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Public Petitions Committee 08 March 2011

08 Mar 2011 · S3 · Public Petitions Committee

Item of business

Current Petitions

Mosquito Devices (PE1367)

Ewing, Fergus SNP Inverness East, Nairn and Lochaber Watch on SPTV

I read in the Official Report of the committee’s previous discussion of this matter that Mr Don had experienced one of these devices when he was out canvassing. Sometimes you get more than you bargain for when you undertake such activities.As John Brownlie has alluded to, my officials have, in an attempt to obtain more information about the extent of the use of the device across Scotland, contacted antisocial behaviour practitioners across Scotland through the practitioner network. Of the 20 who replied, all were aware of the device and six were aware of its use in their area; three out of those six said that the use was historical. From that limited canvassing exercise, the extent of the device’s use across Scotland seems limited and sporadic, as far as local authorities are aware. Several respondents made it clear that they did not consider using the device to be in line with their approaches to tackling antisocial behaviour. I hope that that information is of use.I will now respond to Nigel Don’s first point, which I was invited to deal with second and which was on organisations that we might wish to ask again or for the first time for advice and information. I understand that several organisations did not respond to the committee’s request for information, such as the National Autistic Society, the Royal National Institute for Deaf People, the Association of Scottish Community Councils, the Federation of Small Businesses and COSLA.I have obtained information from officials that suggests that the evidence might point in different directions—it is not all one-sided. For example, I understand that a senior audiologist—Angela King of the RNID—said:“The ‘Mosquito’ emits a very high-pitched sound (16.5-17kHz) that is just within the range of human hearing for young people but will not be heard by most people over the age of 25.As we get older we gradually lose our hearing—and we lose it from the high frequency end of the sound spectrum first.”She added the interesting point that“We understand that the sound from the ‘Mosquito’ can become extremely annoying to young people, but is not at a level that will cause any damage to hearing.”Depending on the approach that one pursued in considering whether a ban might be justified, if the issue were within devolved competence and if the purpose were to protect health, it would follow that evidence on whether the devices are injurious to health would need to be taken from a variety of sources. I would think that the lady whom I just quoted is one such source.I know that evidence has been obtained from other sources and I in no way deprecate the committee’s substantial efforts, which have resulted in extremely useful evidence. Nonetheless, I say with respect that, if members were inclined to investigate further whether the issue is within devolved competence and if the purpose were protecting health, more evidence would plainly be needed.For completeness and in the interests of applying the second principle of natural justice, which is to hear the other side of the case, it would be useful to seek further views from the device’s manufacturer, Compound Security Systems, from Merthyr Tydfil in south Wales. Any decisions could have implications for jobs and it would only be fair to the company’s employees that they and their employer should have the right to offer their views. It would also be useful to have the manufacturer’s views on the device’s legality and its use in other countries. As we might expect, the company argues on its website that the device is not injurious to health. I make the point in passing that, if one’s approach to the issue is to consider whether we should ban the device, obtaining more evidence might be useful.I appreciate that we are close to the end of the parliamentary session. I can only speculate on whether I will achieve my first date with Theresa May before we go into purdah.

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Public Petitions Committee 08 March 2011

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