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Plenary, 19 Jan 2006

Meeting date: Thursday, January 19, 2006

Official Report 727KB pdf

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Question Time

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SCOTTISH EXECUTIVE

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Justice and Law Officers

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Police Forces (Restructuring)

To ask the Scottish Executive what consideration it is giving to restructuring Scotland's eight police forces. (S2O-8742)

Scottish ministers have no current plans to restructure Scotland's eight police forces.

I thank the minister for that reassuring reply. No doubt she saw, as I did, the report in The Herald on 2 December suggesting that the Minister for Finance and Public Service Reform would have "no sacred cows" and talking of proposals to target the existence of eight separate police forces in Scotland, to parallel the reduction in the number of police forces in England and Wales. Does she agree that, given the chaos and farce into which the proposals for England and Wales have descended, it is reassuring that we do not intend to embark on a similar move in Scotland? Does she also agree that it is the outcomes that are important, rather than the structure, and that those outcomes are best served by a police force that respects the long-standing constitutional arrangements of local accountability through the police board, the chief constables' operational role and the role of ministers? If there is to be some change, perhaps it is to improve local accountability in some of the larger police force areas, such as Strathclyde.

I thank Mr Wallace for such an interesting and thorough question. It will obviously not be possible for me to reply to every point in detail, but I want to assure him that local accountability is important and that anything we do in future must be focused on better outcomes to improve community safety. There are challenges for us in Scotland, particularly in getting the right balance between neighbourhood and local policing and the investigation of serious and organised crime and the threat of terrorism. We should not be afraid to modernise if it is important to do so to provide a better service, nor should we be afraid to have efficiencies driven into services to ensure that front-line delivery is improved. I hope that I can give Mr Wallace some reassurance that anything that might be considered in future would be based on the principle of improved services and accountability.

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In-court Advice Service

To ask the Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with citizens advice bureaux in respect of training volunteers to work in a nationwide in-court advice service. (S2O-8737)

I expect very shortly to receive a report evaluating the in-court advice pilot projects that are currently operating in Edinburgh, Aberdeen, Airdrie, Dundee, Hamilton and Kilmarnock. However, those projects are not staffed by volunteers.

I know of those six schemes and think that they are providing a good service. As I understand it, help is given by volunteers from citizens advice bureaux in servicing those projects in the courts and they have a lot of work to do. If the scheme is to be rolled out across the country, as I hope that it will be, it will be important to provide enough volunteers to do that sort of work in support of paid staff. Will the Executive look ahead to the question of training for volunteers, if it plans to roll out the scheme, as I hope that it does?

I pay tribute to the work that volunteers do in many areas of activity throughout Scotland. For example, they do sterling work in supporting victims. The projects that we are talking about now, which are funded by the Executive, employ full-time staff in all the schemes, except the one in Dundee, which has two part-time advisers who are practising solicitors. As a starting point, we placed the pilots in sheriffdoms where there had been no provision. Not all the projects are managed by citizens advice bureaux and CABx would not necessarily be responsible for the service in any roll-out. In Edinburgh, the scheme is managed by Edinburgh central CAB, and the pilots in Airdrie, Aberdeen and Hamilton are managed by the local CABx there. In Dundee, the pilot is a joint CAB and Shelter Scotland project, but the Kilmarnock pilot is managed by East Ayrshire Council. We need to reflect on what has worked, what works well and who would be best placed to manage and run a local service.

However, I take seriously Donald Gorrie's suggestion that when it is appropriate for volunteers to be involved, they can make a significant contribution. I never fail to be impressed by their enthusiasm, their willingness to train and their professionalism and dedication, which I hope that we can draw on in many future areas of activity.

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Knife-related Crime

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that mandatory jail sentences for carrying a knife would be effective in tackling the issue of knife-related crime. (S2O-8705)

Courts need flexibility in sentencing to reflect the circumstances of each individual case. We take the issue of knife crime seriously and that is why we have committed to doubling the maximum sentence for carrying a knife in public from two to four years.

I welcome the initiatives that the Executive has taken in the past year, which have been welcomed right across the constituency that I represent. One of the concerns that the public raise with me is about how consistent sheriffs and judges are in tackling knife carrying and knife use. Although we should acknowledge the need for flexibility in sentencing, sheriffs and judges should reflect the reality in the communities that suffer from knife crime. Can any measures be taken to ensure that sheriffs and judges fully understand the consequences of such activity?

Frank McAveety raises an important point. The notion that some communities, especially some of our more disadvantaged communities, suffer more from violent crime is borne out by the recorded figures. It is worth remembering that the homicide figures for 2004-05 show that, as in previous years, the use of a sharp instrument was the most common method of killing—it accounted for 72 victims, which was more than half the total number. That is why we take the issue seriously.

I reassure Frank McAveety that we have asked the Sentencing Commission for Scotland to examine consistency of sentencing. It is important that sentencing is transparent, that the public can understand it and that they feel that there is a degree of consistency of approach. Although we are not persuaded of the need for mandatory sentences for carrying a knife, which would take away an element of flexibility, we think that it is important to send out clear messages both on consistency and to those people who might consider getting involved in knife crime.

Is the minister aware that a young Czech man was killed in a knife assault in Arbroath? Such knife crime has an impact not only on Scotland but on how we are perceived in the wider world. Has she studied the report from Glasgow royal infirmary that shows that only 53 per cent of knife-related injuries are reported to the police? Surely it should not be too difficult to create a hospital-based system for reporting serious knife injuries to the police to allow them better to concentrate their resources on serious knife crime. Surely policy is best based on a clearer understanding of the situation.

I will not comment on the specific case that the member mentioned, as it has still to come before the courts, but of course we want to examine a range of measures for tackling the problem of violence. I have had a brief informal discussion with Mr Welsh's colleague Stewart Maxwell about how best we can deal with some of the concerns that have been raised during the Justice 2 Committee's consideration of the Police, Public Order and Criminal Justice (Scotland) Bill. I do not want to impose on the medical professions a burdensome bureaucratic system, but we need to get a better understanding of what is happening, and input from the clinicians who deal with the problems that are caused by knife crime has been valuable.

I stress the importance of the work that we are doing with Strathclyde police's violence reduction unit, which has adopted innovative methods of identifying the problem. Members will know that I am on record as saying that we need to tackle the problem of the booze-and-blade culture that exists in some parts of our communities in Scotland. The so-called hard-man image is not helpful to the everyday lives of the members of our communities or to our image at home and abroad.

Given that the incidence of knife crime is escalating in central Scotland and in other parts of Scotland, does the minister agree that the four-year sentence that the Executive is proposing for knife possession should mean four years, which would be the case if the Executive ended automatic early release?

At the risk of boring the chamber, I will repeat what I have said on a number of occasions, which is that it is the Executive's policy to end the current system of automatic unconditional early release. We asked the Sentencing Commission to look at that in some detail and its report is due to be published soon. I am sure that all members will study the report and will look to support us as we bring forward legislation to end the present system.

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Rape (Convictions)

To ask the Scottish Executive what new action it is taking to address the low level of convictions for rape highlighted in recent media reports. (S2O-8700)

The crime of rape is treated very seriously by prosecutors in Scotland. The Scottish Law Commission is examining the law of rape and sexual offences in Scotland. The commission's review will consider the definition of rape and other serious sexual offences in Scots law and the evidential standards that are necessary to prove the crime. It is expected to report to the First Minister in 2007.

My officials have been carrying out a major and unprecedented review of the investigation and prosecution of rape and other sex offences, looking critically at all aspects of how we deal with sexual offences, from the earliest stages when a case is reported to the procurator fiscal to the presentation of the case in court. We are committed to learning from the findings of that review, which will be published in spring 2006.

I welcome the direction that the Solicitor General for Scotland's department is taking. She will be aware of the invaluable support that the rape counselling and resource centre, which is based in Kilmarnock in my constituency, gave to a woman in a recent case in Ayrshire. Will the Solicitor General undertake to discuss the funding of such organisations with the Minister for Justice and the Minister for Communities? At the moment, the centre receives funding from one local authority—East Ayrshire Council—and a small grant from NHS Ayrshire and Arran. It receives nothing from the police or the fiscals who refer victims to the centre or from any other public service in Ayrshire.

I would be happy to have such a discussion with the Minister for Communities. In January 2004, the then Minister for Communities, Margaret Curran, announced funding of £1.96 million for the 10 existing rape crisis centres in Scotland and a further range of measures to help to stabilise and provide consistency in the services that rape crisis centres provide. Since that time, two new centres have been developed. Further new centres are being developed in areas where no provision is available.

I put on record my department's appreciation of the tremendous work that is carried out across Scotland by the rape crisis centres, including the one in Margaret Jamieson's constituency, which I understand gave invaluable support to the victim in the case to which she referred. The work of the rape crisis centres forms part of our current review of the investigation and prosecution of rape and other sex offences. I have the greatest respect for those who work in rape crisis centres or in the other agencies that provide such support. I am happy to communicate to the Minister for Communities the invaluable assistance that rape crisis centres provide to the prosecution of crime in Scotland.

Will the review of the crime of rape and its place in Scotland consider the question of male rape? If so, will changes be brought into Scots law to allow prosecutions to be brought against those who commit male-on-male rape?

The Scottish Law Commission is looking at the subject of male rape. As the member may appreciate, the current definition of rape in Scots law is extremely narrow in comparison with those that are used in other jurisdictions. The definition of what is involved in the crime of rape is under active consideration.

Indeed, we have involved a number of agencies in the advisory group for our review, including from the network of organisations representing the gay community. They have assisted us in looking at how we can improve our service to victims of male rape. They are also helping us to ensure that we can better facilitate the victims giving evidence. Again, I look forward to the publication of the review report. Those agencies are central to the reviews of both the commission and my department.

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Child Access (Court Orders)

To ask the Scottish Executive what steps it will take to ensure that court orders for child access are adhered to. (S2O-8685)

As I announced in the Family Law (Scotland) Bill stage 3 debate on 15 December, the Executive is introducing two new initiatives to help to address the problem of non-compliance with contact orders: a pilot project to appoint contact compliance officers to Scottish courts and new research to help us to understand the nature and scope of the problem better.

I welcome the minister's comments, but if a court makes a judgment, it should be adhered to. If it is not, justice, the law and the courts are brought into disrepute. Will the minister reconsider the matter and ensure that when access orders are imposed, they are complied with?

The matter was debated fully during stages 2 and 3 of the Family Law (Scotland) Bill. Parliament came to a considered view, to which I referred earlier. Irrespective of the conclusion that Parliament drew in relation to the bill, court orders are a matter for the courts to enforce. It is not for politicians to interfere with the judiciary or to dictate to it what should happen in the event of non-compliance with a court order. Serious measures are available to the courts should someone refuse to obey a court order, but that matter is best left to the judiciary.

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Antisocial Behaviour (Legislation)

To ask the Scottish Executive what measures are being considered to ensure consistency in applying antisocial behaviour legislation across Scotland. (S2O-8698)

Local communities across Scotland are rightly putting pressure on local agencies to make full use of the measures that we have provided to tackle antisocial behaviour. We are supporting them by keeping the public informed of the positive local results through publications such as our community newsletter, which has just been issued—copies have been given to members of the Scottish Parliament—and our first anniversary report on the Antisocial Behaviour etc (Scotland) Act 2004. Local agencies are preparing antisocial behaviour outcome agreements, which include clear targets, and the Executive is monitoring their performance.

I am sure that the minister is well aware of the excellent work that is being done in South Lanarkshire to tackle antisocial behaviour through the use of antisocial behaviour orders as well as the creation of a dedicated antisocial behaviour team, neighbourhood wardens and mediation teams. However, not all of the councils and other vital agencies that are involved in tackling antisocial behaviour are using the powers that the 2004 act confers on them. With that in mind, how will the minister address situations where agencies are not applying the rigorous standards that our communities expect from the act?

Janis Hughes makes an important and serious point. In passing the 2004 act, Parliament clearly expressed not only its determination to make an improvement throughout Scotland but its determination that the act be used to protect the public whom we serve. It would be outrageous if any agency or individual decided that they would defy the will of Parliament and not apply legislation where it should be applied. However, we should acknowledge that with any new legislation there is a learning and settling-in period.

As I said in the members' business debate last night, which Christine May introduced to highlight some of the excellent work that is being done in Fife, there are good examples of the law being used. We have seen clear action in Fife through the use of closure orders, seizure of vehicles and vehicle warning notices and we have seen the successful introduction of a pilot project in Tayside.

One of the reasons for producing a regular newsletter to be issued throughout Scotland is to ensure that not just elected representatives and agencies but the public know how well the act is beginning to be used in certain parts of the country. That will give people the confidence to ask their local representatives for the same support.

We will engage with agencies. We will consider the antisocial behaviour outcome agreements and the plans and meet to have discussions in the areas where we perceive slight weaknesses. ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ and councillors also have a role in considering what is happening in their area and meeting the police and councils to ensure that the legislation is being applied effectively.

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Scottish Fingerprint Bureaux

To ask the Scottish Executive how it will support the work of the Scottish fingerprint bureaux. (S2O-8706)

The Scottish Executive has supported the establishment of the Scottish fingerprint service out of the four fingerprint bureaux and we plan to incorporate that service within the proposed Scottish police services authority. We support the service financially and we will be funding the introduction of a new state-of-the-art electronic fingerprint system.

Is the minister aware of my long-standing concern about the lack of support that has been shown to three of my constituents who work for the fingerprint bureaux and who have been the subject of unfair and one-sided criticism as a result of their involvement in the Shirley McKie case? Notwithstanding the outcome of that case—I appreciate that the matter is sub judice—for the sake of securing trust and confidence in the future of the service and addressing the damage that has been done to my constituents and in the interests of justice, does the minister agree that my constituents deserve the right to have their affair considered independently and to have their account examined in a public forum?

I recognise that Ken Macintosh and Des McNulty have both made strong representations on behalf of their constituents—I said that in a previous parliamentary answer at the beginning of December 2005. However, because matters are still to be dealt with and might come before the courts, it remains important that I do not say anything in the chamber that might have an inappropriate bearing on that.

In response to the previous question, I indicated that employers have a duty of care to any employee. I hope that the points that Ken Macintosh has raised with me previously and which I have met him to discuss have been taken up. However, I do not want to comment further on this case at this point.

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Enterprise, Lifelong Learning and Transport

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Broadband Coverage

To ask the Scottish Executive, in light of the Deputy First Minister's statement on 29 December 2005 that the Executive is developing the next steps for providing solutions to the clusters of households that are still out of reach of broadband, what solutions are being considered and what the criteria for inclusion will be. (S2O-8702)

At the end of last year, I announced that the Executive had met its commitment to extend broadband to every Scottish community by the end of 2005. We achieved that through the largest project of its kind in the United Kingdom, which delivered broadband to 378 remote and rural telephone exchange areas in just eight months.

We are, of course, aware there are still a number of households within some communities that are out of reach of broadband, so we are, with the help of independent technical advice, currently considering criteria and potential solutions. We will finalise that work over the next few months. I encourage anyone who is affected to contact the telecommunications policy team in my department to ensure that their needs are known about.

Is the minister aware that I am e-mailed almost daily by people who are desperate for broadband but cannot access it? Yesterday, I was contacted by a couple in the Black Isle who run an information technology service for clients across the Highlands. On moving to a new house only half a mile from their previous house, they find that they cannot now get access to broadband. Does the minister realise how deeply frustrating that sort of thing is? Will he advise me on the timescale for connections for such people? How can my constituents best present their case to the Executive and the service providers?

The encouraging news is that although when this started to become a big issue for Parliament—back in 2001, when the Executive launched its broadband strategy—there was only 43 per cent coverage for broadband in Scotland, compared with a United Kingdom figure of 63 per cent, Scotland now has 99.7 per cent access to broadband. That is on a par with the rest of the UK and ahead of most of the European Union. There has been significant improvement, but I appreciate the concerns that are being spoken about.

The problems relate to technical issues to do with the distance from the upgraded exchange—the copper wires have limitations in terms of reach. BT is examining the issue carefully. It can test lines and is finding that, in many instances, it can achieve broadband connectivity at acceptable levels with the right technical solutions.

We will work with independent advisers to try to overcome the problems for individual households or groups of households and we will try to get a strategy agreed by the spring; I think that solutions will by then have been found in a number of cases. Improvements are being made weekly in relation to the problems, but some households still have significant problems. After the spring, we should be able to indicate our approach to the problem. We have allocated a budget so that it will be possible to invest appropriate resources where a value-for-money solution can be delivered.

I welcome the Government's progress on the issue, but I caution the minister on the use of statistics such as the one about 99.7 per cent of people having broadband access. As he will know, although many exchanges have been enabled, the subsequent infrastructure beyond some exchanges is not sufficiently robust to deliver broadband to individual households. That is especially the case in rural and isolated areas in my constituency, where the pairing of lines where there is inadequate capacity in the infrastructure is a real impediment to the roll-out of broadband. Will the minister take those circumstances into account and is he prepared to consider individual cases to ensure that the Executive is well informed about the technical improvements that are still required?

Yes, I am prepared to do that—we want to know about each individual case. I encourage ³ÉÈË¿ìÊÖ to contact me or the telecoms policy branch in the Enterprise, Transport and Lifelong Learning Department, so that every individual case is logged and action can be taken.

John Swinney is right to say that there are limitations associated with the ADSL copper-wire technology. It may be that that can be upgraded in certain cases, or it may be that an alternative solution can be found. That is why it is important to have a strategy and to consider the circumstances of each individual case or clusters of households. The plan is to tackle the issues during 2006-07, so a budget has been allocated for that purpose. We do not want any further delay; we want to roll out solutions for as many households as possible during 2006-07.

I cannot promise to find solutions for each household. However, John Swinney will know that it is possible through satellite broadband, for example, to get to even the remotest rural areas. I very much hope that we can find a solution for everyone who has an interest in and a requirement for broadband.

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Economic Development Strategy<br />(Scottish Borders)

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will review the success of the new ways economic development strategy in the Scottish Borders, in the light of recent redundancies. (S2O-8732)

The new ways economic development strategy is the Scottish Borders community planning partnership's long-term strategy to diversify the economy. It is not for the Executive to review the strategy's success; that is a matter for the community planning partners. However, I understand that their recent review of the strategy showed evidence of progress. It showed sustained evidence of a growing entrepreneurial culture, with a 43 per cent increase in business start-ups, increased business survival rates, a 300 per cent increase in the number of businesses that use broadband and continuing high levels of employment and low levels of unemployment compared to the Scottish average.

The minister is obviously reading from a different script from me—for which I am thankful.

Now for the truth. When the strategy was launched more than six years ago, it promised increased prosperity and jobs in the Scottish Borders, but we continue to see sustained job losses in textiles, electronics, farming and tourism. The Scottish Borders has the lowest-waged economy in Scotland—the minister should know that from the statistics. Will he take the opportunity to visit Scottish Enterprise Borders and see what can be done to provide sustainable and decently paid jobs in this worst part of Scotland?

The worst part of Scotland?

I mean for low wages.

The member is genuinely reading from a different script from me. Nobody in the chamber, except Christine Grahame, recognises that description of the Scottish Borders. I would love to pay yet another visit to the Scottish Borders. It is not for me to second-guess the local community planning partners; it is for them to develop their strategy. It is regrettable that companies have had to close, although a strategy for long-term diversification in the local economy cannot be judged after two years.

Scottish Borders has an employment rate of 79 per cent, which is 4 per cent above the Scottish average, and an unemployment rate of 1.7 per cent, which is almost half the Scottish average. Such facts contradict what the member has said and are evidence that the strategy has been successful.

Crap.

In the light of the redundancies, does the minister agree that help should be made available from his department to assist marketing initiatives for the cashmere industry? Will he also review Scottish Enterprise's expenditure on training grants to textiles companies with the intention of increasing expenditure on training grants, which are important in ensuring the future supply of labour to the industry?

Before the minister answers, I remind members that they are in Parliament and that they should watch their language. I am not talking to the minister in particular—I am talking to all members.

I am sorry.

I will certainly bear in mind your strictures, Presiding Officer.

I thank Euan Robson for his more measured question. He raised a number of important issues that relate to how we should help local economies to grow and prosper and how we should help the textiles sector in particular.

Scottish Development International provides £50,000 annually to support and promote the textiles industry internationally. Also, Scottish Enterprise Borders has contributed £419,000 to the Scottish Cashmere Club, for example, which represents 85 per cent of the Borders-based cashmere industry. In addition, there are levers such as regional selective assistance and direct support from Scottish Enterprise Borders. I am sure that the local enterprise company and the local community planning partners will review the level of support. If that level of support needs to be upped to assist the textiles sector, it should be. However, we should not ignore the fact that Kinloch Anderson Limited, Fielding Manufacturing Limited, Donald Brothers Limited and Russell Athletic have all made acquisitions in recent months and that there are a number of success stories as well as problem areas in textiles.

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Crichton University Campus

To ask the Scottish Executive what capital funding may be available to the higher education institutions collaborating on the Crichton university campus in Dumfries to enable them to expand and improve the facilities at the campus. (S2O-8714)

I ask that because I believe that I represent the best part of Scotland.

In the 2004 spending review, specific capital funding of £148 million was allocated to our universities. That funding is designed to support the transformation of the higher education teaching estate. The funding council will allocate the money to individual projects or to institutions. Crichton university campus could receive funding either through its parent institutions—the University of Glasgow, the University of Paisley and Bell College—from formula funding or through project-specific funding if the parent institutions make a successful joint bid.

I will certainly be interested in obtaining further details about that.

So far, the higher education institutions on the Crichton campus have received in the order of £2.3 million, which has enabled them to attract an additional 150 student places, but is the minister aware that a similar collaboration in the south-west of England involving the Combined Universities in Cornwall—the other CUC—has attracted £150 million of objective 1 funding and further and higher education funding, which has enabled it to attract another 4,000 students by 2007? Does he agree that such funding is extremely important to areas such as Dumfries and Galloway, particularly in the light of the unique work that has been done at the Crichton campus in bringing together further and higher education in line with the Scottish Executive's policies? Does he also agree that it is extremely important not only for the furtherance of the Executive's further and higher education policies, but for the local economy in Dumfries and Galloway, that there is capital investment in the Crichton campus that will allow us to attract more students—particularly from overseas—to the campus?

I certainly want the Crichton campus to be developed. Dr Murray quoted some large figures. I make it clear that the Scottish Further and Higher Education Funding Council has already been supportive of Dumfries and Galloway College's plans to develop next door to the Crichton campus site—and therefore, in effect, to develop as part of the development of the Crichton campus—and that £18 million of capital grant has been approved in principle, subject to the confirmation of European regional development funding and the college pursuing other sources of independent funding. It looks as though that ambitious project will go ahead.

Not only are the mainly part-time 1,200 students on site, but Barony College, the Open University and the Scottish Agricultural College all offer provision on the campus. The Crichton campus has been a great success story for all of Dumfries and Galloway and I want to do what I can to encourage its future development. However, it is right that the funding council makes the detailed decisions. I am confident that it can arrive at the best decisions that serve the best interests of higher and further education in Dumfries and Galloway.

I applaud what the minister has said in pointing out the successes of the college.

Does the minister accept that, unless the Executive intervenes to ensure that the Crichton project receives the capital funding that it now requires as a result of those successes, the current partners will be forced to abandon the project altogether? Does he acknowledge the vital role that the campus plays in providing further and higher education in a remote and rural area? Does he also recognise the enormous role that it plays in social inclusion? Will he acknowledge its potential for the regeneration of Dumfries in Galloway and the south of Scotland, just as the university of the Highlands and Islands holds potential in the north of the country?

Let me make it clear that I would strongly resist any hint of the abandonment that Alex Fergusson described and would do whatever I could to prevent that.

It is sometimes difficult to have the right funding structure for rural areas. I know that the funding council is considering the Crichton campus. It is also sometimes difficult to get right the funding structure through which institutions can collaborate. It is up to us all to respond to those challenges and get them right. It is vital that all parts of Scotland, including rural Scotland, get the quality of further and higher education that they need. It is vital that we do that by encouraging institutions to work more closely together and by avoiding an insular approach. If there were any suggestion that such an approach could affect the Crichton campus, I would take whatever steps I reasonably could to prevent it. The success of the Crichton campus has brought provision to an area that traditionally has been underrepresented in higher education. We need to do more rather than less.

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Inverness (Transport Links)

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it considers that levels of investment in improved road and rail links for Inverness since 1999 have been fair or sufficient. (S2O-8720)

Yes. Through processes such as the strategic roads review and the management of the ScotRail franchise, we have identified a balanced programme of improvements, which will bring benefits to all transport users across the whole of Scotland.

The minister is a notoriously observant chap, so he will know that Inverness is Scotland's fastest-growing city, but it lacks dual carriageway links and has a single-track rail link to Perth. Is he aware that a ring road is planned? The Executive has also promised Glasgow a ring road—the M74—for £500 million, and Aberdeen has been promised one for £300 million to £400 million. The Executive has also committed a round figure to Inverness's ring road: zero. Is he aware that it has been suggested that Tesco should, in respect of planning gain, contribute £13 million to Inverness's ring road? Inverness has no Scottish Executive, but it has a Tesco. Is Inverness the city that Jack and Tavish forgot?

We had such a constructive debate this morning and agreed on so many aviation issues that I thought that that good principle could have continued this afternoon. However, I suppose that one out of two is not too bad when it comes to disagreeing with Fergus Ewing. Not for the first time, he talked a load of rubbish. He started by saying that there were no dual carriageway links around Inverness. The last time I drove to Inverness, there were several dual carriageway links all the way up the A9 and through the Black Isle and other areas. Perhaps Mr Ewing could state a few facts, although I know that facts never worry him.

Moreover, between 2001 and 2005, £54 million has been spent on maintenance and minor improvements on a variety of routes around Inverness. I believe that those minor improvements have been pretty important, given the safety challenges that we faced and given the representations that, time and again, we received from different individuals. If Mr Ewing chooses to disparage those improvements, he may do so, but that is certainly not what I would do.

In addition to that investment in roads, through Network Rail we have invested £10 million to £20 million on rail routes around Inverness in each of the past three years—including £17 million this year alone.