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To ask the Scottish Government whether it will reconsider its reported plans to downgrade the Wishaw neonatal intensive care unit. (S6O-02903)

The minister’s answer will infuriate and worry my constituents in Lanarkshire, and it represents a further blow to Wishaw’s award-winning neonatal workforce. Almost 20,000 people have now signed a petition to stop the Scottish Government downgrading the award-winning, vital, life-saving service in Wishaw. We have a flawed proposal and a flawed process that has produced a flawed decision. It is vulnerable babies, their mothers and families who will be failed unless the minister listens, looks again and does her job properly. Will she extend some festive good will to my constituents, the Wishaw Neonatal Warriors, and finally commit to a full independent review in the new year?

Thank you, Presiding Officer. I am not aware of all the examples that Mr Brown has given, but I am not shy in speaking out about my own party when we do not get things right. Today’s debate is not about keeping score, but I am clear that the rise of fire-and-rehire practices across the country is unacceptable, and I have written to the cabinet secretary about that. Historically, Labour and the trade unions fell short when it came to tackling issues around the gender pay gap.

I thank the cabinet secretary, and I accept where progress has been made, but we must do more to strengthen fair work conditionality and address in-work poverty. I know that many trade union colleagues are looking for the implementation of Fair Work Convention recommendations and fair work action plan commitments on collective bargaining.

I recently chaired the Scottish Labour trade union group meeting. We had a room full of trade unionists and the agenda had about 25 items on it, most of which were about issues in Scotland. I am being robust about the Tory Government, but we, too, need to do better. That means that local government and other public sector employers need to do better, too.

We have heard a lot of references to the House of Commons library, and I am sure that there is important reading material there. I am concerned that the Tory amendment—I see that Liam Kerr is waving at me—is really trying to provide cover for the UK Government. However, let us not be apologists. The UK Parliament’s Joint Committee on Human Rights has called out the bill, stating in no uncertain terms that the UK Government

“has not adequately made the case that this Bill meets the UK’s human rights obligations”.

I wish Murdo Fraser well in recovering from his injury, but a lot of cherry-picking is going on to make out that Tory Britain is a leader when it comes to workers’ rights when we know that that is absolutely not the case.

I have taken a couple of interventions, so time is now short. I know that, previously, there was time in hand.

With the cost of living crisis, this is a tough time in the country for workers. Christmas is not going to be a peaceful and joyful time for many of our constituents, but union-busting Governments will not win. As the Scottish Trades Union Congress general secretary Roz Foyer has said, workers will not be turned into slaves. Trade unions are the last line of defence for workers and communities, which is why we stand by them. The message from the Parliament today needs to be that we have to get the Tories out of Downing Street as soon as possible. That is vital for workers and the economy, and it is in the national interest.

Will the member give way?

Perhaps she raised that point with the SNP leadership. I see that the party’s depute leader, Keith Brown, wants to intervene. I am happy to hear from Mr Brown.

The Labour amendment adds to the Government motion. That is constructive and shows that there is a lot of agreement. The amendment simply asks for support for Labour’s new deal for working people. A message from this Parliament would reinforce what we want colleagues down the road to do. Is there a problem? Will the member vote against the Labour amendment tonight?

I, too, refer to my entry in the register of members’ interests as a member of the trade unions GMB and Unite, and to the voluntary section of my entry, which lists my memberships of the National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers, the Public and Commercial Services Union and the Communication Workers Union and of parliamentary groups, and which notes that I chair the Scottish Labour trade union group.

Those declarations keep me on the right side of the Parliament’s rules, but I am very proud to be a trade unionist, like my colleagues on the Labour benches. I first joined a trade union as a graduate worker, more than 20 years ago, several years before I joined the Labour Party. The importance of being in a trade union was drilled into me through my family background and my community experience. I say to colleagues on the Tory benches that, while being in a trade union might be viewed as ideological, trade unions are good for the economy, and smart employers and smart politicians understand that.

More than two decades on from when my working life began, I am in despair at the state of workers’ rights in Britain, as they are more precarious now than at any time that I remember. What kind of future will my 17-year-old daughter and her friend group have? They already know what it is like to be on a zero-hours contract. They know that working hard and being in work is not a protective measure against poverty and that a college or university qualification does not guarantee them fair work.

Like other members who have spoken today, I am appalled that we are having this debate, not because it is a waste of time or because there are other things that we should be talking about, but because our constituents are worried. We are days away from Christmas, and Liam Kerr and I have just been singing Christmas carols together—he had my festive Christmas glasses on, and I have my reindeer dress on. For a lot of people right now, however, there is not a lot to be cheerful about. Many people want to see the Tories at Westminster getting sacked this Christmas.

I would like to see the Conservatives in this place stand up to their colleagues. It is not always easy to do that in a political party, but they should not just be apologists. We have seen the Tories in the Scottish Parliament stand up to their colleagues at Westminster before—maybe it is time for them to do it again.

The Prime Minister may well be one of the richest men in Britain today, but his rotten Government is morally bankrupt. The Tories at Westminster are out of control because they know that they are on borrowed time. We are seeing, not just with the Tories’ UK Strikes (Minimum Service Levels) Act 2023 but in many other actions, a full-frontal assault on workers’ rights. I am relieved, therefore, that the Scottish Government will not enforce the 2023 act, which attacks the dignity and rights of public sector workers.

I was pleased to hear the cabinet secretary state today that fair work ambitions are the bedrock of the Scottish Government’s vision for the wellbeing economy. I support that, but we all need to work harder in Parliament to ensure that the actions that we take match that ambition. That means funding our public services properly, using public procurement powers to improve workers’ terms and conditions, tackling the growing disability pay gap in Scotland, and tackling the rise of zero-hours contracts.

I know that Clare Haughey ran out of time to take my intervention, and she has left her seat just now, but we did not hear a peep from her when the SNP was caught using zero-hours contracts in her Rutherglen constituency during a recent by-election.

One of the suggestions that we got in our written submissions was that the marine directorate should undertake—if I can read my handwriting—

“a strategic review of its enforcement assets”.

That is looking at equipment as well. The point being made was that we need to have effective deterrence of illegal activities. Is there a concern about equipment?

Thank you. Tavish?