Chamber
Plenary, 07 Nov 2002
07 Nov 2002 · S1 · Plenary
Item of business
Seagulls <br />(Nuisance to Communities)
I am happy to do so, although the clear evidence that I have received from the Executive's chief medical officer is that although seagulls are a nuisance, they pose no threat to the health of the population. We need, however, to examine the matter further.
The Executive has allocated massive increases in funding for local authorities to improve their waste management. More than £240 million is available in the strategic waste fund over the next three years. Because of that and in view of the additional resources that we have allocated—much of it very recently—I am happy to give Mr Mundell and other members a commitment that the Executive will consolidate the schemes and financial provisions that were referred to by Alex Johnstone and others.
I know that there is good practice out there, but it is not everywhere. Sometimes people may not know what is being done elsewhere. That fact has become increasingly clear to me as I have examined the matter following David Mundell and other members' raising it. I hope that that funding will ease some of the difficulties that local authorities are clearly experiencing in addressing seagull nuisance and the wider problems of litter and waste management.
I do not blame the gulls. In Parliament last Thursday, when David Mundell raised the subject, I made it clear to him that I would consider the option he suggested. Having done so in the interim, I am now convinced that there are benefits in what he and others have proposed tonight. I recognise that there are no simple solutions to the problem, but measures are in place and will have an impact on seagull nuisance. I am happy to work with Scotland's local authorities and members to tackle the problem, and from tonight I shall ask officials to develop the proposition with some urgency and to consult the RSPB for its advice on how best to act.
The Executive has allocated massive increases in funding for local authorities to improve their waste management. More than £240 million is available in the strategic waste fund over the next three years. Because of that and in view of the additional resources that we have allocated—much of it very recently—I am happy to give Mr Mundell and other members a commitment that the Executive will consolidate the schemes and financial provisions that were referred to by Alex Johnstone and others.
I know that there is good practice out there, but it is not everywhere. Sometimes people may not know what is being done elsewhere. That fact has become increasingly clear to me as I have examined the matter following David Mundell and other members' raising it. I hope that that funding will ease some of the difficulties that local authorities are clearly experiencing in addressing seagull nuisance and the wider problems of litter and waste management.
I do not blame the gulls. In Parliament last Thursday, when David Mundell raised the subject, I made it clear to him that I would consider the option he suggested. Having done so in the interim, I am now convinced that there are benefits in what he and others have proposed tonight. I recognise that there are no simple solutions to the problem, but measures are in place and will have an impact on seagull nuisance. I am happy to work with Scotland's local authorities and members to tackle the problem, and from tonight I shall ask officials to develop the proposition with some urgency and to consult the RSPB for its advice on how best to act.
In the same item of business
The Deputy Presiding Officer (Mr George Reid):
SNP
The final item of business is a members' business debate on motion S1M-3499, in the name of David Mundell, on nuisance caused by seagulls.
Motion debated,
That the Parliament notes that seagulls are causing an increasing nuisance in communities across Scotland and believes that the Scottish Executive should dev...
David Mundell (South of Scotland) (Con):
Con
It is apposite that this debate on how to tackle the nuisance caused by gulls in urban areas should follow a debate on quality of life, which has confirmed t...
Mrs Margaret Ewing (Moray) (SNP):
SNP
I congratulate David Mundell on raising the issue, because it is serious. Like him, I have noticed that our esteemed press corps has regarded the matter as a...
Alex Johnstone (North-East Scotland) (Con):
Con
I congratulate David Mundell on securing tonight's debate. There is more than one way to get to the top of the list for members' business; having a common in...
Robin Harper (Lothians) (Green):
Green
Margaret Ewing referred to her husband's experience of being attacked by seagulls when he was running near Lossiemouth, where I used to love to walk. She has...
Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP):
SNP
Close encounters of the gull variety. In Edinburgh, just about every night, Hitchcockesque flocks darken the skies, screaming and apparently driving away flo...
Phil Gallie (South of Scotland) (Con):
Con
I agree with Christine Grahame's comments about litter louts. Before this, we had a debate on the quality of life in Scotland. One of the things that we all ...
Robin Harper:
Green
Herring gulls are the main problem.
Phil Gallie:
Con
I accept that the herring gull is the main problem, but the black-headed gull can also be a problem and, where it is, that might be a light-hearted solution....
Dorothy-Grace Elder (Glasgow) (Ind):
Ind
I had not intended to speak. I attended the debate to reduce my ignorance of the subject. I once lived on the coast, but that was in the days when the coast ...
The Deputy Minister for Environment and Rural Development (Allan Wilson):
Lab
I join members in congratulating David Mundell on securing the debate and I thank members for attending. I think that the debate has been time well spent, de...
Dr Winnie Ewing (Highlands and Islands) (SNP):
SNP
Someone mentioned the presence of gulls in enormous numbers in the fields where pigs are in the open air, living in little huts. It seems to me that in any i...
Allan Wilson:
Lab
I am happy to do so, although the clear evidence that I have received from the Executive's chief medical officer is that although seagulls are a nuisance, th...
Meeting closed at 17:45.