Jim Fairlie
Scottish National Party · Scotland
“The Scottish Government recognises the challenges that certain plant and animal species pose to agricultural businesses and is supporting farmers to manage those impacts.”
“Will the Government also commit to implementing a more pragmatic licence application scheme for the removal of species where the impact on business and other conservation species or habitats is clear? Jim Fairlie: As Amanda Lindsay points out, there is a management scheme.”
“The Scottish Government remains committed to that work. Indeed, in September, in the Scottish Parliament, I hosted and chaired a constructive round-table discussion on alternative farrowing systems with representatives from the Scottish pig industry, animal welfare organisations and academia.”
“Therefore, we will be working closely with the UK Government and other devolved Administrations on the delivery of the programme. This is a draft Official Report and is subject to correction between publication and archiving, which will take place no later than 35 working days after the date of the meeting.”
“I welcome Joe Fagan to the chamber. The Scottish Government is committed to supporting agriculture, food production and our food and drink sectors in a fair manner. In March, we published our first rural support plan, outlining support for the next five years and providing the clarity, certainty and opportunity to plan.”
“At column 3, paragraph 3— Original text— I point out to the member that we are doing this in concert with the UK Government. There is a joint consultation ongoing as we speak, and I have confirmed with Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs ministers our agreement to do that joint consultation.”
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“Jim Fairlie: It is sucking cattle out of Scotland into the UK, which is having a direct effect on meat wholesalers in Scotland because— Douglas Ross: Listen to what Scott Walker is saying. The Deputy Presiding Officer: Mr Ross. Jim Fairlie: Store cattle are being sucked out of Scotland. As long as the suckler herd is declining in England, store cattle will be taken out of Scotland. That is adding to the problems for meat wholesalers in Scotland. The Deputy Presiding Officer: Thank you, minister. Douglas Ross: It is not me who is saying this— it is Scott Walker. Listen to what the industry is saying. Jim Fairlie: Douglas Ross needs to understand those facts before he comes and asks— The Deputy Presiding Officer: Thank you, minister.”
“These are Scott Walker’s words: “Over the years, the Scottish Government has gradually discouraged livestock production as they see it as a problem for the environment ... They have led this view that the cow is bad for the environment.” Is that criticism of the Scottish Government not correct? Jim Fairlie: Absolutely not. Under no circumstances is that correct, and Scott Walker is entirely wrong. The Scottish Government’s policy has not been—and is not—to reduce cow numbers. With the Scottish suckler support scheme, we are ensuring that suckler cows stay on the land and encouraging them to produce calves more timeously. I gently remind Douglas Ross that it was he who asked the Scottish Government to join the UK Government’s UK-wide agriculture policy, which is part of the problem. Douglas Ross: Rubbish. Just answer the question.”
“The Scottish Government maintains strong support for the Scottish beef industry through the £40 million that is paid annually to beef producers through the Scottish suckler beef support scheme. The Scottish Government’s support package for livestock farmers is the most tailored in the United Kingdom and includes voluntary coupled support for beef production and support for less favoured areas. We will continue to work with the sector, including by meeting the Scottish Association of Meat Wholesalers and Quality Meat Scotland, to consider how to meet the challenges that are affecting it. Douglas Ross: The minister’s answer is at odds with what the Scottish Association of Meat Wholesalers has said. Scott Walker, who is from that organisation, said that some of the blame lies with the minister’s own Government.”
“I fully accept the frustration that Roz McCall expresses, but decisions about how local authorities are going to repair the roads are really for them to take.”
“The cost of fixing the backlog of repairs in Fife has increased by more than £23 million and now sits at £100 million. Despite the slight uplift in councils’ budgets this year, which the minister mentioned, they have been struggling with underfunding for almost two decades, and the higher bills for repairs mean simply that they have less resources for other priorities. Does the minister accept that the money that local authorities spend on filling the thousands of road defects would be better spent on long-term road surface improvements? How will the Scottish Government work with local authorities to establish a fairer funding process that will allow our councils to fix the backlog? Jim Fairlie: As I said in my previous answer, the Scottish Government is increasing local authority funding by more than £1 billion.”
“We all recognise that it is important for there to be a safe and resilient road network throughout Scotland. However, as local roads are the responsibility of local authorities, it is for individual councils to allocate resources based on their local needs. The Scottish Government will provide over £15 billion in the 2025-26 local government settlement, increasing the resources that are available to local government by £1 billion, which represents a real-terms increase of 4.7 per cent. At the same time, in the budget for 2025-26, we propose to increase expenditure on trunk road maintenance to £714 million. Roz McCall: Since 2022, there have been more than 26,000 reported potholes on Fife’s roads, including 224 on the six roads that lead in and out of the village of Saline in west Fife alone.”
“The Presiding Officer: I regret that we will not be able to take any further questions in this item. I remind members of the expectations regarding the length of questions and responses, because more concise questions and responses enable more members to participate. That concludes general questions. First Minister’s Question Time 12:00 Royal College of Nursing Report 1.”
“Does the minister agree that science, not social media, should govern our approach to food safety and that Bovaer, which is now routinely used across Europe, Australia and North America, has an important role to play in combating climate change? Jim Fairlie: I agree with that understanding of our climate change. Kenneth Gibson makes an important point. Social media has been great for many things but, occasionally, it throws up misinformation that overtakes the reality of the conversations and reasoned discussions that we need to have about the measures that we will take to tackle the challenges that we face. Research suggests that the appropriate use of methane- suppressing feed products—or MSFPs—such as Bovaer in livestock diets more generally plays an important role in helping us to reduce emissions from livestock production.”
“Bovaer is a methane-suppressing feed product that has undergone a safety assessment by the Food Standards Agency and Food Standards Scotland as a feed additive for all ruminants involved in milk production and reproduction. It was authorised for use in Scotland in December 2023. Parallel regulations authorise Bovaer across Great Britain. That approval means that farmers in Scotland can use the additive if they choose to do so. Kenneth Gibson: As the minister is aware, Bovaer is manufactured at DSM-Firmenich’s plant, near my Dalry constituency office. Despite more than 58 studies on the product and its having been evaluated as being completely safe to use, Bovaer has been the focus of significant online misinformation. Studies also show no safety concerns for workers who handle the additive.”
“Jim Fairlie: To my knowledge, there has never been a case of avian influenza passing to a human in Scotland. On very rare occasions, it can be transmitted to humans but, globally, there is no evidence of an occasion of human-to-human spread of the virus. A number of recent cases in the United States have been associated with outbreaks in wild birds, poultry and dairy cattle herds, but the majority of them have been mild clinical cases. There was one death in Louisiana of an individual who had underlying health conditions, but that was also attributable to an infection of H5N1. There is no evidence that any of the United States strains are circulating in the United Kingdom or Europe, so we do not have any evidence that we have any issues with avian influenza being transmitted to humans.”
“The advice is very clear that poultry keepers should be carrying out as much of the biosecurity measures as we are required to ask them to do, particularly in the protection zone and the surveillance zone. However, at all times, all poultry keepers should ensure that they take the best biosecurity measures that they have to protect their flocks. Carol Mochan: My final question is on links. Avian influenza has devastated wild bird populations across the country. We know that transmission from birds to humans is rare and that the risk to human health is low, but several people around the world have been infected. Can the Scottish Government advise people on what biosecurity steps people and organisations can take to reduce the spread of avian influenza in Scotland?”
“The Animal and Plant Health Agency is carrying out a veterinary inquiry to assess the source and the potential spread within the area. Carol Mochan: I thank the minister for that clarity and his response. This is the second outbreak in the area in recent years. We have been told that avian flu has been detected in two wild birds in Fife and Perth. Farmers across Scotland, particularly in my region of South Scotland, want reassurance that sufficient safeguards are in place to prevent future outbreaks, and that high winds and flooding are not weakening those safeguards. Can the minister provide some reassurance on that point? Jim Fairlie: As the member is probably aware, the pathogen occurs in the wild and it can get into domestic poultry.”
“I thank Carol Mochan for bringing this to the chamber’s attention. The outbreak is not actually in Kirriemuir but in Kingoldrum. The protection zone’s perimeter is 3km from the infected area, so Kirriemuir sits within the surveillance zone, but not within the protection zone. It is important to clarify that point. On 10 January 2025, following confirmation of the presence of highly pathogenic avian influenza H5N1 in poultry, the Scottish Government activated its plans and immediately declared a 3km protection zone and a 10km surveillance zone around the infected premises, placing controls on poultry, poultry products and other things that could spread disease. Any remaining birds on an infected premises are humanely culled, disposed of safely and disinfection of the premises is carried out.”