:00:21. > :00:24.A very warm welcome to the Scottish Parliament here at Holyrood where
:00:24. > :00:28.the main focus is upon the statement to be delivered this
:00:28. > :00:31.afternoon by John Swinney, the Finance Secretary, setting out his
:00:31. > :00:34.finances for the coming year. That's live on BBC Two Scotland. We
:00:34. > :00:38.wouldn't want you to miss out on your weekly dose of questions to
:00:38. > :00:42.the First Minister, that's the main substance of this programme. Eat's
:00:42. > :00:47.cross to the chamber and find out what's happening with my colleague.
:00:47. > :00:51.Thanks, Brian. At the moment, questions to ministers is concluded.
:00:51. > :00:56.David Stuart of Labour has been asking about the discount scheme,
:00:56. > :01:00.the minister Keith Brown is in response at the moment. If he can
:01:01. > :01:05.put forward a legally based proposition which is then put in
:01:05. > :01:11.the budget, it would show that he's being serious or posturing. We now
:01:11. > :01:14.move to First Minister's questions. Johann lament? Thank you very much.
:01:14. > :01:21.To ask the First Minister, your code permitted of course, what his
:01:21. > :01:23.plans are for the rest to have day. I'll be in this chamber to hear the
:01:23. > :01:28.Cabinet Secretary for finance and growth deliver a budget for
:01:28. > :01:31.economic growth and job creation of Scotland.
:01:31. > :01:35.Of course the First Minister said that last time and the evidence in
:01:35. > :01:39.his budget proved that wasn't the case. We do know of course this
:01:39. > :01:44.afternoon that we are going to hear John Swinney's budget. Last year he
:01:44. > :01:48.present add budget which outlined engineering giant Duson's
:01:48. > :01:52.investment. By the time we worked on the budget, John Swinney and
:01:52. > :01:59.First Minister knew the company changed its plans. When did the
:01:59. > :02:05.Prime Minister find out about that and why did he not tell Parliament?
:02:05. > :02:10.The quest by Duson that they wanted to keep the plans commercial had to
:02:10. > :02:15.be respected by the Scottish Government and if Johann lament is
:02:15. > :02:18.seriously saying that she wouldn't request such a request, wouldn't
:02:19. > :02:23.respect a request from such companies, I rather think she's a
:02:23. > :02:27.long, long way from political office. I know that Johann lament
:02:27. > :02:31.will want to acknowledge their outstanding success of Scottish
:02:31. > :02:37.development international which this year once again have dem
:02:37. > :02:40.stpraited the top performance for inward investment -- demonstrated
:02:40. > :02:47.the top performance inward investment. Scotland beat even
:02:47. > :02:51.London in terms of inward investment. That have to be
:02:51. > :02:56.congratulated, not De peopled. That is very interesting but it's
:02:56. > :03:00.not the answer to the question you were asked. So nothing new there.
:03:00. > :03:05.The reality is that the First Minister knows when he was told and
:03:05. > :03:10.knows that it was wrong not to tell the Parliament about Duson's
:03:10. > :03:14.cancellation. He just doesn't want us to know The Truth. That's why
:03:14. > :03:20.he's refused to answer any Freedom of Information requests on this
:03:20. > :03:25.issue. The refusal to answer questions isn't just the First
:03:25. > :03:31.Minister's style every Thursday at First Minister's "Question Time" in
:03:31. > :03:37.this chamber, it's increasingly the style of his whole Government.
:03:37. > :03:46.That is why the number of appeals against ministers refusing to
:03:46. > :03:51.release information has risen by 175% in the last year. Why is that?
:03:51. > :03:57.Is the First Minister getting even more secretive or does he have even
:03:57. > :04:01.more to hide? THE SPEAKER: Order.
:04:01. > :04:06.Well, I've got here the Scottish Government's performance under
:04:06. > :04:15.Freedom of Information since we took office. Johann lament won't
:04:15. > :04:23.mind if I compare it to 2005. The performance in terms of being on
:04:23. > :04:28.time with the responses, that's gone up from 75% to 82% which I
:04:28. > :04:33.think is a pretty good performance. In terms of releasing information
:04:34. > :04:41.which was the real concern of Johann lament, it's gone up from
:04:41. > :04:44.69% to 71%. That is a rise from the secret of days -- secretive days of
:04:44. > :04:49.the Labour Administration in Scotland. In terms of appeals, what
:04:49. > :04:54.has been judged in favour of the SNP Government compared to the
:04:54. > :04:59.Labour Government has gone up from 68 to 72% judgments in favour. So
:04:59. > :05:02.on all these criteria, this Government's performing better
:05:02. > :05:06.under Freedom of Information than the Government at which Johann
:05:06. > :05:12.lament was proud to serve but refused to tell the people the
:05:12. > :05:16.whole range of important areas of information.
:05:16. > :05:20.THE SPEAKER: Mr McKneel, I would appreciate if you stopped shouting
:05:20. > :05:29.across the chamber. Johann lament? All of that is very interesting.
:05:29. > :05:33.However, what the first minister... THE SPEAKER: Order. It's always
:05:33. > :05:37.interesting and creative and enthusiastic till you look at the
:05:37. > :05:42.figures later. However, what the First Minister has to explain is
:05:42. > :05:47.why rosemary Agnew an Information Commissioner says "we are in a
:05:47. > :05:52.worse position in relation to rights to information than we were
:05:52. > :05:56.when the Freedom of Information Act was passed". That is not me saying
:05:56. > :06:00.it, that's the Information Commissioner saying it and I
:06:00. > :06:04.suspect I would trust her figures before those of the First Minister
:06:04. > :06:08.himself. But of course, this is the First
:06:08. > :06:18.Minister who can't be straight with or have respect for the Scottish
:06:18. > :06:22.people. He refuses to tell us what advice he has on an independent
:06:22. > :06:25.Scotland's place in Europe. Incredibly, he's even today taken
:06:25. > :06:32.the Freedom of Information Commissioner to the Court of
:06:32. > :06:36.Session to try to shut her up, just like when he spent hundreds of
:06:36. > :06:42.thousands of pounds of taxpayers' cash, our cash, against official
:06:42. > :06:46.advice to stop the public knowing The Truth about his tax plans.
:06:46. > :06:52.In a time when families across the country are paying the price for
:06:52. > :06:56.his budget cuts, why is he spending... THE SPEAKER: Order.
:06:56. > :07:00.Why is he spending hundreds of thousands of pounds of Scottish
:07:00. > :07:08.people's money to stop the people of Scotland finding out what he's
:07:08. > :07:13.doing? Which is why I come here every week
:07:13. > :07:18.expecting Johann lament to ask about the economy and -- Johann
:07:18. > :07:24.lament to ask about the economy and she never asks about any of these
:07:24. > :07:28.in First Minister's questions. Can I have the Freedom of Information
:07:28. > :07:31.Commissioner from the partial quoting of Johann Lament. She said
:07:31. > :07:36.she was worried ability the deteriorating position because of a
:07:36. > :07:40.propensity of local authoritys in Scotland to set up arms length
:07:40. > :07:46.bodies. Which council in Scotland has set up more arms length bodies
:07:46. > :07:49.than any other if it wasn't for Glasgow and incidentally, I once we
:07:49. > :07:55.get the presence Freedom of Information legislation through
:07:55. > :07:57.this Parliament to make it Morrow bust in this term, am extremely
:07:57. > :08:04.similar pathettoick the Freedom of Information comixer's request to
:08:04. > :08:07.extend it to arms length bodies set up by local authorities --
:08:08. > :08:11.sympathetic to the Freedom of Information Commission's request.
:08:11. > :08:16.The commissioner has gone looking for an urgent disposal of the case.
:08:17. > :08:22.We agree that there should be an urgent disposal of the case today,
:08:22. > :08:26.not vice versa. Johann Lament also wanted to know why there might be
:08:26. > :08:28.more appeals under the Freedom of Information. It might be there more
:08:28. > :08:34.requests under Freedom of Information and I've been doing a
:08:34. > :08:40.bit of research and I find that one person, a Labour researcher, is
:08:40. > :08:45.responsible for over 14% of all the Freedom of Information requests.
:08:45. > :08:55.Now, unfortunately, I can't tell you who this person is because he's
:08:55. > :08:55.
:08:55. > :09:00.asked to remain anonymous! LAUGHTER
:09:00. > :09:07.Such is the Labour Party's commitment to Freedom of
:09:07. > :09:14.Information. Johann Lament? Can I advise the
:09:14. > :09:18.First Minister not to judge his suck succession of answer by the
:09:18. > :09:22.cheering of his backbenchers. He might want to get out a bit more,
:09:22. > :09:26.head for George Square and ask them what they think of that as an
:09:26. > :09:30.answer to his question. Because of course, the First Minister could
:09:30. > :09:34.solve the problem this morning in the court but she says they agree
:09:34. > :09:38.they want to speed it up. All he needs to do is ask permission to
:09:38. > :09:43.give the information to people of Scotland and then they wouldn't
:09:43. > :09:46.need to be in court at all. It's no wonder that the Freedom of
:09:46. > :09:51.Information Commissioner said this week, it's simply not acceptable
:09:51. > :09:55.that citizens' rights continue to be eroded. The facts of the matters
:09:55. > :09:58.are that the First Minister says, spending in colleges has gone up,
:09:58. > :10:02.when he's cut it, Scotland is investigating the NHS because they
:10:02. > :10:07.don't believe the figures, and he uses taxpayers' money to go to
:10:07. > :10:11.court to stop the public knowing The Truth, not just about Europe,
:10:12. > :10:15.but about anything he finds an convenient truth. The First
:10:15. > :10:21.Minister wishes I would ask him the right question. The people of this
:10:21. > :10:26.country would wish that he would start answering questions.
:10:26. > :10:30.We have to ask him this question - the people across this country are
:10:30. > :10:39.asking why can't this First Minister be straight with the
:10:39. > :10:42.Scottish people? Well, the specifics of the European
:10:42. > :10:45.question and legal advice - I believe that the statement made
:10:45. > :10:50.last week pointing out the White Paper will be informed by the legal
:10:50. > :10:54.advice at that time offers the solution, both of providing the
:10:54. > :10:56.information to the Scottish people and keeping me in terms of
:10:56. > :11:00.compliance with the ministerial code. I know that Johann Lament
:11:00. > :11:07.would think it a tragedy if I broke the ministerial code and she
:11:07. > :11:11.wouldn't really want that to happen. Now, I wasn't judging the success
:11:11. > :11:15.of the last answer on the basis of the jeering in the backbenches, I
:11:15. > :11:20.was judging it on Johann Lament's countenance which I have to say was
:11:20. > :11:27.extremely worrying to me. If I'm not very careful, I'll end up on
:11:27. > :11:30.leave with Rama or swimming with fishes for Colin Smith. If people
:11:30. > :11:34.get the mood for insubordination within the Labour Party, goodness
:11:34. > :11:40.knows what would happen if Labour ever had inflicted on the people of
:11:40. > :11:43.Scotland the misfortune to be back in Government.
:11:43. > :11:46.THE SPEAKER: Ruth Davidson. Thank you, Presiding Officer. To
:11:46. > :11:50.ask the First Minister when he'll next meet the Secretary of State
:11:50. > :11:54.for Scotland. The Deputy First Minister and I had a productive
:11:54. > :11:56.meeting with the Prime Minister and the Secretary of State only
:11:56. > :12:01.yesterday and the Deputy First Minister will meet the Secretary of
:12:01. > :12:04.State again next week. Frankly I find it extraordinary
:12:04. > :12:09.that a political party attempting to get information out of the
:12:09. > :12:11.Government of the day worthy of roars of laughter of derision from
:12:11. > :12:15.that Government absolutely extraordinary when this is a
:12:15. > :12:21.Government which has been trying to block information being passed to
:12:21. > :12:25.the public. I also find it extraordinary, Presiding Officer,
:12:25. > :12:30.that this First Minister would like to compare this year with 2005
:12:30. > :12:36.because from the figures I have in front of me, I don't know if he's
:12:36. > :12:40.talking about 2004-2005 or 2005- 2006, but together the number of
:12:40. > :12:46.appeals blocked by the Government then was 166 compared to the last
:12:46. > :12:51.two years which goes up to 215. If we look at this case today, that
:12:51. > :12:55.has cost us a six figure sum. That is a cost continuing to rise,
:12:55. > :12:59.that's before we've had two days scheduled in the Court of Session.
:12:59. > :13:03.Before the election last year, the First Minister spent over �100,000
:13:03. > :13:10.of taxpayers' money to keep from voters his plans for a local income
:13:10. > :13:14.tax. So I ask the First Minister, how much of the taxpayers' hard-
:13:15. > :13:18.earned money is he and his ministerial team spending to shore
:13:18. > :13:23.up his secret to society and to deny information to which the
:13:23. > :13:26.people of Scotland are perfectly entitled.
:13:26. > :13:30.First Minister? Can I just point out, it's the Information
:13:30. > :13:33.Commissioner who's going to court today by the agreement of the
:13:33. > :13:35.government because she wants disposal of the public interest
:13:35. > :13:38.element and the Freedom of Information request. Can I also
:13:38. > :13:43.point out that the Scottish Government is a minority of the
:13:43. > :13:47.number of public interest questions to be settled under the freedom of
:13:47. > :13:52.nfpgs. Ruth Davidson asks about the figures I have -- information. The
:13:52. > :13:56.point I was making, it's in terms of information released, that is
:13:56. > :14:01.the amount of information given out to the public, that is 71% which is
:14:02. > :14:07.a rise. In terms of the responses on time, and incidentally most
:14:07. > :14:11.appeals take place because of lack of response, then that's risen from
:14:11. > :14:16.75% to 72%. On the adjudication of the appeals, there's also a rising
:14:16. > :14:22.trend in favour of the Scottish Government's interpretation of the
:14:22. > :14:27.Act. Let me say, I welcome the Conservative Party's new found
:14:27. > :14:31.conversion to the question of Freedom of Information. As I recall
:14:31. > :14:33.it, perhaps I'm open to correction from the new direction of the
:14:33. > :14:37.Conservative Party led by Ruth Davidson. The Conservative Party
:14:37. > :14:41.were the least party in favour of Freedom of Information and the
:14:41. > :14:44.people who're most suspicious about giving any information out at all.
:14:45. > :14:48.So I know that she really does welcome, despite the better
:14:48. > :14:52.together campaign, and the alliance of the Labour Party and the
:14:52. > :14:55.Conservatives, that she does welcome the fact on every criteria
:14:55. > :14:59.the performance of the SNP Government and Freedom of
:14:59. > :15:05.Information exceeds that of the Labour lib ral administration that
:15:05. > :15:13.went before us -- liberal administration that went before us.
:15:13. > :15:17.I asked about costs but I guess you Two cases that have cost over
:15:17. > :15:23.�100,000 each but what this Government hasn't told us is that
:15:23. > :15:31.there are �500 more appeals since this First Minister came to power.
:15:31. > :15:35.Is the First Minister so pa tphoeud that even the smallest details are
:15:35. > :15:41.- even who he has been to the theatre with? If this First
:15:41. > :15:44.Minister is to open... Order, settle down. At the risk of
:15:44. > :15:48.sparking yet another costly legal action against the interests of the
:15:48. > :15:53.people of Scotland, can this First Minister tell us, for instance,
:15:53. > :15:59.what legal advice he's received about an independent Scotland
:15:59. > :16:05.leaving NATO? The position on appeals, if you take 2006, 8% of
:16:05. > :16:09.cases went to appeal, in 2011 it was 6% of cases. Ruth Davidson will
:16:10. > :16:13.have to take on board the point I was making with the -- about the
:16:13. > :16:17.increased volume of numbers of requests and I am sure no
:16:18. > :16:22.Conservative researcher is responsible for 14% in themselves
:16:22. > :16:25.of the number of FOI requests coming forward. In terms of being
:16:25. > :16:30.to the theatre, I confirm that I have not been to the theatre with
:16:30. > :16:35.any member of the Conservative Party parliamentary group and I
:16:35. > :16:45.have no intention of doing so. With that reassurance I can put Ruth
:16:45. > :16:55.
:16:55. > :17:01.Davidson's mind at rest. I am grateful to Fergus Ewing for
:17:01. > :17:05.his positive engagement with me and local stakeholders in seeking to
:17:05. > :17:09.develop other solutions tpwu will take time for those solutions to be
:17:09. > :17:11.put in place. Can I ask the First Minister to make representations to
:17:12. > :17:14.ensure everything possible is done to accelerate this process
:17:14. > :17:18.alongside any steps that might be taken more immediately and in
:17:18. > :17:23.particular will he support an urgent review of proposals put
:17:23. > :17:28.forward by Orkney islands council that could facilitate away from
:17:28. > :17:32.fossil fuels and help alleviate the current constraints? Well, can I
:17:32. > :17:36.thank him for raising the issue. Orkney has massive renewables
:17:36. > :17:42.potential and Scottish cabinet colleagues were impressed with work
:17:42. > :17:46.being done there when the cabinet met. We recognise good capacity in
:17:46. > :17:52.Orkney and moratorium announced is a cause for concern. I raised the
:17:52. > :17:57.issue of island connections with the Secretary of State this week in
:17:57. > :18:02.a meeting in London and put together the proposal, this was on
:18:02. > :18:06.the precise issue of connection charges which is directly related
:18:06. > :18:10.to this issue. The idea of a working group between the Scottish
:18:10. > :18:14.Government, UK Government and the island councils, and of course in
:18:14. > :18:17.consultation with the network operators to see if we can get a
:18:17. > :18:21.resolution to this issue, both in terms of the current grid capacity,
:18:21. > :18:26.but also in terms of the future charging to allow that renewables
:18:26. > :18:29.potential to be unleashed from the islands. The Secretary of State was
:18:29. > :18:33.very interested in that suggestion. I hope it can be taken forward.
:18:33. > :18:37.Because it's in the interests, certainly of the Isles, but in the
:18:37. > :18:43.interests of all of Scotland, island communities economic
:18:43. > :18:45.potential contributes to the whole Scottish nation. David Stewart.
:18:45. > :18:49.Presiding officer, the First Minister will be well aware of the
:18:49. > :18:53.severe fuel crisis in the Western Isles where garages are running out
:18:53. > :18:57.of petrol and diesel and motorists are forced to sell rationing at the
:18:57. > :19:01.pumps. This has severe kopbs kwebss -- consequences for emergency
:19:01. > :19:08.vehicles and the public. Will the First Minister agree to meet
:19:08. > :19:13.Scottish fuels to help find a solution for the Western Isles?
:19:13. > :19:17.I agreed to that meeting. This is to do with tax and work that needs
:19:17. > :19:25.to be done to address that situation. So we will continue to
:19:25. > :19:30.pursue that and hopefully can find a solution. Jang The First Minister
:19:30. > :19:34.will be airwaeur that a major employer in Falkirk as well as
:19:34. > :19:36.Dundee and Aberdeenshire has announced jobs are at risk as a
:19:37. > :19:40.result of reduction in work received from one of the major
:19:40. > :19:43.clients. With the company pledging to work with employee representives
:19:43. > :19:46.and other clients in an attempt to minimise the number of job losses
:19:46. > :19:52.can I ask the First Minister ensures the Scottish Government
:19:52. > :19:55.offers whatever support it can to give them and employees support at
:19:56. > :20:00.what is understandably a very difficult time for them. Well, I
:20:00. > :20:04.share the member's concern in respect of the announcement made
:20:04. > :20:07.yesterday regarding Scotia gas networks and this is to do with the
:20:07. > :20:11.amount of contracted work from the regulator to reinforce the gas
:20:11. > :20:14.network in Scotland. I am deeply concerned about the reduction in
:20:14. > :20:19.that contracted work from the regulator. But obviously concerned
:20:19. > :20:24.at the impact that can have on employees, families and surrounding
:20:24. > :20:27.areas. I spoke yesterday with the managing director, that's Michael
:20:27. > :20:30.Thompson, and immediately offered support through our partnership
:20:30. > :20:33.action for continuing employment, that's the pace programme
:20:33. > :20:36.initiative for those employees who may be affected by redundancy. I
:20:36. > :20:41.also think it's possible, because there are key skills involved in
:20:41. > :20:44.terms of the reinforcement of the gas network that certainly is
:20:44. > :20:50.transferable to a number of other industries, including water and
:20:50. > :20:53.electricity, and I have undertaken to be personally involved in seeing
:20:53. > :20:59.the maximum amount of transfer take place to mitigate the number of job
:20:59. > :21:03.losses in Falkirk, Dundee and the north-west of -- north-east of
:21:03. > :21:06.Scotland. What safeguards exist to protect taxpayers against the
:21:07. > :21:09.improper use of public funds by Government agencies? Well, the
:21:09. > :21:12.Scottish Government's committed to the highest standard of
:21:12. > :21:16.accountability across the public sector as evidenced by six
:21:16. > :21:19.consecutive years of unqualified audit opinions from the Auditor
:21:19. > :21:24.General for Scotland on the Scottish Government's consolidated
:21:24. > :21:27.accounts. Presiding Officer, Scottish enterprise has been
:21:27. > :21:30.demonstrating its own approach to stimulating economic growth in
:21:31. > :21:34.Scotland and protecting taxpayers with employees withdrawing
:21:34. > :21:37.thousands of pounds in the organisation's corporate credit
:21:37. > :21:40.cards for personal use and how some businesses would love that kind of
:21:40. > :21:43.flexible friend. If this is the experience of Scotland's enterprise
:21:44. > :21:47.agency, Heaven knows what maybe going on elsewhere in the public
:21:47. > :21:51.sector so will the First Minister instruct an urgent investigation
:21:51. > :21:55.into the use of corporate credit cards by his Government agencies to
:21:55. > :22:01.ensure that more robust safeguards for the protection of the taxpayer
:22:01. > :22:04.are applied across the board? can we just remember that audit
:22:04. > :22:10.Scotland in terms of the national fraud initiatives contrasted the
:22:10. > :22:16.high level of commitment to NFI in Scotland contrasting with level
:22:16. > :22:20.from UK Government and on SS - Scottish enterprise, internal audit
:22:20. > :22:23.did identify non-compliance issues in relation to corporate credit
:22:23. > :22:26.cards, given the requirement to settle the bill personally,
:22:26. > :22:30.Scottish enterprise suffered no financial loss as a result. They
:22:30. > :22:32.have increased frequency of the review processes to ensure any
:22:32. > :22:38.future non-compliance is highlighted and addressed quickly.
:22:38. > :22:42.It's not quite the dramatic situation that Annabel Goldie
:22:42. > :22:46.suggested in her question. To ask the First Minister whether
:22:46. > :22:52.the Scottish Government will consider establishing a national
:22:52. > :22:56.tennis centre? Well, I was delighted to meet Andy and Judy
:22:56. > :22:59.Murray last Sunday. It's clear that both are passionate about
:22:59. > :23:03.developing tennis in Scotland to ensure youngsters have greater
:23:03. > :23:07.access to stpaeult -- facilities and coaching to make the most of
:23:07. > :23:11.their potential. A discussion about their idea for a tennis academy, as
:23:11. > :23:14.well as improving facilities and interest in tennis, all of which is
:23:14. > :23:17.in line with the Scottish Government's ambition to increase
:23:17. > :23:20.young Scots participation in sport. We will be exploring this with
:23:20. > :23:23.Murrays and the team over the next few months and hope to make an
:23:23. > :23:28.announcement in this regard in the near future. I thank the First
:23:28. > :23:32.Minister to that answer. Le take this opportunity to congratulate
:23:32. > :23:35.the tennis centre in my constituency which has the largest
:23:36. > :23:39.junior tennis participation programme in the UK and can he
:23:39. > :23:42.ensure the Government is doing all it could to provide facilities are
:23:42. > :23:45.to tennis and grass root sports for all ages and abilities across the
:23:45. > :23:52.whole of Scotland, ensuring a lasting legacy from the
:23:52. > :23:56.Commonwealth Games in 2014. Yes, he is right to draw ahe tension to the
:23:56. > :24:02.success that is have taken place in tennis. There is a range of figures
:24:02. > :24:06.in terms of number of coaches which tell - it's very much on the up in
:24:06. > :24:11.Scotland. I can give the member that assurance. But we should also
:24:11. > :24:16.reflect in terms of the wider range of facilities and sport, the
:24:16. > :24:23.substantial contributions to the Sir Chris Hoy Velodrome indoor
:24:23. > :24:27.arena, the �55 million investment in the Aberdeen sports village,
:24:27. > :24:31.sports complex and here in Edinburgh, refurbished pool, all of
:24:32. > :24:35.which will be added to both by the additional facilities built for the
:24:35. > :24:39.Commonwealth Games, and in particular, the �25 million
:24:39. > :24:43.committed to Scotland's first ever national performance for sport in
:24:43. > :24:46.which we will have a football academy at its heart. All these
:24:46. > :24:56.initiatives bode well for the future, both of participation and
:24:56. > :25:01.excellence of sport in Scotland. First Minister, one of Scotland's
:25:01. > :25:07.local authorities announced that 1300 job losses, many of them in my
:25:07. > :25:11.constituency... Sorry, that's not the question. We are talking about
:25:11. > :25:15.a tennis centre. Could you resume your seat. We move to question
:25:15. > :25:20.number five. To ask the First Minister whether
:25:20. > :25:24.the Scottish Government supports the Royal College of Nursing's this
:25:24. > :25:30.is nursing campaign, celebrating the professionalism and compassion
:25:30. > :25:34.of nursing staff? Well, Scotland's nurses and other National Health
:25:34. > :25:37.Service staff do extraordinary work day after day and deserve our
:25:37. > :25:40.wholehearted and united support. So I am pleased to put on record my my
:25:40. > :25:44.personal support, the support of Government, the support of the
:25:44. > :25:49.parliament for the Royal College of Nursing's campaign which as the
:25:49. > :25:52.member rightly says, celebrates both Protestant tpegsalism and the
:25:52. > :25:54.-- professionalism and compassion of nursing staff. I am sure the
:25:54. > :25:57.whole parliament would wish to join the First Minister in praising our
:25:57. > :26:01.hard working nursing staff. But can I ask the First Minister if he
:26:02. > :26:05.agrees with his backbenchers when they said yesterday that the Royal
:26:05. > :26:11.College of Nursing were wrong in stating that the nursing staff
:26:11. > :26:15.numbers are now at their lowest since 2005 and is the First
:26:15. > :26:19.Minister asking the public to believe that axing 2,500 nursing
:26:19. > :26:24.posts is having no direct effect upon our nurses' ability to deliver
:26:24. > :26:31.the quality of patient care to which they aspire and which they
:26:31. > :26:36.RCN campaign celebrates? Well, that's not what the backbenchers
:26:36. > :26:40.said, as - well, what they said there are more qualified nurses and
:26:40. > :26:47.midwives per thousand population in Scotland than the rest of UK, 7.9
:26:47. > :26:52.nurses and midwives compared to 5.9 in England, 7.2 in Wales and 7.6 in
:26:52. > :26:55.Northern Ireland. There are currently more nurses and midwives
:26:55. > :26:59.in post than nine, ten years when Labour was in Government in
:26:59. > :27:03.Scotland in the great boom years for public spending and now we have
:27:03. > :27:08.had the detail last week on the National Health Service staffing in
:27:08. > :27:11.Scotland, I do hope that the Labour leader will draw her constant and
:27:11. > :27:13.inaccurate remarks that are less staff employed in the National
:27:13. > :27:17.Health Service when when the SNP took office. It's clear from the
:27:17. > :27:21.statistics last week there are more people employed in our National
:27:21. > :27:25.Health Service than when the SNP took office and that's clear from
:27:25. > :27:33.the statistics and I know that Johann Lamont and Richard Simpson
:27:33. > :27:36.will bage sthous correct the -- will be anxious to correct the
:27:36. > :27:40.record. Could I ask the First Minister what
:27:40. > :27:44.his reaction is to the experience of members of this parliament,
:27:44. > :27:47.including myself, stated yesterday of a level of nursing staff on duty
:27:47. > :27:50.at right in hospital wards which fall short of patients' needs and
:27:50. > :27:57.expectations and leads to unnecessary pressure on frontline
:27:57. > :28:01.staff? Well, there are obviously in times of extraordinary economic
:28:01. > :28:05.stringency, despite the termination of this Government and achievement
:28:05. > :28:09.in protecting the revenue budget of the National Health Service in real
:28:09. > :28:14.terms, something that hasn't been done by some other administrations
:28:14. > :28:17.in these islands, and people would doubt very considerably if a
:28:17. > :28:21.Conservative administration would have managed such an achievement.
:28:21. > :28:25.There are obviously our National Health Service is still under
:28:25. > :28:28.pressure and that's most certainly the case. All the more so then we
:28:28. > :28:32.should celebrate the record achievements under the range of
:28:32. > :28:36.indicaters that show our National Health Service staff, our nurses,
:28:36. > :28:39.doctors, the whole range of staff throughout the National Health
:28:39. > :28:43.Service are performing exceptionally for this country in
:28:43. > :28:46.difficult times. Question number six. Thank you. To
:28:46. > :28:50.ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's position is
:28:50. > :28:53.on the study published by the new economics foundation relating to a
:28:53. > :28:56.halt on mackerel fishing. Government agrees with the report
:28:56. > :29:01.that fishing at sustainable levels would result in increased profit
:29:01. > :29:04.for the industry. We are moving towards fishing at maximum
:29:04. > :29:08.sustainable yield. The benefits of transitional approach we are
:29:08. > :29:12.working on partnership with fishermen are skills are market
:29:12. > :29:16.capacity are not lost, key factors, not considered in this report. I
:29:17. > :29:20.think in terms of mackerel and sustainability, then this entire
:29:20. > :29:26.chamber should unite in congratulating Scottish and indeed
:29:26. > :29:31.Norwegian fishermen over a period of many years of fishing this stock
:29:31. > :29:36.sustainably and ensure and unite in our demand to ensure that the
:29:36. > :29:40.European Union come to an agreement with Iceland and faroes on the
:29:40. > :29:43.current totally unsatisfactory position of overfishing by these
:29:43. > :29:48.communities and that is why there has to be a resolution of that
:29:48. > :29:51.crisis and to implement sanctions as soon as possible.
:29:51. > :29:54.I thank you the First Minister for his answer. This report has caused
:29:54. > :29:57.concern in north-east communities communities where mackerel fish
:29:57. > :30:00.something a key part of the industry. Can the First Minister
:30:00. > :30:04.advise what the Government is doing to advise others to ensure some of
:30:04. > :30:07.more extreme approaches outlined in the report do in the gain traction
:30:08. > :30:13.elsewhere and does he agree it would be easier to advocate on
:30:13. > :30:21.behalf of the fishing industry as an independent Scotland at the
:30:21. > :30:25.heart of Europe? Well, they've of course it would be much easier to
:30:25. > :30:33.do that job if he wasn't prevented from speaking at some of the
:30:33. > :30:39.European Council meetings as indeed has been the case. Given that
:30:39. > :30:42.Scotland holds three quarters of the UK share of mackerel quota, it
:30:42. > :30:46.seem illlogical that ministers do not have a full seat at the council
:30:46. > :30:50.making decisions on the future of that industry. Surely it is self-
:30:50. > :30:52.evident that a Scottish Minister responsible to this parliament
:30:52. > :31:00.representing and answerable to the fishing communities of Scotland
:31:00. > :31:03.would be able to make that case as a member of the European Union.
:31:03. > :31:07.Thank you. This report has been rightly
:31:07. > :31:10.slammed by fishing organisations but on the issue of mackerel stocks
:31:10. > :31:15.can the First Minister update us on what the Scottish Government is
:31:15. > :31:18.doing to ensure a continued supply of mackerel is available to
:31:18. > :31:22.supermarkets and other outlets and can he confirm if the meeting with
:31:22. > :31:27.the supermarkets promised by his cabinet Secretary has taken place?
:31:27. > :31:31.Well, Richard Lockhead will respond directly and he makes many, many
:31:31. > :31:35.meetings with supermarkets to enormous success for Scottish food
:31:35. > :31:40.and drink over the last years. The key issue in terms of mackerel
:31:40. > :31:44.stock is to resolve the situation with faroes and Iceland, that's the
:31:44. > :31:48.key issue. This is a stock been fished sustainably over many years.
:31:48. > :31:52.One of the most profitable stocks in Scotland. Available to our
:31:52. > :32:02.fishing communities and to a supermarkets and we must absolutely
:32:02. > :32:02.
:32:02. > :32:06.get a resolution of the overfishing taking place, that is why Richard
:32:06. > :32:08.Lockhead has been pushing strongly to get the action by the the
:32:08. > :32:12.European Union and that action and compliance with the international
:32:12. > :32:17.regulation are the only way that we can assure sustainable supplies for
:32:17. > :32:21.our fishermen to catch and for our consumers to eat.
:32:21. > :32:24.That is First Ministers questions. There we have it, the close of
:32:24. > :32:30.questions to the First Minister. The closing exchanges there about
:32:30. > :32:32.the fishing industry, earlier the dom dominant theme was allegations
:32:32. > :32:38.of secrecy on the part of the Scottish Government, allegations
:32:38. > :32:42.that were robustly denied by Mr Salmond. No secrecy about the