The Official Report is a written record of public meetings of the Parliament and committees.
All Official Reports of meetings in the Debating Chamber of the Scottish Parliament.
All Official Reports of public meetings of committees.
Displaying 669 contributions
Meeting of the Parliament [Draft]
Meeting date: 5 February 2025
Murdo Fraser
As Colin Smyth said, we are seeing a 15 per cent cut in the Scottish Government’s funding for SOSE in its budget for the year ahead, compared to the funding from last year. If it is such a valuable organisation, why is its funding being cut?
Meeting of the Parliament [Draft]
Meeting date: 5 February 2025
Murdo Fraser
I admire Richard Leonard’s praise for Nye Bevan and other socialists. However, would he recognise the role that capitalist entrepreneurs and philanthropists such as Andrew Carnegie played in providing libraries that were free for working people?
Meeting of the Parliament [Draft]
Meeting date: 5 February 2025
Murdo Fraser
I congratulate Mark Ruskell on securing the debate. He and I spoke a few weeks ago at the rally to which he and Liz Smith referred, when more than 300 people stood in sub-zero temperatures in the centre of Perth in support of libraries. I pay tribute to the many campaigners there, and to others from other parts of Scotland, who have come to the cause to fight for their local libraries.
Like Liz Smith, I have received a huge volume of correspondence from constituents. In fact, I cannot think of an issue over the past few weeks that has generated more correspondence than that of library closures in Perth and Kinross. I pay tribute to the save Alyth library and save Birnam library campaigns for their helpful briefing for the debate.
We have heard a lot in the debate about the value of libraries. I will not repeat everything that we have heard, because I agree with pretty much everything that has been said. Libraries are not just sources of learning but important community assets—community spaces that host a variety of events. Let us not forget that, at a time when older people in particular are suffering from isolation, loneliness and increasing fuel costs, libraries are warm spaces where they and people who otherwise might be trapped at home alone can gather, meet and have human company. That should not be underestimated.
What is this all about? I must disagree gently with Karen Adam, because I do not think that the matter is down to the choices of individual local councils. In my area, the SNP run Perth and Kinross Council; in her area, Aberdeenshire Council has a Conservative administration. Tim Eagle, drawing on his experience as a local councillor in Moray, made the fair point that no councillor anywhere in Scotland wants to close a library. The fundamental issue comes back to the budget settlement that is given to local councils by the Scottish Government.
I will not rehearse all the arguments that I made yesterday in the budget debate, but we are in a situation in which, despite the Westminster block grant being at a record level, councils across Scotland are having to make very difficult decisions about cutting services such as local libraries and, at the same time, talking about unprecedented increases in council tax—10 per cent or more in different parts of Scotland. Clearly, something is not right, and I am afraid that it comes back to the door of the SNP Government.
I will respond to Mr McKee’s intervention on Tim Eagle about money. I read today that the cost of the new Barlinnie prison in Glasgow has now gone up to £1 billion—a tenfold increase on the original estimate. If the Scottish Government perhaps looked a little more carefully at where it is spending its money, we would find a little extra money for local councils to support their libraries.
I do not think that Perth and Kinross Council can hide behind a group such as Culture Perth and Kinross, which is an arm’s-length external organisation that is wholly funded by that council. Councillors must take responsibility and ensure that there is adequate funding to support libraries. I hope that the SNP-led administration on Perth and Kinross Council will listen to the campaigners and take the right decisions to ensure that funding is provided.
Fundamentally, the issue comes back to the door of the Scottish Government. It has to step up and ensure that councils have the support so that we do not lose those vital local resources, which we all agree must remain.
18:13Meeting of the Parliament
Meeting date: 4 February 2025
Murdo Fraser
My goodness, Presiding Officer. All I would say, gently, to Mr Cole-Hamilton is that I think that he should read the parliamentary written answers that were obtained by my colleague Craig Hoy, which set out exactly where that spending on the constitution department goes and he will see that they refer to independence.
Meeting of the Parliament
Meeting date: 4 February 2025
Murdo Fraser
I think that Mr Marra has sold himself rather cheaply. Perhaps he could have got some more concessions had he worked a little harder.
Now that, just like the Grammys, the drama is over, let us look at exactly what is on offer from the largest financial settlement in the history of devolution—a budget that was supposed to be about growing the economy. We have dismal growth projections, both for Scotland and for the UK as a whole. We should have seen measures to support business expansion. Yet, according to research by SPICe, three key measures to support economic growth—enterprise agencies, VisitScotland and employability—have all been cut in real terms compared with the financial year of 2023-24.
Meeting of the Parliament
Meeting date: 4 February 2025
Murdo Fraser
There he goes again, Presiding Officer.
Meeting of the Parliament
Meeting date: 4 February 2025
Murdo Fraser
What we do not want to see are those offices being used by Mr Robertson to promote the cause of independence around the globe, which is what has been happening. We have an excellent network of trade offices run by UK Trade & Investment, and we should be utilising those. [Interruption.]
Meeting of the Parliament
Meeting date: 4 February 2025
Murdo Fraser
Then, of course, the SNP took the decision not to pass on the Barnett consequentials for the 40 per cent rates relief for retail, hospitality and leisure that is available south of the border, as Pam Gosal reminded us, meaning that hospitality in Scotland has a much less generous package than is available elsewhere in the United Kingdom.
When it comes to personal taxation, there has been no greater divergence from tax rates payable elsewhere in the UK than where the budget bakes in higher taxes that are payable by nearly half the workers in Scotland. The finance secretary says, “Well, some workers are better off”, but they are better off only to the tune of £1.21 per month—not even the cost of a first-class stamp.
As the Liberal Democrats and Greens support this budget and Labour sits on its hands, it is left to the Scottish Conservatives to provide the only opposition. We are very clear that we will not support a budget that, despite a record uplift in the Westminster block grant, will do nothing to help grow the economy, will deliver cuts to local services and higher council tax bills, and will continue spending to promote the cause of independence.
We might be the only party here voting against the SNP’s budget but, in so doing, we will be representing the interests of the Scottish people.
16:50Meeting of the Parliament
Meeting date: 4 February 2025
Murdo Fraser
I do not know why Mr Swinney is sitting there heckling from a sedentary position. Perhaps he needs to find himself a pet cat and take it out for a walk so that he feels a bit better.
Meeting of the Parliament
Meeting date: 4 February 2025
Murdo Fraser
It will probably be useful if I start by reiterating why we in the Conservative Party are not voting for the budget. We are not voting for it because it puts the tax burden up; it does nothing to help the economy; it sees local services being cut; it sees council taxes going up; it sees universities and colleges getting their budgets squeezed, with some even potentially facing bankruptcy; and it sees rail fares going up. There is no action on cutting waste and no programme for public sector reform, and, of course, the Government is still spending money on the case for independence. That is why we are not backing the budget.
Let me look in more detail at some of the issues that we have heard about during the debate. As usual, we had an interesting speech from Michelle Thomson. I always enjoy her speeches—I do not always agree with them, but she always makes an interesting contribution, and I think that we will be sorry and will miss her when she goes. She talked about the social contract. My colleague Liz Smith said that that is all very well, but the social contract has to be paid for. It has to be properly funded, or it is of little value.
There is little point in having free bus travel if there are no buses in the local area that people can travel on. There is no point in having free NHS dentistry if people cannot get an NHS dentist, because no NHS dentists are available in their area. There is no point in having free university education if people cannot get a place at a Scottish university due to the number of overseas students being brought in to try to balance the books. There is no point in having free car parking at hospitals if people cannot get a parking space when they go to the hospital. And so the list goes on.