Hansard

The Deputy Presiding Officer (Alasdair Morgan) SNP

The final item of business today is a members’ business debate on motion S3M-7567, in the name of Cathy Jamieson, on freight facilities grants. The debate wi...

Cathy Jamieson (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (Lab) Lab

I thank members, particularly those who have stayed for the debate, for their support for the motion, which has helped it to be selected for debate. I also t...

The Deputy Presiding Officer SNP

We come to the open debate. I ask for speeches of four minutes. The debate is oversubscribed, so I will stop members when they get to the four-minute mark.17:18

Christopher Harvie (Mid Scotland and Fife) (SNP) SNP

I congratulate Cathy Jamieson on the motion and her eloquent presentation of it. I also declare an interest as the honorary president of the Scottish Associa...

Michael McMahon (Hamilton North and Bellshill) (Lab) Lab

I begin by congratulating Cathy Jamieson on securing the debate and providing members with the opportunity to highlight the short-sightedness of the Scottish...

The Minister for Transport and Infrastructure (Keith Brown) SNP

Would the member like to address the impact of the £800 million cut in this year’s capital budget? If Cathy Jamieson can describe the reduction of the freigh...

Michael McMahon Lab

The minister makes a clever argument, but he can see the importance of his strategy—I will come on to that later—and he is undermining his position rather th...

John Scott (Ayr) (Con) Con

I congratulate Cathy Jamieson on securing the debate, which is relevant to Ayrshire and South Ayrshire, in particular, which we both represent. The freight f...

Karen Whitefield (Airdrie and Shotts) (Lab) Lab

I welcome the opportunity to speak in this evening’s debate and I congratulate my colleague, Cathy Jamieson, on securing a members’ business debate on this i...

Keith Brown SNP

Does the member think that the decision of the Labour Government to scrap the scheme five years ago and the fact that it spent less money in five years in En...

Karen Whitefield Lab

We are talking about Scotland, and the minister is responsible for the situation in Scotland. Labour Party members criticise their party when they need to. W...

Alison McInnes (North East Scotland) (LD) LD

I congratulate Cathy Jamieson on securing this debate, which provides us with an opportunity to discuss not only the future of the freight facilities grant b...

Charlie Gordon (Glasgow Cathcart) (Lab) Lab

I congratulate my colleague Cathy Jamieson on bringing to the chamber a debate that is at once important and very topical.At the December 7 meeting of the Tr...

The Deputy Presiding Officer SNP

At this point, I would be prepared to accept a motion without notice to extend the debate by 10 minutes to complete the business. I ask Cathy Jamieson to so ...

Patrick Harvie (Glasgow) (Green) Green

I add my thanks and congratulations to Cathy Jamieson for bringing the motion to the chamber for debate. I was happy to sign up to it almost as soon as it wa...

Hugh Henry (Paisley South) (Lab) Lab

I, too, thank Cathy Jamieson for the opportunity to debate this important issue. I also thank her for alerting me to something that I had overlooked complete...

Dr Richard Simpson (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Lab) Lab

I, too, congratulate Cathy Jamieson on securing the debate. I welcome the new Minister for Transport and Infrastructure to his post. I want to tell him a lit...

The Minister for Transport and Infrastructure (Keith Brown) SNP

Like other members, I congratulate Cathy Jamieson on securing the debate. I think that it was Aneurin Bevan who said that politics is the language of priorit...

Hugh Henry Lab

The minister highlights a mistaken decision by Westminster-based politicians and a very correct decision made by ministers of the same party in Scotland.

Keith Brown SNP

I acknowledge and welcome that intervention, but what has changed is the financial situation. I think that Hugh Henry would go on to say that that is the rea...

Michael McMahon Lab

Is the minister not missing the point? The freight facilities grants scheme in Scotland was much more flexible and operated in an entirely different way from...

Keith Brown SNP

Power is one thing, but resources are another. It would be useful if the member would acknowledge, even for one second, the disastrous effects of Labour’s ha...

Patrick Harvie Green

Will the minister give way?

Keith Brown SNP

I am sorry, but I have to make some progress.The new hospital in Glasgow is another project that will take a huge chunk out of a capital budget that has been...

Cathy Jamieson Lab

Will the minister give way?

Keith Brown SNP

I have to make some progress. We have concluded that we cannot fund new FFG projects for the time being. We have allocated £2.9 million to support the freigh...

Cathy Jamieson Lab

Will the minister take an intervention?

Keith Brown SNP

Although I have already taken two interventions and do not have much time left, I will take the member’s intervention provided that she is very brief.

Cathy Jamieson Lab

Almost six minutes into his speech, I am glad that the minister has mentioned the Grangestone railhead. His predecessor was supportive of the project, on whi...

Keith Brown SNP

I have been trying to deal with that subject. Cathy Jamieson made the point in her speech that the FFG scheme is suspended, from which I think she took some ...