PUBLIC PETITIONS COMMITTEE Wednesday 22 December 2004 Session 2 £5.00 Parliamentary copyright. Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body 2005. Applications for reproduction should be made in writing to the Licensing Division, Her Majesty‟s Stationery Office, St Clements House, 2-16 Colegate, Norwich NR3 1BQ Fax 01603 723000, which is administering the copyright on behalf of the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. Produced and published in Scotland on behalf of the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body by Astron. CONTENTS Wednesday 22 December 2004 Col. NEW PETITIONS................................................................................................................................... 1311 Lamlash Bay (No-take Zone and Marine Protected Area) (PE799) ..................................................... 1311 A78 (Fairlie) (PE796)....................................................................................................................... 1320 CURRENT PETITIONS ............................................................................................................................ 1322 Institutional Child Abuse (PE535) ..................................................................................................... 1322 Alcohol and Drug Misuse (PE531).................................................................................................... 1332 Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000 (PE573) .......................................................................... 1332 Solvent Abuse (PE580) ................................................................................................................... 1334 Bone Marrow Register (PE687)........................................................................................................ 1335 Public Water Supply (Fluoridation) (PE775) ...................................................................................... 1336 PUBLIC PETITIONS SYSTEM (PROMOTION) ............................................................................................... 1337 PUBLIC PETITIONS COMMITTEE 20th Meeting 2004, Session 2 CONVENER *Michael McMahon (Hamilton North and Bellshill) (Lab) DEPU TY CONVENER *John Scott (Ayr) (Con) COMMI TTEE MEMBERS *Jac kie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab) *Helen Eadie (Dunfermline East) (Lab) Ros ie Kane (Glasgow ) (SSP) *Campbell Martin (West of Scotland) (Ind) *John Farquhar Munro (Ross, Skye and Inverness West) (LD) *Mike Watson (Glasgow Cathcart) (Lab) *Ms Sandra White (Glasgow ) (SNP) COMMI TTEE SUBSTITU TES Frances Curran (West of Scotland) (SSP) Susan Deacon (Edinburgh East and Musselburgh) (Lab) Phil Gallie (South of Scotland) (Con) Rob Gibson (Highlands and Islands) (SNP) *attended THE FOLLOWING ALSO ATTENDED : Chris Daly Linda Fabiani (Central Scotland) (SNP) Rob Gibson (Highlands and Islands) (SNP) Helen Holland (In Care Abuse Survivors/In Care Abuse Support) Janis Hughes (Glasgow Rutherglen) (Lab) Don Macneish (Community of Arran Seabed Trust) Tom Vella-Boyle (Community of Arran Seabed Trust) How ard Wood (Community of Arran Seabed Trust) CLERK TO THE COMMITTE E Jim Johnston ASSISTANT CLERK Joanne Clinton LOC ATION Committee Room 2 1311 22 DECEMBER 2004 1312 Scottish Parliament First Minister and certainly our local member of the Scottish Parliament have said that communities must have a voice, especially in matters that affect Public Petitions Committee them. We feel that the community has not until now had a voice in the matter with which our Wednesday 22 December 2004 petition deals. My second point is about the process that we [THE CONVENER opened the meeting at 10:02] have been through. We have consulted everybody from the chap who runs the little ferry from New Petitions Lamlash bay to Holy Isle right through to the directorate-general for fisheries in Brussels, which has been kind enough to sponsor some of our Lamlash Bay (No-take Zone and Marine work. We have, of course, spoken to the Protected Area) (PE799) commercial fishermen, to the Scottish Executive, The Convener (Michael McMahon): Good to all our local councillors and to many MSPs. We morning and welcome to the last meeting of the have spoken to our member of Parliament in Public Petitions Committee in 2004. We have Westminster and even to members of the apologies from Rosie Kane. European Parliament. Our first new petition is PE799 by Tom Vella- My third point concerns the scientific evidence Boyle, who calls on Parliament to urge the that backs up what we say. A great deal of it—not Executive to support the Community of Arran just in this country, but all over the world—says Seabed Trust‟s proposal to close an area of that what we propose will lead to a sustainable Lamlash bay to all forms of marine life extraction— fishery. a so-called no-take zone—and the rest of the bay My fourth point is about the people of Arran and to mobile fishing gear as a marine protected area. what the proposal means to them. We recall that Before being formally lodged, the petition was during the 1970s and 1980s, there were hosted on the e-petitioner site, where it attracted successful fishing festivals in Arran, some of which 704 signatures between 1 November 2004 and 10 were international. At least 300 people used to December 2004. Tom Vella-Boyle is here to make turn up, bringing much-needed revenue to the a brief statement to the committee in support of his island. We feel that our having the chance to petition. He is accompanied by Don Macneish and introduce the measures that we propose would Howard Wood. I welcome the petitioners to the bring some of those people back to the island. committee. We will hear your comments, then we There is a great deal of interest in the environment will ask questions and discuss your petition. these days; green and eco-tourism would bring people back. Divers would return to the island to Tom Vella-Boyle (Community of Arran see what we are doing. There would be great Seabed Trust): Good morning and thank you for educational advantages and schoolchildren, to giving us the chance to come along today—we whom we already speak, would come back to see very much appreciate it. We are just three ordinary what we are doing. chaps, really; we have no great expertise in marine science. However, we are here to We believe that the summing up that we represent the community of Arran and we do not attached to the petition encapsulates all that we speak for that community on any other matter. We are saying: have been working on this project for 10 years or “It must be remembered that fish and marine life are the so. property of all Scottish people. With inshore measures it is up to the Scottish Parliament to manage those stocks for I have four relevant points to make in my future generations to enjoy and for future jobs and presentation. I presume that everybody is aware of livelihoods. Unfortunately not all management can take why we are here and that they are aware of what place by consensus. Unless decisions are taken to the petition says. My first point is about community investigate modern fisheries management techniques this generation of Scottish Politic ians w ill be remembered as involvement. We called our organisation COAST the ones w ho presided over the final destruction of Scottish because we are the Community of Arran Seabed marine life. Past generations can be partly forgiven Trust. We have a membership of 1,240 people. because scientific information available today w as not We have always tried to represent the grass-roots available then. Today‟s politic ians have no such excuse.” views on the matter so we have from the outset I thank you for listening to me. been determined to go through a democratic process. We regard the presentation of our Campbell Martin (West of Scotland) (Ind): I petition to Parliament as being the end of the should declare an interest in that I am a long-term democratic process—we can go no higher than supporter of the Community of Arran Seabed this, so here we are. Members will recall that the Trust, the people behind it and the end result that 1313 22 DECEMBER 2004 1314 it seeks to achieve. I have known Don Macneish, Clyde Fishermen‟s Association, which represents Tom Vella-Boyle and Howard Wood and their work those who use mobile gear, and the Clyde and for some time. It has been a long process and I south-west static gear association, which hope that they eventually get the result that they represents those in potting—but there is also a seek. large number of independent fishermen who are not represented by either organisation. It is probably important that committee members are aware that the Community of Arran Seabed We went to Carradale and gave a presentation Trust has about 800 members on Arran, which to the Clyde Fishermen‟s Association and have might not sound like a huge number in global been in negotiation with Patrick Stewart, its terms, but represents almost 20 per cent of secretary. We have also had several meetings Arran‟s population. The project has huge support with the Clyde and south-west static gear among the local community. association and we continue to go to fishermen‟s associations and to negotiate independently with The first parliamentary question that I lodged in the rest of the fishermen. May 2003 was on that subject. The then Deputy Minister for Environment and Rural Development Four commercial fishermen live on Arran: they answered it by saying: are all independent and none is represented by either association that I mentioned. From our “We are w orking, w ith the