Seòmar agus comataidhean

Well, I have been called craven now, which is news to me. I will put my cards on the table: I prefer light, not heat, and fact, not fiction, so here are some facts. Let us look at the hate crime statistics, which predate this legislation.

Since 2014-15, the number of hate crimes—I emphasise the word “crimes”—that have been recorded each year in Scotland has been between 6,300 and 7,000, so hate crime is not new, although perhaps the public, like many of us, were not aware of the extent of it.

Fact: just under a third of hate crimes in Scotland involved a victim who experienced the incident at their place of work or while undertaking duties as part of their occupation. Fact: most of those victims were working in retail or other service industries. Fact: in 2020-21, one in four recorded hate crimes had a police officer victim, with the figure rising to 37 per cent for religion and 45 per cent for sexual orientation-aggravated crimes. In January 2023, the police reported that nearly 7,000 hate crimes were recorded in 2021-22. So, such crimes have been being committed, perhaps without us realising or noticing.

What happened in the rest of the UK? Our legislation is not the same as, but is similar to, legislation in England and Wales, where the law recognises five types of hate crime on the basis of the characteristics of disability, race, religion, sexual orientation and transgender identity. However, we have introduced the characteristic of age, which is good and will, I hope, lead to older people reporting offences against them that have been committed, in part, simply because they are old.

Elsewhere in the UK, the stirring up of hatred on the ground of religion has been criminalised in England and Wales since 2007, and the stirring up of hatred on the ground of sexual orientation has been criminalised since 2010. In Northern Ireland, the law recognises the characteristics of disability, race, religion and sexual orientation.

Of course, our legislation follows the independent review that Lord Bracadale carried out in 2018. I will turn to a few of his recommendations. Recommendation 10 states:

“There should be a new statutory aggravation based on age hostility.

Where an offence is committed, and it is proved that the offence was motivated by hostility based on age, or the offender demonstrates hostility towards the victim based on age during, or immediately before or after, the commission of the offence, it would be recorded as aggravated by age hostility. The court would be required to state that fact on conviction and”—

I underline these words—

“take it into account when sentencing.”

We are talking about aggravations to crimes that have already taken place. That is what an aggravation is.

Recommendation 15 states:

“The current provisions in relation to stirring up racial hatred under the Public Order Act 1986 should be revised and consolidated in a new Act containing all hate crime and stirring up of hatred legislation.”

Recommendation 16 states:

“A protection of freedom of expression provision similar to that in sections 29J and 29JA of the Public Order Act 1986 and section 7 OBFTCA should be included in any new legislation relating to stirring up offences.”

What has followed—I am glad that the Government has admitted this—has been a failure to communicate adequately to the public that the offences in question are not new, with the exception of age as a characteristic, the inclusion of which I am sure that members welcome. However, in my view, that omission has been exacerbated by a deliberate Conservative campaign of disinformation—note that I use the word “disinformation”, not “misinformation”. In my opinion, that bare-faced opportunism probably fuelled the many spam complaints that were received in the first week of the legislation’s implementation. In the second week of implementation, that number dropped by 75 per cent.

I share Fergus Ewing’s concerns regarding Murdo Fraser’s experience and the experience of others, and I trust that the cabinet secretary will give Fergus Ewing’s full comments due consideration, because I think that he hit the nail on the head. I, too, will quote Adam Tomkins, the former Conservative MSP and professor of public law. In March, he stated:

“Offensive speech is not criminalised by this legislation: the only speech relating to sexual orientation, transgender identity, age or disability outlawed here is speech which”—

this is not mentioned in the quote, but I add that these tests are not alternatives but are cumulative—

“(1) a reasonable person (2) would consider to be threatening or abusive and which (3) was intended to stir up hatred and (4) was not reasonable in the circumstances.”

All of those tests must be met.

Unfortunately for me, the charge is led not by Liz Smith or Jamie Greene, who made considered contributions, but, as usual, by Russell Findlay, who is not known for forensic talents similar to those of Adam Tomkins with regard to legislation but has, apparently, an insatiable appetite for the next tabloid banner headline, with his self-indulgent, flamboyant and frequently reckless contributions here and, indeed, in committee. That might offend Mr Findlay, but I trust that he will appreciate that that is an example of my right to expression of free speech, which I know he will defend to the hilt.

There is no escaping the fact that people in rural homes face a particular challenge in remaining warm or decarbonising their heat systems in an affordable way, and that the exceptions in legislation are necessary. Will the minister reassure my constituents in Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale that, through the new-build heat standard, consideration is being given to the unique needs of rural and remote homes, and that rural home owners can access additional support, including grant funding, to meet their clean heating needs?

In England and Wales, 55,000 applications for registration have been made and 300 healthy and well-behaved dogs have been put down as a result of knee-jerk UK legislation, following horrendous, but very few, fatal dog attacks that were not even wholly attributable to an XL bully-type dog.

There is, as yet, no UK guidance on how to deregister. The pet owner decides whether their pet conforms to the DEFRA definition—20 inches in height for a dog, and 19 inches for a bitch—to be registered. If the animal does not conform to that, the owner need not check the other confirmation characteristics.

I respectfully suggest that the Scottish Government provide clear guidance to the public at large, in a publicity scheme, on the definition, and on deregistration, given that we are stuck—to be frank—with this wholly unnecessary and unjust legislation.

It is a pleasure to speak—and not for the first time—on the importance of community radio. The debate focuses on Crystal FM, which is located in Penicuik, in my constituency, and particularly on the success of the station in winning the best community broadcaster award for the second time.

I visited the studio recently, and very professional it is, too. I met Colin McCall, the anchorman, who has devoted his time to the good of Penicuik over decades. He first campaigned with the station to save its Jackson Street facilities years ago. Unfortunately, that was a battle lost, but you cannot keep a good man down. We had a good, long chat about all that the station does and some of its issues, which I will come to, as well as coming to more about Colin.

The station was launched on 1 December 2013. It is run by volunteers and broadcasts over south Midlothian, Edinburgh and the Lothians, as well as to listeners all over the world via the internet. With more than 50 presenters and information providers involved, it has non-stop, 24/7 output and is an important part of the community, but it depends on donations and subscriptions. Simply to survive, it has to raise £12,000 annually.

The station has overcome setbacks over the years—flooded studios, a move to temporary accommodation for a period of six months and, when Covid appeared, a requirement to move to other premises to ensure that the studios were Covid compliant. As a result, it went from its temporary accommodation to a permanent home in the Eastfield business centre in Penicuik.

The radio service has been maintained, which means that youngsters from Peni high, Beeslack community high school, and Peebles and Lasswade high schools can continue to participate in the service, gaining hands-on experience in all aspects of broadcasting, thereby developing skills, confidence and self-esteem.

Those committed volunteers ensure the smooth running and scheduling of programmes. They do outreach work with individuals who are housebound and encourage others to visit the studios to participate in discussion, learn new skills and allow spells away from their home isolation. Older members of the community enjoy the autonomy in the creation of their own shows and the community engagement that is involved, thus benefiting from the feel-good factor and having their mental health enhanced. Individuals with special needs are catered for, including two with physical handicaps, an individual who is autistic and one who suffers from Asperger’s syndrome.

Funding is a constant worry, but the station is supported by 12 businesses that are classified as “proud supporters” of Crystal FM and numerous individuals who pledge support with regular and frequent financial pledges. Many other donations are received from others from time to time, and the Crystal FM radio club provides financial support via membership fees.

However, outlays are substantial. Over a 10-year period, Ofcom receives £6,000 and wireless telegraphy licensing costs £2,500. Music licensing fees to PPL, PRS for Music and the Mechanical-Copyright Protection Society—MCPS—are £30,000. VAT payments in excess of £25,000 are made over 10 years. That is a particularly cruel levy on the local service, which is not a business and therefore cannot apply to be VAT registered, because it does not have the income level. Powers over VAT are reserved to Westminster, but I hope that, at some point, something can be done for such organisations that have VAT burdens to carry.

Crystal FM has a really good website, which has had

“well over 110,000 hits”.

The station

“now has over 50 presenters and information providers involved in the 24-hour-a-day, seven days a week, output”.

Colin McCall, is the station’s co-ordinator and a former primary school teacher. He is now in his 80th year, but, like me, he is flourishing. He founded the station,

“which was shortlisted for a Community Award in last year’s Midlothian and East Lothian Chamber of Commerce Awards, with a handful of other enthusiasts who donated £100 each”.

Colin has said:

“Crystal FM came to fruition because Black Diamond”—

in Newtongrange—

“was not receivable over here in Penicuik. I forwarded an application of Ofcom to extend the area to Penicuik and they refused.

They did, however, say they would look favourably on a Penicuik application. Six or seven of us put £100 on the table and 18 months later Crystal FM came about. This is the start of our 11th year and we have a great team of volunteers who have made that possible.”

The station’s reach is supposed to be six miles from the studio in Eastfield business centre, on Eastfield Farm Road in Penicuik. However, as Colin says,

“How do you stop a radio signal? It is variable because you can go a very short distance and the signal is lost or you can go a long distance and pick up the signal. For example, I’ve picked up the signal from the golf course car park in Kirkcaldy”—

I do not know what he was doing there—

“and it is excellent quality in the car, but our signal also reaches Ratho near Edinburgh as it must go through a gap in the Pentland Hills.”

Is that not intriguing? He continues:

“We now stream out online and it is interesting to note that since we moved to our new studio more than two years ago we have now had over 100,000 hits on our website. Looking further afield, on the internet our broadcasts are worldwide and our regular top four online are the UK, USA, Europe and India. We also have listeners in Australia. I don’t really know why we have listeners in India but it may possibly be a link to the people who live here and it allows their relatives to listen, but India has always figured in the top three or four.”

That is a wee exercise for somebody: find out why India listens to Crystal FM. Good stuff, Colin.

I commend all those who work at Crystal FM, the volunteers, the donors and the listeners, who make it all worth while. I wish them many more decades ahead.

I declare an interest as convener of the cross-party group on animal welfare.

To ask the First Minister, further to the regulations relating to XL bully-type dogs coming into force, to whom a dog owner can apply for advice on whether their dog fits the conformation of the XL bully-type, in light of reports that a substantial number of dog owners in England are now applying to deregister their dogs having established retrospectively that their pet does not conform to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs definition of an XL bully-type dog. (S6F-02987)

I do not know whether there is a solution to this problem, but does Craig Hoy agree that it is rather tough that Crystal FM has to pay substantial amounts in VAT and that, because it is not an income-generating business, it cannot even apply to be VAT registered? Given Mr Hoy’s strong communications with his Westminster colleagues, might he be able to pursue that issue?

As the member will appreciate, late sittings are a matter not for the corporate body but for the Parliamentary Bureau, over which we have no control.

I will provide some context. Between January and June 2023, six events were cancelled due to the Parliament sitting late. However, from September 2023 until this week, only one event had to be cancelled—that was this week. That is a total of seven out of 324 events. Of the seven events that have been cancelled since January 2023, three have been rescheduled. We always try to give priority to events that we have had to reschedule.

However, I hear what the member says. I am sure that the corporate body will consider whether improvements can be made.

That is a very kind invitation, but it is not the practice of the corporate body to meet any individuals. We will discuss the point that has been made at our meeting. Such decisions are not taken based on a blank canvas. The SPCB has a number of relevant policies, including the memorial policy and the Scottish Parliament’s art collection development policy, which we will take into account when we come to a decision on whether to establish a memorial to Mick McGahey.

I duplicate my answer to Mr Leonard: if the member makes an application to the corporate body, we will consider it, against the backcloth of the memorial policy, the Parliament’s art collection development policy and other representations.

As my written answer to the member’s question in November said,

“To enable all Members to take part in events and recognising that parliamentary business needs to take precedence, events do not take place at the same time as parliamentary business in the chamber.

However ... when business runs late, parliamentary officials will”—

when appropriate—

“work with the event organisers to ensure refreshments are served to event guests and they can go to the room where the event is taking place and meet with Members, where possible ... speeches should only take place once parliamentary business is concluded so all Members have the opportunity to hear them.

This pragmatic approach appears to be working but we continually keep this under review.”—[Written Answers, 23 November 2023; S6O-02790.]