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Meeting of the Parliament 24 October 2012

24 Oct 2012 · S4 · Meeting of the Parliament

Item of business

Winter Resilience

Hume, Jim LD South Scotland Watch on SPTV

The last days of October are fast becoming characterised not by gaining an extra hour, or by Hallowe’en, but by the annual winter resilience debate in the chamber. I welcome the fact that the Government has, once again, brought forward a debate on the matter before winter truly begins to bite so that we might question the minister on the Government’s level of preparedness. During the severe winter of 2010-11 we were denied this opportunity until after our infrastructure and transport networks had ground to a halt. It is not good enough to simply be reactive in such matters and it is right that we have the chance to debate the matter today.

I support the principles and content of the minister’s motion, but I thought it necessary that the plight of rural Scotland should be addressed. During wintry weather conditions, the disruption of the transport network in the central belt will inevitably command most attention, but the problems that extreme weather causes in rural and isolated communities are no less severe, and they are more common, of course. The isolation of those communities can make the problems that are caused by wintry weather much more difficult to contend with. A closed road in the central belt can often be passed off as a minor inconvenience, but if the Rest and Be Thankful section of the A83 is closed, that can add up to 50 miles to some journeys. If a bus service is disrupted in Edinburgh or Glasgow, another route or rail may be an option, but in a Highland or island community, it is likely that a single bus service will be the only means of passage into and out of the town for many people. That applies to those who are lucky enough to have public transport, of course. More often in the countryside, cars are the only mode of transport. People can therefore be isolated in their own rural homes when the weather gets tough.

A one-size-fits-all approach simply would not work, which is why innovative measures must be attempted to confront the challenges that rural Scotland faces in times of severe weather. Scottish Borders Council, which has already been mentioned, deserves praise for its initiative in producing its resilient communities plan, which seeks to ensure that volunteers in the Borders have the chance to work more closely with the council and emergency responders during periods of severe weather. In rural areas, there may be rare occasions when public services are temporarily unavailable, so developing a framework for the co-ordination of voluntary support on a community council basis is an intelligent response to the difficulties that many suffer in winter. The support in mind ranges from clearing pathways for the elderly and disabled to placing sandbags in areas that are at threat of flooding. I understand that, in the Borders alone, four community councils have signed up to the plan, and I hope that more will follow. Indeed, it sounds as if the idea is one whose time has come and that it should be explored by other local authorities.

In last year’s debate, I welcomed Perth and Kinross Council’s initiative of adopting a farmer assistance scheme and called on the minister to engage with NFU Scotland to roll out such a scheme nationally. Such a partnership between Transport Scotland and NFU Scotland’s membership would be an asset at times of extreme wintry weather for our more isolated communities. I congratulate the minister on taking my advice and reaching a tripartite agreement involving Transport Scotland, NFU Scotland and the Society of Chief Officers of Transportation in Scotland. The code of practice that has been established to allow local authorities to draw on the support of farmers and rural businesses—not just farmers, of course—is to be welcomed, and I am optimistic that it will prove to be a success if it is called on this winter.

In the spirit of consensus that has been commonplace in Holyrood this week, the Scottish Liberal Democrats will support the motion and all the amendments.

I move amendment S4M-04518.2, to insert after “possibly be”:

“; recognises that rural communities and businesses are most vulnerable to bouts of extreme weather and can experience disproportionate levels of disruption in comparison to other areas of Scotland in the winter months; welcomes the tripartite agreement between Transport Scotland, NFU Scotland and the Society of Chief Officers of Transportation in Scotland in establishing a code of practice for local authorities to call on the support of the farming community in remote areas of the country”.

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Meeting of the Parliament 24 October 2012

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