Hansard

As this sixth session of the Scottish Parliament comes to a close, I extend my thanks to the Presiding Officer and the Deputy Presiding Officers for the service that each of them has given to the Parliament over the past five years.

The Presiding Officers have always managed their roles with principle, professionalism, pragmatism and, importantly—the Deputy Presiding Officer has just mentioned this—impartiality. It has been a demanding parliamentary session with a significant legislative workload, in which major issues have required scrutiny, and the Presiding Officers have undertaken so much impressive work in promoting all that work to the communities of Scotland. In all those roles, the Presiding Officers have acted effectively in undertaking their responsibilities.

While Liam McArthur is seeking re-election to Parliament, the Presiding Officer and you, Deputy Presiding Officer, are two of the 42 MSPs who have chosen not to stand for re-election. So, on behalf of all members of Parliament and the people of Scotland, I express my warmest thanks to the Presiding Officer and to the Deputy Presiding Officers for the outstanding service that you have given to Scotland in the sixth session of the Scottish Parliament.

Among the many members who are standing down at this election, some are long-standing members and some have been here for a shorter period, but I know that all have sought to serve their constituents well, and I thank all those who have dedicated themselves to public service.

We say farewell to people who have served in the Government, at my side, for many years, and I pay particular tribute to those who have served Scotland so well: former First Ministers Nicola Sturgeon and Humza Yousaf; my Deputy First Minister, Kate Forbes; current cabinet secretaries Shona Robison, Fiona Hyslop and Mairi Gougeon; current ministers Graeme Dey, Natalie Don-Innes and Richard Lochhead; and former ministers Joe FitzPatrick, Michael Matheson, Kevin Stewart and Elena Whitham. I also make mention of Christina McKelvie, who, before her sad death last year, had announced her intention to stand down at the forthcoming election. It has been my enormous privilege to work alongside each and every one of my colleagues, and I thank all of them for their service.

Eight of the members who are stepping down were first elected in 1999. I pay tribute to Sarah Boyack, who also served as a minister as part of her long-standing service; to Rhoda Grant; and to the incredibly formidable mother of the Parliament, Christine Grahame. At the weekend, my mother-in-law asked me what would happen to her collection of visible brooches on parliamentary occasions, and I told her that I thought they would be safe in Christine Grahame’s hands forever.

We also acknowledge that two former party leaders—Richard Leonard and Douglas Ross—are stepping down at this election.

Personally, I will miss enormously my fellow local representatives in the Mid Scotland and Fife area, Liz Smith and Alex Rowley.

To all those stepping down, I express my warmest wishes for all that lies ahead.

Although we thank those people for their service as members of the Scottish Parliament, we are all conscious that we carry out our responsibilities with the support of our staff teams, who assist us in every way. I take this opportunity to express a very personal and sincere thank you to my private office and the wider staff in the Scottish Government who support ministers so well, to my team of special advisers and to my constituency staff, without whom I could not undertake my responsibilities as First Minister. All members are aware of the tremendous service that is given by those who support us in our constituencies, who address the needs and priorities of the members of the public we serve. I express today, on behalf of Parliament, our thanks to all those who support us in our constituency work.

In drawing my remarks to a close, I would like to express my thanks, and the thanks of my party and the Government, to the supportive members of staff in the Scottish Parliament, no matter where they work, because we could not operate as members of Parliament without their assistance. I thank those in security who greet us when we arrive, the clerks, the official report, the Scottish Parliament information centre, the broadcasting service, the British Sign Language service and the business information technology staff, who are, frankly, run off their feet attending to members who consistently cannot access the mobile voting app—without them, we would not be able to carry out our democratic functions. I thank the cleaning team, who keep the Parliament looking at its best; the catering staff, who keep us fed and watered; and the communications team, the participation and communities team and the public engagement team, who support Parliament’s engagement with members of the public. I also thank the chief executive, David McGill, and his team for the stewardship of our parliamentary business. We could not and would not be here without their support. For that, I am truly thankful, and I know that members of Parliament will echo those words. [Applause.]

As we embark on the election campaign, to all who are not returning I express my warmest wishes for the future. To those who are engaged in the election campaign—of whom I shall, no doubt, be seeing quite a lot in the next few weeks—I say that I look forward to engagement in the democratic process and returning to serve the people of Scotland in the years to come.