Committee
Public Petitions Committee, 21 Apr 2009
21 Apr 2009 · S3 · Public Petitions Committee
Item of business
Petitions Process Inquiry
I will follow on from what George Reid and Nanette Milne said. I have addressed this theme briefly before, and I would be interested in hearing people's views on local authorities having their own petitions system. Local authorities have busy timetables, and that can exclude a lot of things that should be addressed. However, it is only because the local authorities do not know that issues exist that the issues are not being addressed. The basic point of the petitions system here is that it alerts us to what people are feeling, to problems that we do not know exist, and to problems that we know about but do not know how badly they affect people.The question that we should consider is not why we are receiving petitions that need to be addressed more locally. The question that we should consider is this: if so many issues that we should deal with are coming to the Scottish Parliament, how many local issues are there that are not being dealt with, when it would be appropriate for councillors to have their attention drawn to them? On the principle that devolution did not stop at the Scottish Parliament, petitioning should not stop at the Scottish Parliament, either.
In the same item of business
The Convener (Mr Frank McAveety):
Lab
Good afternoon, everyone. We have reached the critical time of 2 o'clock. I thank everyone who has managed to come along this afternoon, and I will allow the...
George Reid:
I suppose that these days I am best described as a recovering politician. I was a member, with Campbell Christie and Alice Brown, of the consultative steerin...
The Minister for Parliamentary Business (Bruce Crawford):
SNP
I was not as heavily involved as George Reid and his colleagues 10 years ago, but I might need some of the counselling that he has obviously had since he bec...
Ali Jarvis:
I have been involved over the past 10 years in the equalities field, working originally with Stonewall Scotland and subsequently with the Commission for Raci...
Professor Ann Macintosh (University of Leeds):
I currently work at the University of Leeds, but I guess I am here because of my time at Napier University, where I was involved in the design and applicatio...
Louise Macdonald (Young Scot):
I am the chief executive of Young Scot. I think that we bear some responsibility for the inquiry, so I am delighted to be here.Young Scot is the youth inform...
Campbell Christie:
My name is—Interruption. Does the microphone come on automatically?
The Convener:
Lab
Yes.
Campbell Christie:
What a wonderful system.
The Convener:
Lab
It is one of the innovations that you recommended.
Campbell Christie:
Can you cut it off automatically as well?
The Convener:
Lab
Yes. That was an innovation that we recommended.
Campbell Christie:
My background is in the trade union movement. As general secretary of the Scottish Trades Union Congress during the very interesting period from 1986 to 1999...
Rosemary Everett (Scottish Parliament Public Affairs Group):
Since 1999, I have worked for the Scottish Parliament on implementing services for the public. At the moment, I head up the new education and community partn...
The Convener:
Lab
As part of our scrutiny of the petition that has led to this inquiry and our wider engagement with the public, the committee has in the past six or seven mon...
Professor Macintosh:
The first thing that I would say is that we are all quite a bit older now.The petitions process has been going for 10 years; it might not seem like it, but t...
Ali Jarvis:
I would build on some of that. As I was thinking about coming here, having one of those daft-lassie conversations with myself on the train, three simple ques...
George Reid:
The committee has a very good reputation internationally. As I travel around Parliaments in North America and Europe, I find that overseas parliamentarians l...
Campbell Christie:
I recall the motivation to do something about a petitions committee. Having trudged to Downing Street on numerous occasions to deliver boxes of petitions tha...
Louise Macdonald:
Obviously, Young Scot's interest is in young people. I previously stated an interest in how technology can be used, but technology is not the only answer; it...
Bruce Crawford:
SNP
This is more fascinating the more you get into it. It is invigorating to get away from my usual front-line activity to have a discussion such as this.I congr...
The Convener:
Lab
I invite committee members to raise issues of interest or concern.
Bill Butler (Glasgow Anniesland) (Lab):
Lab
I have several issues to raise—I have been taking notes furiously. Ann Macintosh talked about some of the positives that have flowed from the public petition...
The Convener:
Lab
Beyond that, there was not much. I want to hear from two or three other members before I invite guests to add their thoughts.
Nanette Milne (North East Scotland) (Con):
Con
I want to return to a simpler level. I am certainly not a digital native—I am not a digital very much, I have to say.At a meeting that I attended in Aberdeen...
Robin Harper (Lothians) (Green):
Green
I will follow on from what George Reid and Nanette Milne said. I have addressed this theme briefly before, and I would be interested in hearing people's view...
The Convener:
Lab
If we want to be connected with the movement of ideas, as a Parliament should be, we will have to be brave enough to consider the investment that will be req...
Professor Macintosh:
I found it interesting to hear you talking about public petitions and local authorities. When I was in Scotland, I tried desperately hard to move the petitio...
Bill Butler:
Lab
You described it as being "ad hoc".
Professor Macintosh:
I have not been on the petitions system since I have been away. I went back on to the electronic system the other day and—