Meeting of the Parliament 02 May 2023
I join other members in thanking my colleague Beatrice Wishart not just for bringing this evening’s debate but for the tenacity that she has shown in articulating many of the concerns that we have heard this evening on behalf of her Shetland constituency.
I have always been a great fan of members’ business debates. I have participated in many and, in recent times, have had the privilege of chairing a good many, too. They are often underestimated. Anybody tuning into this evening’s debate will be left in no doubt whatsoever about the powerful message that these debates often send.
We have heard from each speaker about the response to the proposals to HPMAs, and we have been hearing the same from coastal and island communities right around Scotland. Alasdair Allan is absolutely right about the reaction in his constituency, and it is very much echoed in my own constituency. There is anger and confusion but, equally, there is a determination and absolute resolution to see off the proposals for very good reasons that I will come on to.
Karen Adam was also right to point out that the proposals are already having an impact, due to the uncertainty that they have created. Similarly, Brian Whittle was right to say that, in a sense, they have made it far more difficult to come to a resolution at the end, because emotions are running so high and the faith and confidence of our island and coastal communities has been so undermined.