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Showing 60 of 2,354,908 contributions. Latest 30 days: 0. Coverage: 12 May 1999 — 25 Mar 2026.
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
21 Mar 2013
Scotland’s Financial Strength
I welcome the opportunity to speak in the debate. Instead of following the example of the Government, distorting figures to make an argument for separation, I will take the time that has been allocated to me to encourage the Government to consider the resources that we should ...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
16 May 2013
University Marine Biological Station Millport
I thank the Presiding Officer and members from all parties for their support in bringing this debate on the future of the marine biological station at Millport to the chamber. I also thank all the staff employed at the station, who currently face an uncertain future, the acade...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
09 Feb 2012
Youth Employment Strategy
I welcome the opportunity to speak in the debate. We should make no mistake: in Scotland, we have a crisis on our hands when it comes to youth unemployment. According to the document, more than 100,000 18 to 24-year-olds are out of work—little wonder that so many young people ...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
22 Mar 2016
Abusive Behaviour and Sexual Harm (Scotland) Bill
Thank you, Presiding Officer, for your kind words. I am disappointed that the Scottish Government rejected my amendments to the bill, and I will continue to push my case. As it stands, the section of the bill that deals with the illegal sharing of intimate images includes onl...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
03 Mar 2015
Welfare Funds (Scotland) Bill
I am the newest member of the Welfare Reform Committee and it has been a very interesting time for me to join the committee as the bill has made its passage through the Parliament. This is a significant piece of welfare legislation and it is crucial that we get it right to pr...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Committee
28 Mar 2012
Subordinate Legislation
Good morning, gentlemen. I should say at the outset that I am still a councillor in North Ayrshire, so I take some of the credit for the situation that Richard Lyle commented on. The chair of North Ayrshire Council is not an inanimate object.The Scottish Government will suppor...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
08 Mar 2012
Curriculum for Excellence
We have made it clear today that Scottish Labour supports the curriculum for excellence and wants it to work for our schools, teachers and children. We want it to be implemented in the smoothest manner possible. If it is implemented correctly, it will have the opportunity to d...
Margaret McDougall Lab Chamber
08 Mar 2012
Curriculum for Excellence
I am sorry—I am very short of time.Parents are making the same comments and are—rightly—concerned for their children’s future. On BBC Radio Scotland’s “Call Kaye” programme, they branded the situation farcical, a shambles, a mess and a disaster. One parent who is also a teache...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
28 Jun 2012
Long Leases (Scotland) Bill
I welcome the opportunity to speak in the debate. As has been said, the bill’s aim is to convert ultra-long leases into ownership. That means that leases that are for more than 175 years and which have more than 100 years left to run will convert to ownership, unless a tenant ...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
12 Dec 2012
Fisheries Negotiations
I pay tribute to all the fishermen who go to sea and risk their lives to bring us high-quality fresh fish every day. We should do all that we can to protect their livelihoods.I now have some understanding of how difficult the EU’s fisheries negotiations can be and how vital th...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
11 Jun 2013
Youth Sport
I welcome the opportunity to speak in the debate, given the national significance of next year’s Commonwealth games. I see this as the perfect time to highlight the great work done in my region by North Ayrshire Council, which, under previous Labour administrations, put in pla...
Margaret McDougall Lab Chamber
11 Jun 2013
Youth Sport
Yes, but it would have been useful if that had been clear in the criteria from the outset.The three sites that are now being considered for the academy—in Edinburgh, Dundee and Stirling—are all on the east coast or are central. As much as I welcome the investment for any futur...
Margaret McDougall Lab Committee
26 Feb 2014
Scotland’s Economic Future Post-2014
Let us go back to what Mr Springford and Mr Soames—it might have been Mr Kilgour—said about the effect of risk on business costs, the cost of financing for those who are looking to borrow and your companies’ future investment. Will all of that be riskier if we are outside ster...
Margaret McDougall Lab Committee
26 Feb 2014
Scotland’s Economic Future Post-2014
I welcome panel members. I will continue on the currency. We have heard today that there is record investment and that there have been increases in new start-up businesses. We also heard from the members of the previous panel that they had no concerns about sterlingisation or ...
Margaret McDougall Lab Committee
02 Apr 2014
Scotland’s Economic Future Post-2014
Is that having an effect on how businesses operate, given that they are having to think about the future in a different way? What is it doing to their current business and their business plans? Is it preventing them from advancing?
Margaret McDougall Lab Committee
06 Aug 2014
Social Enterprises
I have listened to the discussion with interest. I should say that I am convener of the cross-party group on volunteering and the voluntary sector, and I know that many social enterprises rely on volunteers; they do not all have paid employees. There is a crossover between vol...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
28 Apr 2015
Scotland’s Future Employability Services
I welcome the debate, which takes place on international workers memorial day. I support the Government’s motion, but it does not go far enough, which is why I welcome and support the Labour amendment, which seeks to ensure that we have wider reforms of employment policy. Peo...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
14 May 2015
Circular Economy
I am delighted to take part in today’s debate. In my speech, I will focus on some of the work that has been carried out in North Ayrshire in developing a circular economy and in meeting the zero waste and renewable energy targets that were outlined by the Scottish Government. ...
Margaret McDougall Lab Chamber
12 Nov 2015
Social Security in Scotland (Future Delivery)
That is what I am saying. We need to start thinking about them now; we cannot wait until they are upon us. We need some sort of plan for what our new social security system will look like. We should be setting out a positive vision for the future of welfare. We need a welfare...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
09 Mar 2016
Rural Payments
I welcome the opportunity to speak in the debate on rural affairs. I will use my time to discuss the CAP payments situation and the plight of dairy farmers. The current situation with CAP payments combined with the spiralling costs of the IT system is nothing short of scandal...
Margaret McDougall Lab Committee
13 Sep 2011
“Code of Practice for Ministerial Appointments to Public Bodies in Scotland”
Your office has carried out regular audits of appointments, which have been overseen by an assessor. I note that the most recent audit was published in 2009. I assume that there has been no audit in the interim period because you have been busy working on the new code of pract...
Margaret McDougall Lab Chamber
14 Sep 2011
“The Government Economic Strategy”
If the council is responsible for the situation in North Ayrshire, why are we having this conversation? This is where the economy is set.Enterprise zones are not the answer, because 80 per cent of the jobs that they create tend to be displaced from other areas, rather than new...
Margaret McDougall Lab Committee
25 Apr 2012
Subordinate Legislation
We have the existing landfill sites, and areas have been identified for landfill sites in future, but they might not be used because we are getting better at recycling our waste. Will that be covered in the guidance?
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
15 Dec 2011
Infrastructure Investment Plan
The full infrastructure investment plan makes a very interesting read if members like fairy stories. Never-never land comes to mind, as there is very little that is new, timescales are vague or non-existent and more than half of the projects have no funding mechanism attached ...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
12 Jan 2012
Young People (Improving Learning Outcomes)
I welcome the opportunity to speak in the debate. During the past few months, I have received more than 1,000 e-mails from students and lecturers across the west of Scotland about cuts to colleges. NUS Scotland has been direct in its “our future, our fight” campaign to stop cu...
Margaret McDougall Lab Chamber
12 Jan 2012
Young People (Improving Learning Outcomes)
I have to make progress.It is not only future students who will suffer. Current students have seen student services, such as counselling, withdrawn. Many students who require counselling services have to wait longer to speak to someone about the stresses of college life, money...
Margaret McDougall Lab Chamber
12 Jan 2012
Young People (Improving Learning Outcomes)
I am afraid that I am not dreaming; I am talking about reality.We have seen college attainment figures drop during the past few years and that is no surprise, when students no longer receive the necessary support for the duration of their courses.The SNP has failed not only co...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
20 Jun 2012
Women and Work
The recession is biting and there has been a rise in female unemployment. We need to take the opportunity to change the status of women in work for the better. We must work towards creating a more aspirational society for the young women in our country, in which women are pres...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
07 Jun 2012
Common Fisheries Policy
The common fisheries policy was discussed at length in the Rural Affairs, Climate Change and Environment Committee, although those discussions took place before I was on the committee, so I have been playing catch-up so as not to let the fish off the hook.As most people will k...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
18 Apr 2012
Project Transmit
As other members have said, the Ofgem consultation—project transmit—has been widely welcomed, as in its current form the transmission network’s use of system charging arrangements places a higher cost on Scottish renewable energy generators when they connect to the electricity...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Committee
28 Nov 2012
Ash Dieback
Good morning, gentlemen. Chalara was first identified in England in February and its presence was confirmed in March. The first signs of the disease in Scotland were picked up in July. What action did the Scottish Government take in the interim period to prevent the disease fr...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
13 Dec 2012
United Nations Climate Change Negotiations
Last week, the climate change talks in Doha came to a close, with 194 countries agreeing to implement a second phase of the Kyoto protocol from 2013 to 2020. I congratulate the minister on his role in the talks.The talks should have led to an historic agreement to tackle clima...
Margaret McDougall Lab Chamber
10 Jan 2013
Youth Employment
The schools have a part to play in that, as do colleges. We are all working together on the issue, so it should involve a partnership.I was concerned to read in a recent Skills Development Scotland paper that some modern apprenticeships are only of six or nine months’ duration...
Margaret McDougall Lab Chamber
21 Mar 2013
Scotland’s Financial Strength
We need more investment in further education; a boost to capital expenditure programmes, which will create jobs; and better funding for childcare to allow greater numbers of women to get into work—that is what the Government should focus on in the here and now.The UK Governmen...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
28 Feb 2013
Aquaculture and Fisheries (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1
I speak as a former member of the Rural Affairs, Climate Change and Environment Committee. I was present for most of the bill inquiry, but unfortunately I left before the scrutiny was concluded.During the inquiry, I took part in a committee visit to Aberdeenshire to the upper ...
Margaret McDougall Lab Chamber
22 May 2013
Ferry Services
I thank the minister for that intervention, which probably throws my whole speech out. Nevertheless, I will continue with some of it.Many staff have to stay on if a ferry is delayed, and they do so willingly to ensure that passengers reach their destinations, but it seems that...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
16 May 2013
Electricity Market Reform
As a member of the Economy, Energy and Tourism Committee, I am pleased to participate in the debate. An integrated UK energy market is the best way for Scotland to achieve a low-carbon and good-value energy mix for consumers. Electricity market reform is long overdue, so the E...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
10 Oct 2013
Carbon Capture and Storage
Carbon capture and storage is a subject with which I have had dealings in parliamentary committees and at a local level, when Ayrshire Power proposed to develop an experimental CCS plant at Hunterston in North Ayrshire.The problem with the Hunterston development was that the p...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
11 Sep 2013
Enterprise Networks
Scotland’s enterprise agencies are a vital tool in helping Scotland to meet the economic challenges that we face. They are integral to the creation of a sustainable economy that fosters innovation and investment.I welcome the publication of the “Evaluation of Scottish Enterpri...
Margaret McDougall Lab Chamber
18 Dec 2013
Bankruptcy and Debt Advice (Scotland) Bill: Stage 1
Thank you, Presiding Officer.“Relatively manageable” does not mean that the agencies concerned will have the resources to provide such advice.We received evidence to the effect that clarification is needed of what the bill means by “financial education”. Does that mean educati...
Margaret McDougall Lab Committee
20 Nov 2013
Access to Finance
Are you saying that you are not having a good relationship with the banks at the moment, but we can expect an improved relationship in the future?
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Committee
24 Apr 2014
“Code of Conduct for Members of the Scottish Parliament” (Cross-party Groups)
Page 4 states, in relation to room bookings:“For example, Cross-Party Group Conveners and Secretaries could refer to this section when planning future meeting dates to determine which dates and times would prevent any clashes”.It was suggested that MSPs look at the website to ...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Committee
12 Mar 2014
Scotland’s Economic Future Post-2014
Good morning, panel. Professor MacDonald, you suggest in your written evidence that“sterlingisation would give Scotland the economic status of a failed state.”Does that mean that Alex Salmond should find a new plan B for the currency?
Margaret McDougall Lab Committee
12 Mar 2014
Scotland’s Economic Future Post-2014
The view from most of the panel members in their opening remarks was that there should be an independent currency. Professor Peat, you said that you would prefer an independent currency if monetary union could not be negotiated, that there would be difficulties around that, an...
Margaret McDougall Lab Committee
12 Mar 2014
Scotland’s Economic Future Post-2014
Does that mean that we would expect higher taxation through income tax, for example?
Margaret McDougall Lab Committee
12 Mar 2014
Scotland’s Economic Future Post-2014
It is clear that, in layman’s terms, a tight fiscal policy could mean a tightening of belts.
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Committee
19 Mar 2014
Scotland’s Economic Future Post-2014
Good morning. From what I have heard this morning, there are certainly more questions on taxation than answers. Perhaps David Glen can answer my question. If we were to assume that we would roll over the current UK tax system in the unlikely event of Scotland becoming independ...
Margaret McDougall Lab Committee
19 Mar 2014
Scotland’s Economic Future Post-2014
So it would take about perhaps five to 10 years to bring in the system. There would be a tax of some sort to meet the cost of that, so we would all be paying for the change at the end of the day.
Margaret McDougall Lab Committee
19 Mar 2014
Scotland’s Economic Future Post-2014
I have a question on taxation, for Moira Kelly. We have heard from the witnesses that large multinational corporations are already dealing with a lot of different tax systems, but they can cope with that. We have heard from previous witnesses that small businesses are concerne...
Margaret McDougall Lab Committee
19 Mar 2014
Scotland’s Economic Future Post-2014
It is the costs.
Margaret McDougall Lab Committee
19 Mar 2014
Scotland’s Economic Future Post-2014
Yes, and that is even without the currency. If there was a different currency, there would be additional complications.
Margaret McDougall Lab Committee
19 Mar 2014
Scotland’s Economic Future Post-2014
So you say.
Margaret McDougall Lab Committee
19 Mar 2014
Scotland’s Economic Future Post-2014
I will be very brief. My question is for Moira Kelly and is on VAT. Your submission states that, on page 315 of the white paper,“A VAT reduction on repairs and maintenance work to help culture and heritage is suggested.”However, what would qualify as “repairs and maintenance” ...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Committee
30 Apr 2014
Scotland’s Economic Future Post-2014
Good morning, panel. Ed Davey, the Secretary of State for Energy and Climate Change, has stated that, in the event of an independent Scotland, there would be no need for the rest of the UK to support Scotland’s energy costs. How feasible is that? That question is for Dr McEwen.
Margaret McDougall Lab Committee
30 Apr 2014
Scotland’s Economic Future Post-2014
Dr Toke can probably answer my next question as well. What does it mean to the consumer?
Margaret McDougall Lab Committee
30 Apr 2014
Scotland’s Economic Future Post-2014
In Scotland.
Margaret McDougall Lab Committee
30 Apr 2014
Scotland’s Economic Future Post-2014
From what I have heard this morning, until 2020 there will have to be a whole lot of negotiation around supply of electricity, particularly if there is an independent Scotland. It will take a lot of political will to get to an agreement. What will happen post-2020? Will we be ...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
03 Apr 2014
Developing Skills for Scotland’s Digital Economy
Developing skills for Scotland’s digital economy has never been more important. The world is increasingly embracing technology in all aspects of life and we need to ensure that Scotland is equipped to be at the forefront of this technological revolution. As we have heard, the ...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Chamber
11 Jun 2014
Local Government Elections
Local government elections are vital, and this Parliament must do everything that it can not only to improve the way in which those elections are run, but to increase participation in them.The 2007 elections were marked by scandal. Both the Scottish Parliament election and the...
Margaret McDougall (West Scotland) (Lab) Lab Committee
19 Feb 2014
Inquiry into Scotland’s Economic Future Post-2014
Good morning, minister. I want to continue with the theme of currency union. If the Scottish National Party realises that a currency union is not going to happen—which it seems to find quite difficult to do at the moment—we need to know what the alternatives are. Have you giv...
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Chamber

Meeting of the Parliament 21 March 2013

21 Mar 2013 · S4 · Meeting of the Parliament
Item of business
Scotland’s Financial Strength
McDougall, Margaret Lab West Scotland Watch on SPTV
I welcome the opportunity to speak in the debate. Instead of following the example of the Government, distorting figures to make an argument for separation, I will take the time that has been allocated to me to encourage the Government to consider the resources that we should be investing in to secure a stable future. The people of Scotland deserve to know that there can be more stability in their future—stability that cannot be guaranteed by the changeable value of our oil reserves. Our future depends on utilising our greatest resource: the people of Scotland.

If the SNP Government was not so distracted by separation, it would see the importance of investing in colleges instead of cutting their budget by £35 million and it would invest in real apprenticeship schemes instead of spinning rhetoric. If it had invested the autumn statement capital consequentials in housing at a level of £330 million over two years, it could have provided a boost to the jobs market and stimulated the economy at the same time—not to mention helping to provide homes for the 45,322 people who were registered homeless in Scotland in 2010-11.

Given the most recent employment statistics, which revealed that female unemployment has gone up by 8,000 in the last quarter, the Government should be focusing on investment and training opportunities and on reversing the cuts to colleges, which so disproportionately affect women. Although I welcome the rise in employment in general, it is not good enough to overlook the negative points in the most recent unemployment figures, especially when North Ayrshire, which I represent, has a 6.8 per cent unemployment rate, which is the highest in Scotland, whereas that of Aberdeenshire is only 1.2 per cent, which is the lowest in Scotland. That is not only bad news for my constituents; it paints a broader picture of an SNP Government that is reliant on jobs in the oil and gas industry to boost levels of employment in one part of the country while it refuses to invest in further education and skills training in other parts. That inequality must stop. How can we hope to secure our future without investing in the future working generations of the country?

But no: instead of decisively leading Scotland out of recession by training and educating the future workforce, the SNP Government is busy manipulating facts and figures to suit its arguments on separation.

In the same item of business

The Deputy Presiding Officer (Elaine Smith) Lab
The next item of business is a debate on motion S4M-06016, in the name of John Swinney, on Scotland’s financial strength.I remind members to speak through th...
The Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Employment and Sustainable Growth (John Swinney) SNP
“By international standards Scotland is a wealthy and productive country. There is no doubt that Scotland has the potential to be a successful independent na...
Willie Rennie (Mid Scotland and Fife) (LD) LD
John Swinney refers to his fiscal commission and applauds the remarks that it has made. Why does he not follow its cautious advice on oil prices?
John Swinney SNP
I will have some things to say about oil during the course of my speech, but I simply say to Willie Rennie that the Government has followed entirely the advi...
Willie Rennie LD
John Swinney did not mention Norway in any of his remarks. It, too, takes a cautious approach. It estimates oil at between $80 and $100 a barrel, which is ro...
John Swinney SNP
Willie Rennie talks about the UK Government. The Department of Energy and Climate Change’s forecast for oil prices is $132 a barrel. I have not taken that pr...
Gavin Brown (Lothian) (Con) Con
The cabinet secretary mentioned GERS 2011-12. What is the projected reduction in oil revenues for 2012-13?
John Swinney SNP
Mr Brown will be able to look at the OBR forecasts that I have just discussed with Mr Rennie, but I say to him that with regard to future years—even the futu...
Jamie Hepburn (Cumbernauld and Kilsyth) (SNP) SNP
Does the cabinet secretary agree that, for all the unionist hot air about oil prices, the UK Government is quite happy to accumulate the revenue that oil bri...
John Swinney SNP
Mr Hepburn makes a very fair point about the longevity of the oil and gas reserves that have flowed into the UK Government and the fact that no UK Government...
Rhoda Grant (Highlands and Islands) (Lab) Lab
The cabinet secretary has been talking about how he would build an oil fund in an independent Scotland. Would the money for the fund be over and above normal...
John Swinney SNP
If Rhoda Grant gives me a moment to cover some other details, I will come on to make a point related to her question.According to GERS, the finances of both ...
Iain Gray (East Lothian) (Lab) Lab
Mr Swinney is talking about the prospects for economic growth. A few minutes ago, the First Minister reiterated his belief that economic growth could be driv...
John Swinney SNP
I did not quite catch the last part of what Iain Gray said, so I ask him to repeat it.
Iain Gray Lab
The question was straightforward: in the prospects that Mr Swinney describes, at what level does he see corporation tax being set?
John Swinney SNP
I answered a question earlier today about income tax rates. Those issues will be determined by the Government of an independent Scotland. It is nice that eve...
Gavin Brown Con
Will the cabinet secretary give way?
John Swinney SNP
I had better cover some more ground before I draw my remarks to a close.The figures that I have presented in my speech demonstrate that Scotland’s financial ...
Patrick Harvie (Glasgow) (Green) Green
Will the cabinet secretary give way?
The Deputy Presiding Officer Lab
The cabinet secretary is concluding.
John Swinney SNP
Even setting aside oil and gas, Scotland has a strong economy and asset base. As oil and gas mature, so the new technologies of renewable energy and carbon c...
The Deputy Presiding Officer Lab
There is no spare time in the debate. You have a very tight nine minutes, Mr Macintosh.14:59
Ken Macintosh (Eastwood) (Lab) Lab
Political consensus has been missing from the chamber over the past few days. I am not sure for how long it will last this afternoon, but I thought that I wo...
Stewart Stevenson (Banffshire and Buchan Coast) (SNP) SNP
Is the member aware that, since the second world war, the UK Government has legislated on 23 occasions to create new independent countries? I am unaware of a...
Ken Macintosh Lab
Stewart Stevenson has virtually proven the point that I am making, which is that the SNP views Scotland as some sort of colonial dependency. We are no such t...
John Swinney SNP
I am grateful to Mr Macintosh for giving way. I clearly set out that Scotland and the UK were in deficit in 2011-12 but that, relatively, we were in a strong...
Ken Macintosh Lab
I still entirely fail to see how we can save money that is a deficit; that would be an interesting choice.It borders on the misleading for the finance secret...
John Swinney SNP
If Mr Macintosh wants to complete his analysis, I make the point—I made it earlier—that, in the years up to 2016-17, Scotland would have had a cumulative rel...
Ken Macintosh Lab
Yet again, the cabinet secretary calls the figure a surplus. We are talking about a deficit, not a surplus. He looks backwards rather than forwards. The moti...
The Deputy Presiding Officer Lab
Last minute, Mr Macintosh.