Alan Brown
Scottish National Party · Scotland
“I congratulate the member for securing the debate, which seems, in effect, to be on behalf of the trade body the Nuclear Industry Association. It will come as no surprise to the member that I disagree with a lot of what he said, but I also have to say that his motion contains several inaccuracies. Nuclear is not green.”
“The current strike price for Hinkley C—the Scottish National Party’s bête noire—is £131 per megawatt hour. Finally, on waste, nuclear power is unique in that its waste is fully identified, regulated, contained and managed.”
“The reality is that a new station that has taken 15 years to build does not address energy security. The other point concerns low cost. The projected cost of Hinkley Point C station is now £50 billion, but the original estimate was £18 billion.”
“As I said in my remarks, Hinkley Point C’s strike price is about £131 per megawatt hour, and the strike price for floating offshore wind is about £230, so the member has just misled the chamber. Alan Brown: The member is not listening to me.”
“The member keeps talking about baseload. Does he realise that, as long ago as 2015, the then chief executive of National Grid said that baseload was an “outdated” concept?”
“I am grateful for the member’s intervention, because it allows me to put him straight yet again. He actually adds to the counterarguments that I will no doubt face from the Minister for Europe, External Affairs and Energy.”
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“Nuclear is the only energy technology that has not got cheaper over the years, whereas subsidies for renewables bring cost reductions. Then there are the hidden subsidies for Hinkley and Sizewell, which are paid to connect to the grid, whereas Scottish renewable projects have to pay to connect to the grid. When Liam Kerr talked about managing waste, he did not mention that the Nuclear Decommissioning Authority estimates the legacy clean-up costs to be £136 billion and that a new geological disposal facility will cost up to £69 billion. That is more than £200 billion of costs that are conveniently forgotten and disregarded.”
“As I said in my remarks, Hinkley Point C’s strike price is about £131 per megawatt hour, and the strike price for floating offshore wind is about £230, so the member has just misled the chamber. Alan Brown: The member is not listening to me. Okay—I said that the strike price was £130 for Hinkley Point C, and it is £131, so I stand corrected there. The strike price for floating offshore wind is listed at £216 per megawatt hour, but that is for a 20- year contract. If we compare the unit price over different contract periods, we see that floating offshore wind is actually comparatively cheaper than Hinkley, so the member is wrong on that. A recent national audit report confirmed that the equivalent strike rate for Sizewell C is £131 to £155 per megawatt hour.”
“The reality is that a new station that has taken 15 years to build does not address energy security. The other point concerns low cost. The projected cost of Hinkley Point C station is now £50 billion, but the original estimate was £18 billion. Sizewell C has an upper estimate of £48 billion, and all the financial risk on the project is borne by bill payers. I will look at the strike rates, as I interpret them differently from Liam Kerr. He is right that the Hinkley Point C strike rate is currently £130 per megawatt hour, which is indexed to 2024. That is far more expensive than onshore and fixed offshore renewables. Critically, however, the Hinckley strike rate is over a 35-year contract, unlike the 15 to 20-year contracts for renewables. Liam Kerr: What the member has said is not true.”
“I congratulate the member for securing the debate, which seems, in effect, to be on behalf of the trade body the Nuclear Industry Association. It will come as no surprise to the member that I disagree with a lot of what he said, but I also have to say that his motion contains several inaccuracies. Nuclear is not green. It is low carbon, but producing radioactive nuclear waste, which in some cases must be stored underground for thousands of years, cannot be classed as green. As for energy security, we were originally told that Hinkley would be required to be online by Christmas 2017 in order to keep the lights on. Once the contract was signed, the project was to be delivered by 2025. Hinkley is now delayed to 2030, while three existing nuclear stations have now shut down, yet there is still no panic for energy reliance.”
“My view is that Scotland should continue to lead in wind and other renewable technologies, and give full support to oil and gas, but we should not exclude a proven source of reliable, low-carbon electricity. Nuclear power supports our climate ambitions, strengthens our energy security and provides the firm power that is needed for future economic growth. Let us follow that evidence and pursue informed, long-term, strategic planning choices that recognise the importance of oil and gas, acknowledge the need for new nuclear baseload and strive for a future alongside, and in partnership with, renewables. 18:07”
“The current strike price for Hinkley C—the Scottish National Party’s bête noire—is £131 per megawatt hour. Finally, on waste, nuclear power is unique in that its waste is fully identified, regulated, contained and managed. Carbon emissions are never released into the environment, while the radioactive waste is safely stored and monitored. The volume of that waste is remarkably small. In fact, I would be exposed to more radiation on my next flight to Ibiza than I would—[Laughter.] What? I would be exposed to more radiation on that flight than I would were I standing on top of the Torness reactors. The choice facing Scotland is not between renewables, nuclear, and oil and gas; it is whether or not we want to be able to meet the huge demand that is coming down the track with a mature, evidence-based approach to all three.”
“I am grateful for the member’s intervention, because it allows me to put him straight yet again. He actually adds to the counterarguments that I will no doubt face from the Minister for Europe, External Affairs and Energy. In previous debates, I have had thrown at me, “What about safety?” Well, the UK has operated civil nuclear power stations for more than half a century without a major nuclear accident affecting the public. On economics, Alan Brown asked me the other week about Hinkley Point C. In the latest contracts for difference allocation round, fixed-bottom offshore wind was priced at £95 per megawatt hour; that is around £125 per megawatt hour when back-up is factored in. Floating offshore wind comes in at £230 per megawatt hour.”
“The member keeps talking about baseload. Does he realise that, as long ago as 2015, the then chief executive of National Grid said that baseload was an “outdated” concept? Further, does he acknowledge that, on average over the long term, nuclear power stations are operational only 78 per cent of the time, so we cannot even rely on nuclear power being available when we absolutely need it? Liam Kerr: For the member to stand up and say that baseload is an outdated concept is an extraordinary intervention. As I reminded him about three weeks ago, he does not seem to know what he is talking about when it comes to energy. He does not seem to realise that nuclear is operational 90 per cent of the time and is non- operational only when it is entirely planned.”
“To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to carry out a cumulative impact assessment of the number of planning applications proposed for artificial intelligence data centres, including the power and water resources required and the impact on climate emissions. (S7O-00115)”
“We therefore need to consider what the effects will be on train travel and whether the subsidy for train travel should be revisited. What thought has been given to the possible requirement for a number of new buses for new park-and-ride facilities? The Kilmarnock and Fenwick areas in my constituency need new park- and-ride buses—there are pressures already in that regard. Also, how do we develop the new services? There is an opportunity to transform bus services, which I hope will lead to public franchises, with all the money reinvested in those services. However, we must ensure that we get the model right for a fantastic initiative that will support many people across Scotland.”
“As Daniel Johnson touched on earlier, when the full service is rolled out, it looks as though, under these proposals, passengers will be able to travel from Glasgow to Inverness for the same £2 capped fare. There is a balance to be reached and a debate to be had on the distance that is allowed for the £2 cap. There should perhaps be a way of buying through tickets—that is the way that it used to be under Western Scottish Motor Traction, as my colleague Bob Doris mentioned earlier. I have a few further considerations. At the moment, when travelling from Kilmarnock to Glasgow, the bus fare costs only marginally less than travelling by train. However, under the new system, bus travel will cost 50 per cent less than travelling by train.”
“That example shows the potential of public ownership and the need to make sure that the £2 cap does not unduly reward a company such as First Bus, which uses its monopoly to charge higher fares. I turn to a more local example in my constituency. I stay in Galston, which is five miles from Kilmarnock. A single fare into Kilmarnock is currently £5.10 and a return costs £9.20, which is unaffordable for many. Therefore, a £4 return fare will be a great saving. However, it will mean that the five-mile journey from Galston to Kilmarnock will be the same price as the 25-mile journey from Kilmarnock to Glasgow, effectively introducing a financial penalty for those who need to make a change at Kilmarnock bus station.”
“We can compare savings for passengers with some of the fares that bus companies advertise, but those are clearly different from the physical cost for the bus operators and the level of support that they actually need, especially if a critical mass of passengers is achieved. We need to make sure that we get best value and do not contribute to excess profits. As other members have said, the issue of excess profits is why we need more franchises under public ownership. During my travels to watch the Scotland v Haiti game at the weekend, I started by getting the Lothian Buses service to the airport, paying what I thought was a reasonable £8.50 open return fare. In Glasgow, First Bus charges more than double that amount for a similar journey from Glasgow airport to the city centre.”
“What a difference the fare cap will make for my constituents who work or study in Glasgow and have a daily commute from Kilmarnock. At the moment, an on-the-day single bus fare is £8.10 and a return fare is just under £15. That will go down to £4 a day, saving people more than £50 a week. The cap will open up new job markets and education opportunities for those who were previously unable to afford the commute. What an incentive that will be to swap the car for bus travel, which is clearly a more sustainable form of transport. One question that I have for the cabinet secretary is, how do we implement a subsidy that supports the new cap system?”
“I congratulate the cabinet secretary, who seems to have brought forward proposals in the motion that have united the entire Parliament— except for Craig Hoy, who I can see does not want to hear what I have to say, either. He obviously does not see the direction of travel, to use a pun. What a welcome cost of living measure the proposals will be. I have already had inquiries from constituents about when the fare cap will be introduced. I welcome the fact that Ayrshire will, rightly, be in first tranche, which covers the Strathclyde region. I hope that that will give opportunities for SPT and local authorities to further consider franchising and take advantage of the potential increase in passenger numbers and revenue support.”
“Will the member take an intervention? Craig Hoy: I am afraid that I do not have time. Today’s announcement potentially serves only to— Alan Brown: You will get the time back. Craig Hoy: I will take the intervention if I can have the time back, Deputy Presiding Officer.”
“To ask the Scottish Government how the cashback for communities programme is supporting projects and young people in the Kilmarnock and Irvine Valley constituency during its phase 7. (S7O-00076)”
“Russell Findlay: I was going to ask whether the member had anything to say about the journalists in Scotland who were denigrated, attacked and told they were lying by members of his party when they were doing their hard and tenacious work to get the truth about the Nicola Sturgeon and Peter Murrell scandal. Alan Brown: I genuinely do not know what the guy is talking about—”
“He claimed that his phone was hacked by Russia—there was no contrition, just an attempt to muddy the water with a spurious hacking claim that experts would have cast doubt on. Harborne has donated £15 million to Reform while living abroad. So far this year, Reform has gained £9 million from those billionaires, and it tries to tell us that it is the party to protect the working classes. These are the same type of people who funded the Brexit campaign’s lies and Cambridge Analytica with dark money. If anything ever undermined public trust, it was the Brexit promises of £350 million a week for the NHS. Of course, the Tories were funded by Russian oligarchs. If Russell Findlay wants to come in now, I will take his intervention.”
“At least the amendment from the Greens calls for an inquiry to be independent and to cover the finances of all parties. That would involve looking at the funding of Labour Together, which Democracy for Sale found had received £730,000 in undeclared donations. Its funding was not transparent. It was an organisation that paid private investigators to dig dirt on reporters who highlighted the flow of money to Starmer’s Labour Party. Russell Findlay: Will the member give way? Alan Brown: We also need to consider the outrageous donations to Reform UK from the crypto billionaires and Farage’s undeclared £5 million gift from Christopher Harborne. What was Farage’s response when asked about his non- declaration?”
“We know that the public has always had a healthy mistrust of politicians and we know that trust is hard to gain and, once lost, is even harder to win back. We have gained that knowledge through our experience of the Westminster expenses scandal, of UK state cover-ups such as the Hillsborough disaster and the Post Office Horizon scandal, and of the failure of both Labour and Tories to abide by the ombudsman’s recommendation of compensation for the WASPI women. Those are fundamental miscarriages of justice that completely undermined public confidence in and perception of institutions, and such things become a plague on all our houses. That said, it is obvious to me that the aim of today’s debate is not about restoring trust in Scottish politics. The concept of political parties holding an inquiry into only the SNP is clearly partisan.”
“Actually, I think that an inquiry is in the SNP’s interests, because it needs to cleanse before it can progress. We all know that; we have all made mistakes as political parties, but we can progress only if we acknowledge, clean up, inquire and have the sunlight running right into our party. That is the only way to move forward. It is in the SNP’s own interest to have an inquiry. I know that the SNP does not like that, because it believes that we will stitch it up. I understand that. However, the SNP is not even attempting to do anything else. It just wants to shut this down, but it cannot afford to shut it down. I deeply regret that Ross Greer’s approach to this is the same as Alan Brown’s approach—”
“I am getting irritated now, because the SNP needs to understand that this is about the integrity of politics in Scotland as a whole—right here, right now. This is what people in Scotland are talking about, and the SNP is deaf to that. If the SNP will not listen to me, it should listen to Douglas Chapman, because he is a strong supporter of independence. I do not know whether he continues to be a member of the SNP—I would not blame him if he was not. He said recently that “senior people in the SNP failed to support the wishes of the SNP membership”, and he pointed directly to John Swinney. He looked back over all that time and recognised that the leaders of his party, who are the leaders of this country, failed in their responsibilities. For all those reasons, we should have an inquiry.”
“Will the member take an intervention? Willie Rennie: Yes, I will take an intervention. Alan Brown: I thank the member for giving way. In 2005, the Lib Dems accepted £2.4 million from Michael Brown. That money turned out to be stolen money that he had obtained through fraud. The Lib Dems refused to repay that money, because they said that they accepted it in good faith. Why does the member stand here and demand an inquiry, given that the SNP was a victim of fraud, while the Lib Dems were beneficiaries of fraud and refused to help the victims? Willie Rennie: This is why the SNP is in more serious trouble than we thought. Its first reaction to any criticism of its internal affairs is to throw the muck around and blame everybody else. [Interruption.] We addressed that issue at the time.”
“Eighteen months ago, the UK Government committed to providing £200 million-worth of targeted support to Grangemouth, which has not been forthcoming. We will continue to pursue that. On the question of sanctions, Alan Brown is absolutely right that we should have the maximum sanctions on Russia. I was deeply concerned by the UK Government’s recent action in that regard.”
“Grangemouth provided aviation fuel and could have been used to develop sustainable aviation fuel for the future. Does the cabinet secretary share my concern that, by letting it close and now pandering to Putin by allowing the importation of aviation fuel, the UK Labour Government has actively chosen to weaken energy security in the UK and has lost opportunities to strengthen our domestic capabilities for the future? Stephen Gethins: Alan Brown is absolutely right to raise this issue. Labour committed itself, during the 2024 election campaign, to saving the Grangemouth refinery. Alan Brown and I agree that Scotland has a huge role to play in not only Scotland’s energy security but pan-European energy security, which Labour, along with its colleagues in Reform, has been turning its back on.”
“I do not like the phrase “shovel ready”, but Peterhead power station is the most mature of the carbon capture, use and storage projects in the UK, yet other, less mature projects have been given billions of pounds. The Acorn project is vital to decarbonising Scotland’s emitters and delivering a just transition. It could unlock billions in private investment while driving essential progress to net zero. I agree with Alan Brown that we need to get clarity on the £200 million and ensure that we get the project off the ground, as it will create many new jobs, particularly in the place that I am from.”
“Peterhead power station is the biggest carbon emitter in Scotland, but it is also, through its dispatchable energy production, vital for energy security. Carbon capture is the obvious solution, and the cabinet secretary has touched on that. However, what can be done to make the UK Government stump up the £200 million for development that it promised and, more importantly, funding akin to the £22 billion that has been allocated for carbon capture south of the border? Gillian Martin: Alan Brown alights on something that, when I formerly had responsibility for energy in particular, became the subject of an almost twice-monthly conversation with my UK Government counterparts. The UK Government pledged £200 million for the development of Acorn, but that money is still not flowing. Alan Brown made a really good point.”
“Will the member give way? Thomas Kerr: No. I am not interested, thanks. Members: Oh! Thomas Kerr: The Deputy Presiding Officer just said that it is up to the speaker to decide whether to take an intervention.”
“To ask the Scottish Government what recent assessment it has made of future journey times on cross-border services between Scotland and London once HS2 is operational, including how passenger service and demand will be affected. (S7O-00016)”
“I move amendment S7M-00208.3, to insert at end: “and believes that to maintain participation in the long term, measures such as a £25 ticket cap for away football fans and support for local authorities to keep local sports venues open, including Aquatec Motherwell, are essential.” 16:00”
“I cannot see how that is not at odds with an event that is meant to be about promoting healthy lifestyles through sport and physical activity. I would be grateful if the minister could advise members what conversations she has had with organisers about alcohol sponsorship of the games and what message that sends, particularly given that there is a focus on the participation of children and young people. The summer of sport is an opportunity to spread the joy of taking part in sport to people all over Scotland. It is a truly worthwhile investment that has the potential to improve Scotland’s health and wellbeing immeasurably. On behalf of the Scottish Greens, I wish all those taking part the very best, and I hope that the next debate that we have on sport is about celebrating their success.”
“That is not to say that regional or national facilities are not important, but, realistically, a velodrome will not be accessed by as many people as a green space that is suitable for cycling. The summer of sport has to be the catalyst to get people involved, but the investment must keep up to ensure that the summer of sport lasts longer than a Scottish summer usually does. We believe that sport should be about the joy of taking part in physical activity and not about huge profits for industries that harm our health and extract wealth from sporting achievements. That is why we want sport to take place in an environment that promotes health and is free from sponsorship by industries that would harm it. It is disappointing, therefore, that two of the partners involved in the Commonwealth games are Coca-Cola and Jubel Beer.”
“If we want to improve the mental and physical health of the nation, we must invest in local facilities where friendships are built and people come together to support one another. We need to ensure that the next generation of elite athletes, coaches and lifelong sports enthusiasts have local and accessible places to go to. We must also make sure that people can walk, wheel and cycle in their local areas and that having access to a car is not necessary for them to take part in sport. We rightly provide exercise referrals to allow people to improve their health with cheap or free access to exercise. Those people are less likely to drive, so local facilities are vital.”
“However, to secure the legacy of the Commonwealth games, we must get the basics right. Across my region, a number of publicly owned sport and leisure venues are under threat of closure or are coming towards the end of their lifespan. I have backed calls from constituents who are rightly concerned about the proposals to close Aquatec Motherwell. That leisure facility has been a vital part of the community for decades. It is one of the only accessible venues with good public transport connections and has been a lifeline for residents seeking a place to exercise, socialise and enjoy a healthy lifestyle. Venues such as the Aquatec, and many similar facilities across Scotland, are important not just for fitness but for community cohesion.”
“There is potential to reach a level that clubs are comfortable with, while, crucially, ensuring that fans are not priced out of the game. However, we should work with clubs and supporters’ organisations to drive that forward. The First Minister said in January that he would be happy to consider the issue. Now that the minister for sport is back in place, I hope that she will join me in making calls to cap away ticket prices. The summer of sport is an opportunity to break down some of the barriers to sport and physical activity. I am pleased that the motion mentions the provision of “opportunities for children and young people to take part in free and low-cost activities”. We should be using those opportunities for young people to get parents, grandparents or whichever adults accompany those young people back into sport, too.”
“I am a football supporter—a Kilmarnock sufferer—so I support the £25 cap on tickets. In England, television money dwarfs admission money, and clubs get much more revenue from that. In Scotland, clubs rely on the money that is coming through the door. So, how would the price cap work in practice? I am for the measure, but I am worried that some clubs would suffer financially. Gillian Mackay: We need to do more work at the national level to promote Scottish football, particularly in the Scottish Professional Football League, outside Scotland, in order to generate more money from TV rights. Falkirk is already selling away tickets for £25. Other clubs could look at its model and consider adopting that approach themselves. A £25 away ticket price could also serve as a starting point for the conversation.”
“I think that everyone in the chamber agrees on that aim. To that end, I would welcome the constructive engagement of members to ensure that, collectively, we achieve that policy outcome.”
“Before the election, the First Minister had a fantastic visit to the farm that is operated by Cammy Wilson of “The Sheep Game”, who explained that eggs are an important strand of his farming business. Similar to the member who asked the previous question, I am looking for assurance that, as we tackle the cost of living and get affordable food in supermarkets, farmers such as Cammy will still receive a fair price for the produce that they produce and will not be squeezed by the supermarkets. Tom Arthur: I thank Mr Brown for reiterating this important issue. I want to work constructively with all relevant stakeholders in recognising the nature of the policy and the importance of achieving effective implementation that realises the policy aim, which is to ensure that the weekly shop is affordable.”
“Somehow, Starmer has signed us up for the same again for Sizewell C. Duncan Massey: Will the member give way? Alan Brown: I will take the intervention.”
“It has taken long enough to get a cap and floor pricing mechanism agreed, but now that it is there in principle, it must be allocated to several of the schemes that are ready to go in Scotland, starting with Coire Glas, which was first granted planning permission in 2013. We have had years of lost opportunities for construction jobs, long-term energy security and balancing. As we know, because Scotland is not in control of those policies, too much of the UK’s energy focus has been spent on the procurement of new nuclear. We heard that again from the unionist parties today. The technology is ridiculously expensive and takes about 15 years to deliver. I said earlier that Hinkley Point C station is now estimated to cost £50 billion, not forgetting that it was originally estimated to cost £18 billion in 2016.”
“With control of energy policy, Scotland could develop 4.3GW of tidal stream energy and the same again in wave energy, which would create an £8.7 billion GVA opportunity according to the University of Edinburgh. Onshore wind deployment has been a success story for Scotland, but we lost out on the chance to be early leaders and manufacturers for onshore wind due to a lack of UK Government ambition. We cannot and must not miss out on world-first opportunities for marine energy. Marine energy is a technology that gives predictable baseload to supplement the intermittency of renewables. Another renewable technology that is suited to grid balancing is pumped storage hydro.”
“It is ironic that members have been complaining about the grid upgrades that are still required as if it is somehow Scotland’s fault and as if, somehow, we cannot do it, whereas, for all these years, a lack of planning from Westminster has led us to the situation. Members complain about constraint payments, but they are in place because the grid has not been upgraded or planned for for all those years. I will move on to another type of energy—marine energy. We are world leaders in tidal stream energy, with the MeyGen project being the largest operational development in the world. However, the sector also lacks long-term financial support from the UK Government.”
“Now, 11 years on, £22 billion is committed to the clusters in the north of England, but Acorn still waits for the £200 million that was promised by the UK Government. Somehow, we are meant to be grateful for £200 million, which is one thousandth of the funding that has been given to the English clusters. Of course, it is not just hydrocarbons; Scotland is rich in renewables—onshore, offshore and floating wind, as well as marine energy. We are a net exporter of electricity, despite the grid charging system that penalises generation in Scotland. Generators in the south of England get paid to connect to the grid, but we have to pay to connect, resulting in an additional cost of up to £1 billion for offshore projects in the north of Scotland. The system has required change for decades, but it has been ignored by Westminster.”
“It has been lost in Thatcher’s tax cuts and in funding infrastructure such as the M25, high speed 1 and the Channel tunnel, rather than being spent on the dualling of the A9 and the A96 or the construction of the Aberdeen bypass, which have all been left to the SNP to deliver. There has been no thought given to a wider reindustrialisation strategy, which would have benefited my constituency of Kilmarnock over the years. The third betrayal is the lack of support for carbon capture in the north east, despite the Acorn project being vital to the transition of oil and gas workers and the decarbonisation of Peterhead power station. In 2015, Osborne pulled the £1 billion funding competition that Acorn was about to win.”
“The report confirmed that were Scotland independent, our currency would become the hardest in Europe, with the exception, perhaps, of the Norwegian krone. It also confirmed that there would be an influx of foreign funds to Scotland and that we would have an embarrassing budget surplus. What a betrayal. All these years later, they tell us that oil is running out and that we are too poor to be independent, while knowing full well the opportunities that were there for Scotland. They buried that information. The next betrayal is what we have heard about today: the squandering of resources, which they knew were coming, with the money flowing to the Treasury. We could have had a sovereign wealth fund akin to Norway’s, which is a $2.2 trillion fund that is the largest in the world. So, where has the money gone?”
“Kilmarnock FC brings me to my predecessor, Willie Coffey, who I would like to pay tribute to. It was Willie who first taught me to never take no for an answer in constituent casework and to always fight to get the result that you want. I hope to repeat that work ethic and repay the faith that the voters have put in me, and I pay tribute to Willie for what he did before me. I know that this is my first speech, but as I intervened on other people, I would be willing to consider taking an intervention if there is enough time. There are unionists who try to decry us with the cliché phrase “grievance politics”, but truthfully, when it comes to energy, we have a right to some grievances, given the way that Westminster has mishandled our resources. Let us start with the 1974 McCrone report. It was stamped “secret” and hidden for 31 years.”
“[Laughter.] It was while staying with the Reverend Lawrie of Newmilns that Robert Burns decided not to continue his journey to Greenock and then to emigrate, thanks to which our famous bard was able to stay and give us the poems and the humanitarian stuff that we all love and appreciate—again, you are welcome. The oldest co-operative in the world was founded in Fenwick, which is a small village in my constituency. Kilmarnock has long been one of the beating industrial hearts of Scotland, with its proud locomotive and carpet industries, so I am glad to see Brodie Engineering continuing that railway heritage. It is also, of course, the home of Johnnie Walker whisky—and not only that; it is the home of Kilmarnock Football Club, which is the most successful non-city club in Scotland.”
“It is the honour of my life to represent Kilmarnock and Irvine Valley in this Parliament, which is the one that is answerable to the people of Scotland. I grew up in the Irvine valley, and I have always called it my home. There is such a wonderful mix of different communities in the constituency. We are here because of the votes cast—that is what gets us here—but many of us are also here thanks to Alexander Fleming of Darvel, who discovered penicillin in 1928 and has been responsible for saving some 200 million to 500 million lives. You are all welcome.”
“To go back to the issue of constraint payments, the member will realise that one of the reasons that constraint payments are paid is that the nuclear sector is pumping baseload on to the grid and cannot actually be turned off. Further, I point out that new nuclear will cost about £50 billion—that is the estimated cost of Hinkley Point C. How are £50-billion nuclear power stations going to bring down energy bills? Liam Kerr: I am afraid that the deep ignorance of the SNP’s nuclear policy is exemplified in that intervention. Nobody is proposing to build Hinkley C in Scotland; what we are looking at is small modular reactors—”