Richard Leonard
Scottish Labour · Scotland
“And yet we still hear calls, even during this stage 3 debate, in this, the third decade of the 21st century, in this Parliament, for the entitled voice of the laird and the privileged status of the landlord to be afforded their due place, as if they were a silent—they were an underrepresented—class in our society. If only they were.”
“It feels right to make my final speech in a debate led for Labour by Rhoda Grant, whose unswerving, loyal support to me in Parliament I have valued above all others’, and in a debate which, at its very essence, is about power, is about wealth, is about control and its ugly, unequal distribution.”
“Before I finish, before I leave for the very last time, I want to thank the outstanding people who have worked with me over the last 10 years: Billy McCauley, Thomas Mulvey, Craig Miller, Lesley Brennan, Lauren Harper, Linda Shevlin, Rich Simcox, and the one person who has been there from the very first to the very last, Mike Holmes.”
“So let me finish where it all began: two years after the very first crofters holdings act was passed, in direct response to the land raids, the forced Highland clearances, the battles against eviction—resistance often led by the women of the crofts—it was the crofters, led by their MP, Dr G B Clark, and the miners, led by Keir Hardie, who…”
“Eight years in the making, the Government has come up with a largely technical bill, which we will vote for, but it is the same formula that the Government has been habitually serving up—on the broader question of land reform, on a national care service, on community wealth building.”
“This is my last speech to Parliament as a member, after 10 years. As a back bencher and a front bencher, as a party leader and a committee convener, I have always tried to speak out not only for the labour and trade union movement who sent me here, but for all of those oppressed, denied justice, exploited, voiceless—and so, for those seas…”
The complete record
Every one of 399 lines we hold for Richard Leonard, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 8 of 8.
“Of John Maclean’s “unbreakable spirit”, he declared: “Like a lightning-bolt at last the workers’ wrath falls On all such castles of cowards whether they be Uniformed in ermine, or blue, or khaki.” Hugh MacDiarmid’s poetry has an enduring, timeless quality, and so speaks to our times as well as his own. My own party’s current leaders should take heed.”
“Expelled from the Communist Party for being a nationalist, expelled from the National Party of Scotland for being a communist, he stood as the SNP candidate in the Kelvingrove division of Glasgow in the 1945 general election, and again, in the 1950 general election, but this time as an independent Scottish nationalist. In 1956—at the very point when many others left it for good, as the Soviets suppressed the Hungarian uprising, and the revelations about Stalinism emerged—he rejoined the Communist Party, standing as the CPGB candidate against the then Prime Minister, Sir Alec Douglas-Home, in the Kinross and West Perthshire constituency in the 1964 general election. His poetry included “Hymns to Lenin”, who he said marked “the greatest turnin’ point” since Christ.”
“I, too, thank Clare Adamson for leading this debate in Parliament tonight. MacDiarmid remains politically controversial, but artistically revered. His very identity was provocative—the striking imagery of Norman MacCaig captures it best: “CM Grieve dived in at one end, and Hugh MacDiarmid swam ashore at the other.” By the age of 16, he was a member of the Independent Labour Party. He left, and then, when he fell within the orbit of James Keir Hardie in South Wales, he rejoined. In 1922, he was first co- opted, then elected, as an Independent Socialist to Montrose Town Council. He joined the Communist Party in the 1930s and then the National Party of Scotland.”
“It is a socialist outlook that is based on experience, not simple ideology, and it is founded on that shared hope that I spoke of—that a wider transformation of society is not just possible; it is socially, economically, environmentally and morally irrefutable. 15:44”
“Finally, last month, the cabinet secretary told Parliament: “Since 2014, we have provided more than £7 million towards the Scotland food and drink export plan”.—[Official Report, 19 February 2025; c 10.] She must know that that represents just a drop in the ocean. Both Scotland’s Governments, the enterprise agencies and the Scottish National Investment Bank should be supporting the sector to grow. My job in Parliament, as it was before I came to Parliament, is not just to contest existing conditions but to open up the possibility of an alternative. I will keep saying what I believe in.”
“When I hear of additional public investment being found for defence, such as the £2 billion increase to UK export finance announced by the chancellor on Friday for arms sales, at the same time as £5 billion is being cut from support for sick and disabled people, I do not rejoice; I despair. The industrial strategy that I want is both serious and grown up, but it does not depend on the freeport, the weapons manufacturer, the arms trade and the nuclear menace. Rather, it depends on the development, diversification and democratisation of industries such as food and drink. We should be increasing export finance direct lending capacity to support them and their growth.”
“We need to diversify because, across the wider economy, we know that just 10 businesses account for almost a quarter of Scotland’s international exports, that just 20 account for almost a third and that just 60 businesses in Scotland generate half of all our export earnings. That makes us vulnerable any time, but at a time when the White House is threatening tariffs and trade wars, it makes us even more vulnerable now, so we need better support for producers to export, a workforce plan, more investment by the banks and our pension funds directly in industry, and more support for indigenous business growth.”
“Nowhere is this more evident than in the production of whisky, where, with a couple of notable exceptions, the Scotch whisky industry is no longer owned and controlled in Scotland, but in Paris, Bermuda, the Philippines, Japan, New York and Thailand and in the boardrooms of Great Marlborough Street and the stock exchange. Ownership is power; it matters, not least because 20 per cent of all Scotland’s international export earnings come from food and drink. It is ranked as our biggest export earner, and 80 per cent of that comes from the export of whisky and other spirits. Parliament’s message to the Government in today’s debate must be that if we want the sector to thrive, we need to diversify as well as grow.”
“I keep my faith that the day must come when trade unions will not just be a line of defence but an alternative line of advance—a means through which workers can participate in the running of the industry that they work in, releasing their enterprise, their energy and their initiative. I do not underestimate how far removed from that we are today, not least in industries such as food and drink, which, more and more, is run by absentee owners in faraway boardrooms and according to the portfolio interests of the global asset managers.”
“We went through a lot together, sharing hope, facing setbacks, organising a movement and broadening the horizons of a class. They combined to fight for a living wage. They took decisive action, not just to defend their standard of living but in pursuit of a better quality of life. They fought, all too often with their backs against the wall, for jobs and for security of employment. They championed the cause of justice and a fairer share-out of the wealth—the wealth that they were creating. In doing so, we won victories over privilege and overcame inequalities. So, as I stood with them then, I stand with them today in this Parliament, just as I also stand with those seasonal migrant workers soon to arrive in rural Scotland in their battles for decent pay, decent accommodation and dignity at work.”
“I remind members of my voluntary register of trade union interests. I will start with those interests because, before being elected to the Parliament, I spent two decades representing workers in Scotland’s food and drink industry: the brewers of Duke Street, the night shift at Carriden Brae, the coopers at Muirhall, the cleaners at Carsebridge, the milk crumb processors in Girvan and the bottling hall operatives on the Great Western Road. It was a privilege to represent them all. They formed an important part of my education, forged the bonds of lifelong friendships and, every single day, gave me a lesson in precisely why we need an industrial strategy, a planned economy and a fundamental and irreversible shift in the balance of power in the workplace and in the wider economy.”
“I remind members of my voluntary registration of trade union interests. To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what steps it is taking to reduce car use by 20 per cent by 2030. (S6O- 04409)”
“I refer members to my entry in the register of members’ interests. Does the First Minister share my concern that industrial action is set to begin at Scottish Water this weekend? What does he say to the Scottish Water trade union representatives who are gathered in the public gallery about his ministers sanctioning bonuses to the bosses of Scottish Water that are more than 10 times greater than the pay rise that is now offered to the workers of Scottish Water?”
“If the Scottish Government chooses not to act—chooses not to exercise that power for the common good—and if that requires this Government to be led by this Parliament this afternoon, then so be it, because, in the end, it is our duty to reverse these proposed hikes in rail fares, to abolish these peak train fares once and for all and to stop the cuts to ticket offices. We understand that the Government’s present course of action does not reduce inequalities but widens them, and that needs to be noted. We must understand that we need not just words, but deeds. We need clear, urgent action and we need a compelling vision. I, for one, will be voting for the Green motion and for the Labour amendment to achieve that this afternoon. 16:40”
“The spending commitment to active travel—axed. The bus partnership fund— discontinued. Spending on rail—down. Spending on trunk roads—up. I say to the cabinet secretary that these are contradictions that cannot be left unchallenged, that these are conclusions that cannot be denied and that this is a calamitous climate catastrophe that cannot be ignored. One of the reasons why I am a democratic socialist is that I believe that ownership is power. The Government is the sole shareholder of ScotRail and it has the power to embark on a bold and radical course of action.”
“reinstating peak fares will have on car use or acknowledge that it can take time to sustain positive behavioural changes, such as encouraging modal shift from car to rail use.” As the RMT union has pointed out, that the evaluation report does not assess the impact on passenger use at peak times is “a glaring omission”. Let me say this to the Government: you cannot claim to be committed to cutting car miles when you are driving up the cost to passengers of train miles. You cannot welcome COP26 to Glasgow, declare to the world a climate emergency, raise the hopes of the people and then hope that no one will notice that you have reneged on nearly every one of the undertakings that you gave and all of the goals and targets that you set. The 2030 emissions reduction target—dropped. The climate change plan—delayed.”
“In fact, the failings are of such a magnitude that they conclude that it is “not possible to see how the national target of 20 per cent will be achieved”, and that it is “impossible to understand which interventions will have the most impact on the target or deliver the best value for money.” It is little wonder that their key message is that there is a “lack of leadership”. In the same report, the ScotRail peak fares pilot is considered as a test case. The cabinet secretary hides behind the evaluation report, but she should listen to this conclusion from the Auditor General: “The evaluation report does not outline the impact ...”
“I remind members of my voluntary registration of trade union interests. Last month, the Accounts Commission teamed up with the Auditor General to publish a hard- hitting report on the Government’s wish to reduce car use in Scotland by 20 per cent by 2030. They gave evidence to the Public Audit Committee just this morning. What they found was that there had been no consultation on the setting of that target, that there is no clear or costed plan to meet that target, that there are no measurable milestones towards that target, that there are no equality impact assessments and that the Scottish Government’s arrangements for monitoring and scrutinising progress are insufficient.”
“Amendment disagreed to. The Presiding Officer: The final question is, that motion S6M-16488, in the name of Tom Arthur, on employer national insurance contributions, be agreed to. Are we agreed? Members: No. The Presiding Officer: There will be a division. The vote is closed.”
“For Baillie, Jackie (Dumbarton) (Lab) Baker, Claire (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab) Balfour, Jeremy (Lothian) (Con) Bibby, Neil (West Scotland) (Lab) Boyack, Sarah (Lothian) (Lab) Choudhury, Foysol (Lothian) (Lab) Clark, Katy (West Scotland) (Lab) Duncan-Glancy, Pam (Glasgow) (Lab) Grant, Rhoda (Highlands and Islands) (Lab) Griffin, Mark (Central Scotland) (Lab) Johnson, Daniel (Edinburgh Southern) (Lab) Leonard, Richard (Central Scotland) (Lab) McNeill, Pauline (Glasgow) (Lab) Mochan, Carol (South Scotland) (Lab) O’Kane, Paul (West Scotland) (Lab) Rowley, Alex (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab) Sarwar, Anas (Glasgow) (Lab) Smyth, Colin (South Scotland) (Lab) Sweeney, Paul (Glasgow) (Lab) Villalba, Mercedes (North East Scotland) (Lab) Whitfield, Martin (South Scotland) (Lab) Against Adam, George (Paisley) (SNP) Adam, Karen (Banffshire and Buchan Coast) (SNP) Adamson, Clare (Motherwell and Wishaw) (SNP) Allan, Alasdair (Na h-Eileanan an Iar) (SNP) Arthur, Tom (Renfrewshire South) (SNP) Beattie, Colin (Midlothian North and Musselburgh) (SNP) Briggs, Miles (Lothian) (Con) Brown, Keith (Clackmannanshire and Dunblane) (SNP) Brown, Siobhian (Ayr) (SNP) Burgess, Ariane (Highlands and Islands) (Green) Burnett, Alexander (Aberdeenshire West) (Con) Carlaw, Jackson (Eastwood) (Con) Carson, Finlay (Galloway and West Dumfries) (Con) Chapman, Maggie (North East Scotland) (Green) Coffey, Willie (Kilmarnock and Irvine Valley) (SNP) Cole-Hamilton, Alex (Edinburgh Western) (LD) Constance, Angela (Almond Valley) (SNP) Dey, Graeme (Angus South) (SNP) Don-Innes, Natalie (Renfrewshire North and West) (SNP) Doris, Bob (Glasgow Maryhill and Springburn) (SNP) Dornan, James (Glasgow Cathcart) (SNP) Dowey, Sharon (South Scotland) (Con) Dunbar, Jackie (Aberdeen Donside) (SNP) Eagle, Tim (Highlands and Islands) (Con) Ewing, Annabelle (Cowdenbeath) (SNP) Ewing, Fergus (Inverness and Nairn) (SNP) Fairlie, Jim (Perthshire South and Kinross-shire) (SNP) Findlay, Russell (West Scotland) (Con) FitzPatrick, Joe (Dundee City West) (SNP) Forbes, Kate (Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch) (SNP) Fraser, Murdo (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con) Gallacher, Meghan (Central Scotland) (Con) Gibson, Kenneth (Cunninghame North) (SNP) Gilruth, Jenny (Mid Fife and Glenrothes) (SNP) Golden, Maurice (North East Scotland) (Con) Gosal, Pam (West Scotland) (Con) Gougeon, Mairi (Angus North and Mearns) (SNP) Grahame, Christine (Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale) (SNP) Gray, Neil (Airdrie and Shotts) (SNP) Greene, Jamie (West Scotland) (Con) Greer, Ross (West Scotland) (Green) Gulhane, Sandesh (Glasgow) (Con) Hamilton, Rachael (Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire) (Con) Harper, Emma (South Scotland) (SNP) Harvie, Patrick (Glasgow) (Green) Haughey, Clare (Rutherglen) (SNP) Hepburn, Jamie (Cumbernauld and Kilsyth) (SNP) Hoy, Craig (South Scotland) (Con) Hyslop, Fiona (Linlithgow) (SNP) Halcro Johnston, Jamie (Highlands and Islands) (Con) Kerr, Liam (North East Scotland) (Con) Kerr, Stephen (Central Scotland) (Con) Kidd, Bill (Glasgow Anniesland) (SNP) Lochhead, Richard (Moray) (SNP) Lumsden, Douglas (North East Scotland) (Con) MacGregor, Fulton (Coatbridge and Chryston) (SNP) Mackay, Gillian (Central Scotland) (Green) Mackay, Rona (Strathkelvin and Bearsden) (SNP) Macpherson, Ben (Edinburgh Northern and Leith) (SNP) Maguire, Ruth (Cunninghame South) (SNP) [Proxy vote cast by Rona Mackay] Mason, John (Glasgow Shettleston) (Ind) Matheson, Michael (Falkirk West) (SNP) McAllan, Màiri (Clydesdale) (SNP) [Proxy vote cast by Jamie Hepburn] McArthur, Liam (Orkney Islands) (LD) McCall, Roz (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con) McKee, Ivan (Glasgow Provan) (SNP) McKelvie, Christina (Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse) (SNP) [Proxy vote cast by Jamie Hepburn] McLennan, Paul (East Lothian) (SNP) McMillan, Stuart (Greenock and Inverclyde) (SNP) McNair, Marie (Clydebank and Milngavie) (SNP) Minto, Jenni (Argyll and Bute) (SNP) Mountain, Edward (Highlands and Islands) (Con) Mundell, Oliver (Dumfriesshire) (Con) Nicoll, Audrey (Aberdeen South and North Kincardine) (SNP) Regan, Ash (Edinburgh Eastern) (Alba) Rennie, Willie (North East Fife) (LD) Robertson, Angus (Edinburgh Central) (SNP) Robison, Shona (Dundee City East) (SNP) Roddick, Emma (Highlands and Islands) (SNP) Ross, Douglas (Highlands and Islands) (Con) Ruskell, Mark (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Green) Simpson, Graham (Central Scotland) (Con) Slater, Lorna (Lothian) (Green) Smith, Liz (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con) Somerville, Shirley-Anne (Dunfermline) (SNP) Stevenson, Collette (East Kilbride) (SNP) Stewart, Alexander (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con) Stewart, Kaukab (Glasgow Kelvin) (SNP) Stewart, Kevin (Aberdeen Central) (SNP) Sturgeon, Nicola (Glasgow Southside) (SNP) Swinney, John (Perthshire North) (SNP) Thomson, Michelle (Falkirk East) (SNP) Todd, Maree (Caithness, Sutherland and Ross) (SNP) Torrance, David (Kirkcaldy) (SNP) Tweed, Evelyn (Stirling) (SNP) Whitham, Elena (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (SNP) Whittle, Brian (South Scotland) (Con) Wishart, Beatrice (Shetland Islands) (LD) Yousaf, Humza (Glasgow Pollok) (SNP) The Presiding Officer: The result of the division on amendment S6M-16488.2, in the name of Daniel Johnson, is: For 21, Against 99, Abstentions 0.”
“Amendment disagreed to. The Presiding Officer: The next question is, that amendment S6M-16488.2, in the name of Daniel Johnson, which seeks to amend motion S6M-16488, in the name of Tom Arthur, on employer national insurance contributions, be agreed to. Are we agreed? Members: No. The Presiding Officer: There will be a division.”
“On a point of order, Presiding Officer. My app would not connect. Had it connected, I would have voted no. The Presiding Officer: Thank you, Mr Leonard. We will ensure that that is recorded. For Balfour, Jeremy (Lothian) (Con) Briggs, Miles (Lothian) (Con) Burnett, Alexander (Aberdeenshire West) (Con) Carlaw, Jackson (Eastwood) (Con) Carson, Finlay (Galloway and West Dumfries) (Con) Dowey, Sharon (South Scotland) (Con) Eagle, Tim (Highlands and Islands) (Con) Findlay, Russell (West Scotland) (Con) Fraser, Murdo (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con) Gallacher, Meghan (Central Scotland) (Con) Golden, Maurice (North East Scotland) (Con) Gosal, Pam (West Scotland) (Con) Greene, Jamie (West Scotland) (Con) Gulhane, Sandesh (Glasgow) (Con) Hamilton, Rachael (Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire) (Con) Hoy, Craig (South Scotland) (Con) Halcro Johnston, Jamie (Highlands and Islands) (Con) Kerr, Liam (North East Scotland) (Con) Kerr, Stephen (Central Scotland) (Con) Lumsden, Douglas (North East Scotland) (Con) McCall, Roz (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con) Mountain, Edward (Highlands and Islands) (Con) Mundell, Oliver (Dumfriesshire) (Con) Ross, Douglas (Highlands and Islands) (Con) Simpson, Graham (Central Scotland) (Con) Smith, Liz (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con) Stewart, Alexander (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con) Whittle, Brian (South Scotland) (Con) Against Adam, George (Paisley) (SNP) Adam, Karen (Banffshire and Buchan Coast) (SNP) Adamson, Clare (Motherwell and Wishaw) (SNP) Allan, Alasdair (Na h-Eileanan an Iar) (SNP) Arthur, Tom (Renfrewshire South) (SNP) Baillie, Jackie (Dumbarton) (Lab) Baker, Claire (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab) Beattie, Colin (Midlothian North and Musselburgh) (SNP) Bibby, Neil (West Scotland) (Lab) Boyack, Sarah (Lothian) (Lab) Brown, Keith (Clackmannanshire and Dunblane) (SNP) Brown, Siobhian (Ayr) (SNP) Burgess, Ariane (Highlands and Islands) (Green) Chapman, Maggie (North East Scotland) (Green) Choudhury, Foysol (Lothian) (Lab) Clark, Katy (West Scotland) (Lab) Coffey, Willie (Kilmarnock and Irvine Valley) (SNP) Cole-Hamilton, Alex (Edinburgh Western) (LD) Constance, Angela (Almond Valley) (SNP) Dey, Graeme (Angus South) (SNP) Don-Innes, Natalie (Renfrewshire North and West) (SNP) Doris, Bob (Glasgow Maryhill and Springburn) (SNP) Dornan, James (Glasgow Cathcart) (SNP) Dunbar, Jackie (Aberdeen Donside) (SNP) Duncan-Glancy, Pam (Glasgow) (Lab) Ewing, Annabelle (Cowdenbeath) (SNP) Ewing, Fergus (Inverness and Nairn) (SNP) Fairlie, Jim (Perthshire South and Kinross-shire) (SNP) FitzPatrick, Joe (Dundee City West) (SNP) Forbes, Kate (Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch) (SNP) Gibson, Kenneth (Cunninghame North) (SNP) Gilruth, Jenny (Mid Fife and Glenrothes) (SNP) Gougeon, Mairi (Angus North and Mearns) (SNP) Grahame, Christine (Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale) (SNP) Grant, Rhoda (Highlands and Islands) (Lab) Gray, Neil (Airdrie and Shotts) (SNP) Greer, Ross (West Scotland) (Green) Griffin, Mark (Central Scotland) (Lab) Harper, Emma (South Scotland) (SNP) Harvie, Patrick (Glasgow) (Green) Haughey, Clare (Rutherglen) (SNP) Hepburn, Jamie (Cumbernauld and Kilsyth) (SNP) Hyslop, Fiona (Linlithgow) (SNP) Johnson, Daniel (Edinburgh Southern) (Lab) Kidd, Bill (Glasgow Anniesland) (SNP) Leonard, Richard (Central Scotland) (Lab) Lochhead, Richard (Moray) (SNP) MacGregor, Fulton (Coatbridge and Chryston) (SNP) Mackay, Gillian (Central Scotland) (Green) Mackay, Rona (Strathkelvin and Bearsden) (SNP) Macpherson, Ben (Edinburgh Northern and Leith) (SNP) Maguire, Ruth (Cunninghame South) (SNP) [Proxy vote cast by Rona Mackay] Mason, John (Glasgow Shettleston) (Ind) Matheson, Michael (Falkirk West) (SNP) McAllan, Màiri (Clydesdale) (SNP) [Proxy vote cast by Jamie Hepburn] McArthur, Liam (Orkney Islands) (LD) McKee, Ivan (Glasgow Provan) (SNP) McKelvie, Christina (Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse) (SNP) [Proxy vote cast by Jamie Hepburn] McLennan, Paul (East Lothian) (SNP) McMillan, Stuart (Greenock and Inverclyde) (SNP) McNair, Marie (Clydebank and Milngavie) (SNP) McNeill, Pauline (Glasgow) (Lab) Minto, Jenni (Argyll and Bute) (SNP) Mochan, Carol (South Scotland) (Lab) Nicoll, Audrey (Aberdeen South and North Kincardine) (SNP) O’Kane, Paul (West Scotland) (Lab) Regan, Ash (Edinburgh Eastern) (Alba) Rennie, Willie (North East Fife) (LD) Robertson, Angus (Edinburgh Central) (SNP) Robison, Shona (Dundee City East) (SNP) Roddick, Emma (Highlands and Islands) (SNP) Rowley, Alex (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab) Ruskell, Mark (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Green) Sarwar, Anas (Glasgow) (Lab) Slater, Lorna (Lothian) (Green) Smyth, Colin (South Scotland) (Lab) Somerville, Shirley-Anne (Dunfermline) (SNP) Stevenson, Collette (East Kilbride) (SNP) Stewart, Kaukab (Glasgow Kelvin) (SNP) Stewart, Kevin (Aberdeen Central) (SNP) Sturgeon, Nicola (Glasgow Southside) (SNP) Sweeney, Paul (Glasgow) (Lab) Swinney, John (Perthshire North) (SNP) Thomson, Michelle (Falkirk East) (SNP) Todd, Maree (Caithness, Sutherland and Ross) (SNP) Torrance, David (Kirkcaldy) (SNP) Tweed, Evelyn (Stirling) (SNP) Villalba, Mercedes (North East Scotland) (Lab) Whitfield, Martin (South Scotland) (Lab) Whitham, Elena (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (SNP) Wishart, Beatrice (Shetland Islands) (LD) Yousaf, Humza (Glasgow Pollok) (SNP) The Presiding Officer: The result of the division on amendment S6M-16488.3, in the name of Craig Hoy, is: For 28, Against 92, Abstentions 0.”
“Mr Leonard has an opportunity to redeem himself, because, in recognition of the situation’s urgency, a stage 3 amendment will be lodged to the Budget (Scotland) (No 4) Bill so that an additional £25 million of investment can be provided to advance the issues, and I urge him to support the Government in its investment. The Deputy Presiding Officer: That concludes the statement on securing a future for Grangemouth. There will be a brief pause before we move on to the next item of business, to allow front-bench members to change over. Employer National Insurance Contributions”
“I remind members of my voluntary register of trade union interests. Be under no illusion—this is a close-and-import strategy, so a £25 million investment is welcome. However, from the more than £0.5 billion that is available from the ScotWind licensing round, a jobs fair and assistance with CVs is simply not enough. What more is the First Minister prepared to do to keep Grangemouth workers working? The First Minister: I am surprised by Richard Leonard’s points, because I did not announce £25 million for CV writing. All the support for individuals has been previously announced by the Scottish Government, and it is part of the budget that Mr Leonard currently proposes not to support. I remind him of that point.”
“South of Scotland Enterprise, HIE, Scottish Enterprise and the Scottish National Investment Bank—will the minister place a statutory duty on them and not simply on local councils to support co-operatives, worker-owned businesses and other democratic business models so that they can flourish in the Scottish economy? Tom Arthur: I will not risk the wrath of the Presiding Officer—or the Minister for Parliamentary Business, for that matter—by getting into any matters pertaining to the legislation, but I advise the member to engage with the documentation that was published in relation to the consultation process. Subsequent to the bill being introduced in Parliament, I will be more than happy to engage with him on any specific interests that he has.”
“I do not dispute Richard Leonard’s central point about the scale of the bonuses, but I return to the point that I made in my original answer, which is that, contrary to the inference in the question, the bonuses were provided publicly and within the rules.”
“I remind members of my voluntary register of trade union interests. Can we go back to the central question here? Does the minister agree with me that it is wrong that the bonuses of Scottish Water bosses have risen 10 times more than the pay rise that is now being offered to the workers? Yes or no? If he does, what does the Government intend to do about it? Alasdair Allan: The Scottish Government seeks to ensure that executive pay is kept under control, and I can comment on the situation in the wider public sector in that regard. As I said, public sector pay policy includes a presumption against non-consolidated bonuses. When new chief executives have come into post, we have sought controls on wages and bonuses to be put in place.”
“We have had almost weekly meetings with them on progress, and we are making sure that Petroineos is doing the right thing by its workers. Where it is not doing the right thing, I want those workers to know that I have an open ear to any of their concerns, so that I can put them directly to”
“I remind members of my entry in the register of members’ interests with regard to trade unions. Many people are angry about the Petroineos decision, the way that the company has gone about it and the fact that redundancy notices have been issued this week. They are also angry about governmental failure—the failure of both Governments. Does the cabinet secretary understand that anger? Does she accept that this is not over, that this is not the last word and that the fight to save these jobs carries on? Gillian Martin: I accept that the fight is not over. The First Minister has written to the Prime Minister and, this morning, to Sir Jim Ratcliffe about the issue. I continue to work with partners in the UK Government to ask Petroineos to make a different decision.”
“In an age of deliberate online disinformation, fuelled by right-wing politicians and media, they provide an antidote: curated sources, the provenance of which can be trusted. Literacy does not just enhance people as units of economic production; it enriches them as human beings. Literacy is an end in itself. The pleasure of reading broadens horizons, so it is my belief that public lending and reference libraries represent one of the most enduring and successful forms of state cultural provision over the past century and a half. It is no accident that 100 years ago—20 years before the creation of the national health service—Nye Bevan chaired the library committee of the Tredegar Workmen’s Institute. In the face of the depression of the 1920s and 1930s, it did not close branches down; it opened new branches up.”
“In fact, since this Government came to power, spending on our public libraries is down, book stocks are down, library staff numbers are down, librarian numbers are down, opening hours are down and over 120 public libraries have closed for good. Libraries matter. They are a vital part of our children’s education. They combat digital exclusion and social isolation. They are anchor institutions that can help to stimulate the urban regeneration of our towns and city centres. They represent a world beyond the market—a safe, equal, democratic, free space, run not for profit but for enlightenment. In an increasingly digital society, libraries are not needed less; they are needed even more.”
“I, too, thank Mark Ruskell for putting this motion down before the Parliament. In September last year, I asked the Cabinet Secretary for Constitution, External Affairs and Culture how the Government planned to support the retention of Scotland’s public libraries. With an air of casual indifference, he told the Parliament that, on top of the general revenue funding to local authorities, the Scottish Government provided £665,000 a year to the Scottish Library and Information Council. But, for more than a decade, funding to Scotland’s local councils has been disproportionately cut by this Government, so the pressure on municipal libraries is becoming unbearable. He must have known that a payment that is static in cash terms is a cut in funding, year on year, in real terms.”
“Yet there is nothing more impractical, unworkable or undesirable than the notion that we can continue to run our economy the way that we do at the present. I make no apology. It is time for radical change. People should have the right to slot in and out of education and work with income protection—the right to liberation within work, but liberation from work, too. If ever we are going to win the skills revolution, a just transition, useful work in place of useless toil and transformational economic change, it must be driven by a vision, forged on a plan and inspired by authentic, principled political leadership, but it will only be delivered with the support of the people. 13:12”
“We need to open up apprenticeship opportunities to all—including to those from areas of multiple deprivation, and to women as well as to men—with a guarantee of an apprenticeship, useful work or a vocational training place for every school leaver by incentivising small and medium- sized enterprises, boosting numbers and putting the funding in place. The challenge here is dimensional—it is one of scale—but it is also systematic and it is ideological. We cannot rely on the logic of capitalism to decide our future. We need workforce planning, we need an industrial strategy and, above all, we need economic democracy. To some, this will be seen as idealistic, socialistic—as impractical, unworkable or undesirable.”
“The horizon for this analysis is the next three years. The problem is that an engineering apprenticeship takes four years to complete, and it takes six years to be fully competent. As the report concludes, “unless the company has started training already, that resource will not be ready at the time of need.” Workforce skills are central to the economy. They are too important to be left to market forces, to free enterprise or to employers alone. They cry out for Government leadership. That is why I have long argued that we need to establish not only sectoral collective bargaining with the trade unions, which we do, but sectoral industrial and economic planning with the trade unions, including effective planning for skills. We need a minister for labour in the Cabinet. We need an end to cheap labour.”
“For all the talk of a just transition in our economy and of reforms in our public services, there is no leadership, no strategy and no plan for either. So this report by Scottish Engineering should serve as a wake-up call. It lays bare what is going on out there in the real world on the factory floor. Because of the demographics of the current workforce and because of expectations of business growth, employers estimate that a third more engineers will be needed in Scotland by the end of this year, that 46 per cent more will be needed by the end of next year, and that 58 per cent more will be needed by the end of the year after that. In some trades, it is even higher: in electrical and electronic engineering, the skills gap and the replacement and recruitment rate will be nearly 100 per cent.”
“I remind members of my voluntary entry regarding trade union interests in the register of members’ interests. I begin by thanking Alex Rowley for not just leading this afternoon’s debate, but acting with such speed to get this report on the agenda of Parliament. It is a pity that the Government does not display the same sense of urgency because, for all the independent reviews, the Government reports, the ministerial statements, the surveys of the landscape and the creation of strategic boards, what we are witnessing is a catastrophic skills crisis and a Government that is not part of the solution but part of the problem. Public investment in skills and training is not going up—it is coming down. Skills Development Scotland is about to be abolished.”
“The Scottish Government will carefully consider the recommendations from the SAWC and the review before deciding how to proceed. I believe that to be the correct course of action, which will give everyone time to fully consider the recommendations that the SAWC proposes and the outcome of the review, as well as respect the parliamentary process of proper scrutiny of legislation at the right time.”
“The intention is that the new code will complement the wider advice on keeping dogs in the current and future iterations of the code of practice for the welfare of dogs, with clear signposting between the codes to minimise any potential confusion. I believe that most of the amendments that have been lodged are more in keeping with the wider advice on keeping dogs rather than with a code of practice specifically relating to the acquisition of dogs. The bill is about the explicit process of acquiring a dog. The Scottish Animal Welfare Commission has been asked to look at aversive training devices and is expected to report on the matter in the near future. A review of e-collars is under way, too, as part of a wider review of the Animals and Wildlife (Penalties, Protections and Powers) (Scotland) Act 2020, on which a report is due in April.”
“When the minister tells us that the Government agrees broadly with the principles behind an amendment but that this is not the right bill for it, that has a certain familiar ring to it. It is in favour of compensating the victimised miners, but not in the bill that pardons the victimised miners. It is in favour of ending the inhumane accommodation conditions for migrant workers, but not in the bill that provides assistance to farming and rural communities. Where does the Government think the right place is to outlaw the barbaric treatment of dogs if it is not in the Welfare of Dogs (Scotland) Bill? Jim Fairlie: I am disappointed in Mr Leonard’s attempt to politicise the entire bill, given that there will be, I hope, broad parliamentary agreement on it. I will continue with the contribution that I was about to make.”
“I thank Rhoda Grant for initiating this critical debate and the Scottish Human Rights Commission for having the courage to carry this inquiry out and publish its findings in full. In her excellent foreword, Angela O’Hagan calls for “all duty bearers to evaluate their own work and reflect on how to improve people’s human rights.” She also calls for the Scottish Parliament “to take serious and careful consideration” of the report, so why does it take an Opposition MSP, in members’ business time, to force the report to the debating chamber of the Parliament? Are not the Government and the Parliament duty bearers? Should not the Government set aside parliamentary time to debate a report into the human rights of the people of the Highlands and Islands?”
“We are continuing to invest in the Scottish welfare fund and are committing more than £99 million for discretionary housing payments, mitigating the bedroom tax and the benefit cap. Despite Labour’s promise of change, it has delivered deeper austerity, so the Scottish Government will go further: we will mitigate the UK Labour Government’s winter fuel payment cut and deliver the systems to mitigate the Labour two- child cap. Swimming (Children and Young People) 3.”
“Absolute rubbish. Jackie Dunbar: Can the cabinet secretary outline how much of its devolved budget the Scottish Government anticipates it will have to commit to mitigating regressive United Kingdom Government policies in 2025-26 in relation to tackling child poverty, despite Labour’s promise of change? Shirley-Anne Somerville: I had difficulty hearing some of Jackie Dunbar’s supplementary question, due to a combination of laughter and groans from Labour members—[Interruption.] The Presiding Officer: Members! Shirley-Anne Somerville: Let me explain the details in the Scottish Government budget. I say to Richard Leonard that, under devolution, we plan to spend more than £210 million mitigating regressive UK Labour Government policies—an increase of £56 million since the Conservatives were in power.”
“I remind members of my entry relating to trade unions in the register of members’ interests. To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions the economy secretary has had with ministerial colleagues regarding the potential impact on the Scottish economy of the closure of the Grangemouth oil refinery. (S6O-04191)”
“However, I have been told that it is “a scoping exercise”, that we are at “an early stage” of the process and that we have to be “wary of unintended consequences”. What about the intended consequences of alienation, exploitation and degradation?”
“For the privilege of staying there, straight from their wages is deducted the maximum rent that is allowed by the Scottish Agricultural Wages Board of £300 a month each, and they have to pay their energy bills on top of that. The accommodation is all too often overcrowded and insanitary, with inhumane conditions, and they are not treated with dignity, fairness or respect. All of which begs the question, what happens to the money that is raised through that rent? Where does it go? It is not being reinvested in accommodation. I welcome the fact that the Scottish Government has met me about the scandal and that, following the raising of these issues during the passage of the Agricultural and Rural Communities (Scotland) Act 2024, a working party has now been set up, which includes the outstanding Worker Support Centre.”
“So it is all very well for ministers to talk of a “human rights-based”, “person centred” approach to migration, of “dignity, fairness and respect”, of a “humane, principled approach to migration” and of “Scotland as a welcoming and safe place” when, right under the Government’s nose, nine out of 10 migrant workers on seasonal workers visas are tethered in accommodation tied to their employer. As one migrant worker told me, they are “away from home, working in a field, sleeping in a field” in metal containers or in a caravan last repaired 20 years ago. Their accommodation is not subject to any standards whatsoever—none. There are no national laws and no local by-laws applied to plug that gap in protection.”
“The work was dirty, crushing and drained one’s last reserves; but worse, was the humiliation that I had to bear and the contempt in which I was held.” Four decades later, for West Germany then, read Scotland now, because that is a perfect description of the imperfect experience of migrant workers in Scotland today. These are not just the conditions faced by Turkish workers in Germany, found in a book written 40 years ago; they are the conditions described to me over the past 12 months by migrant workers from Kyrgyzstan, Uzbekistan, Tajikistan and Kazakhstan who are living and working on farms right across Scotland now.”
“This year marks the 40th anniversary of the publication of “Ganz Unten”—“at the very bottom”—by the radical campaigning journalist Günter Wallraff. It was translated into many languages, including into English as “Lowest of the Low”. In it, Wallraff goes undercover as an immigrant Turkish worker. The only jobs that he can get are filthy, back-breaking, dangerous, exhausting, badly paid and temporary. He wrote: “Today, in the middle of West Germany, I experienced conditions which are usually only described in history books about the nineteenth century.”