Committee
Rural Economy and Connectivity Committee 19 June 2019
19 Jun 2019 · S5 · Rural Economy and Connectivity Committee
Item of business
Transport (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2
I ask those people who have just come in to ensure that their mobile phones are on silent. Under item 4, we will continue our consideration of stage 2 amendments to the Transport (Scotland) Bill. I welcome the Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity and his supporting officials. I also welcome the non-committee members who are present. I will briefly explain the procedure. There will be one debate on each group of amendments. I will call the member who lodged the first amendment in a group to speak to and move that amendment and to speak to all the other amendments in the group. I will then call any other members who have lodged amendments in that group. Members who have not lodged amendments in the group but who wish to speak should catch my eye. If he has not already spoken on the group, I will then invite the cabinet secretary to contribute to the debate. The debate on the group will be concluded by me inviting the member who moved the first amendment in the group to wind up. Following the debate on each group, I will check whether the member who moved the first amendment in the group wishes to press it to a vote or to withdraw it. If they wish to press it, I will put the question on that amendment. If a member wishes to withdraw their amendment after it has been moved, they must seek the agreement of other members to do so. If any member present objects, the committee will immediately move to a vote on the amendment. If any member does not want to move their amendment when called, they should say, “Not moved.” Please note that any other member present may move such an amendment. If no one moves the amendment, I will immediately call the next amendment on the marshalled list. I remind everyone that only committee members are allowed to vote. Voting in any division is by a show of hands. I remind committee members to please keep their hands clearly raised until the clerk has recorded the vote—members should put their hands right up in the air because otherwise it is difficult for the clerks to record the vote. I am sure that everyone will be looking around the table to make sure that everyone else is voting. The committee is required to indicate formally that it has considered and agreed to each section of the bill, so I will put a question on each section at the appropriate point. We will not go beyond amendments to part 5 of the bill today. Section 48—Imposition of penalty charges
In the same item of business
The Convener
Con
I ask those people who have just come in to ensure that their mobile phones are on silent. Under item 4, we will continue our consideration of stage 2 amen...
The Convener
Con
The first group of amendments is on enforcement of parking prohibitions. Amendment 145, in the name of the cabinet secretary, is grouped with amendments 311 ...
The Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Infrastructure and Connectivity (Michael Matheson)
SNP
The bill as introduced allows a person employed by a local authority, or a person employed by a body with which a local authority has made enforcement arrang...
Colin Smyth (South Scotland) (Lab)
Lab
Amendment 311, in my name, would remove enforcement duties from councils that do not have decriminalised parking enforcement powers. Those councils will be r...
Jamie Greene (West Scotland) (Con)
Con
The cabinet secretary eloquently described the purpose and intention of my short amendment 313 and I was pleased to hear that he thinks that there is a stron...
Michael Matheson
SNP
I emphasise that the decision to decriminalise the enforcement of parking regulation in a local authority area is a matter for the local authority. As it sta...
The Convener
Con
Jamie Greene wants to say something about amendment 146, in the name of Graham Simpson.
Jamie Greene
Con
I have spoken to Mr Simpson and, given the lack of support for his amendment 115, he does not want to move his other amendments in the group in which amendme...
The Convener
Con
The next group is on parking prohibitions penalty charges: application of penalty charges. Amendment 310, in the name of Jamie Greene, is grouped with amendm...
Jamie Greene
Con
These short amendments deal with the penalty charges that will be collected as a result of the prohibitions in the bill. Amendment 310 sets out a framework f...
Michael Matheson
SNP
Section 55 of the bill will enable the Scottish ministers to make regulations regarding “the keeping of accounts by local authorities in connection with” t...
Stewart Stevenson (Banffshire and Buchan Coast) (SNP)
SNP
I am out of step with all my political colleagues and with almost every member of the Parliament in that, as a matter of principle, I oppose hypothecation. T...
The Convener
Con
I ask Jamie Greene to wind up, and to press or seek to withdraw amendment 157.
Jamie Greene
Con
I thank Stewart Stevenson for his comments, although following them, I am still entirely unclear about whether he supports my amendments. It is rather early ...
The Convener
Con
The next group of amendments is on parking prohibitions penalty charges: accessibility of information. Amendment 217, in the name of Pauline McNeill, is grou...
Pauline McNeill (Glasgow) (Lab)
Lab
It was recently drawn to my attention that parking penalty notices in Glasgow lack plain English in relation to the right to challenge or appeal a notice. Th...
Mike Rumbles (North East Scotland) (LD)
LD
I agree with amendment 217, but I have a question about the practical terms of amendment 218. The amendment says that regulations “must include provision re...
The Convener
Con
Perhaps we can come to that in the summing up.
Michael Matheson
SNP
Amendments 217 and 218 seek to introduce a requirement that regulations that are associated with enforcement of parking prohibitions will ensure that penalty...
Pauline McNeill
Lab
I thank Mike Rumbles for his question. Amendments 217 and 218 are aimed at addressing the issue that the cabinet secretary outlined, where sensory or other i...
The Convener
Con
The question is, that amendment 311 be agreed to. Are we agreed? Members: No.
The Convener
Con
There will be a division. For Chapman, Peter (North East Scotland) (Con) Greene, Jamie (West Scotland) (Con) Mountain, Edward (Highlands and Islands) (Co...
The Convener
Con
The result of the division is: For 5, Against 6, Abstentions 0. Amendment 311 disagreed to. Amendment 312 not moved. Section 49, as amended, agreed to. S...
The Convener
Con
The next group is entitled “Parking prohibitions: guidance”. Amendment 158, in the name of the cabinet secretary, is in a group on its own.
Michael Matheson
SNP
Section 57 requires local authorities to have regard to ministerial guidance in exercising their functions under part 4 of the bill. The purpose of amendment...
The Convener
Con
Amendment 162, in the name of the cabinet secretary, is in a group on its own.
Michael Matheson
SNP
Amendment 162 is a technical amendment that seeks to ensure that, if a local authority is considering exempting a pavement from the pavement parking prohibit...
The Convener
Con
The next group is on parking on a cycle track. Amendment 163, in the name of Colin Smyth, is the only amendment in the group.
Colin Smyth
Lab
Amendment 163 addresses an issue that arises from the decriminalisation of parking enforcement, which a number of local councils have raised with me. At last...
Jamie Greene
Con
I tried to lodge a similar amendment but the legislation team advised that Colin Smyth had beaten me to it. For that reason, I am happy to support amendment ...