Hansard

I, too, am pleased to speak in the debate, and I endorse everything that has been said so far. Often, alarm bells ring when any mention is made of a transfer of public land, but on this occasion public land is very definitely being transferred in the public interest.

Every speaker has made reference to the better access that will be provided to the national gallery’s Scottish collection of art and paintings. Although I welcome that, it is important that we recognise that the proposed development will extend the gallery and enable it to provide better access to some of its spaces. There has been much mention of the Scottish collection, which I, too, love, but it has been in the basement of our country’s national gallery for a very long time, and I hope that, at some point in the future, another collection might be housed in the basement and that we will see the Scottish paintings hanging in the main hall in our national gallery.

What is proposed will allow that to happen. The small extension has been beautifully designed by Gareth Hoskins, whose enthusiasm for the job was very evident when we met him, and I join other members in offering condolences to his family.

In addition to the improvements for the gallery, the better positioning of the memorial to those folk who went from Scotland to fight in the Spanish civil war, which at the moment is tucked away in the corner of the piece of ground in question, under the Playfair steps, will give it more prominence. There will be better access to the famous Playfair steps and a general improvement of the whole area around that part of Princes Street gardens.

The project involves a transfer of public land, the process for which has been fairly complicated. I thank the other two members of the National Galleries of Scotland Bill Committee. I have been pleased to be part of the process, which has been a very interesting exercise. Nothing but positive comments have been made about the proposal, and I look forward to seeing the work being completed.