Seòmar agus comataidhean

That brings us to a close this morning. Thank you all for taking part in this discussion. We have gained a lot from it, and we will take what we have learnt this week and last week and put that to the Minister for Equalities at next week’s meeting.

That concludes our formal business in public.

We will now go to Paul McLennan.

We are just introducing ourselves.

Thank you, Wendy. We still have two other people who would like to come in on this question. After that, we will have to move on because we have a lot more questions to get through.

Thank you.

On a point of order, Presiding Officer. Earlier in the debate, Mr Douglas Ross shouted across the chamber at me, pointed at me and demanded that I stand up to answer him. I want to place on record that I found that behaviour unacceptable and disrespectful, and that I do not answer to Mr Ross—I answer to my constituents.

Although I do not find Mr Ross intimidating in the least, it might have been a very different scenario for another female MSP. Young women will be watching the debate in the chamber in Parliament and thinking that that is accepted here. I hope that anyone with aspirations to be a parliamentarian who is watching at home will not be put off, and will be assured that we stand against that type of behaviour. This is a workplace, and the Parliament should be a safe and respectful environment for women and for all members.

Presiding Officer, I ask whether such conduct is in line with the standards of behaviour that you expect, and whether you will remind members that robust debate does not justify shouting at, and physically gesturing towards, colleagues in that way. Thank you.

I was waiting for that comment. We need to stop pointing at bogeymen in the room who are not there. What the Conservatives did to the fishing industry in Scotland was nothing short of an utter and absolute betrayal. To sit there and point the finger— [Interruption.] You can shout from your sedentary positions all you want, but you know the damage—sorry, I will speak through the chair. They know the damage that Brexit has done to our fishing industry and, no matter how much finger pointing they do, they cannot get away from it.

Folk in Fraserburgh, Peterhead, Macduff and Buckie know that the work that they do is valued—and it should be. Their work is valued in our Parliament, even if it is not clearly understood or valued in the London Parliament.

It is not just about the boats that do the catching; it is about the processors in our local communities and the factories that keep the local economy moving, turning the catch into world-class seafood. Those processors are often the biggest workplaces in our towns. When this kind of funding is cut, it is those processors, workers and, ultimately, communities that pay the price. That is why the landing obligations and the strengthened economic link rules that were brought in by this Scottish Government are so important. Those policies have already started to shift more Scottish fish into Scottish ports and Scottish processors. That is what happens when decisions are taken in Scotland with Scottish jobs in mind.

Processors in my constituency tell me that they have the capacity for more. They can invest in new kit and new markets, but they have to be sure that the fish and the workforce will be there. The Scottish Government is doing what it can with its powers, investing through the marine fund Scotland and using the economic link to keep more value here, which I welcome. I thank the cabinet secretary for listening to the fishers and processors and for agreeing to meet with me to discuss the issue further.

We cannot ignore the damage that Brexit has done to the sector or the way that the Conservatives and Labour have treated rural Scotland as a whole. The Tories lined everything up and talked about a sea of opportunity, and Labour has chosen to own that project and carry on. There is a clear pattern. The power, the money and the decision making all sit in London but, regardless of which party is in charge, Westminster has never shown that it is willing to put Scotland’s fishing industry or our interests first, and certainly not the interests of rural Scotland.

Since my microphone is on, I will come in. I did not press my button to request an intervention but Douglas Ross has demanded that I stand up and speak right now. I think that that is a really inappropriate thing to do. A member cannot just point their finger and ask someone to stand up and jump in on their picky questions. We have already answered the question—I answered it earlier—so I ask Douglas Ross to be a bit more respectful.

Presiding Officer, if you stand at any of the harbours in my constituency of Banffshire and Buchan Coast before dawn, you will see what this debate is really about: boats landing, crews coming off after a hard shift—as always—and processors getting ready to work, with markets already bustling. My constituency helps to feed the nation and beyond. That is not just an industry that is economically vital, but is also part of who we are along the coast—fishing is the culture, the identity and the daily life of our communities. The sea gives us life but it often takes it away, and I pay tribute to those who have been lost working in our vital industry.

I am shocked at the UK Government’s decision to allocate Scotland just £28 million out of the £360 million fishing and coastal growth fund. However, I cannot say that I am surprised. Giving Scotland around 8 per cent of the pot for a fishing industry that accounts for over 60 per cent of the UK’s total fishing capacity is exactly the sort of thing that we have come to expect from any London-based Government.

Scotland is never at the top of the UK Government’s list and our fishing industry is never prioritised. Scotland has been handed an 83 per cent cut while England’s proportionately smaller fishing industry walks away with over £300 million. Whether it is Keir Starmer or Boris Johnson, it does not matter who is in number 10. The colour of the party in Government changes but the message it sends to my coastal community stays the same: you are expendable. England’s industry will always top Scotland’s as a priority for Westminster, no matter how much we contribute.

Funding should follow the fish, the fleet and the jobs. It certainly should not be based on a population number that has been scribbled on a spreadsheet that is hundreds of miles away from our harbours. I condemn the UK Government’s decision. It is damaging and wholly unfair, and I join the Scottish Government in calling on the UK Government to reverse it.

Mr Lumsden often speaks up for the oil and gas sector and for our energy workers. What are his plans for what will happen after the decline in oil and gas? What about a just transition for those workers?