:02:23. > :02:34.Conference of us can rest while one in five of our children livd in
:02:35. > :02:38.poverty. Largely due to our investment in affordable hotsing, we
:02:39. > :02:44.should burn with rage at thd injustice of 220,000 childrdn living
:02:45. > :02:50.below the breadline. Becausd poverty, for anyone, whether you are
:02:51. > :02:57.young or old, means waking tp every day facing fear and uncertahnty
:02:58. > :03:02.insecurity, petty humiliations and impossible decisions about loney.
:03:03. > :03:08.Impossible decisions about whether to heat your home properly or to
:03:09. > :03:12.feed your kids. And for children it means the stigma and the sh`me of
:03:13. > :03:18.being marked out as different and having your life chances thwarted.
:03:19. > :03:23.We invest over ?100 million to protect people from the hardship of
:03:24. > :03:26.UK welfare cuts rather than investing to lift people out of
:03:27. > :03:30.poverty, and I shudder to think what we would have happened -- what
:03:31. > :03:34.would've happened if we had not helped thousands of families in
:03:35. > :03:40.crisis with grants, council tax reduction or paying the bedroom tax.
:03:41. > :03:44.Conference, following the UK Government's decision to repeal
:03:45. > :03:49.large parts of the 2010 Child Poverty Act we said we would
:03:50. > :03:55.withdraw from that legislathon and come forward with our own approach.
:03:56. > :03:58.And that is why I will introduce a child poverty Bill as one of our
:03:59. > :04:03.earliest priorities in this first year of our new parliament. And we
:04:04. > :04:08.profoundly and fundamentallx disagree with the Tories whdn they
:04:09. > :04:14.scrap statutory child poverty targets last year. They preferred to
:04:15. > :04:19.sweep child poverty under the carpet by changing the goalposts and
:04:20. > :04:24.ignoring the facts that mord than anything else, a lack of falily
:04:25. > :04:27.income drives child poverty, and no matter how the UK Government tries
:04:28. > :04:33.to spin it, you can't talk `bout poverty if you are not going to talk
:04:34. > :04:36.about the money and people `nd the money in their pockets, and that is
:04:37. > :04:41.what this government will always put children first. The child poverty
:04:42. > :04:48.Bill will enshrine in legislation our clear ambition to eradicate
:04:49. > :04:51.child poverty. This ambition will be underpinned by statutory income
:04:52. > :04:57.-based targets and a robust Team Scotland delivery plan, and a
:04:58. > :05:03.setting out proposals for long-term action. I'm determined to t`ke the
:05:04. > :05:09.challenge of creating a fairer Scotland to a new level by
:05:10. > :05:11.confronting the limits that poverty places on our children, by building
:05:12. > :05:16.on the progress of the last nine years in government, and making that
:05:17. > :05:20.solid case that the best rotte to a fairer Scotland is indeed an
:05:21. > :05:26.independent Scotland. The vdry purpose of our Parliament is to make
:05:27. > :05:34.lasting change and seismic shift that is required to take chhld
:05:35. > :05:39.poverty to the dustbin of hhstory, and with Tory rule, ongoing
:05:40. > :05:42.austerity, Brexit, and the possibility of a downgrading of
:05:43. > :05:46.social solidarity, human rights and dignity, our children are at risk of
:05:47. > :05:52.being the first generation that will be worse off than their pardnts We
:05:53. > :05:55.need to be clear and we need to be confident that Scotland belongs to
:05:56. > :06:02.the international family of nations that prices equality and hulan
:06:03. > :06:06.rights. -- prizes. We are the mainstream and we are the ones who
:06:07. > :06:16.are in tune with the wider world. In day-to-day life... APPLAUSE
:06:17. > :06:19.In day-to-day life, that me`ns protecting and advancing thd right
:06:20. > :06:24.of our children as well as parents who strive to work for fair wages
:06:25. > :06:32.and decent working conditions, to turn an income decent enough to live
:06:33. > :06:36.on, and the highest attainmdnt of health and education, these are
:06:37. > :06:40.internationally binding rights which matter to our children in a very
:06:41. > :06:47.real sense and shame the wax we all live or the way we should lhve our
:06:48. > :06:50.daily lives. Fairness and gdnuine equality of opportunity are the
:06:51. > :06:51.imperative of the political moment. Conference, please support the
:06:52. > :07:08.motion. Thank you. APPLAUSE Stewart Brown will second the
:07:09. > :07:12.resolution. Now we have another speech in favour of the resolution.
:07:13. > :07:24.Stewart Brown is a first-tile speaker at conference. APPL@USE
:07:25. > :07:32.Good morning, conference. Mx name is Stuart Brown and I joined the SNP in
:07:33. > :07:39.2014 after the independence referendum, like many others, and
:07:40. > :07:43.I'm now a convener of a branch. APPLAUSE
:07:44. > :07:52.I have no idea how that happened, but there you go. I'm here today to
:07:53. > :07:54.support Angela Constance and two seconds her resolution on the
:07:55. > :08:03.establishment of a Child Poverty Act. I did just say Child Poverty
:08:04. > :08:08.Act, in Scotland in 2016, one of the world's richest nations, a lodern
:08:09. > :08:13.progressive country, and utterly unacceptable situation. The result
:08:14. > :08:18.of this ideological driven `nd totally unnecessary austerity agenda
:08:19. > :08:25.of this elitist, heartless Tory government. I was born in Glasgow in
:08:26. > :08:29.the 60s and I moved to Livingston in West Lothian in 1982 and I got
:08:30. > :08:32.married and had two children and brought them up and now thex are
:08:33. > :08:37.parents themselves. They have given me three beautiful grandchildren.
:08:38. > :08:43.Aida moved abroad in the Sotth East of Asia, so I have seen child
:08:44. > :08:49.poverty all over the world ,- I even moved abroad. Urban and rur`l. West
:08:50. > :08:54.Lothian has both, from the aforementioned Livingston to
:08:55. > :09:01.Bathgate, to the former minhng villages, it is in these mining
:09:02. > :09:03.villages that rural child poverty adds its own unique convocation
:09:04. > :09:11.still an already difficult situation. Where geography leans
:09:12. > :09:17.difficulty in getting emploxment, education and training is h`rder for
:09:18. > :09:20.parents -- unique complicathon. Fuel costs are higher and transport can
:09:21. > :09:26.make it difficult to keep a job and heaven forbid that if a latd bus
:09:27. > :09:32.leads to a delayed appointmdnt and a vindictive Tory sanction.
:09:33. > :09:42.It is not just fuel costs that are higher, because to the basics we
:09:43. > :09:47.take for granted are, as well, food, clothing, energy to heat holes,
:09:48. > :09:52.homes that are far from energy-efficient because of age or
:09:53. > :09:57.maintenance. Childcare is also not so readily available, and when
:09:58. > :10:02.employment is found it often leads to working unsociable hours. Where
:10:03. > :10:05.the vital and indispensable relationship bring parents `nd
:10:06. > :10:12.children is negatively affected -- between. These factors whether in
:10:13. > :10:18.isolation or in together, rtral or urban, produced stress on p`rents,
:10:19. > :10:24.struggling with insufficient funds to make ends meet, trying to live
:10:25. > :10:27.with a unified life against -- trying to live a dignified life
:10:28. > :10:32.against impossible odds, affecting their ability to be the best parents
:10:33. > :10:35.they can, leading to childrdn suffering, suffering that in this
:10:36. > :10:39.day and age is cruel and unnecessary. Please support this
:10:40. > :10:41.resolution and help end the blight of child poverty in Scotland. Thank
:10:42. > :10:48.you. APPLAUSE I now call another first-tile
:10:49. > :12:11.speaker. At at people live like that every
:12:12. > :12:17.single day. They have to make the decision, is it shower prodtcts
:12:18. > :12:24.milk or bread, everyday. It is the children who lose concentration and
:12:25. > :12:29.do not prosper. I have never as a counsellor met a child who said
:12:30. > :12:40.when I grow up I want to be unemployed. Not one single time
:12:41. > :12:45.People will say to me, why should I pay for other people's kids? You
:12:46. > :12:51.don't pay for other people's kids, you pay for the future of Scotland
:12:52. > :12:55.come for kids who missed out, kids who are left behind and kids who
:12:56. > :13:02.deserve a bit more. The Scottish Government is already making great
:13:03. > :13:06.strides, free school meals increased. That is important because
:13:07. > :13:11.if that is all you are getthng all day, if that will give you the
:13:12. > :13:14.ability to concentrate for the rest of the day, that could change your
:13:15. > :13:20.life. We are increasing the number of hours kids are in educathon.
:13:21. > :13:23.Maybe you come from house where poverty has put your mum into deep
:13:24. > :13:30.depression or your father h`s taken to the drink or any number of
:13:31. > :13:34.reasons, so education is a place of sanctuary, so we are taking great
:13:35. > :13:41.strides. I don't know how to finish this, but when you are talkhng about
:13:42. > :13:45.child poverty and talking about any poverty, don't just think of the
:13:46. > :13:50.buzzwords, don't think of it as an agenda for independence or ` reason
:13:51. > :13:54.for the Scottish people and the Scottish Government to be rhght
:13:55. > :13:59.think of those we children `nd think of how an independent Scotl`nd and
:14:00. > :14:12.the SNP are changing people's lives every single day. That is why I
:14:13. > :14:16.support this motion. Thank xou. There are no cards in the against
:14:17. > :14:23.and I have a number of cards following the resolution. Are you OK
:14:24. > :14:34.to sum up? Can I ask Tom conference, is the resolution passed? It is
:14:35. > :14:40.Thank you. We turn to resolttion 19, the charitable status of Scotland's
:14:41. > :14:47.state schools, to be put forward by Roderick Sutherland.
:14:48. > :14:59.Morning, delegates. Many of the wealthiest people in societx decide
:15:00. > :15:07.to opt out of state education. By educating their children at private
:15:08. > :15:14.schools, they benefit from `bout ?90 million of tax breaks annually.
:15:15. > :15:18.Effectively we have a situation just now where the state subsidises
:15:19. > :15:24.educational segregation and class privilege. The system...
:15:25. > :15:31.APPLAUSE The system as it stands perpetuates
:15:32. > :15:35.educational inequality and that has a knock-on effect on what wd
:15:36. > :15:41.discussed previously, about child poverty. However, these tax breaks
:15:42. > :15:46.for private schools are not an automatic right. The privatd sector
:15:47. > :15:56.has to demonstrate that thex provide a benefit to the general public
:15:57. > :16:02.This is set out in the charhties and trustee investment Scotland act
:16:03. > :16:09.2005. Private schools have to show a public benefit and they do this by
:16:10. > :16:12.awarding bursaries to state school pupils and availing the use of some
:16:13. > :16:19.of their facilities, like playing fields and swimming pools, to the
:16:20. > :16:26.wider public. On the other hand state schools do provide a luch
:16:27. > :16:31.greater public benefit and they are denied charitable status. State
:16:32. > :16:37.schools are disqualified from holding charitable status at present
:16:38. > :16:43.as they are seen as being under the control of ministers. It is true
:16:44. > :16:47.that Scottish Government ministers do provide the funding for state
:16:48. > :16:56.schools and they set out guhdelines for overall policy. However, the
:16:57. > :16:59.detailed running of schools, the control and direction and d`y-to-day
:17:00. > :17:05.affairs, lies with Scotland's local authorities. This issue of
:17:06. > :17:12.charitable status is not a small one. It is important not just in
:17:13. > :17:17.terms of social justice. For example, a college in Edinbtrgh the
:17:18. > :17:24.alma mater of Tony Blair, fdes are currently ?24,000 plus a ye`r and
:17:25. > :17:30.yet they benefit from an 80$ reduction in their nondomestic
:17:31. > :17:36.rates. Recently this meant that the college, instead of paying 219
:17:37. > :17:47.pounds for their rates, it was cut to ?42,000. -- ?209,000. Wh`t public
:17:48. > :17:54.benefit do they provide, thdy provide public bursaries to 2% of
:17:55. > :18:00.their pupils, 100% bursaries. Two miles away in Edinburgh you will
:18:01. > :18:09.find a state school in one of our most disadvantaged communithes in
:18:10. > :18:14.Scotland. Something like 45$ of the pupils are entitled to free school
:18:15. > :18:24.meals. In the same year thex had a nondomestic rates liability of
:18:25. > :18:31.?261,000. The private school, their liability was ?42,000. So the system
:18:32. > :18:36.at the moment means that elhtist private schools serving the rich,
:18:37. > :18:43.the privileged and those th`t are already advantaged in life's race
:18:44. > :18:47.enjoy charitable status while state schools serving the wider population
:18:48. > :18:54.of which undoubtedly providd a public benefit, do not. What I am
:18:55. > :19:02.saying in this resolution, ht is time for state schools to bd treated
:19:03. > :19:05.equally with private schools. It is time...
:19:06. > :19:10.APPLAUSE It is time for our hard-pressed
:19:11. > :19:16.state schools to have this glaring anomaly removed. It is time for a
:19:17. > :19:24.level playing field for Scotland's children. Please support thhs
:19:25. > :19:34.motion. Thank you. And two second is Roderick McCaskill. Chris whll move
:19:35. > :19:41.the unit back. Welcome to Roderick, a first-time speaker. Thank you
:19:42. > :19:45.conference. I don't want to go over what Graham has just said, H
:19:46. > :19:53.understand a number of Robbhns will be poked at this resolution. What is
:19:54. > :20:02.more important to me is the principal rather than how this will
:20:03. > :20:06.work out in real life. It is the inequality between state and public.
:20:07. > :20:11.I come from an area that covers some of the richest parts of the country
:20:12. > :20:15.and because of the postcode I was born in I will live longer, in some
:20:16. > :20:22.cases by more than a decade, then children born just down the road. To
:20:23. > :20:28.think that had my parents chosen to send their child to a public school,
:20:29. > :20:31.sorry, a private school, th`t they would receive further subsidy for
:20:32. > :20:36.that advantage, I think is deeply unfair. I know there are issues
:20:37. > :20:42.about how the government runs a charity but I would just sax this,
:20:43. > :20:48.please pass it on principle. If we can't find a way to give ch`ritable
:20:49. > :20:52.status to state schools then frankly we must make these so-called
:20:53. > :21:00.charities, independent schools, pay their fair share to the public good.
:21:01. > :21:10.Pay their fair share to the public good. I will not drag on so let me
:21:11. > :21:14.just say this. To all of thd delegates and MSPs and MPs `nd
:21:15. > :21:18.councillors, you are not disadvantage in your child by
:21:19. > :21:25.sending them to a state school, give them the best start in life and send
:21:26. > :21:38.them to your local state, offensive. -- state comprehensive. Chrhs will
:21:39. > :21:41.move the remit back. I would like to thank Graham, Roderick and `ll of
:21:42. > :21:45.those who put forward this resolution, giving us a chance to
:21:46. > :21:54.debate such an important motion We are an equal -- we acknowledge the
:21:55. > :21:59.unequal position at present and it is crucial that we address this
:22:00. > :22:05.disparity. Friends, extending charitable status to state schools
:22:06. > :22:10.simply isn't the answer. Thd inequality that exists betwden state
:22:11. > :22:15.and private education goes far beyond charitable status. Pdople who
:22:16. > :22:19.go to private schools are f`r more likely to apply to the nation's top
:22:20. > :22:26.universities. The proportion that are overrepresented in Laurdl,
:22:27. > :22:30.journalism and medicine, but private schools in Scotland receive an 0%
:22:31. > :22:36.discount in the tax paid on nonresidential property. On
:22:37. > :22:40.extending charitable status to state schools will give them an
:22:41. > :22:45.entitlement to a similar discount. Private schools continue to receive
:22:46. > :22:48.substantial rate relief if this was adopted and the state would still be
:22:49. > :22:55.compelled to subsidise priv`te education. This subsidy would
:22:56. > :23:01.continue to come at the ex-pens of pupils within the state education
:23:02. > :23:07.system. -- the expense. This money could be better invested in state
:23:08. > :23:10.schools and wider access to higher education and helping all of
:23:11. > :23:18.Scotland's young people achheve their full potential. That hs why
:23:19. > :23:24.SNP Youth and students from across the country remit did the rdsolution
:23:25. > :23:30.back. It keeps the possibilhty of reform of charitable status alive
:23:31. > :23:36.and it allows us to adopt policy that addresses this inequalhty. To
:23:37. > :23:41.do so would put private schools -- state schools on an equal playing
:23:42. > :23:44.field and generate signific`nt revenue for local authoritids and
:23:45. > :23:52.end public subsidy for priv`te education. Delegates, fundalentally
:23:53. > :23:55.I think it comes down to thhs. Our state education system is not a
:23:56. > :24:01.charity, it is the best tool this government House to give thd game,
:24:02. > :24:05.shot and the leg, give all of - to give all of us Scotland's young
:24:06. > :24:18.people be best chance Willex start in life. -- the best start hn life.
:24:19. > :24:26.We must reform charitable status of Scotland's private schools, not just
:24:27. > :24:30.give it to state schools. Mhchael Givens will second the remit back to
:24:31. > :24:34.be followed and Peter Henderson who will move the direct negative.
:24:35. > :24:45.Welcome, Michael, a first-thme speaker. Conference, I am stre we
:24:46. > :24:49.all agree with the principld of the motion that state schools should
:24:50. > :24:53.receive charitable status, ht is only fair, but the motion does not
:24:54. > :25:02.point out the great inequalhty that is current businesses of prhvate
:25:03. > :25:05.schools do not pay the full VAT tax due to charitable status, ftrther
:25:06. > :25:12.increasing inequality, and hf we are serious about tackling the
:25:13. > :25:18.attainment gap we need to m`intain the full revenue to the Scottish
:25:19. > :25:24.Government to allow this. Wd accept that private schools do provide a
:25:25. > :25:34.great service to those who can afford it. The deficit of which is
:25:35. > :25:38.incredibly important. If we grant public schools the current status of
:25:39. > :25:45.charitable status before we grant the private schools the reqtired
:25:46. > :25:51.amount of VAT, that will only decrease the amount of monex we can
:25:52. > :25:55.spend on public services like health and education, which desper`tely
:25:56. > :26:00.needs a boost in our countrx. I urge you to support the remit back so we
:26:01. > :26:04.can maintain funding for all public services and come back with an
:26:05. > :26:15.amendment that sells this anomaly. Thank you very much. And Peter
:26:16. > :26:18.Henderson will move the dirdct negative, to be followed by Calum
:26:19. > :26:29.Murray, who will speak in f`vour of the resolution. Welcome, Peter.
:26:30. > :26:36.Chair, conference, in moving the direct negative I simply ask that we
:26:37. > :26:39.remove this unjust and old ,- anomaly of charitable status so that
:26:40. > :26:44.we achieve a level playing field for every child, not just the privileged
:26:45. > :26:48.few. This government has set a target of closing the attainment
:26:49. > :26:56.gap. This motion can only m`ke that worse. Following a debate on child
:26:57. > :27:04.poverty I think it is relev`nt that this debate follows on. The time of
:27:05. > :27:09.cuts to the public purse, this motion can only exacerbate latters.
:27:10. > :27:16.-- at a time. Take the charhtable status away from private schools.
:27:17. > :27:24.By doing so you enhance revdnues. I will ask a few questions, in a
:27:25. > :27:29.deprived area, where is the money coming from for a charitabld school?
:27:30. > :27:35.Private school patrons use this provision as a tax break, if you
:27:36. > :27:42.give to charity you reduce xour tax, so not only can they utilisd it
:27:43. > :27:45.because they have the incomd of the private school system, they are also
:27:46. > :27:52.able to get an additional t`x break for themselves. How many people in a
:27:53. > :27:58.deprived area can do that? What happens when a charitable school in
:27:59. > :28:07.the state sector receives ldss money for being a charity? Who picks up
:28:08. > :28:12.the tab? We do. We should bd striving for quality of education
:28:13. > :28:24.for all, equality of opporttnity for all, but this motion in my view the
:28:25. > :28:26.verses that goal -- reverses. Utilise the additional monex for all
:28:27. > :28:36.our children. APPLAUSE Carol Murray will now speak in
:28:37. > :28:42.favour of the resolution to be followed by Dave Whitton who will
:28:43. > :28:49.speak against. Callum is also a first-time speaker. Welcome along.
:28:50. > :28:53.Thank you, Derek. Conferencd, as a student this motion is extrdmely
:28:54. > :28:59.important to me. I attend a school which is always in need of lore
:29:00. > :29:03.funds. Under the tight budgdt which the Conservative government has
:29:04. > :29:07.restricted us two. Our Scottish Government has done all it can and
:29:08. > :29:15.has done a great duty in pl`cing our schools at the top of the agenda and
:29:16. > :29:18.that we can be proud of. Thhs motion is simply setting a more level
:29:19. > :29:22.playing field between private and state schools. This will not
:29:23. > :29:30.negatively affect private schools, I can assure you. But the samd tax
:29:31. > :29:35.benefit that is afforded to private schools and all other charities we
:29:36. > :29:39.can make sure of much needed relief for our schools across Scotland I'm
:29:40. > :29:45.going to address what the pdrson before me said, because this isn't
:29:46. > :29:50.about removing the charity status from private schools, this hs about
:29:51. > :29:54.giving it to public schools. Our schools are struggling and `s I ve
:29:55. > :29:59.said the government has put education of the agenda. Schools are
:30:00. > :30:04.still struggling, though, and this would really help. It is silply
:30:05. > :30:11.stupid that state schools rdceive a budget only to have some imlediately
:30:12. > :30:16.taken back. My branch fairlx supports this motion and I trge you
:30:17. > :30:23.to do so, as well. Thank yot. APPLAUSE
:30:24. > :30:30.Dave Whitton to speak against the resolution. Dave is also a
:30:31. > :30:35.first-time speaker. Welcome. APPLAUSE
:30:36. > :30:45.Cena conference, when I first looked at this resolution Cena I w`s
:30:46. > :30:50.conference, when I first th`t this resolution, I was torn, but I
:30:51. > :30:58.believe it is ideological if Lord and needs to be rejected. Why?
:30:59. > :31:01.Firstly, being charitable is often interpreted by the act of ghving
:31:02. > :31:12.money, goods are at night thme to the unfortunate, directly or by
:31:13. > :31:15.means of a charitable trust. We should not accept the ideology of
:31:16. > :31:23.any Scottish state school bding classed as unfortunate. In need of
:31:24. > :31:27.any charitable status. I am aware that our party does not want to be
:31:28. > :31:32.seen to be taking away anything from a sector of society that is already
:31:33. > :31:42.in place and has been for a length of time. But this is the tile when
:31:43. > :31:47.we have to be strong. Stronger for Scotland is what we say, let's
:31:48. > :31:49.practice what we preach. Prhvate schools should not be allowdd to
:31:50. > :31:56.cloak themselves in the guise of charities. Even though Halloween is
:31:57. > :31:59.pretty close. To dodge business rates to the Chudinov around ?1
:32:00. > :32:05.million every year, we should not be in carriage in state schools to put
:32:06. > :32:08.on their cloak -- to the CHDERING Around tempting pounds everx year,
:32:09. > :32:14.we should not be encouraging state schools to put on their clo`k. If we
:32:15. > :32:18.were to grant state schools charitable status and takeaway
:32:19. > :32:21.pupils on bursaries from thd state schools and place them in private
:32:22. > :32:25.schools with their own charhtable status, ask yourselves, what kind of
:32:26. > :32:30.message is that sending out to the public? About our curriculul for
:32:31. > :32:36.excellence. It would be a clear admission of failure and qu`lity of
:32:37. > :32:41.service provided by state education. We need to go through the front door
:32:42. > :32:44.with a new resolution, that has guts and doesn't tiptoe through the side
:32:45. > :32:48.door with one which is seekhng to use the state schools to appease a
:32:49. > :32:55.morally unethical system exploited at present by private schools.
:32:56. > :33:01.APPLAUSE Send a message to our government,
:33:02. > :33:08.takeaway temerity and strivd to take divisiveness and be strong,
:33:09. > :33:13.legislate, takeaway charitable status from the private sector. I
:33:14. > :33:25.ask you to reject the resolttion and in its entirety. As they sax in old
:33:26. > :33:33.Scots, is a resolution that is first for elbow. Thank you. I'm all in
:33:34. > :33:38.favour of colourful languagd, but mind your language when we `re
:33:39. > :33:43.broadcasting to the outside world. But thank you very much will stop I
:33:44. > :33:54.apologise to those who were not able to speak. Chris, can you sul up
:33:55. > :34:04.please? And then Peter and Graham stand-by. Chris will be sumling up.
:34:05. > :34:08.I will keep it brief as I know that is how you want it to be,
:34:09. > :34:19.fundamentally it keeps the hssue alive and it makes certain that at
:34:20. > :34:24.the next national conferencd to end this inequality, this is about, not
:34:25. > :34:27.about punishing private schools or trying to close them, because that
:34:28. > :34:30.is not what we will do, but about creating an equal playing fheld
:34:31. > :34:35.between private schools and state schools and it is about working to
:34:36. > :34:41.get a solution that helps all of Scotland's young people and that is
:34:42. > :34:50.our duty to support the rem`tch back. Remit >> STUDIO:
:34:51. > :35:00.And now Peter Henderson. I will be equally brief. I won't be as
:35:01. > :35:07.colourful as the last speakdr. The principle is the same. We are going
:35:08. > :35:11.on about this the wrong way round. Remove charitable status from
:35:12. > :35:16.private schools and equalled the playing field, as simple as that.
:35:17. > :35:22.APPLAUSE Thank you, Peter. Finally, ht Graham
:35:23. > :35:32.Sutherland to some up for the resolution. I have to say fhrst of
:35:33. > :35:39.all, I would agree with much of what has been said for the speakdrs and
:35:40. > :35:43.for the negative, I would agree with it. One of the reasons this notion
:35:44. > :35:51.is appearing before you herd today is because my branch twice put
:35:52. > :35:56.forward a draft resolution to have the charitable status of prhvate
:35:57. > :36:02.schools removed but it didn't go through. So we decided this year to
:36:03. > :36:07.make it a bit different and therefore that is why we ard having
:36:08. > :36:18.this debate. This is the motion in front of us here today. In `ll my
:36:19. > :36:22.years in the SNP, 1973, continuous membership, I've rarely seen a remit
:36:23. > :36:26.back comeback in due course, but this is something we need to deal
:36:27. > :36:32.with now. What I'm about to say might come as a shock, a cotple of
:36:33. > :36:35.years ago a young lady throtgh the petitions mechanism through the
:36:36. > :36:43.Scottish Parliament lobbied the Scottish Government and the Scottish
:36:44. > :36:46.Parliament to have charitable status move, but it was rejected bdcause
:36:47. > :36:50.the Scottish Government said was insufficient evidence for a review
:36:51. > :36:55.of the charitable legislation relating to private schools. I think
:36:56. > :36:58.that is a disgraceful stop xou have the opportunity here and now to tell
:36:59. > :37:05.our Scottish Government it hs time for action -- this is a disgrace. It
:37:06. > :37:13.is about where we stand as ` party, are we for equality and sochal
:37:14. > :37:16.justice, are we for equalitx in education, this is a glaring
:37:17. > :37:22.anomaly, I plead with you to send out a message of where we stand are
:37:23. > :37:30.we about rhetoric or substance? Please support this motion. Thank
:37:31. > :37:41.you, Graham. We turn to the vote. Delegates only to vote. I whll put
:37:42. > :37:44.my glasses on. Accuracy over vanity. That's my vanity, of course, I'm
:37:45. > :37:52.referring to. First of all, we take the vote on the remit back. And the
:37:53. > :38:03.rejection of the resolution, if appropriate. Those in favour, please
:38:04. > :38:14.show. Those against the remht back. Please, show. Looking quite close. I
:38:15. > :38:23.think the remit back falls. Cards down everyone. I will take the vote
:38:24. > :38:25.now for and against the resolution. Those in favour of the resolution
:38:26. > :38:42.please show. And those against. I think we will have to go for a
:38:43. > :38:45.count on this one, I'm afrahd. I know it takes time, but is hmportant
:38:46. > :38:52.that we get the most accurate result. Let's get ready, we will
:38:53. > :39:45.have a full count when I ask you again.
:39:46. > :39:55.The motion... Just for clarhty, so people are very clear, the next vote
:39:56. > :40:00.I would take when we are re`dy, I require assistance to count the
:40:01. > :40:10.votes of is simply for irresolution or against the resolution -, to
:40:11. > :40:15.count the votes, is simply for the resolution or against the
:40:16. > :40:20.resolution, is that clear? Xou can chat amongst yourselves while we
:40:21. > :40:27.prepare. This is to Morrissdy, I hope the other political parties are
:40:28. > :41:36.watching -- this is democracy. APPLAUSE
:41:37. > :41:45.OK. Now get ready to feel the blood rush from your hand as you hold up
:41:46. > :41:48.your card. Delegates, those in favour of the resolution, please
:41:49. > :42:52.show. Keep your hands in thd air. Hang on in there. So many of you in
:42:53. > :42:59.the hall, but it is a fantastic problem to have, isn't it? But you
:43:00. > :43:02.can't clap. Keep your hands in the air, or not if you are voting the
:43:03. > :44:01.other way. LAUGHTER Yes, it is your exercise, Irene I
:44:02. > :44:10.know, just keep smiling. Th`nk you. Cards down. Those voting ag`inst the
:44:11. > :46:14.resolution, please show. Show and hold.
:46:15. > :48:20.Cards down, thank you, everxbody. I appreciate that. Thank you. I am
:48:21. > :48:30.glad that I took a card count because it was a close result. Those
:48:31. > :48:31.in favour, 464, those against, 55, which means the resolution hs
:48:32. > :48:46.passed. Thank you, conference. Moving on
:48:47. > :48:57.resolution 20, decriminalisd cannabis for medical use. To be
:48:58. > :49:04.proposed by Laura Brennan and Jennifer Dunn. Laura is a fhrst time
:49:05. > :49:16.speaker. Welcome. APPLAUSE
:49:17. > :49:23.Good morning, conference. There are a lot of people here today. That is
:49:24. > :49:28.good. My name is Laura and H have been living with multiple sclerosis
:49:29. > :49:31.for nine years and the fact I am standing here giving this speech
:49:32. > :49:36.means that I am one of the lucky ones. It has become clear to me over
:49:37. > :49:41.nine years that many people living with MS have been using cannabis to
:49:42. > :49:46.help with the symptoms may hn fact it is one of the worst kept secrets
:49:47. > :49:54.at the hospital. All of these people risk a criminal record, unlhke in
:49:55. > :49:59.Australia, Chile, Canada, Fhnland, France, Germany, Rumania and some US
:50:00. > :50:06.states. Some are allowed thdir own plant, some cannabis spray. We are
:50:07. > :50:10.fast becoming behind the tiles as a Western nation. A report published
:50:11. > :50:16.on the 13th of September of this year, a cross-party group of MPs and
:50:17. > :50:22.peers, called on the governlent to introduce a system granting people
:50:23. > :50:26.to access cannabis for medical reasons and decriminalise the
:50:27. > :50:32.growing of small amounts at home. -- for those purposes. As the law
:50:33. > :50:37.stands cannabis is a class B drug and the penalty is up to five years
:50:38. > :50:45.in prison, an unlimited find or both, and for supply up to 04 years
:50:46. > :50:46.in prison. I don't think solebody in pain should be criminalised for
:50:47. > :51:01.trying to ease that pain. But it is worth noting, if xou have
:51:02. > :51:12.MS and the money, the annual supply for a patient is expected to be
:51:13. > :51:18.about... You can get a prodtct that is licensed but not widely `vailable
:51:19. > :51:23.on the NHS and it contains cabin -- cannabinoids. If you can pax you are
:51:24. > :51:28.not breaking the law but if you can't you run the risk of a criminal
:51:29. > :51:32.record. You are forced into relying on an illegal drug market whth no
:51:33. > :51:42.guarantee of quality or consistency of supply. And can I be cle`r at
:51:43. > :51:47.this point, I am talking about the medical use only of cannabis. It is
:51:48. > :51:55.that medical use that is wider than just MS. Arthritis, cancer LcCombs
:51:56. > :52:00.disease, and this -- epilepsy have all been shown to benefit. Given
:52:01. > :52:06.that these people suffering pain, and I can assure you that bx the
:52:07. > :52:10.time they are willing to usd cannabis in most cases they have
:52:11. > :52:17.exhausted every other option, is it not unreasonable to criminalise
:52:18. > :52:22.them? I am talking... I am talking about some of the most vulndrable
:52:23. > :52:27.people in society, who may have had the added misfortune of going
:52:28. > :52:27.through the DWP's inhumane assessment siege for disability
:52:28. > :52:41.benefits. To then brand them criminals are
:52:42. > :52:47.trying to have a quality of life... I know what it is to suffer pain and
:52:48. > :52:51.be in no doubt, if it came to it, I would not hesitate to ease that pain
:52:52. > :52:55.anyway I could, because that is a natural instinct. But the problem
:52:56. > :53:01.being, if my condition was to deteriorate to that stage I would be
:53:02. > :53:05.relying on other people to help me, my friends, family and most of all
:53:06. > :53:08.my partner Stephen who are really don't thank enough for the care that
:53:09. > :53:12.he gives me so I am thanking him now.
:53:13. > :53:18.APPLAUSE I don't think parents should be
:53:19. > :53:23.criminalised either. A drug conviction has very serious
:53:24. > :53:30.consequences for your futurd prospects and employment prospects.
:53:31. > :53:34.I think now is the time to show that we other party of compassion and
:53:35. > :53:39.common sense and it is now that we should be sending out a message
:53:40. > :53:43.those people in pain that wd hear you and we are not shying away from
:53:44. > :53:51.this issue. APPLAUSE
:53:52. > :53:58.As Westminster has. Let's today start this journey, let's ldad with
:53:59. > :54:03.our hearts and minds by dem`nding the devolution of power to `llow us
:54:04. > :54:12.to address this issue. I urge conference to pass this resolution.
:54:13. > :54:16.Thank you very much, Laura. Jennifer Dunn to second the resolution, to be
:54:17. > :54:27.followed by Tom queueing, who will move the remit back. Welcomd,
:54:28. > :54:32.Jennifer. -- Tom McEwan. Th`nk you. This is a resolution about fairness,
:54:33. > :54:37.compassion and common sense. In many other countries around the world
:54:38. > :54:43.cannabis is used as a legal form of pain relief. It has been usdd as a
:54:44. > :54:48.medicine for thousands of ydars Many modern-day states have devised
:54:49. > :54:52.ways of allowing citizens whth ended -- a legitimate need to accdss
:54:53. > :54:58.cannabis and do so legally. The system we have in the UK is just
:54:59. > :55:03.another example of how people who are ill or have disabilities are
:55:04. > :55:09.treated with less compassion than they deserve. Most people would find
:55:10. > :55:13.it very hard to know that a loved one was in pain. They would find it
:55:14. > :55:16.hard knowing that there is ` substance that is cheap and readily
:55:17. > :55:23.available that could relievd that pain that they couldn't buy. Because
:55:24. > :55:26.doing so would make them a criminal. The current state of affairs
:55:27. > :55:31.criminalises compassion and it shouldn't be allowed to go on. I
:55:32. > :55:37.don't believe that we should be in the position that we have to ask the
:55:38. > :55:49.UK for these powers. I belidve we should have them with indepdndence
:55:50. > :55:53.and as a right. But we are where we are and so the resolution asks the
:55:54. > :55:59.UK Government to give us thd chance to do something better. Thex might
:56:00. > :56:04.be unwilling or unable to follow the path of Australia or Canada but
:56:05. > :56:10.Scotland should be given thd power to do something better. We know many
:56:11. > :56:14.members of Parliament, many MSPs, many delegates and many members of
:56:15. > :56:19.the public believe we should do better in this area and that
:56:20. > :56:24.cannabis should be used illdgal pain relief. Support the resoluthon but
:56:25. > :56:40.don't just support it, follow the campaign by using the hasht`g
:56:41. > :56:43.medicalcannabis. Come along to the meeting suite. Please show
:56:44. > :56:55.compassion and support the resolution. Thank you, Jennhfer and
:56:56. > :57:08.to move the remit back is Tom McEwan. Tom is a first-time speaker.
:57:09. > :57:12.Welcome. Thank you, conference. I am health care professional, a
:57:13. > :57:18.pharmacist working in the NHS, and it is very difficult to remht this
:57:19. > :57:22.back because I know that patients benefit from this product. But the
:57:23. > :57:27.resolution itself says that this should be able to be prescrhbed
:57:28. > :57:32.There are two things going on, there is a fat suit and -- pharmaceutical
:57:33. > :57:38.product that the company never put -- submitted approval so th`t it
:57:39. > :57:44.could be used. I assume thex don't think the evidence is strong enough
:57:45. > :57:50.for it to be approved or th`t the medicine is too expensive that it
:57:51. > :57:54.would not pass the economic assessment put on all medichnes As
:57:55. > :57:58.health care professionals wd want patients to have everything we can
:57:59. > :58:04.throw at them to help them but we want to do them no harm. Thd systems
:58:05. > :58:09.and processes we have to make, test, approved and monitor medicines are
:58:10. > :58:13.there to make sure they used as safely as possible so that they can
:58:14. > :58:19.be stopped when they don't work and when they cause harm or problems to
:58:20. > :58:24.patients. The cannabis that people are buying on the street illegally
:58:25. > :58:28.is not a medicine, it is a herbal product. As a non-pharmaceutical
:58:29. > :58:36.product it would not meet the standards of a safe medicind with
:58:37. > :58:39.the standards so that patients are getting what they think thex are.
:58:40. > :58:46.Legitimising an unregulated product by saying it could be ascribed opens
:58:47. > :58:51.the door for snake oil selldrs to take advantage of desperate people
:58:52. > :58:59.who want something to help them -- prescribed. I don't think p`tients
:59:00. > :59:05.should be criminalised, I completely agree, how it falls is that cannabis
:59:06. > :59:09.as a herbal but cannot be prescribed, it doesn't meet the
:59:10. > :59:15.standards necessary for doctors and prescribers to prescribe it and the
:59:16. > :59:19.pharmaceutical product that does exist isn't worth the effort, it
:59:20. > :59:30.isn't good enough a product, it doesn't work. Thank you.
:59:31. > :59:35.APPLAUSE Fiona Finney to second the remit
:59:36. > :59:41.back. She is a further first-time speaker.
:59:42. > :59:44.APPLAUSE Conference, health care
:59:45. > :59:48.professionals like myself are always looking for something to help people
:59:49. > :59:55.with their pain and the spasms you get with MS that causes that pain.
:59:56. > :00:02.Scotland has a world leading process for using safe and effectivd
:00:03. > :00:04.medicines when we prescribe, it is called the Scottish medicinds
:00:05. > :00:12.Consortium and the world looks at what we do there. The company who
:00:13. > :00:16.make sativa ex did not submht evidence to them, they did not
:00:17. > :00:21.submit evidence in the US, they have been unable to make a real success
:00:22. > :00:27.of their product. I have bedn involved in prescribing the product
:00:28. > :00:35.and you might be surprised to hear that it can be given to appropriate
:00:36. > :00:39.patients on the NHS and I h`ve been involved in actually getting it It
:00:40. > :00:45.is not the case that we can't give it, it is not a case that that is
:00:46. > :00:53.criminal, it is category B but it is a subset 4.1. You can get it on the
:00:54. > :00:58.NHS but the patients I came across had great hopes for this and it
:00:59. > :01:04.didn't work. We didn't get ` lot of success with it. That doesn't mean a
:01:05. > :01:11.new patient can't try it. C`nnabis itself is a different product. The
:01:12. > :01:17.cannabis some patients seek to smoke to take away their pain is ` risky
:01:18. > :01:20.thing, there are a lot of side-effects, abdominal pain,
:01:21. > :01:27.intestinal obstruction, swe`ting, paranoia, dizziness, nausea, cough,
:01:28. > :01:38.vision Rob and is, memory loss, and you can get a different trip every
:01:39. > :01:42.time. -- vision problems. Yds, decriminalised it for peopld if they
:01:43. > :01:45.want to use it and it might be worth the side-effects but it won't be
:01:46. > :01:54.available as a prescriber bowl product. -- a product you c`n
:01:55. > :01:59.prescribed. The BBC said th`t smoking cannabis significantly
:02:00. > :02:06.reduces pain. They also said anxiety and sleep. It wasn't proven at all,
:02:07. > :02:12.that was 23 patients in that survey. My yellow light is flashing, I can't
:02:13. > :02:17.explain this small to you. Don't make friends looked silly, ht can't
:02:18. > :02:21.be prescribed in this way. What we need is the criminalisation of
:02:22. > :02:32.cannabis for the people who really need to use it. --
:02:33. > :02:37.decriminalisation. They are trying to do it the children and epilepsy
:02:38. > :02:43.now, a study in Japan in thd hopes that they can market their product
:02:44. > :02:48.in a different way, giving ht a new name. I would like to speak to you
:02:49. > :02:53.more but I'm not having mysdlf cut off. Thank you, conference.
:02:54. > :03:11.Thank you. Audrey will move the direct negative to the resolution.
:03:12. > :03:23.Thank you, Audrey. I have two reasons for being up here today and
:03:24. > :03:30.putting the direct negative to this motion. Nowadays people are looking
:03:31. > :03:36.for quick fixes as far as p`in is concerned. And they look for quick
:03:37. > :03:41.fixes as far as when the pahn medication doesn't work and they
:03:42. > :03:45.basically go to stronger painkillers. I'm afraid this is what
:03:46. > :03:53.would happen with this parthcular medication. How do I know this? The
:03:54. > :03:59.reason being is that I have a cousin who died a number of user go in
:04:00. > :04:02.Canada. He started taking c`nnabis because he had pain when he was
:04:03. > :04:07.playing ice hockey -- a number of years ago. His mates in ice hockey
:04:08. > :04:12.did the same, but my cousin had an addictive personality and when the
:04:13. > :04:19.pain was relieved from taking cannabis he went to stronger drugs.
:04:20. > :04:24.How do I know this affected him He had an accident in his 30s, he was
:04:25. > :04:28.taken to the hospital, they were going to operate, and the consultant
:04:29. > :04:37.said his brain is Marsh frol all the drugs he has taken and he is not
:04:38. > :04:41.worth saving. -- mush. That affected our family drastically but that was
:04:42. > :04:48.the truth. There are altern`tives to pain medication and many doctors are
:04:49. > :04:52.basically prescribing a fitness regime for getting you fit hn all
:04:53. > :04:57.different ways and we have LS patients who come to our centres to
:04:58. > :05:00.go through this who actuallx increase the fitness to all of their
:05:01. > :05:05.body and you increase the alount of painkillers you are on. That is the
:05:06. > :05:11.way to go, people. Stop all these pain medications, go to fitness
:05:12. > :05:17.regimes. The doctors are trxing it out now and it is working, for heart
:05:18. > :05:23.patients and angina and MS patients, as well. I don't want to sed this go
:05:24. > :05:28.through, just have another form of medication and my other fear is if
:05:29. > :05:33.doctors get this ability to prescribe something similar or
:05:34. > :05:37.better, what happens when they get somebody in their surgery who
:05:38. > :05:42.pressurises them to give thdm this drug? We all know what happdns. We
:05:43. > :05:48.take the easy route. OK, just have it. But they are still taking the
:05:49. > :05:53.illegal stuff, as well, bec`use he doesn't think that happens xou are
:05:54. > :05:58.living in an unreal world bdcause there are many methadone takers who
:05:59. > :06:05.take the illegal stuff, as well It happens. Every surgery in this
:06:06. > :06:11.country please reject this completely and if the MS people want
:06:12. > :06:17.to do trials and new things like the previous speakers do, yes, laybe go
:06:18. > :06:23.that way. But more medication and more pain medication isn't the
:06:24. > :06:33.answer. The answer is get us all fit. Thank you. Thank you, @udrey.
:06:34. > :06:41.Angela Thompson will speak hn favour of the resolution. Sorry for the
:06:42. > :06:47.short notice. And those wishing to some up can you come back to the
:06:48. > :06:52.stairs. That will be resolution direct negative and remit b`ck. And
:06:53. > :07:01.now we have Angela, a first,time speaker at conference. On hdre to
:07:02. > :07:04.support this resolution. My husband was diagnosed with multiple
:07:05. > :07:10.sclerosis that years ago. Hd had previously used cannabis
:07:11. > :07:15.recreationally before this `nd had stopped so we could start otr family
:07:16. > :07:20.-- Bertie years ago. Within weeks of stopping he started showing symptoms
:07:21. > :07:24.of MS -- 30 years ago for the year has lost the sight in one of his
:07:25. > :07:29.eyes and the hearing in one of his ears as well is increasinglx poor
:07:30. > :07:34.mobility issues. The treatmdnt plan he is on makes life very difficult.
:07:35. > :07:38.But there is a treatment whhch could help but it is illegal. There is a
:07:39. > :07:46.wide range of conditions whhch medical cannabis can treat such as
:07:47. > :07:50.multiple sclerosis, M E, sldep disorders, depression and anxiety as
:07:51. > :07:56.well as managing the side effects of treatments such as chemotherapy and
:07:57. > :07:59.radiotherapy. It can trade lore conditions than paracetamol, but
:08:00. > :08:03.they are not illegal -- tre`t. What would you do in my husband's place
:08:04. > :08:08.to alleviate the terrible conditions of his condition? It would be great
:08:09. > :08:11.if the government can explore scientific research into thd use of
:08:12. > :08:23.medical cannabis. Thank you for your time. Thank you, Angela.
:08:24. > :08:36.And now to sum up for the rdmit back Tomiki win. -- Tom McEwan. @udrey
:08:37. > :08:44.will then sum up for the direct negative. A lot of very good things
:08:45. > :08:48.have been said in this debate. I want to remit is back because I
:08:49. > :08:53.think this is the start of ` process for cannabis to be able to tsed on
:08:54. > :09:05.patients, but we can't jump to the endgame and said prescribe ht. -
:09:06. > :09:15.said. Thank you. Thank you. Audrey, to sum up for the direct negative.
:09:16. > :09:22.I'll keep it brief. Australha in the 1950s legalise cannabis and 20 years
:09:23. > :09:25.later they made it illegal. Why Because the results were not good,
:09:26. > :09:34.and that is why the legalisdd it again -- Bay. -- day. I know the MS
:09:35. > :09:39.card is being played, but it is not just MS that it would be usdd for.
:09:40. > :09:45.I'm sorry, this is true, thhs is not just for MS patients, this hs what
:09:46. > :09:55.everyone -- for. It is not the answer. Vote against this, please.
:09:56. > :09:58.Delegates, delegates, you h`ve got to show all speakers respect, and
:09:59. > :10:09.speakers have got to show everyone else respect. APPLAUSE
:10:10. > :10:22.And to sum up for the resolttion. Welcome back Laura.
:10:23. > :10:30.Let me be clear, conference, I'm not advocating the smoking of c`nnabis.
:10:31. > :10:41.What I'm advocating is a progressive and reasonable compassionatd society
:10:42. > :10:48.where you can access... APPLAUSE ... Access pain relief. I bdlieve we
:10:49. > :10:53.have the talent and the skills and the ability in Scotland to lake this
:10:54. > :10:58.work. And I would simply sax to some of the speakers, if it can be done
:10:59. > :11:02.in Germany and the United States and other countries, it can be done
:11:03. > :11:07.here, and there can be qualhty control and consistency of supply.
:11:08. > :11:14.They've managed it. We can do it. APPLAUSE
:11:15. > :11:18.I would also ask you not to remit this back, don't file this way for
:11:19. > :11:29.things to do another day. It is too important. APPLAUSE
:11:30. > :11:42.And as for the ability to rdlieve pain through other means, that might
:11:43. > :11:46.be OK for some people, but the people that I know, they nedd relief
:11:47. > :11:57.now. Please vote for this resolution. Thank you. APPL@USE
:11:58. > :12:09.Thank you very much. Delegates, cards at the ready. I will take a
:12:10. > :12:14.vote for the remit back. Those in favour of the remit back, please
:12:15. > :12:20.show. Those against the remht back, please show. Cards down. Those in
:12:21. > :12:28.favour of the resolution, please show. Cards down. Those agahnst the
:12:29. > :12:31.resolution, please show. Thd resolution is passed overwhdlmingly.
:12:32. > :12:40.CHEERING APPLAUSE
:12:41. > :12:49.Now, conference, please welcome for the President's prize, the president
:12:50. > :13:00.of the Scottish National party, in hushed and, MEP.
:13:01. > :13:09.There is a surprise will stop we are running early. Once again it is my
:13:10. > :13:16.great pleasure to award the Presidents prize and it is ` great
:13:17. > :13:21.credit to my predecessor as president who instigated thd prize
:13:22. > :13:30.to be able to recognise the outstanding contribution of the
:13:31. > :13:35.dedication and commitment that SNP members put into the cause of the
:13:36. > :13:41.SNP and independence. Our electoral success that we are enjoying now is
:13:42. > :13:47.built solidly on the foundations laid by people, often in very small
:13:48. > :13:51.numbers, who for decades have slogged around the doors in the
:13:52. > :14:01.local areas, building for the future, enabling us now to boast so
:14:02. > :14:08.many elected members at all levels. Usually there isn't time to do the
:14:09. > :14:19.big red book story, but we seem to be a little early, so I can relax a
:14:20. > :14:23.little bit. You do have a bht of time, you are the president of the
:14:24. > :14:31.party, you know. LAUGHTER In a macro it is always a dhfficult
:14:32. > :14:36.decision to narrow down to one - it is or was a difficult decishon to
:14:37. > :14:41.narrow this down to one, and there are many people who have made
:14:42. > :14:46.contributions over the years. The headlines this year, 50 years of
:14:47. > :14:57.continuous membership of thd SNP, 50 years. APPLAUSE
:14:58. > :15:03.That means joining the partx in 1966 when the SNP had no
:15:04. > :15:07.parliamentarians. Luckily wd resolved that a year later hn
:15:08. > :15:15.Hamilton with a famous victory there. But no parliamentari`ns at
:15:16. > :15:22.the time of joining the SNP. 50 years of continuous service as
:15:23. > :15:28.branch or constituency offices, and a multitude of different roles over
:15:29. > :15:32.these years. 50 years of calpaigning for council and parliamentary
:15:33. > :15:43.candidates. In the local arda. Think about that. Think about how hectic
:15:44. > :15:46.the last few years have been and how weary some of us will have felt from
:15:47. > :15:53.time to time because of the continuous campaigning mood we have
:15:54. > :15:57.been in -- mode. That has bden with outstanding results to boost us and
:15:58. > :16:03.to keep us going. Think for a moment about the first 30-40 of thdse 0
:16:04. > :16:09.years and the level of commhtment that was needed to keep going, not
:16:10. > :16:15.winning all of the time, soletimes getting creditable results, but
:16:16. > :16:21.dedicated and relentless, kdeping going to build up to the success we
:16:22. > :16:28.have today. It can't be underestimated. 50 years of
:16:29. > :16:35.fundraising because local c`mpaigns have always been self financing We
:16:36. > :16:43.are relatively well off fin`ncially now, perhaps, but 50 years of self
:16:44. > :16:49.financing campaigns and in this particular locality keeping the
:16:50. > :16:55.accounting credit all of thd time, which I'm sure not every br`nch and
:16:56. > :16:59.constituency has managed to do. 50 years of juggling family and work
:17:00. > :17:03.commitments along with the often unreasonable demands of SNP campaign
:17:04. > :17:15.and commitments. So I think that's a reasonable
:17:16. > :17:21.record when summed up like that to lead me to make this year's choice.
:17:22. > :17:31.This year's choice, as I have done once before, is going to two people,
:17:32. > :17:40.a couple whose service is unstinting to the local branch, now eastward,
:17:41. > :17:56.was record by Eastwood recently in the present of honorary lifd
:17:57. > :18:02.membership. Mr and Mrs Farqtharson will be known to many of yot and you
:18:03. > :18:07.will have seen them on the campaign trail in by-elections up and down
:18:08. > :18:18.the country and in other pl`ces I don't have time to share with you
:18:19. > :18:23.all of their very interesting anecdotes, things that have happened
:18:24. > :18:27.to them and thanks to them, but some highlights. In their house `t one
:18:28. > :18:33.point, before we had things like paid for campaign hubs, was the
:18:34. > :18:43.campaign hub. They had a spdcial entrance made to the seller so that
:18:44. > :18:50.it could be the campaign hub. - cellar. This was a time when
:18:51. > :19:01.campaigning was extremely labour-intensive, so this c`mpaign
:19:02. > :19:04.hub had in it screen printing for leaflets, not be however many
:19:05. > :19:13.hundreds minute we get from the modern fancy machines. -- not the
:19:14. > :19:19.however. That work in the background, not to mention
:19:20. > :19:25.handwriting envelopes and l`bels, handwriting from the electoral roll,
:19:26. > :19:31.extremely labour-intensive, so the campaign hub was a full-timd
:19:32. > :19:38.operation that took five ye`rs to prepare for the next general
:19:39. > :19:41.election in those days! Thex were instrumental in organising or
:19:42. > :20:02.instigating the first eastw`rd Burns supper. -- Eastwood. The 50th Burns
:20:03. > :20:05.supper is coming up soon. Hd was a council candidate on three
:20:06. > :20:14.occasions, not winning but importantly preparing the ground for
:20:15. > :20:20.future success, and he has been a campaign in by-elections, including
:20:21. > :20:27.the famous Hamilton one the year after he joined, which saw the
:20:28. > :20:36.Hamilton express train which Stewart was on, and Trina -- a train going
:20:37. > :20:40.down to London, and what an impact that made. Betty has been treasurer
:20:41. > :20:51.of 38 years continuously, 38. APPLAUSE
:20:52. > :20:54.And not just looking after the money but instigating much of the
:20:55. > :21:00.fundraising or being instrulental in ensuring funds are raised, hncluding
:21:01. > :21:07.that fantastic Burns supper which is not just a fantastic social occasion
:21:08. > :21:11.but a significant fundraiser, contributing to that record of
:21:12. > :21:15.keeping the books in credit locally, and she has pounded the strdets
:21:16. > :21:24.throughout that time with the leaflets and doorknocking and all
:21:25. > :21:28.the rest. This can only ever be a token in response to all of that
:21:29. > :21:35.dedication and the contributions that have been made but I hope you
:21:36. > :21:44.will agree with me that Stewart and Betty Farkas and are very worthy
:21:45. > :21:51.winners. -- far Klaasen. And I hope that you will join me in underlining
:21:52. > :21:55.our commitment to keep that work going so that the real prizd that
:21:56. > :22:03.they and we have all been working for, independence, can be awarded
:22:04. > :22:04.rather sooner than later. I now ask Betty and Stewart to come up.
:22:05. > :23:32.APPLAUSE Good morning, conference.
:23:33. > :23:41.Many thanks for your kind rdmarks, Ian. We are both very honoured to
:23:42. > :23:49.receive this award. Working for a living can sometimes be surd -- a
:23:50. > :23:55.chore. Working for the SNP towards independence for the past 50 years
:23:56. > :24:14.has never been a chore. It has been a privilege and a joy
:24:15. > :24:24.and indeed an honour. We have both enjoyed every minute of it. Well,
:24:25. > :24:31.perhaps not quite the low points. We have been rewarded by seeing
:24:32. > :24:39.victories over the years but in particular when Stewart Maxwell
:24:40. > :24:43.became our MSP and when Kirstein Oswald became our MP.
:24:44. > :24:53.APPLAUSE Could I also said on the half of
:24:54. > :25:00.Betty and myself a big thank you to our fellow hard-working and
:25:01. > :25:11.enthusiastic members of Eastwood and in particular the three conspirators
:25:12. > :25:16.who set us up for this award. The branch convener Deirdre Parkinson,
:25:17. > :25:32.branch the Secretary of State James Milner and and our lovely d`ughter
:25:33. > :25:39.Yvonne. And finally to all of you lovely people, get your surveys done
:25:40. > :26:03.and finish the job and we whll be with you all the way, and thank you.
:26:04. > :26:43.Thanks very much, well done, congratulations. Thank you, Ian
:26:44. > :26:54.Delegates, I will ask you to stay in the hall, we are going to h`ve a
:26:55. > :27:00.brief interlude. It will not be that exciting! But what will be dxciting,
:27:01. > :27:05.for those of you who are regulars at conference, and I know becatse there
:27:06. > :27:16.are about 3000 of you here that is a minority, we always have a fraternal
:27:17. > :27:23.address from our Sister party, Plaid Cymru, in Wales. It is alwaxs nice
:27:24. > :27:28.to have a member of Plaid Cxmru address us and tell us their story.
:27:29. > :27:39.Bethan Jenkins AM will be joining us but is currently in a media
:27:40. > :27:46.interview. On her way, so I won t say to her, keep it short, when she
:27:47. > :27:51.arrives. She will be here shortly. When this session is over at the end
:27:52. > :27:55.of that address we have to clear the auditorium and make sure yot take
:27:56. > :28:01.all of your belongings with you but I will be collecting them and
:28:02. > :28:04.donating them to party headpuarters as a financial contribution, so make
:28:05. > :28:09.sure you take your belongings with you when we clear the auditorium. We
:28:10. > :28:15.have had the president's prhze and it is appropriate that people of
:28:16. > :28:19.such contribution are recognised within the party. There are now a
:28:20. > :28:23.great many thousands of people who have contributed to our cause and
:28:24. > :28:27.party over the years and many are watching online stop can I `sk you
:28:28. > :28:40.to show appreciation of all the members, all of the activists, all
:28:41. > :28:46.of the people who have taken us to this point. Thank you very luch And
:28:47. > :28:56.now it gives me great pleastre to introduce Bethan Jenkins AM, who is
:28:57. > :29:02.the baby, apparently, of thd House in the Welsh assembly, also having
:29:03. > :29:11.served as the national organiser of Plaid Cymru's youth wing. H`ving
:29:12. > :29:18.been elected in 2007, she h`s been re-elected again and again, serving
:29:19. > :29:41.her third term in office. Please welcome Bethan Jenkins AM.
:29:42. > :29:47.Good afternoon, conference, and it is a pleasure to be here amongst so
:29:48. > :29:55.many friends. If you drive west from Cardiff along the M4, after 20 miles
:29:56. > :30:02.of vast -- after 20 miles you are on top of it. It is an unforgettable
:30:03. > :30:06.sight, Port Talbot steelworks, which they say in spy and Ridley Scott's
:30:07. > :30:13.vision for Blade Runner. It is at its most clear in winter, extreme
:30:14. > :30:17.winking lights and dark machinery in ultrahigh definition. By thd time
:30:18. > :30:22.you see it you start to get the faintest taste of sulphur on your
:30:23. > :30:28.tongue. Within the steelworks, in amongst the vast network of
:30:29. > :30:33.super-sized piping, there is a carefully tended area of gr`ss is no
:30:34. > :30:40.bigger than a house lawn. Upon this green there is an old wall, 20 feet
:30:41. > :30:43.long, dating from medieval times. It is widely believed that this wall
:30:44. > :30:49.was once part of what gave this place its original name, thd Abbey
:30:50. > :30:55.works. Metal has been smeltdd at this site for over 800 years,
:30:56. > :31:03.steelworkers, who are as suspicious as they are fiery with good reason,
:31:04. > :31:06.say if the wall falls down the Abbey works will closed and apprentices
:31:07. > :31:13.are regularly sent to ensurd that the passing of lorries are not
:31:14. > :31:18.causing it to crumble. The site is said to be hunted by several hosts
:31:19. > :31:22.but it is the ghost of the red Monk who counts the most. He will curse
:31:23. > :31:30.anybody who destroys the wall that he is also a benevolent spirit am
:31:31. > :31:37.appearing when he is most ndeded and he is credited as saving lives of
:31:38. > :31:40.steelworkers. It is the last surviving industrial communhty of
:31:41. > :31:45.Wales, our valleys have namds known the world over for their part in the
:31:46. > :31:49.industrial revolution, Blaenavon, Ebbw Vale, the Rhondda, Merthyr
:31:50. > :31:55.Tydfil, where the red flag of socialism flew first. But none of
:31:56. > :32:00.these places have the works that created them, the pits and furnaces
:32:01. > :32:04.have gone, but the valleys `re still facing the same uncertain ftture
:32:05. > :32:11.they were when these places close as long as half a century ago. This
:32:12. > :32:15.legacy of the industrialisation is an experience that my home `nd your
:32:16. > :32:22.city still shares. The Abbex works is not the place it once was. There
:32:23. > :32:26.are two blast furnaces instdad of five, around 500 workers and
:32:27. > :32:28.contractors instead of as m`ny as 18,000. This decline is mirrored in
:32:29. > :32:41.the town centre. Although there are no deep-fried
:32:42. > :32:45.Mars bar shops. The spirit of what it means to belong to an industrial
:32:46. > :32:51.community still burns as brhghtly as the fires that's not the iron or. I
:32:52. > :32:55.fought half a dozen elections in Port Talbot and here is a place
:32:56. > :32:58.where people really are eng`ged Where debate is at its sharpest and
:32:59. > :33:05.where you have to know everxthing that affects people otherwise they
:33:06. > :33:07.will find you out. I feel a deep personal responsibility for those
:33:08. > :33:13.people as you do your consthtuents here in Scotland. When the works
:33:14. > :33:19.were threatened with closurd everyone knew it meant an economic
:33:20. > :33:22.cataclysm for Wales. For thd 20 000 people involved in supplying and
:33:23. > :33:31.servicing the Abbey works and other Tata Steel plants like an
:33:32. > :33:38.but it brought into sharp rdlief just what representing Port Talbot
:33:39. > :33:41.really meant. I knew the men and women whose jobs were under threat
:33:42. > :33:46.and I know their children and where they go to school and what sport
:33:47. > :33:50.clubs they attend. I often know their parents when they havd been in
:33:51. > :33:53.hospital last. I know many of their neighbours and their friends in the
:33:54. > :33:56.next street and I know how closely by everyone in their familids live
:33:57. > :34:03.because that is what it is like to live in in industrial community like
:34:04. > :34:08.Port Talbot. -- an. Who did it fall to to save those men and thdir jobs?
:34:09. > :34:11.To keep their clubs open and to stop public money being leached from
:34:12. > :34:18.their schools and hospitals? Who did it fall to to prevent a dagger being
:34:19. > :34:23.pushed into Port Talbot? Thd last people you want in your corner, that
:34:24. > :34:29.is so. Courted a painful pincer movement between swivel eyed Tory
:34:30. > :34:33.ideology and a local Labour Party whose conviction and initiative
:34:34. > :34:38.disappeared decades ago -- court between a painful. UK Busindss
:34:39. > :34:41.Secretary, man who doesn't believe the gay should even have an
:34:42. > :34:45.industrial strategy was holhdaying with his daughter in Australia -
:34:46. > :34:51.who doesn't believe the UK should even have. He was the last lan to
:34:52. > :34:56.even realise how much a thrdat the closure of Port Talbot was to the
:34:57. > :35:00.economy, it finally got on ` plane and came to the work, and hd
:35:01. > :35:05.received the customary warm welcome for politicians. He wore a xellow
:35:06. > :35:10.jacket and a hard hat because that makes you care more, doesn't it
:35:11. > :35:16.Labour did what they always do in response to a crisis, and c`lled in
:35:17. > :35:20.the unions for a cup of tea. The same union leaders spent thdir lives
:35:21. > :35:23.in the service of the party and rarely of the men and women whose
:35:24. > :35:29.contributions and allow thel to enjoy their comfortable lifdstyles.
:35:30. > :35:32.The worst government set up a task force staffed with the usual
:35:33. > :35:40.suspects whose multitude work streams included retraining after
:35:41. > :35:42.redundancy. Not once did it even stop to think it's best str`tegy
:35:43. > :35:49.would have been to fight thd closure. In the minds of ministers
:35:50. > :35:55.this was already a done deal. This kind of apathetic gutless strrender
:35:56. > :36:04.makes me sick to my stomach. And I will never... APPLAUSE
:36:05. > :36:12.... I will never... APPLAUSD ... I will never forgive thd Labour
:36:13. > :36:16.administration for the way ht has rolled over in Port Talbot. The
:36:17. > :36:22.Conservatives plan mostly involved raiding the pension fund and I've
:36:23. > :36:25.never quite understood this logic, which they have appropriated from
:36:26. > :36:30.big business. Pensions are wages to third. It is money you don't spend
:36:31. > :36:36.now because you are saving ht for later -- wages deferred. If you put
:36:37. > :36:43.the same money in the bank no one would think to take it, apart from
:36:44. > :36:47.the bag itself, maybe. -- b`nk. Why is it OK to raid? No, wrong. The
:36:48. > :36:56.pensions of those who have worked hard and want to enjoy their
:36:57. > :37:01.retirement. APPLAUSE What we were seeing from thd Tories
:37:02. > :37:06.is the utter bankruptcy of their ideology and complete inability to
:37:07. > :37:14.react to the cold economic winds they themselves played a part in
:37:15. > :37:17.creating. Plaid Cymru felt Tiffany, we started with one single
:37:18. > :37:22.conviction, closure wasn't `n option -- felt differently. We looked at
:37:23. > :37:25.every option to make sure wd have the clear response of picture of
:37:26. > :37:30.what was happening in the works and at Tata Steel itself, the challenges
:37:31. > :37:35.were considerable and they still are considerable. For the best part of a
:37:36. > :37:40.decade Port Talbot has suffdred at the expense of its sister plant the
:37:41. > :37:43.Dutch leadership in Tata Stdel Europe had kept the investmdnt in
:37:44. > :37:47.the Netherlands and left Port Talbot to patch itself up according to the
:37:48. > :37:54.workers. Some of the equipmdnt there like the rollers date back to the
:37:55. > :37:58.1960s. The engineering Department was known the world over for its
:37:59. > :38:04.ability to squeeze production records out of the grandfather
:38:05. > :38:08.plant. Tata Steel Europe responded by stripping out the departlent and
:38:09. > :38:13.in all we estimated that Port Talbot needed close to ?1 billion of
:38:14. > :38:17.investment to fully modernised. We were also being briefed agahnst
:38:18. > :38:24.suddenly the works were loshng 1 million a day, no, it wasn't. That
:38:25. > :38:27.figure was against target. Ht in no way meant the site was oper`ting a
:38:28. > :38:33.deficit. We were told the pdnsion fund was a huge problem. Ag`in, this
:38:34. > :38:39.was overstated, and accepted as fact by a compliant media. It is better
:38:40. > :38:45.than most FTSE 100 companies and fortunes are improving. I wdnt to
:38:46. > :38:48.the delegation in Europe and discovered that in spite of what the
:38:49. > :38:53.UK Government and Welsh govdrnments were saying, there were ways we
:38:54. > :38:56.could receive state support. We presented an 11 point plan to keep
:38:57. > :39:03.the works going and improve it to the people of Port Talbot. Ht was
:39:04. > :39:09.laughter by Labour who now, months later, have quietly adopted almost
:39:10. > :39:18.all of its recommendations. APPLAUSE Yes. They said they couldn't build a
:39:19. > :39:22.sustainable new power plant that would halve the work's energy bill,
:39:23. > :39:26.making it more competitive while reducing emissions. We showdd them
:39:27. > :39:31.it could be done with Europdan money. They seems to dismissed the
:39:32. > :39:35.suggestion of creating a stdel research and development centre at
:39:36. > :39:40.the nearby new Swansea Univdrsity campus, but we told them in what
:39:41. > :39:47.part they could find the funding. We pointed at the Scottish Govdrnment's
:39:48. > :39:52.smart purchase and quick sale of the plants in Scotland, but thex didn't
:39:53. > :39:56.want to know. Yes, the scalds are different, Port Talbot is your's
:39:57. > :39:59.largest steelworks, but the refusal to even look at Scotland to see if
:40:00. > :40:05.there were lessons that could be learned was so frustrating. There is
:40:06. > :40:09.a lot of people in politics still struggling with the referendum
:40:10. > :40:13.result. How can it be, they wonder, that these areas like the v`lleys,
:40:14. > :40:19.which received billions of Duropean aid have voted to effectively switch
:40:20. > :40:24.those taps off? I say to those people, it isn't Europe or hts
:40:25. > :40:27.money, it is the way in which those who have been responsible for
:40:28. > :40:30.spending it, for governing Wales, that have failed to use it to
:40:31. > :40:41.deliver real opportunity to those who saw the industry disappdar from
:40:42. > :40:47.their communities. APPLAUSE What I hear, we've had all this
:40:48. > :40:51.money and it hasn't changed a thing, so how exactly are we going to miss
:40:52. > :40:56.it? You have to admit they do have a point. Because if there is one thing
:40:57. > :41:03.the Tata Steel crisis taught it is that the Tories and Labour `re
:41:04. > :41:07.continuing the shabby condition if you need your job saving and your
:41:08. > :41:12.community to continue, don't call on them. They either don't seel to care
:41:13. > :41:16.or they don't know how to hdlp, and this week in the assembly L`bour
:41:17. > :41:23.voted against a new autism Bill letting the people down. Pl`id Cymru
:41:24. > :41:34.is different, we share a phhlosophy with you, our sister party, and ..
:41:35. > :41:38.APPLAUSE Scotland, thankfully, doesn't have
:41:39. > :41:52.the Tories or Labour in charge. It has the SNP. CHEERING
:41:53. > :42:02.Is OK. I queued in a clap. Scotland voted to remain in the EU. CHEERING
:42:03. > :42:09.People could see you making a difference with the powers xou have
:42:10. > :42:12.and the powers you are still fighting to have and there has to be
:42:13. > :42:16.something to be said about that If politics could make a difference to
:42:17. > :42:21.people's lives for the good, they will engage. They will move away
:42:22. > :42:29.from the ugly populism that has hijacked all debate in the TK. The
:42:30. > :42:32.truth is you need a creativd forward-thinking government that can
:42:33. > :42:37.meaningfully respond to a steel crisis over or any crisis of that
:42:38. > :42:42.magnitude, if you are to have a successful and responsible
:42:43. > :42:46.democracy. The SNP has shown the way here in Scotland and contintes to do
:42:47. > :42:56.so and we respect you so much in Wales for doing that. Pleasd believe
:42:57. > :43:00.us. APPLAUSE It is a long road, but Plaid Cymru
:43:01. > :43:03.will do the same in Wales. H've spoken to many of you over the last
:43:04. > :43:08.two days and when you tell le that you have sat in a conferencd centre
:43:09. > :43:13.this big we do get very jealous so don't dismiss how important this is,
:43:14. > :43:18.we know we can be a successful as you and we know one day we will lead
:43:19. > :43:30.Wales, for all our communithes in Wales, and I hope... CHEERING
:43:31. > :43:35.And I hope when we have our independence referendum that you
:43:36. > :43:37.will come down en masse as we came to support you in supporting us in
:43:38. > :44:11.our referendum. Good luck. Thank you very much for that
:44:12. > :44:13.wonderful address. Conference, that ends the session, please make sure
:44:14. > :44:17.you take all your belongings with you, we will clear the auditorium
:44:18. > :44:22.and I look forward to seeing you back for the next session where we
:44:23. > :44:28.will hear from our party le`der Nicola Sturgeon.