Chamber
Meeting of the Parliament 10 March 2011
10 Mar 2011 · S3 · Meeting of the Parliament
Item of business
Local Services
Och—in a moment.
At no point during the 13 years of the Labour Government did I ever hear a Liberal Democrat or, indeed, a Tory say, “Spend less,” “Don’t spend as much, Gordon,” or “Don’t spend all that, Alistair.” It was quite the reverse. They wanted more to be spent on the health service and on education—they argued that case again and again. They will not acknowledge that we have a worldwide economic crisis, which stemmed from sub-prime mortgages.
The scale of the cuts that are being enforced by the UK Government—Liberal Democrats as well as Tories—is not justified in any way. We see the U-turns of the Liberal Democrats and their real hypocrisy on tuition fees, on which they signed the pledge and then pretended that they had not. On bankers’ bonuses, they wanted swift action when they were in opposition, but in government they have done almost nothing. We are talking about the reorganisation of the police service. What could be more damaging to the police in Scotland and the UK than cutting the pay of the people who do the work?
Now the Liberal Democrats are behaving like the Keystone Kops. Vince Cable blurts out his hatred for Murdoch to an undercover reporter and, as a result, loses the power to decide. Nick Clegg forgets that he is in charge as the Deputy Prime Minister and goes off on a skiing holiday to Klosters. That is not to mention David Laws. No wonder they got the Barnsley chop and came in in sixth place. They were not just behind the British National Party and the UK Independence Party; they were even behind an independent candidate. That is a real humiliation for the Lib Dems, and it will come to them in Scotland, too.
Locally, the disenchantment with the Liberal Democrats is reflected right here in Edinburgh. Jenny Dawe might not yet be quite as unpopular as Nick Clegg, but we should give it time. Councillor Dawe is certainly heading that way as a result of her shambolic performance as leader of City of Edinburgh Council. Antipathy towards the Lib Dems has already been reflected in the recent by-elections in Liberton and Gilmerton, when they were trounced by the Labour Party.
Councillor Dawe has demonstrated the same astonishing level of arrogance as Nick Clegg, most recently in her handling of the gathering 2009 affair. Our own Public Audit Committee unanimously—including Nicol Stephen—deemed the evidence of the leader of the council to be not credible.
At no point during the 13 years of the Labour Government did I ever hear a Liberal Democrat or, indeed, a Tory say, “Spend less,” “Don’t spend as much, Gordon,” or “Don’t spend all that, Alistair.” It was quite the reverse. They wanted more to be spent on the health service and on education—they argued that case again and again. They will not acknowledge that we have a worldwide economic crisis, which stemmed from sub-prime mortgages.
The scale of the cuts that are being enforced by the UK Government—Liberal Democrats as well as Tories—is not justified in any way. We see the U-turns of the Liberal Democrats and their real hypocrisy on tuition fees, on which they signed the pledge and then pretended that they had not. On bankers’ bonuses, they wanted swift action when they were in opposition, but in government they have done almost nothing. We are talking about the reorganisation of the police service. What could be more damaging to the police in Scotland and the UK than cutting the pay of the people who do the work?
Now the Liberal Democrats are behaving like the Keystone Kops. Vince Cable blurts out his hatred for Murdoch to an undercover reporter and, as a result, loses the power to decide. Nick Clegg forgets that he is in charge as the Deputy Prime Minister and goes off on a skiing holiday to Klosters. That is not to mention David Laws. No wonder they got the Barnsley chop and came in in sixth place. They were not just behind the British National Party and the UK Independence Party; they were even behind an independent candidate. That is a real humiliation for the Lib Dems, and it will come to them in Scotland, too.
Locally, the disenchantment with the Liberal Democrats is reflected right here in Edinburgh. Jenny Dawe might not yet be quite as unpopular as Nick Clegg, but we should give it time. Councillor Dawe is certainly heading that way as a result of her shambolic performance as leader of City of Edinburgh Council. Antipathy towards the Lib Dems has already been reflected in the recent by-elections in Liberton and Gilmerton, when they were trounced by the Labour Party.
Councillor Dawe has demonstrated the same astonishing level of arrogance as Nick Clegg, most recently in her handling of the gathering 2009 affair. Our own Public Audit Committee unanimously—including Nicol Stephen—deemed the evidence of the leader of the council to be not credible.
In the same item of business
The Presiding Officer (Alex Fergusson)
NPA
Good morning. The first item of business is a Scottish Liberal Democrat Party debate on local services.09:15
Robert Brown (Glasgow) (LD)
LD
I am glad to open the last Liberal Democrat debate of the session, on local services, and I will do so by nailing our colours firmly to the mast. Liberal Dem...
Murdo Fraser (Mid Scotland and Fife) (Con)
Con
Can Mr Brown tell us where the Lib Dem approach to decentralisation was when the Lib Dems, in government, scrapped the area tourist boards and brought all to...
Robert Brown
LD
It is fair to say that the proper approach to tourism provision has been a difficult and controversial issue for a number of years—there are no two ways abou...
The Minister for Community Safety (Fergus Ewing)
SNP
Will Mr Brown give way?
Robert Brown
LD
If the minister does not mind, I will make a little progress.Liberal Democrats argue today that the Gadarene rush to centralise everything that moves is flaw...
Fergus Ewing
SNP
Robert Brown says that the SNP Government micromanages, but does he recall that it was the Labour-Liberal Administration that said that £6 million must be us...
Robert Brown
LD
Yes it was and yes I do, but the policy did not come from our side of the coalition.On the police proposals, we are told that three options are on the table:...
Dave Thompson (Highlands and Islands) (SNP)
SNP
Will the member give way?
Robert Brown
LD
I am happy to give way to Dave Thompson, so that he can explain his position on the matter.
Dave Thompson
SNP
I thank the member. Does he accept that a consultation is going on? Has he read the consultation paper? Does he expect to contribute to the consultation?
Robert Brown
LD
I think that Alison McInnes dealt satisfactorily with the matter in last Thursday’s debate, when she said:“the proposals for a national police force have no ...
The Presiding Officer
NPA
You can have five more minutes, Mr Brown.
Robert Brown
LD
Thank you.The consultation claims that there would be savings of between £81 million and £197 million. However, the Association of Chief Police Officers in S...
George Foulkes (Lothians) (Lab)
Lab
Will Robert Brown take an intervention?
Robert Brown
LD
Yes, all right.
George Foulkes
Lab
Robert Brown is talking about the elderly. Does he support the policy announced by Tavish Scott to cut concessionary fares for the elderly?
Robert Brown
LD
Sorry, I did not catch that. Cuts to what?
George Foulkes
Lab
At the recent party conference, Robert Brown’s party leader said that the Liberal Democrats planned to cut concessionary fares for the elderly.
Robert Brown
LD
That was not said at all. George Foulkes should follow what is said more carefully.Let us return to the SNP. At no point in the past four years, despite the ...
The Minister for Public Health and Sport (Shona Robison)
SNP
Will the member give way on that point?
Robert Brown
LD
No—I should continue towards finality, as members will be glad to hear.The plan leaves 38,500 social workers in limbo, with the prospect of transfer at some ...
The Cabinet Secretary for Justice (Kenny MacAskill)
SNP
I begin by reminding members that we are currently consulting on police and fire reform, and that both consultations are founded on an approach that protects...
Mike Rumbles (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (LD)
LD
In previous debates, not least the debate in the chamber last week, the cabinet secretary has made it clear that his preference is for a single force for Sco...
Kenny MacAskill
SNP
I have not said that my preference is for a single force. I have said that the argument for that clearly has greater weight at the moment than the regional f...
Robert Brown
LD
Will the cabinet secretary explain to the Parliament why the consultation follows evidence gathering by the officers he mentioned rather than precedes it, wh...
Kenny MacAskill
SNP
Well, the matters are on-going. Additional evidence was produced by Karyn McCluskey and, indeed, by Deputy Chief Constable Steve Allen of Lothian and Borders...
Alison McInnes (North East Scotland) (LD)
LD
The cabinet secretary talked about community planning. Does he agree that the police and, indeed, the fire service are key members of the family of community...
Kenny MacAskill
SNP
Not at all. After all, once the consultation has been considered and is concluded, it will be passed to the Christie commission. There is clear acceptance th...
Jim Tolson (Dunfermline West) (LD)
LD
The cabinet secretary mentioned people coming together. Is it not already the case that all over Scotland, officers—whether in our police or our fire service...