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Official Report: search what was said in Parliament

The Official Report is a written record of public meetings of the Parliament and committees.  

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Dates of parliamentary sessions
  1. Session 1: 12 May 1999 to 31 March 2003
  2. Session 2: 7 May 2003 to 2 April 2007
  3. Session 3: 9 May 2007 to 22 March 2011
  4. Session 4: 11 May 2011 to 23 March 2016
  5. Session 5: 12 May 2016 to 5 May 2021
  6. Current session: 12 May 2021 to 20 June 2025
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Displaying 1571 contributions

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Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Petitions

Meeting date: 13 December 2022

Maggie Chapman

I think that I do. Thank you—that is really helpful. Some of the challenges that I think might come at us exist because there is a rigid, inflexible justice system. You made the point that social workers and support workers can help up to a point but there is nothing that connects across the gap.

You have both given us a lot to think about and pursue, so I thank you for coming along this morning. I really appreciate it.

Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Petitions

Meeting date: 13 December 2022

Maggie Chapman

That was clear and helpful. It is important to outline the issues with that wide definition and the importance of enabling, supporting and encouraging affirmative care.

Paul Behrens, the way in which you laid out the societal context of the need for such legislation was clear and incisive. You started talking about the human rights context. Because you offered, I will ask you to say a little more about some of the specific issues that may be discussed or questioned around potential conflicts or tensions. What are the important provisions for younger people in a human rights context? It would be helpful to hear about that.

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Just Transition

Meeting date: 7 December 2022

Maggie Chapman

I will follow on from Fiona Hyslop’s question on the allocations from the just transition fund, which are key to our having any hope of achieving our targets.

I and others—in particular, communities in the north-east—are concerned that millions of pounds have already been allocated to large companies, many of which are backed by the fossil fuel industry, which has made record profits in recent months, while just £4.2 million has been allocated over four years to community-led participatory budgeting. One of the key concerns is clearly that it is not enough just to give money to companies. The just transition needs to be genuine, and I am not sure that we will get that, unless we have the strategic work that Fiona Hyslop alluded to.

I want to talk about two specific projects. As you will be well aware, £14 million has been awarded to a contentious project in Torry, which is a community in the south of Aberdeen that has among the lowest life expectancy in Scotland—it is more than a decade shorter than it is in other parts of the city. It has not benefited at all from the oil and gas economy. In fact, all of Torry was bulldozed for the oil and gas economy.

There is a clear mismatch in relation to what we term “justice” when a community such as Torry has its only remaining green space concreted over for something that will assist the broader just transition but will not represent justice for that community. How do we tackle that kind of injustice if we do not have the dedicated focus to community leadership that is missing from the current allocations?

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Just Transition

Meeting date: 7 December 2022

Maggie Chapman

Can I ask one more question?

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Just Transition

Meeting date: 7 December 2022

Maggie Chapman

The question is about another project. At the moment, the Scottish Government has under way an independent review on how to cut climate pollution from Scotland’s existing incinerators. As you will know, the Ness incinerator in Aberdeen was awarded money from the just transition fund for research into the feasibility of carbon capture and storage. Putting aside the fact that nowhere in the world has CCS been used successfully in an incineration plant, I am curious as to whether you think that that award pre-empts the work that the Scottish Government has commissioned into how to cut carbon emissions from incinerators—given that it means that we are saying that we are going to fund an incinerator to bake in demand for waste generation.

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Just Transition

Meeting date: 7 December 2022

Maggie Chapman

Good morning, minister. Thank you for what you have said so far and for being here.

As you said, we have ambitious targets to meet in Scotland, but that is part of a bigger picture—the idea of what we see termed as “Keeping 1.5°C alive”. That rapid shift and pace of transition must happen with, as you mentioned, engagement and conversations with workers about job creation and the broader shifts in energy and the economy.

We will get into the details of specific community issues when we talk about the just transition fund for the north-east and Moray a bit later. However, in relation to the economy more generally, how can we ensure that we future proof our work and do not lock in disadvantage and inequality? You mentioned in your opening remarks that former mining communities are still suffering from the previous energy transition that we went through. How can we use this transition to ensure that we improve equality and make things fairer now for people who have not reaped the benefits of the oil economy that we have had for the past 50 years?

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Just Transition

Meeting date: 7 December 2022

Maggie Chapman

That links to Fiona Hyslop’s question about working between and across departments and portfolios. There has been quite a lot of talk about using a mission-based approach or a challenge-based approach that does not result in silos in different departments. What challenges exist in that regard in the way in which the Scottish Government and the Scottish Parliament work? What do we need to change in the next decade if we are to not only meet the targets and do all the things that we want to do but ensure that we do cross-cutting work that means that we do not fail on the equalities measures, never mind the energy measures?

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Just Transition

Meeting date: 7 December 2022

Maggie Chapman

I appreciate that.

Economy and Fair Work Committee

Just Transition

Meeting date: 7 December 2022

Maggie Chapman

I suppose that that figure is even before talk about the costs of adaptation. I know that other people want to talk about finance, so I will leave it there for now.

Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee

Scottish Human Rights Commission

Meeting date: 6 December 2022

Maggie Chapman

The Scottish Human Rights Commission is not the only commission that is talking about sharing services such as payroll and back-office functions.

Jim Farish, in your newish role, how do you find the balance between the strategic work that you and your fellow commissioners are asked to do and the operational side, which Ian Duddy heads up? Notwithstanding the requests for additional staff that Ian has outlined, have we got the balance right between strategy and operations?