Committee
European and External Relations Committee, 13 Mar 2007
13 Mar 2007 · S2 · European and External Relations Committee
Item of business
Finland Study Trip
I thank members for a very interesting update on their visit. I was sorry that I was not able to join you, but I had accepted a speaking engagement in Ayrshire some months earlier and, under the circumstances, it would have been inappropriate for me to have withdrawn from it.I have found all this very interesting, and I hope that we will be able to continue the work at some level, especially on the issue of looked-after children, which the convener touched on. Given that expenditure per schoolchild is higher in Scotland than it is in Finland, it would be interesting to find out how the Finnish have managed to reach such levels of attainment.I have also been amazed at how the Finns have turned round the public health agenda. Indeed, in the very early days of the Parliament, the Health and Community Care Committee took a lot of evidence on the Finnish experience. I like to think that that work has contributed to and informed some of what has gone on in Scotland. I hope that we are beginning to make some inroads in that respect.From my limited knowledge, I believe that the Finns coped incredibly well when their economy more or less collapsed after the break-up of the Soviet Union. However, they are still struggling with high unemployment levels. Of course, we can always learn from sharing and discussing such experiences and I welcome any moves in that direction. Although some of the members on that trip will soon not be with us, I am sure that the committee will still be able to learn more things in future.
In the same item of business
The Convener:
SNP
Item 4 is a report back to the full committee on the European Commission-funded study trip that Bruce Crawford, Phil Gallie, Dennis Canavan and I took part i...
Dennis Canavan:
Ind
I found it an interesting and informative visit and I would like to give some of my general impressions.Finland is an interesting country in that it manages ...
Bruce Crawford:
SNP
I, too, thank the European Commission for setting up what was a very useful trip, although it was a bit packed. By the end of it, a bit of overload was going...
Phil Gallie:
Con
Dennis Canavan and Bruce Crawford have covered many of the points that I wanted to make, so I will add just one or two.One reason why we went to Finland was ...
The Convener:
SNP
I will not say much because most of the issues have been covered. My overriding impression was that there was a lot that we could learn but that we should no...
Phil Gallie:
Con
An important aspect of that committee is its emphasis on the long term rather than the short term.
The Convener:
SNP
In my opinion, long-term thinking is something that we lack in politics in our country.My final point about what I learned is worth putting on the record bec...
Phil Gallie:
Con
Will ex-members get a copy?
The Convener:
SNP
Phil, I would never dream of not asking you to comment on the report before it is published. I ask Jim Johnston to make a note of that.
Irene Oldfather:
Lab
I thank members for a very interesting update on their visit. I was sorry that I was not able to join you, but I had accepted a speaking engagement in Ayrshi...
The Convener:
SNP
On that sombre note, are members content with the course of action that has been outlined?Members indicated agreement.