Committee
Environment and Rural Development Committee, 14 Feb 2007
14 Feb 2007 · S2 · Environment and Rural Development Committee
Item of business
Petition
National Parks (Scotland) Act 2000 (PE1011)
We should ask the minister what the Executive has done to inform the communities that could be affected by the national park of any possible benefits to their areas. It is right that people who are suspicious of the idea and who are protesting against it should have a voice. However, as far as I can see, the consultation—which I have a lot of concerns about—did not try to sell the idea: it was just consultation; therefore, people were left without any idea whether they would get anything out of the park. We should ask the minister what the Executive has done to explain to communities why it is thinking of establishing the national park in the first place.
In the same item of business
The Convener:
Lab
Our final item is consideration of petition PE1011, from Ian MacKinnon, on behalf of Action Against Marine Park, which calls on the Scottish Parliament to am...
Eleanor Scott:
Green
We should ask the minister what the Executive has done to inform the communities that could be affected by the national park of any possible benefits to thei...
Nora Radcliffe:
LD
There is the classic tension between consultation—when things are not written in tablets of stone—and people wanting things to be written in tablets of stone...
The Convener:
Lab
Perhaps we can ask the minister to clarify the effect that the establishment of a national park might have on sea industries such as fishing and aquaculture....
Rob Gibson:
SNP
I do not want to open up any controversy. However, there must be lessons that can be learned from the way in which SNH and others operated the processes that...
The Convener:
Lab
That is fine. Can members think of anything else to put in the letter?
Members:
No.
The Convener:
Lab
Okay. Our next meeting will be on 21 February at 10 o'clock in committee room 5.
Meeting closed at 12:21.