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 1012 contributions
Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee
Meeting date: 30 September 2021
Alasdair Allan
I want to build on the point that Jamie Livingstone just made about the nature or shape of COP26. We often talk about COP26 in quite abstract terms, without much of an idea of what the agenda and format look like and who is allowed to attend what. Given the concern that we have heard expressed about ensuring that the voices of the global south are heard, will you talk about how your organisations or the organisations that you are affiliated to engage with COP26 and what bits of it?
Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee
Meeting date: 30 September 2021
Alasdair Allan
In the interests of time, I will address my question purely to Mr Nhlema. For the benefit of people who are watching, can you give an indication of how dramatically the landscape in Malawi has changed over the past 40 years? Deforestation was mentioned. The problems are all connected. When I was in Malawi, two ladies came up to me and very politely but very forcefully pointed out that I had come in a car, that they had to walk an extra 2 miles every day to get water and that there was a connection between those two things. All these things are connected, but can you give an indication of how the landscape has changed?
Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee
Meeting date: 30 September 2021
Alasdair Allan
My first question is about the voice that people in the developing world have in all this. You have mentioned and referred to that. I am keen to know what can be done to bring that powerful voice to the fore, specifically at COP26. Is it likely to be heard?
Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee
Meeting date: 30 September 2021
Alasdair Allan
Mr Nhlema, you mentioned that the average age of the population in Malawi is young, and you mentioned accountability and the need to promote accountability. I know that the Scotland Malawi Partnership and the Malawi Scotland Partnership work together on such issues in Scotland and Malawi. Can you offer some perspective or predictions on how you feel that accountability will develop in the future as that generation comes to the fore? Will it have new ideas or new expectations about accountability? What can we do together to work through those issues?
Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee
Meeting date: 30 September 2021
Alasdair Allan
I heard it put diplomatically there that it is unclear what role the Scottish Government might have. That question would have to be addressed to the UK hosts of the conference.
I will move on to another theme. What lessons can the Scottish Government learn from not just COP but some of the climate justice issues that your organisations are raising about how to mainstream the things that the Government is doing in international development into all parts of government in Scotland?
Rural Affairs, Islands and Natural Environment Committee
Meeting date: 29 September 2021
Alasdair Allan
On the basis of what you have just said, minister, would it be fair to say that this is an uncontentious piece of legislation?
Rural Affairs, Islands and Natural Environment Committee
Meeting date: 29 September 2021
Alasdair Allan
It was interesting to hear the descriptions of the animal welfare problems that could arise from the 2020 act if we are not careful. Dr Turner mentioned ambitions for animal welfare. What might your ambitions be if we intend to keep pace with European legislation? Aquaculture has been mentioned, but what other ambitions might you have?
Rural Affairs, Islands and Natural Environment Committee
Meeting date: 29 September 2021
Alasdair Allan
Dr Turner, you mentioned the perfect storm that might arise from the situation following Brexit. One of the issues, which you touched on, concerns trade deals. Will you give us more of your views on the implications that trade deals might have for the kind of meat that comes into the country and animal welfare standards? Will it be even more of a perfect storm if the United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020 has an impact on Scotland’s discretion to alter some of these things by its own hand?
Rural Affairs, Islands and Natural Environment Committee
Meeting date: 29 September 2021
Alasdair Allan
I represent some islands, and I appreciate the fact that Kirsty Jenkins talked about treating islands exceptionally. She also spoke about the need to reduce food miles in the longer term. However, does she acknowledge that, on the islands, as in many other parts of Scotland, the whole lamb industry is built on livestock being moved around? To move a bit further down the evolutionary scale, the prawn industry is based on the live transport of prawns, as it is not possible to transport them in any other way, and somewhere in the region of 90 per cent of the market for prawns is in France and Spain. Does Kirsty Jenkins appreciate that, notwithstanding everything that she has just said, we have to be slightly careful when talking about reducing food miles, promoting local markets, and pretending that we can undo those realities any time soon?
Constitution, Europe, External Affairs and Culture Committee
Meeting date: 23 September 2021
Alasdair Allan
I have a general question, followed by a couple of very specific ones. My initial question is possibly for Alison Reeves and Lucy Casot.
Given what you have said about the importance of the arts, music and museums in the community, and given that we are going to be talking about a budget at some stage, do you feel that budgeting recognises the importance of mainstreaming the arts? I am not going to be the person who goes on record and says that we should be talking about what the NHS spends on the arts while we are in the middle of a Covid crisis. However, everybody recognises that, as you have said, the arts benefit health, town planning, business and the community. Do we budget in a way that is joined up enough to recognise those things?