Chamber
Plenary, 15 Feb 2007
15 Feb 2007 · S2 · Plenary
Item of business
Workers' Rights
I thank Jackie Baillie for that.
Having worked in the oil fabrication sector and in the drilling sector for some years, I understand exactly the fear that has been described of being made redundant and the terror of the P45 coming one's way.
In a way, this speech is an opening and a closing speech, so if the Presiding Officer does not mind, I will comment on other members' speeches. I was pleased by what I heard of what Rosemary Byrne said and I applaud her for lodging the motion.
Here we are in the closing stages of the session and running into an election. What has been raised is one of the biggest of the issues that lie before us. I pay tribute to Phil Gallie for his speech—it was well said. I for one will miss him in the next session and I am sad that he is leaving us.
What Allan Wilson said about the DTI is very good. I hope that, in his ministerial role, he will pursue the issue all the way.
I have believed in my working life that management co-ordination with the workforce has been and remains an issue. I have been there right at the bottom, on the shop floor, getting my hands dirty. I have seen bad management.
The point about Young's is that it is offshoring its processing of scampi to Thailand. I pay tribute to Christine May and to Alex Neil, who is not with us this morning, for agreeing—in their capacities not as deputy convener and convener of the Enterprise and Culture Committee but as back benchers—to meet workforce representatives to discuss that issue. Surely a greater issue is not before us. Does it make any sense whatever to take fish from Scotland all the way to Thailand for processing before bringing them back here? That is utter nonsense. It is not for the Enterprise and Culture Committee, of which I am a member, to dictate what the next session's enterprise committee—if that is what it is called—should examine. However, given the carbon footprint, such a move to globalisation is entirely wrong and should be examined.
I have seen asset stripping in my constituency. Members may be familiar with Brown and Root Highlands Fabricators at Nigg, where I worked for several years on the shop floor, as I said. I am covered by parliamentary privilege, so I may say that in the closing years of that operation, there was some evidence that the management was shutting down the yard and, I contend, not bidding for orders. We could see tools being removed from the yard and sold on to the international market. That is surely a sin against good management.
Presiding Officer, I am sorry for an al fresco contribution to the debate, and for being late. I applaud Rosemary Byrne for introducing the debate and I congratulate her. Workers' rights affect us all and the debate is important.
Having worked in the oil fabrication sector and in the drilling sector for some years, I understand exactly the fear that has been described of being made redundant and the terror of the P45 coming one's way.
In a way, this speech is an opening and a closing speech, so if the Presiding Officer does not mind, I will comment on other members' speeches. I was pleased by what I heard of what Rosemary Byrne said and I applaud her for lodging the motion.
Here we are in the closing stages of the session and running into an election. What has been raised is one of the biggest of the issues that lie before us. I pay tribute to Phil Gallie for his speech—it was well said. I for one will miss him in the next session and I am sad that he is leaving us.
What Allan Wilson said about the DTI is very good. I hope that, in his ministerial role, he will pursue the issue all the way.
I have believed in my working life that management co-ordination with the workforce has been and remains an issue. I have been there right at the bottom, on the shop floor, getting my hands dirty. I have seen bad management.
The point about Young's is that it is offshoring its processing of scampi to Thailand. I pay tribute to Christine May and to Alex Neil, who is not with us this morning, for agreeing—in their capacities not as deputy convener and convener of the Enterprise and Culture Committee but as back benchers—to meet workforce representatives to discuss that issue. Surely a greater issue is not before us. Does it make any sense whatever to take fish from Scotland all the way to Thailand for processing before bringing them back here? That is utter nonsense. It is not for the Enterprise and Culture Committee, of which I am a member, to dictate what the next session's enterprise committee—if that is what it is called—should examine. However, given the carbon footprint, such a move to globalisation is entirely wrong and should be examined.
I have seen asset stripping in my constituency. Members may be familiar with Brown and Root Highlands Fabricators at Nigg, where I worked for several years on the shop floor, as I said. I am covered by parliamentary privilege, so I may say that in the closing years of that operation, there was some evidence that the management was shutting down the yard and, I contend, not bidding for orders. We could see tools being removed from the yard and sold on to the international market. That is surely a sin against good management.
Presiding Officer, I am sorry for an al fresco contribution to the debate, and for being late. I applaud Rosemary Byrne for introducing the debate and I congratulate her. Workers' rights affect us all and the debate is important.
In the same item of business
The Presiding Officer (Mr George Reid):
NPA
Good morning. The first item of business is a debate on motion S2M-5581, in the name of Rosemary Byrne, on workers' rights.
Ms Rosemary Byrne (South of Scotland) (Sol):
Sol
This Solidarity debate is about improving workers' rights and strengthening trade unions throughout Scotland and the United Kingdom.The context for the debat...
Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab):
Lab
Will the member give way?
Ms Byrne:
Sol
I need to make progress; I have to cover a lot of ground.I seek an assurance from the minister that the situation will be rectified immediately, so that PACE...
The Deputy Minister for Enterprise and Lifelong Learning (Allan Wilson):
Lab
I am a lifelong trade unionist, too, and the subject matter of the debate is close to my heart. I thank Rosemary Byrne and Solidarity for giving us the oppor...
Ms Byrne:
Sol
Does the minister agree that up to now the PACE initiative has been disappointing and that there is a need to press for improvements as quickly as possible?
Allan Wilson:
Lab
In the context of PACE, there is an issue when an employer refuses to co-operate with public agencies that deliver services, as has happened in the case that...
Irene Oldfather:
Lab
Has the minister had any advice from officials about any way in which the closure might contravene the European information and consultation directive? Would...
The Presiding Officer:
NPA
You now have one minute left, Mr Wilson.
Allan Wilson:
Lab
Thank you, Presiding Officer—although that is not a long time in which to deal with what are fairly complex matters. I will perhaps come back to some of thes...
Jim Mather (Highlands and Islands) (SNP):
SNP
We are whole-heartedly in favour of workers' rights, and we are grateful to Solidarity for creating this opportunity to debate the subject. We believe that, ...
Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab):
Lab
Jim Mather has talked about the Government's position. I wonder what the Scottish National Party's position is on the proposed bill to reform the trade union...
Jim Mather:
SNP
We will give it due consideration. Today, I am calling for a proper and full debate in which we learn from other places. There is a difficult blend to be ach...
Allan Wilson:
Lab
I agree. Would the member agree with me that the UK has been spectacularly successful in that context? It is one of only three EU countries that have surpass...
Jim Mather:
SNP
There has been an element of success but, if we consider countries such as Denmark, we find that they have achieved that better. We are currently facing the ...
Phil Gallie (South of Scotland) (Con):
Con
Rosemary Byrne's speech was wide-ranging and time is a constraining factor in the debate, so I will not seek to make interventions and I will not take any du...
Mr Jamie Stone (Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross) (LD):
LD
I apologise to the Presiding Officer and to Rosemary Byrne for being late. One is subject to the vagaries of the taxi service, such as it is.It may surprise ...
Jackie Baillie:
Lab
I am surprised.
Mr Stone:
LD
I thank Jackie Baillie for that.Having worked in the oil fabrication sector and in the drilling sector for some years, I understand exactly the fear that has...
The Presiding Officer:
NPA
I thank the member for being brief. Such short debates always mean truncated speeches and few interventions. They are not particularly satisfactory in that r...
Chris Ballance (South of Scotland) (Green):
Green
I will stick to my two minutes. The motion is excellent and it is important to debate such issues. It is positive that all members—in the motion and the amen...
Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab):
Lab
I acknowledge the difficulties that have been experienced by workers in Simclar, NCR Dundee and Young's, and in Methode Electronics Europe in my constituency...
Tommy Sheridan (Glasgow) (Sol):
Sol
Will the member confirm the truth to the chamber—that the quotes that she read out come from the NUJ chapel that happens to be the Scottish Socialist Party c...
Frances Curran (West of Scotland) (SSP):
SSP
That is rubbish.
Jackie Baillie:
Lab
A member has responded to Mr Sheridan's point from a sedentary position. I understand that both the organisations to which I referred are in formal dispute w...
Mr Adam Ingram (South of Scotland) (SNP):
SNP
I deplore Jackie Baillie's rather petty contribution to this morning's debate. It did not set the right tone, especially for the Simclar workers who are look...
Frances Curran (West of Scotland) (SSP):
SSP
I welcome this debate on workers' rights, which is long overdue. I regret the fact that the chamber has been spurred into action on the matter by the Simclar...
Irene Oldfather (Cunninghame South) (Lab):
Lab
First, I apologise to the chamber—I have had laryngitis this week, but I thought that it was important to come here today to make the case that the Simclar w...
Campbell Martin (West of Scotland) (Ind):
Ind
I congratulate Rosemary Byrne and Solidarity on bringing the issue of workers' rights to the Parliament, and I acknowledge the immense amount of work that Ro...
Bill Aitken (Glasgow) (Con):
Con
This has been an extremely unhappy debate. I have never been a trade unionist, but I have been made redundant—it happened six months before the Parliament ca...