Hansard

It gives me great pleasure to speak in the debate. As other members have done, I congratulate Willie Coffey on securing this debate on the celebration of the Fenwick Weavers Society’s 250th anniversary. It is right that so many members have not only stayed behind tonight but spoken in the debate so eloquently and articulately.

The story of the weavers is a fantastic one, and we owe a lot to John Smith and John McFadzean for rediscovering it and doing so much to bring it to life. This is the second debate on the Fenwick weavers in the current session of Parliament. It is a fascinating story and it is right that so many people will gather on Monday to sign the charter and to commemorate the event. As a co-convener of the cross-party group on co-operatives, I certainly look forward to that.

It is not only the historical significance of the Fenwick event that is important but what the Fenwick Weavers Society was about. As Margaret Mitchell and Cathy Jamieson said, we must remember the values that the weavers espoused and the way in which they went about establishing their organisation 250 years ago. Not only did they contribute to a spirit of bringing the community together, they showed how people should conduct themselves—what was right and what was wrong. That was developed in their strong sense of the importance of education in the community, not only 250 years ago but in the years following. That was shown by the setting-up of a local library, which was significant because it demonstrated that the Fenwick community thought that it was important not only that people could feed and clothe themselves but that they could be educated to go on and better themselves. There are some excellent examples of that in the Fenwick story.

Bringing the issue all the way forward to 2011, the importance of co-operatives today and the extent to which they are important to communities show how much we owe to the forebears of the co-operative tradition who lived 250 years ago.

At the weekend, I attended an event at the West Whitlawburn Housing Co-operative in my constituency, which involved the opening of a new sports pitch. I should say that, as the dignitaries waited to open the pitch, the young kids were dying to get on to the park, which was great to see. That housing co-op has been able to improve the housing stock and branch out into other areas. It is the first technology co-operative in the UK, and it has improved the sporting facilities. That shows us what co-operatives can achieve and how they can benefit the community.

It is right to celebrate what happened in Fenwick 250 years ago, but we should also use this debate as a platform to re-emphasise the co-operative movement’s message and take it forward.

It is also right to draw attention to the fact that this debate marks Cathy Jamieson’s final contribution in this chamber. She has been an excellent MSP and a minister over the past 12 years and has contributed superbly to the development of this Parliament. It is only fair also to point out the contribution that Christopher Harvie has made. I have always enjoyed his unique historical insights, which we heard again tonight. I thank him for that.

I congratulate Willie Coffey again, and I congratulate those in Fenwick who have been at the heart of the 250th anniversary events. I look forward to Monday coming.

17:43