Chamber
Plenary, 06 Jun 2007
06 Jun 2007 · S3 · Plenary
Item of business
Moving Water (Rescue Arrangements)
I congratulate Roseanna Cunningham on securing the debate, not only because this is the first members' debate in the new session, but because the issue is important. I thank her for raising it.
I pay tribute to George Parsonage, who has rescued more than 1,500 people from the River Clyde, and who was awarded a silver medal by the Royal Humane Society—the first of its kind in more than 100 years. The society was established in 1790 and is said to be the oldest life-saving society in the world. It has been forced to withdraw from Glasgow because of health and safety regulations, if members can believe that. George Parsonage, who continues to live beside the Clyde and is constantly vigilant, can no longer do his excellent work, which is very sad. I pay tribute to George for all his hard work.
As Roseanna Cunningham said, the situation in respect of rescue requires urgent review. I accept Strathclyde Fire and Rescue's point that it
"currently provides a Water Rescue capability throughout its area".
Roseanna touched on that, but the capability covers a very small area rather than the whole Clyde. No separate budget is allocated to water rescue training—costs must be absorbed by the central training budget. That cannot be right.
The anomaly can be traced back to the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005 which, among other things, gave ministers—maybe the minister will listen to this—the power to make an order conferring additional functions on the service, under its duty to respond to other, non-fire emergencies. Unfortunately, after consultation no order was made to deal with water rescue, except in the case of serious flooding. As a result, dealing with water rescue is left to each FRA, as has already been pointed out. I urge the minister to consult all FRAs, with a view to laying an order that would apply throughout Scotland and which would require FRAs to deal with water rescue.
We must address the serious issue that people may be disciplined for trying to do this humane work. We must also ensure that resources for training are not taken from central budgets but are allocated independently by the minister to each FRA. I hope that the minister will look favourably on those suggestions.
I pay tribute to George Parsonage, who has rescued more than 1,500 people from the River Clyde, and who was awarded a silver medal by the Royal Humane Society—the first of its kind in more than 100 years. The society was established in 1790 and is said to be the oldest life-saving society in the world. It has been forced to withdraw from Glasgow because of health and safety regulations, if members can believe that. George Parsonage, who continues to live beside the Clyde and is constantly vigilant, can no longer do his excellent work, which is very sad. I pay tribute to George for all his hard work.
As Roseanna Cunningham said, the situation in respect of rescue requires urgent review. I accept Strathclyde Fire and Rescue's point that it
"currently provides a Water Rescue capability throughout its area".
Roseanna touched on that, but the capability covers a very small area rather than the whole Clyde. No separate budget is allocated to water rescue training—costs must be absorbed by the central training budget. That cannot be right.
The anomaly can be traced back to the Fire (Scotland) Act 2005 which, among other things, gave ministers—maybe the minister will listen to this—the power to make an order conferring additional functions on the service, under its duty to respond to other, non-fire emergencies. Unfortunately, after consultation no order was made to deal with water rescue, except in the case of serious flooding. As a result, dealing with water rescue is left to each FRA, as has already been pointed out. I urge the minister to consult all FRAs, with a view to laying an order that would apply throughout Scotland and which would require FRAs to deal with water rescue.
We must address the serious issue that people may be disciplined for trying to do this humane work. We must also ensure that resources for training are not taken from central budgets but are allocated independently by the minister to each FRA. I hope that the minister will look favourably on those suggestions.
In the same item of business
The Deputy Presiding Officer (Alasdair Morgan):
SNP
The final item of business is a members' business debate on motion S3M-81, in the name of Roseanna Cunningham, on rescue from moving water. The debate will b...
Motion debated,
That the Parliament notes with concern the rising number of incidents involving persons trapped in moving water, including incidents in the River Tay at Pert...
Roseanna Cunningham (Perth) (SNP):
SNP
Perhaps rescue from broken podiums might be more appropriate.I make it clear from the outset that the phrase "persons trapped in moving water" is the termino...
Elizabeth Smith (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con):
Con
I congratulate Roseanna Cunningham on securing the debate and commend her diligence in seeking answers to the questions that, as yet, remain unanswered. I ex...
Stefan Tymkewycz (Lothians) (SNP):
SNP
I commend Lothian and Borders Fire and Rescue Service for being one of the few rescue services that has specifically trained personnel for specialised water ...
Christine Grahame (South of Scotland) (SNP):
SNP
It is unfortunate, to say the least, that not one member of the Labour Party and not one Liberal Democrat is attending the debate.
Jim Tolson (Dunfermline West) (LD) rose—
LD
Christine Grahame:
SNP
I apologise to the member and beg his pardon. I should have said only that not one member of the Labour Party is attending the debate. I hope that there will...
Sandra White (Glasgow) (SNP):
SNP
I congratulate Roseanna Cunningham on securing the debate, not only because this is the first members' debate in the new session, but because the issue is im...
Jamie McGrigor (Highlands and Islands) (Con):
Con
I congratulate Roseanna Cunningham on bringing this important matter to the chamber. I speak as an MSP for the Highlands and Islands, which contains many fas...
The Minister for Community Safety (Fergus Ewing):
SNP
I thank all those who have stayed to contribute to and listen to this evening's debate. In particular, I thank Roseanna Cunningham for initiating the first m...
Roseanna Cunningham:
SNP
Does the minister accept that, notwithstanding the statutory position, the import of the many letters that I have received from various constabularies around...
Fergus Ewing:
SNP
I understand entirely the point that Roseanna Cunningham makes. In mountain rescue, although the legal duty rests with the police, many rescues are carried o...
Meeting closed at 17:32.