Hansard

I welcome Cameron Buchanan to his place as Opposition spokesperson for the Conservatives on the local government and planning portfolio. This is my first opportunity to do so since he became an MSP.

We are very aware of the importance of the issue to the Portobello community. The bill represents a critical step in the process of allowing the City of Edinburgh Council to consider all the possible options and secure the best possible site and outcome for the provision of the new school.

I formally record my thanks to the committee and its convener and to all the various contributors for their work, which has allowed us to reach this point. Having heard and considered all the evidence appropriate to the debate, it is fair to say that common good land has a long and incredibly complex history, and its treatment is complex, too, so I very much commend the efforts of the committee and the expert witnesses in seeking to bring the matter to a clear and satisfactory resolution.

The City of Edinburgh Council has long identified the need to replace the existing Portobello high school building. As long ago as 2006, the council announced its intention to build a new school on Portobello park, which is its preferred site. I will not go over the history and legal challenges that have resulted in the need for a private bill but, needless to say, I am pleased that we are now approaching the point at which it will be possible for the council to deliver this key project from a position that ensures the fullest possible consideration with regard to delivering the best outcome for the Portobello community as a whole.

The bill has no direct impact on Scottish Government policy and the Government does not have a view on the merits of the proposed site—that is entirely for the council to decide. However, we recognise that there is widespread agreement that the existing Portobello high school is no longer fit for purpose and we believe that the council should be able to achieve what it has identified as its best option. The bill will enable that to happen and so will help the council to meet its responsibility to provide a positive learning environment for young people in the east of Edinburgh.

Whether through local delivery options or broader policy objectives, both central and local government partners have a responsibility to ensure that Scotland’s young people—our country’s future—are given the best possible opportunity to fulfil and maximise their potential. The bill demonstrates how effective partnership between local government, the Parliament and the Government can facilitate healthy debate as well as solutions to help meet local needs.

More broadly, it is worth highlighting that the Government is content that the bill will have no direct consequences for common good assets elsewhere in Scotland. The bill is deliberately narrow in its focus and will deliver a local outcome to a local challenge. The Government fully recognises the special place that the common good plays in the life of the nation and of many local communities, and the bill in no way erodes that.

I hope that members will forgive me for straying slightly from the specifics of the bill for just a moment, but the point is important. In recognition of the special place that common good holds, our draft community empowerment (Scotland) bill, on which we are consulting, includes provisions that will increase transparency about the existence, disposal and use of common good assets. That bill will also increase community involvement in decisions that are taken about such assets. In the context of today’s debate, I am sure that members will agree that that represents a welcome development that evidences the Government’s commitment not just to listen to local communities but to enable them to act in delivering local solutions to meet local needs. That reflects the objective of the bill that we are considering today in respect of Portobello high school.

Linked to that, I have noted the committee’s comments with regard to the consultation process that took place on the proposals for the new high school. I respectfully suggest that there are almost certainly lessons learned that can be carried over into future community empowerment-related activity. That is something on which I will reflect further.

To return to the bill, there is clearly no debate over the need for the City of Edinburgh Council to proceed urgently with the building of a new Portobello high school, having first flagged its intention to do so in 2006. The committee has received thorough and comprehensive advice and representations from the community, its representatives and expert witnesses, both for and against the council’s favoured option. The committee has also given cognisance to the role of the City of Edinburgh Council in respect of its function as the local planning authority, and to the role of the Parliament in relation to legislative competence. The approach that is proposed also broadly reflects current Government thinking in respect of community empowerment. Therefore, the process to bring us to this stage has been robust. However, by definition, there are always two sides to every debate, and I look forward to members’ speeches this afternoon.