Meetings of Committees
All meetings take place in the Scottish Parliament, unless otherwise specified.
Rural Affairs, Climate Change and Environment Committee
16th Meeting, 2015
The Committee will meet at 10.00 am in the Robert Burns Room (CR1)
1. Decision on taking business in private: The Committee will decide whether consideration of its draft letter to the Scottish Government on mandatory public sector climate reporting should be taken in private at future meetings.
2. Subordinate legislation: The Committee will take evidence on the Climate Change (Additional Greenhouse Gas) (Scotland) Order [draft] from—
Aileen McLeod, Minister for Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform, and George Burgess, Deputy Director, Environmental Quality Division, Scottish Government.
3. Subordinate legislation: Aileen McLeod, Minister for Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform to move—S4M-13047—That the Rural Affairs, Climate Change and Environment Committee recommends that the Climate Change (Additional Greenhouse Gas) (Scotland) Order 2015 [draft] be approved.
4. Work programme (in private): The Committee will consider its work programme.
Meeting of the Parliament
2.00 pm Parliamentary Bureau Motions
S4M-13093 Joe FitzPatrick on behalf of the Parliamentary Bureau: Business Motion—That the Parliament agrees the following programme of business—
Tuesday 12 May 2015
2.00 pm Time for Reflection
followed by Parliamentary Bureau Motions
followed by Topical Questions (if selected)
followed by Stage 1 Debate: Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Scotland) Bill
followed by Financial Resolution: Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Scotland) Bill
followed by Business Motions
followed by Parliamentary Bureau Motions
5.00 pm Decision Time
followed by Members’ Business
Wednesday 13 May 2015
2.00 pm Parliamentary Bureau Motions
followed by Portfolio Question Time
Education and Lifelong Learning
followed by Scottish Government Debate: Scottish Apprenticeship Week
followed by Business Motions
followed by Parliamentary Bureau Motions
5.00 pm Decision Time
followed by Members’ Business
Thursday 14 May 2015
11.40 am Parliamentary Bureau Motions
11.40 am General Questions
12.00 pm First Minister’s Questions
followed by Members’ Business
2.30 pm Parliamentary Bureau Motions
followed by Scottish Government Debate: Circular Economy (Waste Management)
followed by Business Motions
followed by Parliamentary Bureau Motions
5.00 pm Decision Time
Tuesday 19 May 2015
2.00 pm Time for Reflection
followed by Parliamentary Bureau Motions
followed by Topical Questions (if selected)
followed by Scottish Government Business
followed by Business Motions
followed by Parliamentary Bureau Motions
5.00 pm Decision Time
followed by Members’ Business
Wednesday 20 May 2015
2.00 pm Parliamentary Bureau Motions
followed by Portfolio Question Time
Social Justice, Communities and Pensioners’ Rights;
Fair Work, Skills and Training
followed by Scottish Government Business
followed by Business Motions
followed by Parliamentary Bureau Motions
5.00 pm Decision Time
followed by Members’ Business
Thursday 21 May 2015
11.40 am Parliamentary Bureau Motions
11.40 am General Questions
12.00 pm First Minister’s Questions
followed by Members’ Business
2.30 pm Parliamentary Bureau Motions
followed by Scottish Government Business
followed by Business Motions
followed by Parliamentary Bureau Motions
5.00 pm Decision Time
S4M-13088 Joe FitzPatrick on behalf of the Parliamentary Bureau: Business Motion—That the Parliament agrees that consideration of the Alcohol (Licensing, Public Health and Criminal Justice) (Scotland) Bill at stage 1 be completed by 5 February 2016.
S4M-13089 Joe FitzPatrick on behalf of the Parliamentary Bureau: Business Motion—That the Parliament agrees that consideration of the Prisoners (Control of Release) (Scotland) Bill at stage 2 be completed by 5 June 2015.
S4M-13090 Joe FitzPatrick on behalf of the Parliamentary Bureau: Approval of SSI—That the Parliament agrees that the Scottish Marine Regions Order 2015 [draft] be approved.
S4M-13091 Joe FitzPatrick on behalf of the Parliamentary Bureau: Committee Membership—That the Parliament agrees that Alex Johnstone be appointed as the Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party substitute on the Welfare Reform Committee.
2.00 pm Members’ Business
Debate on the subject of—
S4M-12950 Alex Rowley: Thousands of Migrants Dying Attempting to Reach Europe Each Year—That the Parliament expresses its shock at the recent loss of life in the Mediterranean sea where almost 400 migrants attempting to reach the EU are believed to have died in a shipwreck off the coast of Libya; supports the comments of human rights groups across Europe that have condemned the scrapping of rescue operations in the Mediterranean, which it believes is endangering the lives of thousands of desperate migrants making perilous journeys across the sea; acknowledges the comments of the human rights group, Amnesty International, which stated that “European governments’ on-going negligence towards the humanitarian crisis in the Mediterranean has contributed to a more than 50-fold increase in migrant and refugee deaths since the beginning of 2015”; believes that the decision of the EU to stop funding Italy’s Mare Nostrum rescue mission last year in favour of the surveillance patrols currently being carried out by its border agency, Frontex, is a clear example of its dereliction of duty with regard to this matter; notes the evidence given to the European and External Relations Committee by Pasquale Terracciano, the Italian Ambassador to the United Kingdom, who stated “We are pressing to persuade the European Union that there is an external border that is of common interest and should be managed at a common level, we are pressing other partners to make it a European priority and all political pressure is welcome to create awareness of the scale of the phenomenon”, and believes that it is the duty of all EU nations to work together to tackle this humanitarian crisis, the scale of which it considers is causing widespread concern and disbelief in the Cowdenbeath constituency and in communities across Scotland.
2.45 pm General Questions
1. Johann Lamont: To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to assess and sustain the levels of support staff in schools. (S4O-04294)
2. Margaret Mitchell: To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the effectiveness of Police Scotland’s strategy for engaging with local communities. (S4O-04295)
3. Graeme Dey: To ask the Scottish Government what guidance it provides to local authorities on the purposes for which self-directed support may be used. (S4O-04296)
4. Annabel Goldie: To ask the Scottish Government what progress has been made with the implementation of the Disclosure Scheme for Domestic Abuse Scotland, which was piloted in Aberdeen and Ayrshire. (S4O-04297)
5. Stewart Stevenson: To ask the Scottish Government what progress is being made with NorthConnect’s £2 billion power scheme between Aberdeenshire and Scandinavia. (S4O-04298)
6. Alex Rowley: To ask the Scottish Government how many complaints Police Scotland has received from Fife residents regarding police response and call-out times since services were moved from the Fife control centre to Bilston Glen. (S4O-04299)
7. Michael Russell: To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making in ensuring that the ambulance and health services on Mull meet the needs and expectations of the local community as expressed to the Cabinet Secretary for Health, Wellbeing and Sport at a meeting in March 2015. (S4O-04300)
8. Linda Fabiani: To ask the Scottish Government when its review of out-of-hours primary care services will be published. (S4O-04301)
9. Drew Smith: To ask the Scottish Government whether Barnett consequentials arising from a mansion tax could help the NHS meet its waiting time guarantee. (S4O-04302)
10. Nanette Milne: To ask the Scottish Government what support it provides to help sustain and promote community-based industries. (S4O-04303)
3.05 pm First Minister’s Questions
1. Kezia Dugdale: To ask the First Minister what engagements she has planned for the rest of the day. (S4F-02769)
2. Ruth Davidson: To ask the First Minister when she will next meet the Prime Minister. (S4F-02774)
3. Willie Rennie: To ask the First Minister what issues will be discussed at the next meeting of the Cabinet. (S4F-02770)
4. Stewart Maxwell: To ask the First Minister what progress the Scottish Government is making on widening access to university for young people from the most deprived communities. (S4F-02776)
5. Neil Findlay: To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government’s position is on fracking. (S4F-02771)
6. Roderick Campbell: To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government’s position is on the increase in Scotland’s population. (S4F-02777)
3.35 pm Portfolio Question Time
Infrastructure, Investment and Cities
1. Rob Gibson: To ask the Scottish Government what carbon saving would be made by removing one supermarket lorry from the A9 between Edinburgh and Thurso and carrying the contents by rail. (S4O-04274)
2. Murdo Fraser: To ask the Scottish Government what progress has been made on reducing journey times on the Highland mainline between Inverness and Edinburgh. (S4O-04275)
3. Neil Bibby: [Not Lodged]
4. Gavin Brown: To ask the Scottish Government what changes it has planned for government procurement. (S4O-04277)
5. Margaret McCulloch: [Withdrawn]
6. Cameron Buchanan: To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to increase investment in roads as a result of the forecast population increase. (S4O-04279)
7. Patrick Harvie: To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the transport recommendations made by the Committee on Climate Change in its 2015 progress report. (S4O-04280)
8. Richard Lyle: To ask the Scottish Government what opportunities enhanced devolution could bring to the transport system. (S4O-04281)
9. Adam Ingram: [Not Lodged]
10. John Mason: To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the status of the Edinburgh Glasgow Improvement Programme. (S4O-04283)
Culture, Europe and External Affairs
1. Chic Brodie: To ask the Scottish Government what benefits it considers the EU brings to Scotland. (S4O-04284)
2. John Pentland: To ask the Scottish Government when the Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Europe and External Affairs will announce the location and timetable for the development of a permanent Scottish film studio. (S4O-04285)
3. Rhoda Grant: To ask the Scottish Government what support it provides to the film and arts sectors in Shetland. (S4O-04286)
4. Mark Griffin: [Not Lodged]
5. Claudia Beamish: To ask the Scottish Government what support it will give to local festivals and community celebrations across South Scotland, such as Beltane in Peebles, Lanimers in Lanark and The Wickerman Festival in Dumfries and Galloway. (S4O-04288)
6. Ken Macintosh: To ask the Scottish Government when it last met Creative Scotland. (S4O-04289)
7. Neil Findlay: To ask the Scottish Government what progress is being made in bringing to an end the dispute at the National Museum of Scotland. (S4O-04290)
8. Mary Scanlon: To ask the Scottish Government how it monitors proceedings at the European Parliament. (S4O-04291)
9. Alex Fergusson: [Withdrawn]
10. Stewart Maxwell: To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the Scottish Commemorations Programme’s First World War commemorations for 2015. (S4O-04293)
followed by Business Motions
followed by Parliamentary Bureau Motions
4.15 pm Decision Time
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