57. > :29:03.Ken Macintosh talking about business tourism in the chamber.
:29:03. > :29:06.Down to Westminster now where David Cameron fielded questions on a
:29:06. > :29:11.range of subjects during Prime Minister's questions, including the
:29:11. > :29:16.escalating violence and Gaza. right to say that any ceasefire
:29:16. > :29:20.deal can be turned into peace if there are negotiations towards that
:29:20. > :29:25.2 state solution. This week has shown us once again that there is
:29:25. > :29:29.neither peace nor a peace process. And the reality is that the
:29:29. > :29:34.international community does bear some responsibility for the abject
:29:34. > :29:39.failure of having those meaningful negotiations nine years on from the
:29:39. > :29:46.promise of the road map for peace. So can he set out to the House what
:29:46. > :29:52.steps beyond a halt foresees fire need to be taken, to pressure ball
:29:52. > :29:58.sites into meaningful negotiations? Let me agree with him that we need
:29:58. > :30:03.a process to be put in place and I think we need to do everything we
:30:03. > :30:07.can to persuade President Obama. I would make this point that while we
:30:07. > :30:12.all want this process and we all won this piece, in the end peace
:30:12. > :30:16.can only, back by Israelis and Palestinians sitting down and
:30:16. > :30:21.talking through the final status issues. They have to discuss
:30:21. > :30:25.Borders, refugees. As President Obama is fond of saying and I would
:30:25. > :30:30.agree with it, we won this more than the one to it. We have to
:30:30. > :30:36.encourage some. We have to push for a process, but in the end we need
:30:36. > :30:39.courageous leadership from the Israelis and Palestinians. If the
:30:39. > :30:43.Prime Minister wants to send a clear message that Scotland and
:30:43. > :30:49.England from a main -- belong together, shouldn't he be doing his
:30:49. > :30:56.best to make sure their principal road from London to Edinburgh visit
:30:56. > :31:00.a modern dual-carriageway? He makes a very attractive spending bid for
:31:00. > :31:06.the Autumn Statement. While my friend the Chancellor is not here,
:31:06. > :31:14.I am sure other colleagues would have been listening closely. Let me
:31:14. > :31:19.present at tale of two companies. One employees many people. His main
:31:19. > :31:29.comment -- competitor brings in revenue of up to �4.5 billion and
:31:29. > :31:30.
:31:30. > :31:37.only paid less than �1 million in tax. Will the Prime Minister
:31:37. > :31:43.followed that actions of the French Government and bring Amazon to pay
:31:43. > :31:48.the tax they all? Companies have to make fair tax payments and our
:31:48. > :31:52.country. What we have done his boots and extra �900 million into
:31:52. > :31:56.the Inland Revenue to make sure we properly get companies and
:31:56. > :32:02.individuals to pay their taxes. Yesterday I announced one of the
:32:02. > :32:05.key priorities of the G8 how will the cheering in January and holding
:32:05. > :32:12.in Northern Ireland in June of next year, one of the key priorities
:32:12. > :32:20.will be Titian make sure we get proper international policies.
:32:20. > :32:26.the door was a man who was a loan shark. He charged 12.5 pence a week
:32:26. > :32:34.per pounds for the loan that he would give the show word worker. --
:32:34. > :32:38.shipyard worker. Can we have a question? Assure sentence? You hold
:32:38. > :32:42.one of the great offices of the state, so does the Prime Minister.
:32:42. > :32:49.What is he personally going to do to drive the sharks out of our
:32:49. > :32:53.economies? I did enjoy my visit to Troon. I made the offer then that I
:32:53. > :32:58.would happily share a platform with them to defender United Kingdom,
:32:58. > :33:02.and for some reason the invitation got lost in the post. So why would
:33:02. > :33:09.make that offer again. He makes a serious point about payday loans.
:33:09. > :33:19.We have seen the report and I think we need to take action here. That
:33:19. > :33:20.
:33:20. > :33:23.is why we are giving the Office of Fair Trading I knew power to
:33:23. > :33:28.suspend policies. Many companies are not sticking to the guidelines
:33:28. > :33:35.set out and that is not acceptable. Let's speak to our correspondent
:33:35. > :33:39.David Porter and the Central lobby. A very busy central lobby. It might
:33:39. > :33:44.have something to do with the appalling weather here. We have
:33:44. > :33:47.come inside. I am joined by three MPs that were
:33:47. > :33:55.Prime Minister's Questions and Scottish questions before that.
:33:55. > :34:00.David Mundell. I will start off with you, one
:34:00. > :34:05.issue we heard raised, the latest developments in the Middle East. It
:34:05. > :34:08.does seem as if MPs are frustrated. They want something to happen but
:34:08. > :34:15.realistically what can a British Government do to influence things
:34:15. > :34:18.over there? It is very clear, MPs are very concerned. We had a
:34:18. > :34:21.statement yesterday from William Hague as well as the statements
:34:21. > :34:27.today from the Prime Minister. I think we have to use all the
:34:27. > :34:30.influence began to bring about a ceasefire. It is urgent, we cannot
:34:30. > :34:34.have a fence like the bus terrorist attack today. We cannot have the
:34:34. > :34:38.rocket attacks in Israel and we cannot have what is happening in
:34:38. > :34:42.Gaza. We have to use what influence we can to be to bring about a
:34:42. > :34:49.ceasefire. I also believe we have to work towards achieving the two
:34:49. > :34:53.state solution. That has been disappearing at down the agenda and
:34:53. > :35:01.we need to push a four wood so that I'll hope of that happening is not
:35:01. > :35:05.lost. Presumably that is something you are party would agree with. It
:35:05. > :35:10.goes across political boundaries, people are dying with what is
:35:10. > :35:13.happening in the Middle East at the moment. Yes, I have been
:35:13. > :35:17.increasingly contacted by constituents who have seen
:35:17. > :35:21.harrowing images on television who are urging me and other cards to do
:35:21. > :35:26.what we can to support the peace process to ensure the UK Government
:35:26. > :35:30.does uses of the was to try and bring its voice to the peace
:35:30. > :35:34.process. I really all we get negotiations soon. It is terrible
:35:34. > :35:42.having to watch these images and I hope we do get some kind of
:35:42. > :35:50.resolution and the next few days. agree with both David and my friend
:35:50. > :35:55.here. I think his is one of those issues where we can speak across
:35:55. > :36:00.parties in doing all we can to end the scenes we are seen of the last
:36:00. > :36:04.few days. Somewhere up there will be a
:36:04. > :36:09.difference of opinion, negotiations on the European Union budget which
:36:09. > :36:12.are due to take place. You're party together with a certain number of
:36:12. > :36:17.Conservatives for too far reduction in the European Union budget. The
:36:17. > :36:21.Prime Minister will not be have to go and get a will the? We voted for
:36:21. > :36:27.that is up. We have more cross- party unity here which will shatter
:36:27. > :36:31.in a moment. It is intolerable as a situation to say that when other
:36:31. > :36:41.budgets are being cut, that the European Union budget should not be
:36:41. > :36:44.subject to the same constraints. There has to be stringent times
:36:44. > :36:54.across all parts of Government spending and that has to be the
:36:54. > :37:03.case for Europe as well. You and Labour on the same page as this?
:37:03. > :37:07.And usually on a European issue. Again, budgets are being cut and we
:37:07. > :37:12.are facing austerity measures in the public sector, wages have been
:37:12. > :37:16.frozen, our constituents would expect that we would vote in favour
:37:16. > :37:22.of having a cat in the European Union budget. And the message to
:37:22. > :37:32.Yap Prime Minister is, go and get a reduction? It is opportunism, that
:37:32. > :37:36.
:37:36. > :37:39.is what it was. There was no principle behind the vote. The
:37:39. > :37:44.Prime Minister will do absolutely what we can to get Britain the best
:37:44. > :37:49.possible deal at the European Union table. And he said repeatedly if he
:37:49. > :37:53.does not get a deal that is acceptable he will veto it. Energy
:37:53. > :37:58.prices - the announcement yesterday that there will be a reduction in
:37:58. > :38:07.the number of Arabs. Whether reduce prices are willing just reduce
:38:07. > :38:12.contrary -- competition?, it will allow people to choose the lowest
:38:12. > :38:15.tariff suitable to them so they can cut their energy bills, cut their
:38:15. > :38:25.household budgets. When the Prime Minister announced this was going
:38:25. > :38:31.
:38:31. > :38:39.to be Government policy, it was still top down by others.
:38:39. > :38:46.Are you convince this tour reduce prices? Not at all. -- this will
:38:46. > :38:53.reduce. My constituents or worried about bills over the next few
:38:53. > :38:57.months. This will do nothing for prices and all it will do is that
:38:57. > :39:02.there will be more confusion entered into the energy market. I
:39:02. > :39:06.think we need to get some resolution to this, too. I hope he
:39:06. > :39:14.will agree with the other two things I said in the interview.
:39:14. > :39:19.Reduced tariffs, that is a good thing. It has to go alongside
:39:19. > :39:25.reform of the energy markets. Also that there is a regulator that
:39:25. > :39:29.passes on and has a duty to pass on wholesale costs to their consumer.
:39:30. > :39:32.What the Prime Minister said a few weeks ago is not the same as what
:39:32. > :39:36.he said yesterday. There is a difference between having the
:39:36. > :39:43.cheapest available to Arab and appropriate tariff and everyone
:39:44. > :39:49.getting the absolute cheapest tariff. Thank you for joining us.
:39:49. > :39:57.Back to you in the studio. Thank you very much. We will see
:39:57. > :40:01.you in - well for a Scottish questions. -- in a short while.
:40:01. > :40:09.Interesting to see that interesting political consensus. David Cameron
:40:09. > :40:12.will go there tomorrow. How do you think things will work out? The big
:40:12. > :40:16.question of the week is not Mike Russell or what -- but whether
:40:16. > :40:22.David Cameron has the guts to veto the European Union budget. I do not
:40:22. > :40:32.think you will get a real cuts. F The Beatles, then all hell Blake's
:40:32. > :40:33.
:40:33. > :40:39.lose. -- if he does the toll it. Then all hell will break loose.
:40:39. > :40:47.Really difficult for David Cameron. In the background, Angela Merkel is
:40:47. > :40:50.looking for compromise. The European Commission has offered an
:40:50. > :40:53.80 million euros cut. Angela Merkel is trying to find somewhere in the
:40:53. > :40:59.middle. Let's turn to another issue we are
:40:59. > :41:04.looking ahead to it. The Spanish region of Catalonia are holding
:41:04. > :41:09.elections this week. It could set the stage for a referendum there.
:41:09. > :41:13.Catalonia is having its elections on Sunday. They have cull these
:41:13. > :41:20.ahead of time, clearly because of the big opposition to it austerity
:41:20. > :41:29.from Madrid, because the people wanting independence has gone above
:41:29. > :41:39.50%. This was new. If they vote, -- the nationalist parties and, in
:41:39. > :41:39.
:41:39. > :41:47.news from being a Scottish one to be -- being a European wide one.
:41:47. > :41:52.is interesting, what is happening in Catalonian reflects made 2014.
:41:52. > :41:57.The Catalans want to hold a referendum on the same one -- same
:41:57. > :42:00.day as the Scottish one. It is illegal for them to call referendum.
:42:00. > :42:05.There would have to be major changes of legislation to do that.
:42:05. > :42:11.The briefly how do you think things will go? Do you think the
:42:11. > :42:18.Nationalists will make it? I think the tide is worth the Nationalists
:42:18. > :42:22.and Catalonia. Unemployment is 25% and you have massive austerity,
:42:22. > :42:29.nothing is happening about it. They wanted control their own economy
:42:29. > :42:33.just as John Swinney and Alex Salmond want to do here. George
:42:33. > :42:38.Kennan, thank you for that. Thank you for your company this afternoon.
:42:38. > :42:42.That is all we have time for this afternoon. Stand by for Scottish