Chamber
Meeting of the Parliament 26 October 2022
26 Oct 2022 · S6 · Meeting of the Parliament
Item of business
Sewage and Scotland’s Waters
I am fascinated by that, because it flies in the face of fact. There are many witnesses to that happening. If the Government is telling us that it is not happening at all, I would like to hear that stated for the record, and we will provide evidence to the contrary.
It seems that when our national environment agency is told that something is happening that is damaging an important piece of our natural environment, its response is simply to shrug its shoulders and say, “Oh well—not much we can do about it.” That is simply not good enough. When we look at Loch Leven, the River Almond, Eyemouth beach and the West Sands, all being polluted, I do not know what further evidence the SNP-Green Government needs to demonstrate that that investment is sorely needed. Perhaps the minister can illuminate members on that in her closing remarks.
As I have always said, we in this country are incredibly privileged to have the resources that we do. Let us not squander that privilege by allowing them to be ruined in this way.
18:12In the same item of business
The Deputy Presiding Officer (Liam McArthur)
LD
The final item of business is a members’ business debate on motion S6M-06148, in the name of Alex Cole-Hamilton, on sewage and Scotland’s waters. The debate ...
Alex Cole-Hamilton (Edinburgh Western) (LD)
LD
There is not a member in the chamber who does not have, somewhere in their constituency or region, a beautiful expanse of our most vital natural resource. I ...
Siobhian Brown (Ayr) (SNP)
SNP
Out of genuine interest, I ask whether the member agrees with the position that was put forward by Ross Finnie, formerly Minister for the Environment and Rur...
Alex Cole-Hamilton
LD
That is a bit off topic. It is certainly an issue for debate at another time, but it says a lot about this Government’s priorities that that is the focus of ...
The Minister for Environment and Land Reform (Màiri McAllan)
SNP
Will the member take an intervention?
Alex Cole-Hamilton
LD
I will, from the minister.
Màiri McAllan
SNP
Given the member’s comments on Loch Leven, perhaps I could get his view on the fact that SEPA inspected the location after the incident on 8 September and “...
Alex Cole-Hamilton
LD
I am fascinated by that, because it flies in the face of fact. There are many witnesses to that happening. If the Government is telling us that it is not hap...
Audrey Nicoll (Aberdeen South and North Kincardine) (SNP)
SNP
I thank Alex Cole-Hamilton for bringing the debate to the chamber. I welcome the opportunity to participate, not least as chair of the Nigg waste water treat...
Liam Kerr (North East Scotland) (Con)
Con
I congratulate Alex Cole-Hamilton on securing this members’ business debate, not least because it is not before time, as he rightly pointed out. When I look...
Mercedes Villalba (North East Scotland) (Lab)
Lab
I thank Alex Cole-Hamilton for securing this important debate. His motion rightly stresses the importance of affording the highest possible protection to our...
Ariane Burgess (Highlands and Islands) (Green)
Green
I thank Alex Cole-Hamilton for securing this crucial debate. As we have heard already, The Ferret has identified that the untreated human waste flowing into ...
Siobhian Brown (Ayr) (SNP)
SNP
I thank Alex Cole-Hamilton for bringing the debate to the chamber; I completely agree with him that Scotland’s natural environment deserves the highest stand...
Sarah Boyack (Lothian) (Lab)
Lab
I thank Alex Cole-Hamilton for securing the debate, because the issue of sewage and pollution needs to be tackled more effectively. I also thank The Ferret t...
The Minister for Environment and Land Reform (Màiri McAllan)
SNP
I am very pleased to be taking part in today’s debate, and I thank Alex Cole-Hamilton for securing it. It is a topic that I know he cares about, as do I. Th...
Liam Kerr
Con
Will the minister take an intervention?
Màiri McAllan
SNP
I have a lot that I want to put on the record this afternoon, but I will take a short intervention.
Liam Kerr
Con
The minister appears to have entirely missed my point: if we monitor only 10 per cent of the overflows, as against the 80 per cent that are monitored in Engl...
The Deputy Presiding Officer
LD
Minister, I can give you all the time back.
Màiri McAllan
SNP
The figures that I cited are not linked directly to the monitoring of CSOs; they relate to a holistic assessment of the water quality in Scotland. If we brea...
Alex Cole-Hamilton
LD
I am very grateful for the clarification from the minister, but her intervention did change the character of the debate. A person listening to the minister’s...
The Deputy Presiding Officer
LD
Minister, again, I can give you all the time back.
Màiri McAllan
SNP
If I was disingenuous, that was not my intention. I have just clarified my intention, which was to point out that SEPA has made an active assessment of the s...
Alex Cole-Hamilton
LD
When I asked the First Minister about the matter a few months ago, Scottish Water contacted me and we had an in-depth meeting about this very issue. Scottish...
Màiri McAllan
SNP
The point that I am trying to make is that, when we seek to refer to specific incidents, we should be very clear about the term “raw sewage” and the extent t...