Scottish Parliament, 24 May 2012

300 contributions from 77 members. The official report.

Business Motion

Tricia Marwick (None, Mid Fife and Glenrothes)

Good morning. The first item of business is consideration of business motion S4M-03013, in the name of Bruce Crawford, on behalf of the Parliamentary Bureau, setting out a timetable for stage 3 proceedings on the Alcohol (Minimum Pricing) (Scotland) Bill.

Motion moved,

That the Parliament agrees that, during Stage 3 of the Alcohol (Minimum Pricing) (Scotland) Bill, debate on groups of amendments shall, subject to Rule 9.8.4A, be brought to a conclusion by the time limit indicated, that time limit being calculated from when the stage begins and excluding any periods when other business is under consideration or when a meeting of the Parliament is suspended (other than a suspension following the first division in the stage being called) or otherwise not in progress:

Groups 1 to 3: 1 hour 20 minutes.—[Bruce Crawford.]

Motion agreed to.

Languages (Improving Opportunities)

Tricia Marwick (None, Mid Fife and Glenrothes)

The next item of business is a debate on motion S4M-03004, in the name of Alasdair Allan, on why languages matter—improving young people’s opportunities.

Alasdair Allan (Scottish National Party, Na h-Eileanan an Iar)

Bonjour. Guten Tag. I am delighted to open the debate on why languages matter—improving young people’s opportunities. This is a welcome opportunity to discuss where Scotland stands in terms of language learning and what aspirations we should have for our young people and society in engaging with an increasingly globalised world. The debate follows on from the publication last week of the languages working group report, which meets our commitment in the curriculum for excellence action plan that the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Lifelong Learning announced on 21 September last year.

As someone with a passion for languages, I believe that the case for languages is pretty self-evident. It strikes me as intrinsically interesting that Norwegian puts the definite article on the end of a noun or that Gaelic has no words for yes and no. However, as last year’s modern languages excellence group report set out, in Scotland and elsewhere in the United Kingdom, we are often confronted with negative or lukewarm attitudes towards learning other languages. Perhaps the most disappointing of all such attitudes was one that I heard in the media this week, when someone suggested that teaching languages might somehow be “wasted” on children from working-class backgrounds. I am happy to say that that was not the dominant reaction.

The excellence group report stated the positive case for language learning, framing it within the benefits that language learning offers the individual learner as well as the economy and society. The report also sought to debunk common myths about languages, such as the idea that everyone in the world speaks English and that therefore learning other languages is unnecessary. In fact, 75 per cent of people in the world do not speak English and, of those who do, most do so as a second language. In any case, that view ignores research that points to the competitive advantage that multilingual youngsters from other countries bring to the competition for jobs with their UK counterparts in global companies and organisations.

The Government is determined to be ambitious for the people of Scotland. In last year’s election, our manifesto included a commitment to introduce, over the course of two sessions of Parliament, a norm for language learning in schools that is based on the European 1+2 model, to create the conditions in which every child will learn two languages in addition to their mother tongue.

We therefore set up the languages working group to consider how a 1+2 model might be delivered, taking account of Scotland’s circumstances. In particular, the group was asked to consider how such a model could be delivered within the framework of curriculum for excellence. The working group report, which was published last week, and the accompanying report on the link between languages and employability further emphasise the economic benefits of improving the language learning experience of Scotland’s young people. The reports also present a strong argument for giving our children and young people the opportunity to learn languages from an early age, thereby providing them with similar opportunities to those that are available to their counterparts in many other countries.

We need to recognise that multilingualism among children and young people is viewed as a norm in many parts of Europe in a way that is almost difficult to believe in Scotland. When I visited Luxembourg some years ago, I was astonished to see that almost every nursery school, it seems, advertises the fact that it is capable of operating in not two but five languages: Luxemburgish, French, German, English and the main immigrant language in that country, which is Portuguese. In Friesland, in the Netherlands, I know of at least one school where children are expected to be fluent in Frisian, Dutch and English by the age of eight. In France, they are rethinking their language teaching with a new plan that includes an increased focus on early years learning, on improving the language teaching skills of kindergarten teachers and on how primary school staff can learn language teaching skills from secondary school teachers.

By way of contrast, in Scotland we have seen a steady decline in the overall uptake of languages at secondary over a number of years. That is inconsistent with a modern globalised world in which people travel widely for jobs and leisure and speak several languages. I believe that it is now time for Scotland to create a cultural and educational environment that can help to attract children and young people to learning other languages; one that shows how languages can open doors to new cultures and literatures and that helps young people to see the world in different ways, as well as offering them many practical and economic advantages.

Many schools are already working hard to provide young people with opportunities to develop a deeper understanding of other cultures, both European and non-European, through the study of languages. In addition, over the past couple of decades we have developed in Scotland a successful example of bilingual education in the Gaelic-medium sector. We now have many excellent examples of Gaelic-medium education in schools throughout Scotland and our aim is to see that ideal promoted and expanded. We are also seeing young people using their Gaelic language skills in post-school education and in employment.

The introduction of Chinese into some of our schools and the contribution of the Confucius hub schools have helped many children and young people to develop a better understanding of a culture that is considerably different from our own, ranging from an introduction to tai chi, to an understanding of what it is like to be a pupil in China.

Confidence in languages can lead young people to form strong relationships with their peers in other countries, as pupils at John Ogilvie high school in South Lanarkshire have done with young people in Spain. Such examples show that it is possible to overcome the cultural, societal and attitudinal barriers to language learning that we often encounter in Scotland.

As a Government, we recognise the possibilities for young people’s life chances that come from learning other languages. We want schools to work towards a new model of language learning and teaching that is based on the mother tongue plus two additional languages, as first set out in the European Union’s Barcelona agreement of 2002. We acknowledge that this is a bold and ambitious objective—one to be delivered over several years.

The languages group has come forward with 35 recommendations. I am grateful for the work of Simon Macaulay, who chaired the group, and to all those who contributed to its deliberations. The group has sought to strike a balance between the level of ambition that a 1+2 model represents and an honest critique of where we are starting from.

I asked for a radical report, and the group did not disappoint me. I welcome the group’s key messages: that Scotland can and must do more to provide our young people with a better language learning experience; that language learning is life enhancing and can enable our young people to participate more fully in a globalised society and economy; and that Scotland’s increasing diversity of languages, including Scotland’s own languages, should be celebrated. I also welcome the group’s considered view that although introducing two additional languages is an ambitious goal, it is one that, over time and with the engagement of all those with a broad mind or an interest in languages, can be delivered.

I do not intend to respond today to all 35 of the group’s recommendations. Some of them will need some time for careful consideration and discussion with stakeholders. However, I am particularly pleased to see the group’s recommendations in relation to language learning at primary school—in particular, its recommendation that Scotland needs to start language learning earlier, from primary 1, rather than from primary 6, which is currently the norm for most schools.

Malcolm Chisholm (Labour, Edinburgh Northern and Leith)

I welcome the key messages in the report. The report says that in most European countries children start to learn a second language between the ages of six and nine. What is the evidence for starting them at four or five rather than at seven or eight? I am aware of the evidence of the advantages for children of being brought up bilingually from birth, but I genuinely wonder what evidence there is of the advantage of starting them at four or five rather than seven or eight, which seems to be the norm in Europe.

Alasdair Allan (Scottish National Party, Na h-Eileanan an Iar)

I thank the member for that considered point. The situation varies very much not just from country to country, but from school to school. We would be realistic about what kind of language learning a four or five-year-old would be asked to undertake—we would not expect fluency or anything resembling it from a four or five-year-old. Nevertheless, I think that we should introduce four and five-year-olds to the concept that there are other languages out there. In the past, that concept has not been introduced to such young people in our schools.

Liam McArthur (Liberal Democrat, Orkney Islands)

Will the minister take an intervention?

Alasdair Allan (Scottish National Party, Na h-Eileanan an Iar)

I have just taken one. Give me a moment.

Liam McArthur (Liberal Democrat, Orkney Islands)

It is on that point.

Alasdair Allan (Scottish National Party, Na h-Eileanan an Iar)

Well, why not?

Liam McArthur (Liberal Democrat, Orkney Islands)

I thank the minister for relenting. My comment relates to Malcolm’s Chisholm’s point. A lot of the evidence suggests that, by the time that children reach the age of seven or eight, they are far more self-aware and inhibited about their learning. Therefore, if the process of learning a language starts a bit earlier, by the time that they reach seven or eight, they will have a fluency that will give them the confidence to go on.

Alasdair Allan (Scottish National Party, Na h-Eileanan an Iar)

I readily agree with that. The younger that we introduce language learning, the more receptive children are likely to be to it. Implementation of the recommendations around that will set a bold new direction for language learning in Scotland’s schools. The policy will help to reinforce the ambition for modern languages as expressed in the curriculum for excellence, which is about raising the bar, with all young people expected to reach at least the second level by the end of primary.

However, the group was aware that current experience has shown that modern languages, when left to primaries 6 and 7, can be vulnerable and are sometimes reduced to an add-on with limited input, which makes it very difficult to reach the desired level. Therefore, the group took the view that a new approach was needed, with language learning beginning in primary 1 and being embedded in the fabric of the primary curriculum. By the end of primary 7, having started vibrant language learning in primary 1, young people will have a deeper understanding of how language works, a deeper understanding of their first additional language, in particular, and better skills in talking, listening, reading and writing in the modern language than was possible previously.

We recognise that the proposals will set significant challenges for our schools. However, some schools are already providing earlier access to language learning and are offering more than one additional language. Only last week, I visited Sacred Heart primary school in Bridgeton, Glasgow, where I saw a deeply committed staff teaching not one but four modern languages, with all pupils learning at least one additional language from primary 1.

The group also recommends that young people should be introduced to a second language by primary 5. It proposes that that be done through a planned interdisciplinary approach to second language learning in primaries 5 to 7 and in the broad general education at secondary school. Initially, a second modern language need not be learned to the same depth as the first one but could be built on later, in the senior phase.

We recognise that an earlier start to language learning also raises challenges for schools’ capacity to deliver. Some teachers may not have undergone language training and others may wish to update their language skills. However, we know that there is untapped potential in the system, with many teachers who are trained in languages not having the opportunity to make use of their current language training.

The Government has proposed a budget for developing the Scottish schools curriculum. Within that, and subject to parliamentary agreement of the next budget bill in 2013-14, we intend to provide initial funding of £4 million on top of the £4 million that is already provided to local authorities for languages to pursue our ambitious aims and to enable young people in primary 1 to start learning a second language. We will discuss that and other questions with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and local authorities in due course.

Kezia Dugdale (Labour, Lothian)

Will the minister give way?

Alasdair Allan (Scottish National Party, Na h-Eileanan an Iar)

I am in my last minute.

In the meantime, we will provide £120,000 to fund pilot projects to be run in the 2012-13 school year by Education Scotland and Scotland’s national centre for languages, which will demonstrate ways in which we can move towards a 1+2 model. The projects will raise the profile of modern languages in schools and demonstrate ways of introducing more languages in a way that will motivate and enthuse learners. The messages from the projects will be shared to inform the future development of language learning from 2013-14 onwards.

In conclusion, our commitment to a new direction in language learning sends a strong signal that Scotland is open to business and to the world and that we are determined to ensure that our young people have every advantage that their multilingual peers have elsewhere. I hope that that ambition will excite and encourage everyone with an interest in language learning and that it will command wide support.

I move,

That the Parliament agrees that, in today’s globalised world, learning other languages is more important than ever and that it is in Scotland’s economic and cultural interests that young Scots are able to speak other languages; notes the report of the Languages Working Group and its recommendation that children should learn another language from primary 1; supports the Scottish Government’s far-sighted and ambitious aim to enable all young people to learn two languages in addition to their mother tongue during their time at school, and welcomes the Scottish Government’s plans for a pilot project programme for 2012-13 to demonstrate how the aims of the 1+2 Barcelona model of language learning can be turned into a reality in Scotland over the course of two parliamentary sessions.

Neil Findlay (Labour, Lothian)

Merci, Presiding Officer. I can provide that to the official report if you require, but I do not think that I will worry the interpreters much more in my speech.

Even though I, like tens of thousands of Scots, am able, when the occasion demands it, to drag up from the darkest depths of my memory some limited, pidgin French that I can use when on holiday in France to find the nearest bistro, brasserie, vineyard or football match—take your choice—Ianguages largely passed me by. That is a situation that affects all too many of us. I am afraid that my only language skills are in industrial language. I am not certified, but I reckon that I could be at PhD level in it.

Scottish Labour supports the sentiments of what the Government is proposing. However, far be it from me to indulge in a sterile debate or a round of ministerial back slapping. We support the principles of extending language provision, but we see a number of areas that require further scrutiny. We will, of course, offer constructive advice where we see fit. As the minister and his team know, the Labour education team is always willing to offer help to the Government.

I thank and commend the Scottish languages working group for a laudable and potentially important contribution to what is a vital debate about languages and language teaching in Scotland’s schools. On page six of the report, the group states:

“Language learning is life enhancing. It opens the doors to possibilities and experiences which are not available to those who are restricted to the knowledge of one language ... Through learning new languages young people can become successful learners with opportunities relating to working and travelling abroad”.

I think that we would all agree with those sentiments.

How many times have many of us, while abroad on holiday, on business or for whatever reason, suffered in embarrassed silence due to our inability to communicate in the language of the country that we are visiting? That individual deficiency is bad enough, but the working group also estimates that our failure to teach languages in a comprehensive and universal fashion amounts to what one commentator said last week is a language tax that costs the Scottish economy £500 million. For economic, educational and cultural reasons, it is abundantly clear that we have to become more multilingual.

The working group has made some positive recommendations. The 1+2 suggestion of having primary school children learn a language other than English from P1 and another by P5 is one that we support. As the minister said, it fits the model that exists across Europe. If implemented effectively, it has the potential to transform our ability to communicate, with the obvious knock-on benefits that that will have.

However, we have some concerns and, to be fair, we are not the only ones. The working group itself stated that, in relation to current language teaching in primary schools,

“there are concerns that some primary children do not have access to an additional language due to staffing, training or funding issues, or other perceived curricular priorities.”

Anecdotal evidence suggests that, at present, language provision in primary schools is often ad hoc and inconsistent due to those pressures and others. Such issues are raised repeatedly, not just in relation to language provision but in other areas of the school curriculum.

We need to look at the proposals against the background of the realities that schools today face. We have to remember that there are widespread and sustained cuts in the public sector, including in education. Since 2007, that has manifested itself in nearly 4,000 teaching posts being lost across Scotland. Many newly qualified teachers who perhaps have the necessary language skills cannot get work, and supply teaching is in crisis in some areas. The rector of a school in my area, for example, told me that their school had been down one modern language teacher for around six months, I think, and could not get supply cover.

The number of foreign language assistants is down from 300 in 2005-06 to just 59 in 2011-12. The languages working group said that foreign language assistants

“will have a key role to play in successful implementation of a 1+2 policy.”

The minister did not mention language assistants. In summing up, will he confirm how work with the British Council and others will ensure that more foreign language assistants will be introduced back into our schools?

What about the cost of and funding for the roll-out? The minister mentioned that, in 2008, £4 million was given to local authorities to support language provision. Funding has been rolled up into general local government settlements, but the working group stated:

“if delivery of the 1+2 language policy is to be successful, further dedicated resources will be required.”

How will those dedicated resources be provided? Funding of £4 million seems rather a small amount in light of our challenge. We need more information on that.

The working group acknowledged the need to upskill teachers and for a commitment to extensive continuing professional development. It stated:

“There will be significant organisational, resource and staffing issues from Primary 1 onwards ... There will need to be sufficient numbers of primary teachers, appropriately trained, confident and competent in language teaching.”

Information on how that matter will be addressed was largely absent from the minister’s opening statement.

From our discussions with the teaching profession, we know that it understands fully the need for a major training initiative to implement such a programme, but there is, of course, a big resource issue. What commitment is there to provide the funding for the teachers and training that will be needed for the national roll-out to be successful, should the pilots be so? Since the announcement was made, I have spoken to many teachers and a number of young people about their experiences of learning a language in primary and secondary school. The constant theme is exposure to languages too late and a lack of consistency from primary through to secondary school. I agree that we need to catch young people early in their education and that they need to be immersed in the language, not drip-fed.

Currently, many pupils in secondary school end their language experience in second year. That is especially true of boys, who largely opt out of taking languages. As we already know, the number of pupils who take highers in the main languages is decreasing, and for languages such as German the decline is significant. If the proposals are to work, consideration will have to be given to how schools offer subjects and how they will manage an already crowded curriculum, which will become even more crowded when Scottish studies comes on stream. In his summing up, perhaps the minister can say how those issues will be addressed.

We are concentrating on schools, but there are other missed opportunities for developing language skills in Scotland. Many people want to learn a language later in life, because of experiences in business or on holiday for example. My father-in-law is fluent in French and he began to learn it only 10 years ago. That was because of experiences that he had later in life. We should consider enabling people to learn throughout their lives through workplace learning, for example.

Finally, will the minister clarify what plans the Government has for the pilot schemes? How will they be monitored and evaluated? When does the minister plan to publish details of them? I urge that, when he establishes the pilot areas, he makes them broad and representative. By that, I mean that they should take in urban and rural schools—as there are particular issues, in respect of supply teaching for example, for rural schools—primary and secondary schools, and schools in areas with very different socioeconomic indicators, not least because, as the working group stated,

“the biggest educational challenge faced by legislators and educators alike is in raising educational attainment for children in areas of high social deprivation.”

To conclude, I reiterate our broad support for the objectives of the policy. The points that we have raised have been raised in good faith, and we all want to see the policy succeed.

I move amendment S4M-03004.1, to leave out from “supports” to end and insert:

“acknowledges the decline in language course take-up in secondary schools; recognises that developing language skills from an early age is best supported by well-trained teachers and language assistants; notes that the numbers of both have reduced significantly since 2007, and calls on the Scottish Government to identify how any future roll-out of the proposed pilot projects would be funded to allow all young people to start learning a second language from primary 1.”

Elizabeth Smith (Conservative, Mid Scotland and Fife)

In recent weeks politicians, including many in this Parliament, have been on the receiving end of some very blunt advice from employers in Scotland, much of it relating to the employability—or, sadly, otherwise—of some of our graduates and young apprentices. Some of that advice, which in many respects is similar to the advice that Willy Roe provided when he produced his report a year ago, has not made for comfortable reading. Too many youngsters are being castigated for a poor grasp of basic numeracy and literacy, for a lack of effective communication skills, for a failure to recognise the need for teamwork, for not having appropriate expectations in the workplace and, sadly, for not showing too much commitment. There has also been criticism when it comes to science, technology, engineering and mathematics—the STEM subjects—and foreign language skills, particularly from companies that are heavily involved in the production of major Scottish exports.

As the minister has said, the statistics for language teaching also give slight cause for concern. There has been a significant decline in the number of young people in the United Kingdom studying some of the key modern languages, and that has been accompanied in Scotland by similar declines in the numbers studying for some Scottish Qualifications Authority higher exam subjects, particularly German and French. The education and employers task force concluded that the UK has the worst language skills of the 27 European Union countries.

There has been concern in some quarters about teacher training places in foreign languages. There is obviously a very sharp concern about the decline in the number of foreign language assistants and, in particular, the number of local authorities who are now taking them on.

Although it would be easy to exaggerate the extent of the problem, far too many people—including many key employers—are speaking about it for us to ignore the need for radical improvement and for refocusing on the correct priorities.

I compliment the Scottish Government on its motion, but we must be thoroughly realistic—I am in some agreement with the Labour Party in this respect—about tackling the malaise that currently makes us bottom of the class. Apart from pursuing the laudable aims that are contained in the report, we must listen carefully to what language teachers are saying.

First, they are saying that when schools choose to start languages in primary school, it is essential that they ensure that the teachers have adequate subject knowledge and are fluent speakers themselves. Obviously, there must be a passion and enthusiasm not only for teaching the language but for its culture.

Secondly, they make the important point that there must be progression in the learning. It must not just be a varied selection of bits and pieces, or what many schools describe as taster lessons; there must be a methodical progression if we are to ensure that the subject can be properly developed in secondary school, otherwise I think that we lose some pupils and we certainly lose some teachers who might otherwise aspire to go on and develop other languages.

They also make the very strong point that we cannot expect there to be sufficient rigour in language teaching unless the pupils have a proficiency in English. Many language teachers will say that they find life increasingly difficult because too many of their pupils come to them without a good grasp of basic grammar in English and therefore, naturally, have little chance of picking up a second language, never mind a third.

Alasdair Allan (Scottish National Party, Na h-Eileanan an Iar)

I appreciate many of the sentiments that the member has expressed. On her last point, does she also agree that, for pupils who are perhaps challenged by literacy, the experience of exposure to other languages and, indeed, to the whole concept of grammar and language learning may well improve their abilities in their own language?

Elizabeth Smith (Conservative, Mid Scotland and Fife)

Yes. I do not deny that for a minute. However, the point that the language teachers are making is that it enhances pupils’ ability to learn the structures of another language if they have the competence in English in the first place. We must be very careful about that, because it is a point that they all make. It is an important issue.

As Neil Findlay pointed out, there has been a very substantial decline in the number of foreign language assistants. I do not think that we can sit back and simply accept that. I understand that there are huge financial pressures on local authorities and that it is very difficult for them to ensure that they can provide employment for those people, but let me suggest two things that we might consider doing.

First, there is a huge wealth of talent among our retired teachers of languages in schools. I do not believe that we cannot use their expertise and services by asking them to help in classrooms as assistants, especially when many of them are willing to do that. We should also at least pursue the opportunity presented by the fact that some people in business—particularly those who are key in the export industries—might be prepared to put a little money into helping to provide language assistants in our classrooms. The Government would do well to look at that.

The curriculum must have a firm and renewed focus, so that sufficient time is made available for teaching languages. We should be under no illusion about the logistics involved in that. How often have we heard teachers complain that their subject has been diluted in recent years because they have had to share a timetable space or to miss out on pupil contact time in specific year groups—for example, by providing one social science in secondary 1 and another social science in S2? As has been mentioned, we must not forget that coming into the equation is the Scottish Government’s policy on Scottish studies, for example, for which additional space must be found. There are plenty of practical things to think about. We must ensure that enough curriculum space is available and that course content has sufficient rigour.

A not unrelated issue is the role that languages can play in university entrance and ensuring that appropriate credit is given to languages in the group of qualifications with which a student seeks a place at university. Some of the decline in the number of pupils who sit SQA exams in languages began at the same time as fewer universities required pupils to have an additional language in their S4 and S5 exam diet. When we are debating the merits of a baccalaureate system, there is an opportunity to look at how that might play out in relation to university entrance.

I have no difficulty with the broad aims of the Scottish Government’s proposals. Addressing the languages problem is long overdue, but the policy needs to be carefully thought through so that we do not just pay lip service to a worthy ambition. There must be consistency, a methodical and rigorous approach and the necessary practical adjustments to the timetable to make the aim happen.

I have pleasure in moving amendment S4M-03004.2, to insert at end:

“, but recognises that this ambitious programme cannot be achieved without renewed focus on the training of qualified foreign language teachers and without substantially increasing the number of foreign language assistants in Scotland’s schools.”

Marco Biagi (Scottish National Party, Edinburgh Central)

Members will be delighted to hear that I will attempt no linguistic feats—it took me long enough to rehearse my affirmation last year. I have enough difficulty with the English language some of the time.

My starting point is what the languages working group took as its starting point:

“the confident belief that learning another language has positive educational benefits”.

It is perhaps worth taking a moment to examine that belief, which is based on the “Study on the Contribution of Multilingualism to Creativity”, which was written for the European Commission in 1999. That study has been quoted by, among others, the languages working group and the modern languages excellence group, and the minister alluded to it.

The study set out a wide range of benefits of language learning, which apply not just to the ability to master languages but across the curriculum. It was led by a Finland-based—although Anglophone—academic and it summarised 30 years of research in about as many pages. It also included primary attitudinal research about attitudes to language learning. It will come as no surprise to anyone here that people in English-speaking Europe—which I presume means the UK and Ireland—were the least convinced of the benefits of multilingualism. That is a cultural problem that is recognised widely—by the languages working group’s report, by the modern languages excellence group and by everybody in civic society who has commented since the working group’s report was published. Unless we are united in challenging such beliefs head on, we might as well not even bother being here.

However, there is one thing that we must accept. Skirting round it or pretending that it is not the case will not help. Much of Europe has one automatic first foreign language to learn—English. All the research on success in language learning schools that I have come across—whether it is from the Carleton board of education in Canada in 1996, from SCILT, Scotland’s national centre for languages, in 2001 or the 2008 study on Walker Road primary in Aberdeen, which undertook an early immersion project—links effectiveness in language learning to exposure.

The playground and classroom-immersion school has better results than the language-medium school, which in turn has better results than the traditional subject-teaching approach. When we consider that, it becomes clear that, although being endlessly bombarded with Hollywood films or Anglophone pop music might be one person’s cultural imperialism, it is another person’s head start in multilingualism.

The reverse is simply not the case. We do not turn on the television and trip over Deutsche Welle, and the average exposure in pop music is an occasional line in French or German in a Lady Gaga song. That is not the stuff on which fluency is built or maintained.

Neil Findlay (Labour, Lothian)

As the member will know, we are about to have the Eurovision song contest, so maybe his horizons will be expanded.

Marco Biagi (Scottish National Party, Edinburgh Central)

As a passionate Eurovision fan—that might not come as a surprise—I can say that it is noticeable that since the language restrictions of the 1990s, whereby all songs were required to be submitted in the native language, were lifted, Ireland and the UK, which had the advantage of the English language, have stopped doing as well as they used to do. There is perhaps an interesting point in there somewhere.

In this country, the choice of second language is not automatic, so we have to make an active case for the language that we teach. French has been the default language for a long time, but German, demand for which has declined, and Spanish and other languages of Latin America and the far east, demand for which has grown, all compete for a limited slot, and a considerable case has to be made to win over the minds of adults. The Barcelona agreement contains an ambitious target, which will be especially ambitious for Scotland.

In preparation for the debate, I looked up last year’s standard grade exam in German reading, to see how much I could remember from my schooldays. I think that, with a dictionary and a bit of luck, I might have made a decent stab at it, but I took German far beyond standard grade, and I do not think that the ability to muddle my way through the exam constitutes a basis for a claim to multilingualism. Our stats on people who take languages at standard grade show a consistent downward trend.

Turning the trend around will never be easy, but there is an obligation in that regard. If, as I said, multilingualism brings benefits and the rest of Europe has a head start, we must ensure that we do not allow permanent disadvantage to emerge relative to the rest of Europe. We have a duty to the Scottish society of tomorrow.

Professor Richard Johnstone, writing for SCILT in 2002, said that immersion is:

“In most cases ... not simply an educational initiative but has a powerful underlying socio-cultural rationale, which gives it its driving force and creates the commitment to it, without which it is unlikely to succeed.”

He gave examples such as the approach in Canada, which has distinctive cultural relations, and the 50-50 Spanish-English schools in immigrant-heavy parts of the United States. We need something similar if we are to succeed. Pilots would be a great start, but in a decade’s time we must have such nationwide recognition of the importance of languages.

It is important that those of us who can only stumble over a sentence of a foreign language that is half-remembered from school hold up our hands and admit that we have not set the best example. It is easy to load responsibility on to the next generation and say that education is the solution, but we must acknowledge that adult expectations and behaviour will matter a great deal if we want to reach the 1+2 Barcelona target.

Claudia Beamish (Labour, South Scotland)

Thank you, Presiding Officer. If I translated my speech into French, I would need a lot longer than your generous six minutes.

Claudia Beamish (Labour, South Scotland)

I will stick to my own language. I rise today to speak in support of the Government’s motion and our amendment, which concern the ambition to improve the opportunities that are available for young people to engage with modern languages, and I want to raise a number of issues to do with how we make that a reality.

At the launch of the report, the minister spoke of moving beyond a monolingual society. That is, of course, necessary in part for the economy and for tourism. Although it might be argued that English is the language of business, if someone is conducting foreign business, it is essential that they are able to speak reasonably in the language of the other country. As a member of the cross-party group on China, I highlight our commitment to developing Scotland’s relations with China. That is in part for mutual trade benefits. It must surely seem arrogant and even postcolonial to think it appropriate to conduct a meeting about renewable energy systems in Tianjin in English rather than Mandarin. In that context, the Confucius Institute’s pilot primary school Mandarin programme is most welcome.

The minister has stressed the issue of competitive advantage in the global job market. My daughter, Freya, lives in Hong Kong. When I spoke to her on Viber this morning, she acknowledged, without being prompted, that her getting a job as an economist in China had as much to do with her learning of Mandarin over five summers as it had to do with her—hopefully good—economic skills.

Working in a rural primary school as a French teacher with a multi-composite class, I was delighted to see the enthusiasm among pupils every year when they were able to choose something French to research, such as how la tour Eiffel was built, where the beret came from, and the essence of haute couture.

As other members have said, foreign language assistants are a crucial part of teaching languages. They bring not only a knowledge of the language but an authenticity to the teaching of it and they can encourage pupils to develop an understanding of the culture. I welcomed the news last month from the British Council that more language assistants are to be employed in Scotland, but there has been a huge decline, as highlighted by Neil Findlay. I will not go into the figures again, as they have already been quoted. However, the expected rise in the numbers of assistants will take them only to 70, of whom 24 will work outside the state system. I understand that the Scottish Government’s funding of such programmes through the British Council has also fallen. There must be investment in order to achieve good results.

Foreign exchanges also bring different cultures alive. A group of primary 7 pupils from my daughter’s school brought back a pack of frozen frogs’ legs from Dieppe and started sawing it up to take home to parents. Délicieux!

In an article in The Independent entitled “Why learning languages matters”, Dr Shirley Lawes made a plea for language to be learned for its own sake and stated:

“The study of a foreign language has a unique transformational capacity that differentiates it from other subject disciplines in the potential that knowledge of foreign languages has of opening individuals up to human culture.”

That enables understanding of different ways of life and encourages tolerance. In the words of the veteran language teacher Eric Hawkins, foreign languages serve to

“emancipate the learner from parochialism.”

New languages enrich our experience. Another culture can be brought alive by different words, such as “clapotis”, which means the sound of little waves lapping on a quayside and has no equivalent in our language.

Gaining an understanding of the grammatical structure of a foreign language can also feed back into a deepening understanding of how to use our own to best effect. I would also advocate ensuring that children and young people understand the syntax of our own language. Indeed, although it is not very modern, the study of Latin can be invaluable in the understanding of language, and I personally believe that it is a great pity that Lanark grammar school, where my children happened to go, is now one of the few high schools in Scotland that still teach it.

I agree with the Scottish Government’s languages working group that the earlier someone starts to learn a new language, the better. The pilot project in East Renfrewshire involving children learning French from their pre-school year is a good example. The pilot started in 2002 and uses songs, rhymes and games to encourage children to learn a foreign language in the same way as they learned their mother tongue.

It is only in the past year that those children will move on to a secondary school setting, so the analysis of what impact that method of teaching has had will only now begin. However, it is clear that, as other members have stressed, by starting at an early age, the children do not have the inhibitions of later life and they grow up understanding language and having increased confidence in their ability to learn new things.

When I was learning, many people in my generation lacked the confidence to take the risk of speaking a foreign language, even if they were in a campsite with kids in France, Germany or wherever. Often, that was due to how they were taught. These days in our primary schools, in the context of curriculum for excellence, the range of methods that are used—including games, role plays, visual materials and talking in groups and with partners—mean that saying, “Salut!” and opening a conversation is fun rather than traumatic.

I disagree with Liz Smith: there is a clear methodology underpinning language teaching at primary level. The working group emphasises that

“local authorities should provide regular opportunities for primary and secondary languages staff to work together ... to undertake shared CPD”.

As a primary French teacher, I would argue that such work will aid the transition to secondary school and ensure that children are no longer turned off from the more rigid and perhaps less participatory ways of learning at secondary level.

Equity must be at the centre of the development of the new strategy for modern languages. As Neil Findlay stressed, rural schools and those in more deprived areas must not be disadvantaged by the challenge of finding and retaining modern language teachers. If the working group’s report and recommendations are actioned consistently, we will, in a generation, have teachers who are leaving teacher training ready and able to teach modern languages, and children who know that part of growing up as a global citizen involves speaking one or two other languages.

Enfin, if the first way to connect with another country is through its language, the second way is perhaps through its cuisine. I wish everyone today, “Buon appetito!” for the Italian lunch in the Scottish Parliament canteen.

Maureen Watt (Scottish National Party, Aberdeen South and North Kincardine)

I am delighted to take part in the debate. Many members in the chamber already know of my passion for language learning and how knowledge of languages certainly helped my career development. Strange as it may seem, I would not have been able to enter the oil and gas industry if I had not been able to speak German.

Members may expect me to concentrate on Scottish languages, as I have taken my oath three times in Doric and am a strong supporter of Gaelic-medium education. However, I do not intend to focus on those languages this morning, although they form a strong basis for learning other languages. The reading bus in Aberdeen does wonderful work in promoting the Doric language, and Gaelic-medium schools such as Gilcomstoun school in Aberdeen do sterling work in promoting multilingualism.

I do not know how we have come to be so dismissive in recent decades of the need to speak and understand other languages, but that is totally unacceptable in a globalised society, and I welcome the initiative from the minister. As an article that appeared in The Observer some time ago said,

“Entre nous, the idea we need only English is totally passé. Without a commitment to language teaching we condemn our children to a tongue-tied future.”

The charity Children in Scotland reminds us that around 137 languages in addition to English are spoken in this country, and that we have around 10,000 bilingual or multilingual children. We must build on that. Research shows that learning a second language builds on the first language and consolidates it, and children do not become confused when they are exposed in their early years to two or more languages.

Marco Biagi mentioned the recent pilot project in my constituency at Walker Road primary school, which showed the benefits of total immersion learning in maths, geography, environmental studies and other subjects in French. That resulted in those children presenting early for standard grade when they went to secondary school, and it increased their ability to learn a second language at secondary level.

My plea is that it is not only French that should be children’s first encounter with another language. My own local authority, Aberdeenshire, went from offering a choice of French or German to offering just French. I am sure that that put a lot of children off learning a language, especially when there are so many affinities between Doric and German that could be built on.

We must use the skills of teachers and parents, and others in our communities, to introduce children to the diversity of languages, and we must use this opportunity to review the way in which we teach languages. Curriculum for excellence offers exciting opportunities in that field. It is not—as Liz Smith believes—about finding more time but about combining language learning with other subjects.

When I, as we all do, visit schools and speak to children, I always promote language learning as much as I can. The minister posed the question of its use to working-class kids; I always ask the boys who want to be footballers what they would do about languages if they were good enough to play in Spain or Italy—and I always see a light going on in their heads.

Teachers seem to face unnecessary barriers when they organise school exchange trips. A friend of mine who teaches languages at Alford academy told me that there had been a suggestion that German families be disclosure checked, which I think is going over the score somewhat. Although the Confucius hubs have been introduced, I am not sure whether they have been kept up across the whole of Scotland, and I ask the minister to ensure that they are all operating as intended.

Many companies are also interested in helping with language promotion. Every year, my old company, KCA Deutag, sponsors two secondary school children on a work experience trip to its headquarters in the German town of Bad Bentheim, and I know that rotary clubs used to help with student exchanges to various countries.

We must make it easier for language assistants to be used in our schools. Those assistants might already be living in our communities, but they might also be students in, for example, the Erasmus programme. Traditionally, there have tended to be more students coming to Scotland than Scottish students going in the other direction, but there has been much progress in that area in recent years. For example, the number of Robert Gordon University students going to other countries is now the same as the number who come here to go to that university.

Actually, the Scottish figures for the Erasmus programme make exciting reading. Scotland now accounts for 12.6 per cent of the total number of UK students in the programme, with 1,507 taking part in 2009-10 and 1,273 the year before. However, although that represents a total increase of 26.8 per cent in two years, the percentage of the Scottish student population in the Erasmus programme is still very low, at 0.7 per cent. That is still slightly higher than the English figure of 0.5 per cent but nowhere near the figure for France, which is 1.4 per cent, or for Spain, which is 2 per cent.

All, though, is not doom and gloom. I know one young lady who, as a young child, was exposed to “Salut Serge” CDs on car journeys; who took French in primary and secondary school and in one year—her sixth year—got her higher Spanish; and who at the University of Glasgow furthered her French and Spanish with business studies. She took French and German in her second year and next year is going to Toulouse University, where she will take all her classes in French and where she hopes to deepen her knowledge of Spanish and start Mandarin. She was one of more than 200 at the Erasmus induction meeting at the University of Glasgow the other week—and I have to say that I am disappointed that, as my friend Sandra White will point out, Glasgow is reducing the breadth of the languages available at the university while Toulouse offers 13 choices.

Cue one proud mum of this young lady—I practise what I preach.

Stuart McMillan (Scottish National Party, West Scotland)

When I was listening to Claudia Beamish’s closing comments about Italian, I was taken back to the time when I studied in France and Germany. As a vegetarian at the time, I have to admit that I found living in those two countries—I also studied in Sweden—a bit of a challenge.

I am delighted to be taking part in the debate not as a member of the Education and Culture Committee but as someone who has studied and, indeed, struggled with languages. Although I have come close to tears of despair with them, I felt elated when a lecturer told me that I could now speak French.

I whole-heartedly support the motion in the name of the minister. My only sadness is that such a motion was not one of the first debated by the Parliament back in 1999, long before either the minister or I were elected. I warmly welcome the debate and the report published by the languages working group.

As we have heard, languages are vital to the economic wellbeing of the country and to the wellbeing of individuals. Languages help to broaden horizons and we need more of that. Some people may think that learning languages is a middle or upper-class activity that is far removed from the skills that matter to people. I suggest that those who think that are far removed from reality and need a reality check. In fact, they are the proof of why we need more languages to be learned across the country.

It is no longer an option to continue in the same way. We, as parliamentarians, are failing Scotland’s people if we do not consider our children’s future and economic prospects. I know that the situation will not change overnight or over the course of a parliamentary session. Introducing the 1+2 model over two years is welcome, and I warmly support that measure. However, changing many of the cultural thoughts of people who are against languages will probably take a bit longer than two parliamentary sessions.

I could talk about this subject for hours, but in the generous six minutes that I have—

John Scott (Conservative, Ayr)

You have seven minutes.

Stuart McMillan (Scottish National Party, West Scotland)

Thank you, Presiding Officer. In the time that I have, I have struggled to cut down some of my real-life experiences that show why languages matter but, towards the end of my speech, I will provide a couple of examples that show why they are relevant for people today.

I grew up in a working-class family in Port Glasgow. My mother worked in school health for over 30 years before she retired. My father worked in the shipyards and then, after they closed, was unemployed for three years. He got back into work and worked in marine engineering until he passed away. My parents were traditional, working-class parents who never spoke languages, although they always encouraged me to. In third year, I picked German for my O-grade because my father was working in Germany at the time and I thought that I could help him with the language when he came home, every few weeks.

As a result of learning German, I took part in a German exchange trip—Claudia Beamish also talked about exchange trips. I was 15 and 16 when I took part in that. One year the kids from West Germany came to Scotland, and the second year we went to West Germany. The whole experience had a profound effect on me, particularly when we went on a day trip to East Berlin. The effect that had on me was to prove that communism did not work—although that is a debate for another day.

To have the opportunity to spend two weeks in a new country and pick up even more of the language was wonderful. The experience of waking up one morning after having a dream in German was one of those moments that helped to shape me as a person. I realised that I was good at the language, I understood a lot of it, and I appreciated, over that period, that the German people were just like me. There was no reason why we should not be able to work together to form a better future.

Kevin Stewart (Scottish National Party, Aberdeen Central)

Folk have talked about exchange trips, but it strikes me, as I listen to the debate, that people do not take advantage of what we have here at this moment. We have folk who have come to Scotland from all over the world—a lot of Polish people, for example. Why are we not immersing our kids to learn Polish, alongside those kids? That would work extraordinarily well. Polish is one example, but there are many others.

Stuart McMillan (Scottish National Party, West Scotland)

Absolutely—I could not agree more. I will make a point later in my speech that highlights why it is important for people in Scotland to learn more languages.

My journey through learning languages was never easy. When I got a 1 for my O-grade German, I thought that I had an aptitude for the language—indeed, I did. However, my two hours of higher German on Friday afternoons was tough going and I struggled with it. I did not apply myself as much as I should have, and I failed it. Undeterred, I went on to college and university and completed my honours degree in European business management with languages—I studied French and German. I went on to obtain an MBA European. On both courses I had the opportunity to study abroad: in Toulouse—I will speak to Maureen Watt about Toulouse later—and Dortmund during the undergraduate degree, and in Angoulême and Ronneby, in Sweden, during the MBA.

The MBA course was all in English, so members may ask why it is relevant to this debate. It demonstrates precisely the reason why we need to improve our language skills and capabilities. How many lecturers in Scotland would teach a class—other than a language class—in another language? Probably very few would, yet that is exactly what happened in Sweden and in France, which, as you all know, is fiercely proud of its language and promotes and protects it in equal measures. The thing about Sweden that really impressed me was the ease with which the lecturers would switch from Swedish into English and back again. The students would read business textbooks in English so that nothing would be lost in translation, and the discussions and debates would also take place in English.

Marco Biagi spoke about speakers of other languages having a head start. That is exactly what we are talking about. When it comes to languages, other countries such as Sweden are a long way ahead of us. If we want to fully compete with other countries, we should look at models such as those in the Scandinavian countries.

I am conscious of time, but I want to give two real-life examples of why languages matter and are important to people. IBM in Greenock has an international customer call centre. Some years ago, I worked for IBM. Part of my job involved dealing with colleagues in that centre. People from all over the world worked there, including Scots, but when it came to languages, they were very much in a minority. There are language-related job opportunities in Scotland, not only with IBM but with many other companies.

My second example relates to football and it goes back to Kevin Stewart’s point. The Hearts team that won the Scottish cup on Saturday has a Portuguese manager. Rudi Skácel, who scored two goals, is from the Czech Republic. In the old Czechoslovakia, Russian and German were taught rather than English. People come to this country to play football. For them, it is an opportunity to improve their language skills and to enhance their economic opportunities.

Hanzala Malik (Labour, Glasgow)

I refer to the issue that I raised in the debate on educational attainment on 11 January 2012. Recommendation 6 of a session 3 report by the European and External Relations Committee stated that the committee was concerned about the “poor linguistic performance” of the Scottish people. In that debate, I spoke of there being no provision for Punjabi speakers in our schools. I also noted SQA claims that there are not sufficient Punjabi speakers and that there is insufficient demand for the language—despite the fact that Punjabi is, after English, the most widely spoken language in Scotland. I asked the Minister for Children and Young People to explain how the SQA could reach such a conclusion. She said that Alasdair Allan would speak to me about what could be done, but no information has yet been forthcoming.

I again ask the minister and the Scottish Government to take serious note of the issue and to acknowledge that there needs to be a broad base of language skills in Scotland for international trade, and to support families and service users who speak languages such as Punjabi, Polish, Arabic, Urdu and Cantonese. Although it is possible to gain standard grade and higher qualifications in Urdu and Cantonese, no such qualifications or teaching are available for the Punjabi language, even though it is the second most commonly spoken language in Scotland and despite the fact that there are more than 2 million Punjabi speakers in the UK.

In Glasgow, very little Punjabi is taught in mainstream secondary schools. No SQA exams in Punjabi are available at school or national qualifications level. When students wish to sit exams in Punjabi, they must do so through an accredited centre for the Assessment and Qualifications Alliance, which is an English examining body. Although there is some provision for language learning outside school—for example, there is some community provision in mosques and gurdwaras in Glasgow—no non-native speakers undertake Urdu at secondary level, although there are some non-native speakers at primary level. Why is that not being continued into secondary education?

Our challenge is clear. We face staffing, recruitment and maintenance issues, and require the SQA to examine the issue in depth. We also need to look at and be more vocal on how speakers of any non-standard language in Scotland are treated.

Alasdair Allan (Scottish National Party, Na h-Eileanan an Iar)

Hanzala Malik and I have spoken about the issue briefly in correspondence. I will be happy to arrange a more formal meeting, if that would be helpful. When we talk about 1+2 languages, we are not restricting ourselves to European languages because we also recognise the value of Asian languages. I will be very happy to have that conversation with Hanzala Malik.

Hanzala Malik (Labour, Glasgow)

I thank the minister for that. It is very welcome and I will take him up on the offer.

We must acknowledge the increasing number of languages that are spoken in Scotland today. The use of Chinese has grown over the past five years, which seems to be a response to the interest in the booming Chinese economy and the relationship between our countries. At least some people feel that some knowledge of the language is a good opportunity for trade in any country. That, and the need to support students, families and communities in order to raise the level of language learning should be aided by the SQA and the Scottish Government.

I am also keen to find out what is being done by the British Council. What is its role in supporting the learning of languages in Scotland? I would appreciate the minister’s investigating what other support we can get from the British Council for our endeavour to support language learning.

A Punjabi speaker would say that his Punjabi is just as loved and valuable as any other language. I will say that in Punjabi, if I may.

The member spoke in Punjabi.

That is from a Scotland-born lad, and it shows that I learned that language outwith the school curriculum. I was lucky; I had the opportunity. Opportunities are still available and, as has already been pointed out, we have communities who have come from all around the world whom we could take full advantage of in order to help our pupils through twinning arrangements, or however we want to do it. That would be very helpful.

It is important for us to demonstrate our willingness to engage in learning other languages because it plays a vital role. During my travels overseas, I have learned that when a person speaks the language of the country that they are visiting, they receive a far more welcoming reception than they would if they did not know the language.

Linda Fabiani (Scottish National Party, East Kilbride)

I am pleased to be able to speak today on what I believe is an extremely important subject, and one that has not been given the level of attention that it warrants. Many initiatives have been announced during past decades, and successive generations have been party to numerous pilot projects in schools. Indeed, as a child, I was among a group of primary school children who were the first in the country to receive French lessons by television. It was a long time ago; if I say that the programmes were in black and white, I am sure that members will be amazed. Although that project did not last long, it instilled in me a curiosity about other languages and cultures that led to senior school studies.

As I have said, I do not believe that we, as a nation in modern times, have persevered seriously enough with learning of languages. We can call it complacency, arrogance or whatever, but it is a fact.

I looked back to 2006 when I last spoke on this issue. My research at that time showed that the number of school pupils who were taking a foreign language at standard grade had dropped by almost 9,000 since 1999. We have not properly addressed that decline during the intervening years. I am glad that we are now going to take a serious look at the issue because it is time we turned things around.

We should start by taking seriously the report of the languages working group. More important than that, we need to stick with it as a long-term strategy rather than use it in the short or medium terms. We are way behind and, for the future of Scotland, we will have to compete. It is a fact that English is no longer the international language of businesses and that the old imperiousness does us few favours. The 1.5 billion residents of China, 1 billion people in India and most of the 500 million people in the European Union would not disagree. In much of South America, Spanish is spoken and in Brazil, one of the BRIC countries, Portuguese is spoken.

I understand that long ago, it was not possible to get a degree from a Scottish university unless one had spent a year working abroad. Moving to modern times, Maureen Watt talked about low take-up of the Erasmus programme. The number of students coming to Scotland to study for a year far outweighs the number of Scots going abroad. A monoglot is less likely to be enamoured by the prospect of a year abroad than is a student who is confident in his or her command of the native language of the host country. Stuart McMillan spoke very well about that. We should encourage Scotland’s youth to get out and see the world while they are young.

An increasing number of employment opportunities—not just the traditional ones such as export sales—require fluency in another language. The increasing mobility of the European population marks the need for further improvement of language skills. Not only will there be business opportunities throughout Europe, but many employment opportunities will require people to up sticks and shift themselves across Europe’s borders.

The internet is an area in which Anglophones have had the security of knowing that their language reigns supreme, but that cannot be guaranteed any more, either. English dominance of the worldwide web is declining, as websites in other languages such as Spanish and Mandarin take off.

Kezia Dugdale (Labour, Lothian)

If Ms Fabiani were to walk by my office, she might hear French radio, because a number of my staff are learning French for their exams. Does she recognise that the internet provides opportunities to develop language skills?

Linda Fabiani (Scottish National Party, East Kilbride)

Absolutely, I do. For three years, I have had the German equivalent of that sitting unused on a computer, so perhaps Kezia Dugdale has spurred me into action. There are masses of information that could be denied people. It is a reversal of the current position, where English is only one of the main languages on the web. That said, Kezia Dugdale made a positive point.

There are many issues on which we can be positive. Let us, for example, be positive about our children, who are more than capable of meeting the standard. The on-going success of Gaelic education has shown that learning and ability in other studies can be improved by learning another language and culture. At Mossneuk primary school in East Kilbride, the children learn German. The teachers have told me that that has led to success in other subjects.

Willie Neill reminded us in his poem

“Scotia est Divisa in Voces Tres”

that Scotland has three old languages—Gaelic, Scots and English.

Maureen Watt and Hanzala Malik told us about all the international languages that are now here in our country. That is a good basis for learning modern languages. We must follow that path if we want future generations to make an impact on the world.

Historically, Scots had, among other things, the reputation of being among the world’s best diplomats, at a time when the international language of diplomacy was court French. The influence of Scots has been felt around the world for centuries. We should remember that, we should be pleased about it and proud of it, and we should take advantage of it. However, in order to do that, we have to be able to communicate with our colleagues and friends around the world. We must get our language skills up there with the best in the world. If Poles can leave school with four or five languages, and increase their business skills and employment mobility in the process, there is no reason why Scots cannot do the same. If the French, with what some would say is a chauvinistic attitude to their language, can achieve a 65 per cent engagement with other languages, surely Scots can do the same. It is not a matter of achieving the impossible; it is a matter of having ambition for our nation. We must ask ourselves how much we can do rather than tell ourselves that we cannot do very much.

If Scots see themselves as part of world society as well as being part of Scotland, they will offer the nation a greater chance of stability and prosperity. That is crucial and it is more important for the young now and for future generations than it is for most of us sitting in the chamber. I hope that everyone in Parliament can get behind a serious long-term strategy of engaging with other parts of the world, in other languages.

Kezia Dugdale (Labour, Lothian)

My mum, who was a modern languages teacher for many years, is the first to say that I have no natural gift for languages. At school, I was quite academic, but I had to work a lot harder to be good at French. I got a good grade, but that was in part because there was a fluent French speaker in my house. I ditched French at the first opportunity. I wanted to go to university and get good grades, so I picked subjects that I liked and enjoyed and, to be frank, French did not fit into that. I now regret that, because of the obvious employability benefits that foreign languages bring.

As I got older, I developed a real love for Spain and all things Spanish, so I forced myself to try to learn Spanish—I have done night classes at the University of Edinburgh and paid a private tutor. That has been torture, because I just do not have the natural ability. Even though I now want to learn Spanish, I find it difficult.

I read with great interest the report to which the Government’s motion refers. I want to make a positive speech overall, so I will get the negativity out of the way first. From my perspective, the report has two flaws: first, it recognises the need for an audit of the skills base in the education system; I am disappointed that that has not yet taken place.

Secondly, the report says that it cannot estimate the amount of resources that are needed to deliver the pilot projects, but without that we cannot estimate the size of the challenge that is ahead. Like cute puppies and the aroma of fresh coffee, the aim of teaching modern languages to primary 1 kids is a great idea that makes us feel good and feel that we are doing good, but it is hard to keep the faith if we do not know who will deliver it and how much it will cost.

Alasdair Allan (Scottish National Party, Na h-Eileanan an Iar)

I will be positive, but some of the things that Kezia Dugdale mentions were not part of the working group’s remit. Does she accept that conversations between the Government and stakeholders are the way to answer some of the questions that she raises?

Kezia Dugdale (Labour, Lothian)

I absolutely accept that, but the issue should have been at the heart of the remit. How can the Government seek to tackle a problem if it does not start with what resources or tools it has at its disposal? Therefore, the audit of skills is urgent and I look forward to hearing the Government explain how it will make progress on it.

Teachers whom I have spoken to are positive about the initiative, but they are quick to highlight the training needs of teachers. If we want kids to soak up a new language, we need to immerse them in it from the beginning. Those points were well evidenced by Maureen Watt and Marco Biagi. It is ridiculous to ask a primary teacher with a higher in Spanish to take on that task, and it could be counterproductive. We need to empower kids to learn a language. It is not simply about teaching them the French or Spanish for “cat” or “dog”; we need to empower them to ask questions, such as “¿Cómo se dice ... ?”, or “How do you say ... ?” Those are the sort of skills that we need to give young people.

I am pleased that the report recognises the role of mother languages that are not English in the 1+2 strategy. To give some statistics, 24,555 kids in Scotland have English as an additional language, which is 3.7 per cent of all Scottish pupils. Of them, 3,588 are in Edinburgh, which represents 8 per cent of the school population in our capital city. That is a hugely significant amount, but when we get down to school level, it becomes even more significant. No fewer than 100 of the children at Leith primary school, just down the road, have English as an additional language. That is 36 per cent of the school roll. That is a huge amount that—of course—brings challenges, but the school relishes that and, in fact, celebrates it. Every time a new country is represented in the school, a new flag is hung. The headteacher told me that, just last week, they hung the Nepalese and Guatemalan flags for the first time. That is fantastic and wonderful and it shows the diversity in Scotland that we love, but additional resources are needed to support the school.

The City of Edinburgh Council has an English as an additional language service. That is great, too, but it is hugely underresourced. As I said, 100 kids at Leith primary school have English as an additional language, but they have access to one teacher for one and half days a week, and that is all. That is only enough time to train teachers. The English as an additional language specialists never get anywhere near the kids whom they seek to support in the classroom. With more resources, their time could be better spent. However, we are kidding ourselves if we think that the infrastructure is there even to support the kids with additional languages who are already in our schools. There are just 6.2 full-time equivalent bilingual support assistants for the whole of Edinburgh—that is six people to support 3,000 kids.

Neil Findlay (Labour, Lothian)

I acknowledge what Kezia Dugdale says. In my previous post, I had the great fortune to teach a Polish pupil who had just come into the country and who was a delight to teach. However, that boy was put into my class—an additional needs support class—along with a number of kids who had complex learning difficulties. He had no problem other than the language issue. That situation was due to a resourcing matter, which indicates the difficulties that teachers face day to day. The support for the Polish boy in the school and the support for me as a teacher was limited. Indeed, I was more terrified than he was at the prospect of having to teach him.

Kezia Dugdale (Labour, Lothian)

I welcome that intervention. Neil Findlay has highlighted that getting to grips with English as an additional language will help the Government’s strategy because it will get it one step further along the way, if we do it properly. It is already referred to in the modern languages report, but if the minister could progress some of the issues, he would make his long-term goals more achievable, at the same time.

Leith primary school staff also told me that they relish the opportunity to teach modern languages in the primary school setting and that they had found that the best way to get teachers to do that is to send them abroad for training. We might think that that would be difficult and resource intensive, but they found a source of European Union funding called the Comenius fund, which provides for all the costs for travel and subsistence so that teachers can go abroad for between one day and six weeks to learn to be a modern languages teacher.

I found no reference to Comenius funding in the language report strategy document. In fact, I found no reference to European Union funding anywhere in the document. I strongly urge the minister to look at alternative sources of funding that he could draw on to progress his agenda. The funding need not all be drawn from Scottish Government pots.

Of course we are broadly supportive of the Government’s ambition, but we need to see the audit so that we can understand what resources are needed to fulfil that ambition. When we know how much it will cost, we will be in a position to match that boldness with the necessary budget. Will the Government take the lead when the true cost is known? On verra; veremos; wir werden sehen. We shall see.

Dave Thompson (Scottish National Party, Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch)

Thòisich mi a’sgrìobhadh m’òraid ’s a Ghàidhlig ach cha robh mi cinnteach gun tuigidh sibh gu soilleir na thuirt mi ’san eadar theangachadh.

Following is the translation:

I started writing my speech in Gaelic but I was not sure that you would clearly understand what I said in translation.

The member continued in English.

I also thought that I would put in a few words of Chinese, or French—not that I speak these languages—an a thocht aboot screivin in ma mither tongue o Doric an aa, till a makit up ma mind that I could best explain my position on this important subject in English. I share this dilemma with members to emphasise that we already live in a multilingual nation and that effective communication requires linguistic fluency from both the speaker and the listener.

Ensuring that our education system gives young Scots the linguistic toolbox to allow them to pick up second and third languages to fluency must be a priority—as has already been said—and I welcome the Scottish Government’s commitment to adopt the 1+2 Barcelona model of language learning for Scotland. The European Union is pushing for every person in the EU to speak two languages in addition to their mother tongue because language learning helps to build communities and enables effective trading.

I do not need to stress that language acquisition must begin in childhood. On the back of the languages working group report, the Scottish Government’s announcement that it will explore opportunities for all young people to start learning a second language in primary 1 is welcome.

Those of us who have tried to learn a language in adulthood—and who are still learning many years later—are downright jealous of schoolchildren who pick up languages as casually as they pick daisies in the summer. I believe that we will transform language learning in Scotland by giving five-year-olds first-class language tuition. With the tools to pick up languages, they will be ready to face the international world in adulthood and to represent Scotland on a global stage. If we are all agreed that bilingualism and even trilingualism—or more—are to be coveted, the question arises as to how we will get there.

In Scotland, we start with a distinct advantage in that we are already rich in languages, although in the past we, too, have been on the receiving end of obtrusive linguistic policies that have been far from beneficial to our cultural heritage. I am talking about the slow but enforced decline of our two native tongues, Gaelic and Scots. Our linguistic heritage should mean that we are even more sympathetic towards, and appreciative of, the benefits of multilingualism, but it should also mean that we are quick to protect and enjoy the indigenous languages of our nation.

Across the country, in 14 different councils, there are 2,316 primary school children in Gaelic-medium education. Every child who is educated in a Gaelic-medium school is fully bilingual by the age of 10, with the ability to read, write and speak fluently in at least two languages. Because many of the children are immersed in Gaelic from the age of three, they are confident in using the language both within the school gates and outside them. It is not just a school language; it is their language in much the way that English is. The growth of the Gaelic economy means that Gaelic can now be heard on the radio, seen in supermarkets and on road signs and read in the newspapers. It also has its own television channel. All of that reinforces the relevance of the language.

In February 2011, the curriculum for excellence Gaelic excellence group reported that modern language teachers in secondary schools were consistently impressed with the ability of Gaelic-medium educated pupils to acquire other languages. Those pupils appreciate the importance of languages, display confidence in picking up another language and find it easy to switch between languages. Surely, those are exactly the skills that we want to see in young Scots.

Gaelic speakers can pick up French, German, Spanish or any other language with confidence, appreciation and determination. There are many benefits of Gaelic-medium education. Yes—learning Gaelic means that one has a unique window on Scottish heritage, and it is a precious cultural gift, but I remind Parliament that learning a second language to fluency when one is still a child means acquiring the toolbox to pick up a third and a fourth language much more easily. I am not downplaying the importance of teaching and learning European languages or other languages in our schools and I do not believe that learning Gaelic is a substitute for that. However, Gaelic-medium education can be an essential building block in that learning. That could also be true of the Scots tongue. We have some way to go to bring it up to the level of Gaelic in literacy terms, but that is also a target to which we should aspire, because that would give us three immersion languages in our language toolbox.

In Scotland, we have a great gift that we do not appreciate enough in that we have an indigenous language that is distinct from English. That is an important point, because someone who is fluent in English and Gaelic—two languages whose structures are almost diametrically opposed—can master anything in between. We have an education system that provides our children with an excellent linguistic toolbox, and we have extensive exposure to the language in everyday life. In short, we have all the ingredients for effective language acquisition and we should all grasp the opportunity that that brings.

Liam McArthur (Liberal Democrat, Orkney Islands)

I very much welcome the debate and I am pleased with the way in which it has been framed. Too often, the ability to speak another language is seen as something that is nice to have rather than a key skill—one that matters and which has the potential to open up the widest range of opportunities. Linda Fabiani, who I do not think has ever been in black and white, was right: for too long, we have derived false comfort from the misguided assumption that the world speaks English. As the minister said, 75 per cent of the world’s population speak no English and only 6 per cent are fluent in it.

With figures for language provision in state schools showing the most dramatic drop-off in recent years, there is a real risk that an ability to speak languages will somehow become associated with privilege instead of being an entitlement. That point was made forcibly by Doreen Grove in her report “Talking the talk, so that Scotland can walk the walk: A rapid review of the evidence of impact on Scottish business of a monolingual workforce”. I am pleased that the Government’s languages working group recommends not only that children have access to an additional language from primary 1, but that language learning should be an entitlement for all young people at least to the end of S3.

Before going any further, I should probably declare a couple of interests. As the son of a former French teacher and as someone whose sister teaches modern languages at a Glasgow secondary while sending her children to the local Gaelic school, my support for the recommendations that the excellent languages working group has made should come as no surprise. Indeed, it is probably a filial duty.

As someone who has had opportunities not only to study multiple languages at school and university but to live, work and study in Spanish and French-speaking countries over recent years, I know how much I have benefited from the richness of those experiences. There are economic advantages to language learning, and I will touch on them shortly, but I absolutely agree with the British Council’s emphasis on the important role that proficiency in languages plays in creating an outward-looking mindset among our population.

Speaking a foreign language shows our willingness to engage with the wider world, and on an individual level it can do wonders in developing self-confidence and encouraging inquiry. During a recent family visit to Barcelona, I noticed that my youngest son seemed to be as thrilled at having been able to ask the porter in our hotel which bus would take us to the Nou Camp as he was at seeing Lionel Messi in the flesh.

However, there is a critical economic dimension to this debate, as Liz Smith indicated. In a week when the views of business leaders on the readiness of young Scots for the world of work have been the subject of much heated debate, it is fair to acknowledge the long-standing concerns about how prepared our young people are to operate in a globalised and multicultural economy. The economist James Foreman-Peck has suggested that language is a barrier to trade that is equivalent to that of a tax. Neil Findlay made that point. James Foreman-Peck explains that a common language causes trade, and trade causes economic growth, so a lack of language is effectively a barrier.

I know from my experience of working overseas in a multinational company that having people with the right mix of not just language skills but cultural understanding to do business in each country is critical. After all, it is generally accepted that people buy in their own language. As former German Chancellor Willy Brandt once observed, and I am sure that Stuart McMillan will back me up on this,

“If I am selling to you, I speak your language. If I am buying, dann müssen Sie Deutsch sprechen.”

I suspect that, somewhere in Orkney, Mr Turner will be doing metaphoric cartwheels at receiving the news that the first foreign language that I have spoken in the Scottish Parliament is German.

The cost to the Scottish economy of that barrier to trade is significant. Neil Findlay put it at about £500 million, but a figure nearer £600 million has also been quoted. Doreen Grove cites an example in which a major petrochemical company decided against even inviting a bid from its Scottish headquarters for a new European sales office due to problems in recruiting language speakers. That meant not only a loss of jobs, but a loss of £4 million a year in investment.

I well remember a visit to Wolfson Microelectronics, where management stressed how important it is for the company to recruit individuals who have not only the requisite design and technical skills but an ability to operate in a foreign language environment. At that stage, the company was experiencing serious difficulties in recruiting, not just in Scotland but in the wider UK market.

Language does matter. It improves young people’s opportunities and indeed opportunities for those of all ages. Neil Findlay made a good point about the point at which people look to expand their language horizons, a little like Kezia Dugdale. Even when someone has proficiency, if they do not have an opportunity to continue using the language, they quickly lose their fluency and confidence. Far more emphasis needs to be placed on that area in future.

I restate my support for what the Scottish Government is seeking to achieve. My concern is, as it was when we debated these issues last year, that I am not entirely clear how the minister expects to achieve the objectives that he has set. There is nothing in the motion that demonstrates that the laudable ambition is matched by a credible, costed plan. In that sense, both the Labour and Tory amendments make entirely legitimate points by highlighting the importance, but the inadequate provision, of suitably qualified teachers and language assistants. In the case of the latter, the British Council has quite rightly been shouting its concern from the rooftops for some time. Scotland has seen the number of language assistants plummet from 284 in 2005-06 to 70 this year. We have 3 per cent of the UK total, while Northern Ireland, with a third of our population, has 60 per cent more such assistants.

Orkney Islands Council is in the fortunate position of being one of the local authorities to have such provision. I know that the support to teachers has been invaluable. Assistants not only enhance linguistic fluency; they bring a cultural dimension that is otherwise almost impossible to create. The minister’s advisory group recognised that, and I hope that that will result in significant improvements over the parliamentary session.

The group has made sensible proposals on initial and on-going teacher training and development in languages. Graham Donaldson made the point in his report that that is vital in providing teachers with the confidence that they need. However, the curriculum for excellence and, indeed, developments in information technology already offer real opportunities to be imaginative about the way in which languages—whatever languages they are—are taught in our schools.

Finally, I acknowledge the working group’s focus on the role that the higher education and further education sectors play. As well as improving transitions from primary to secondary school, there is much more that our colleges and universities can and should do to support learning and underscore the value of languages through the demands that they place on their students and would-be students.

I again congratulate the Government on bringing forward the debate and I very much share the ambition that has been set out, but we must see a far clearer commitment from ministers on exactly how that ambition will be realised. The work of the language advisory group is comprehensive and can chart a path towards the outcomes that we all wish to see. As Linda Fabiani said, we can see those outcomes if we have the patience to stay the course, but we should be under no illusions. The distance that we need to travel is significant in many areas. Marco Biagi offered thoughtful observations on that and the reasons behind it—and lifted the veil on the UK’s plummeting fortunes at the Eurovision song contest. In some cases, we are actually moving in the wrong direction.

Back in 2010, Her Majesty’s Inspectorate of Education observed:

“Globalisation has transformed the way we live, learn and work. The pace of technological change, particularly the ease and speed of communication, has continued to accelerate. Scotland is increasingly enhanced by people from different countries, cultures and religions, and who speak languages other than English. Education must prepare young people to flourish in this new and changing world.”

I could not agree more.

Sandra White (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Kelvin)

I was going to begin my contribution in parliamo Glasgow, but I thought that I had better not, as even I have trouble understanding it. Perhaps the minister could try to use it in summing up.

I am pleased to be able to speak in the debate. Like other members, I believe that expanding and delivering the opportunities to learn extra languages at a very early age will benefit our children and the whole of Scotland, and I welcome the working group’s recommendations on that in particular.

As the MSP for Glasgow Kelvin, I am very aware of the large Gaelic community in the constituency; indeed, I think that the Gaelic community in it is the largest outwith the islands. The Glasgow Gaelic school is based in Berkeley Street in Kelvin, and it is a huge success. An overwhelming number of people want to go to the school. People do not necessarily only learn the language; they can learn about the way of life as well. Dave Thompson mentioned that. Whenever I visit that school, which I do often, it is a great pleasure to see the fantastic work that is done there.

As I said, languages are important. When people go to the Glasgow Gaelic school and schools that teach other languages, there seems to be an ethos about the culture that shines through. I congratulate Donalda McComb and all the staff at the Glasgow Gaelic school, whose dedication knows no bounds.

The minister mentioned Confucius hubs, which are excellent facilities not only for languages, but for understanding, trips and twinning with the Chinese community. I thank the staff in Hillhead high school, which is in my constituency, for the fantastic work that they do in the Confucius hub there.

I visit schools and nurseries in my area. In fact, I visited Strathclyde nursery school just on Friday and saw a graduation ceremony for tots. They can speak French, which is fantastic. I was amazed to see children as young as three learning another language. The children learn through song and play. That is entirely different from my experience at school.

I do not know whether other members had the same experience as me, but the only language that was available to me and others at that time was French. Basically we learned by rote and sometimes through song, but mostly through verbs, grammar and many hours of writing down conversations. It was not an enjoyable experience, which is why I am so pleased when I see the difference now in schools, where kids learn languages conversationally. They are interested in the language. They learn names, colours, flowers, books, magazines and films—Linda Fabiani mentioned watching a television programme in black and white, which I can also remember. All those things encourage kids to learn and keep their interest.

Kezia Dugdale said that she did not have an ear for learning languages, but that she wishes that she had done, because it would have been useful in later life. Similarly, when I was 16 I decided that I would go and learn German. I went to Jordanhill College. I had never learned German in my life before, but I wanted to do something even though school had not encouraged me, or others. Perhaps if we had had the type of learning that we have now and which we will have in the future, we might not have been quite so frightened to learn other languages.

There is a fantastic opportunity now and we are giving kids the chance to learn languages. Liam McArthur and others mentioned the economic benefit of learning languages and that is fantastic for Scotland as a whole. However, it is not only about the economic benefit; it is about the confidence that kids get from learning languages and the fact that it opens up a whole new world to them. In fact, my granddaughter was born in Barcelona and by the time that she was two she could speak Catalan. The extent to which kids can absorb information like sponges and pick up a language is unbelievable.

That is why we should all welcome the Government’s forward programme. I am sure that the minister agrees that there may be issues that we have to look at; Elizabeth Smith and others picked up on some of those issues. However, it is worth looking forward to ensure that our kids have a great opportunity.

The working group’s recommendation 18 states

“that SQA keep under review the suite of languages offered”.

Recommendation 19 states

“that there be further engagement with the FE and HE sectors”.

Recommendation 23 states

“that universities work together as a consortium of university providers to support delivery”.

Finally, recommendation 27 states

“that Scottish Government and Universities work with Local Authorities”.

I highlight those recommendations because they mention universities, the SQA and others but, as far as I can see, there is no mention of the Scottish Further and Higher Education Funding Council. Will the minister pick up on that when she sums up the debate? Without the Scottish funding council, the moneys to deliver languages in universities are not there. What role does the funding council have in the process?

Maureen Watt and Kevin Stewart both mentioned the teaching of the Polish language. There is a fantastic course at the University of Glasgow in Czech, Polish and Slavonic studies, but its funding is being ended. The Scottish funding council is obviously involved in that situation, too. The centre for Russian, central and east European studies is the only one of its kind in Scotland. If the centre closes, people who want to continue their studies in that subject will have to go to London; that will be the only option left in the UK. It is imperative that the Scottish funding council considers the situation and ensures that the centre continues, given the good work that it does. Polish has been mentioned and there is also Russian. All countries should be involved. Kids should be encouraged to learn all languages.

Hanzala Malik (Labour, Glasgow)

I agree with what the member says about language provision at the University of Glasgow. The cuts have obviously had an effect but, rather than make a negative comment, I will make a positive one. We need to look at ways of funding universities so that Scots continue to have the opportunity to learn such skills. One possible way forward would be to encourage private industry to step in and support universities locally. Perhaps the minister could shine some light on that.

Sandra White (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Kelvin)

I agree entirely with Hanzala Malik—we have raised that issue.

A petition has been lodged about the course that I referred to, which the Public Petitions Committee is considering. When the committee asked questions of the Scottish funding council, the council’s reply was that it had conducted a review and that

“Our review concluded that demand for Czech and Polish in Scotland is very low”.

The committee continues to consider the petition. I ask ministers to look at the issues and the idea that Hanzala Malik suggested, which is for the Economy, Energy and Tourism Committee.

Margaret McCulloch (Labour, Central Scotland)

I join the consensus about the importance of languages in the education of our young people and in helping Scotland to realise our potential as a nation. The report by the languages working group opens with a single powerful statement. It says simply that

“Language learning is life enhancing.”

I associate myself with that accurate sentiment.

From French to Spanish and from Cantonese to Urdu, Gaelic or even British Sign Language, learning another language allows our children and young people to develop their cognitive and interpersonal skills. It also enhances their understanding of the world that is around them.

Being able to communicate across borders and cultures is a special ability and is a skill that opens up a range of new possibilities and economic opportunities. Young people who become increasingly multilingual through their school education will be far better able to work, learn and trade internationally in later life, so their language skills will be of value not just to them but to Scotland as a whole.

Across the chamber, we all share an aspiration to ensure that Scotland is always open and inclusive and that, in every community, people from all backgrounds and all walks of life are made welcome. We are a diverse society. If we want to bring together that diverse society so that different communities can relate to one another and so that we can promote social participation, we must address language barriers.

The appropriate language skills must exist in our public services to ensure that those in society for whom English is not a first language can confidently access the national health service, the education system and local services. For example, I know from speaking to Lanarkshire carers centre that, in sections of the black and minority ethnic community, blood-borne viruses are a particular concern.

Raising awareness requires a big investment of time and effort in education and outreach work. I cannot help but feel that the job of the people involved would be easier if more people in the communities that they target felt comfortable about approaching the NHS or advice services.

The working group’s report recognises that today’s Scotland is a multicultural and multilingual society, so let us reflect on the full range of the diversity in Scotland. In Scottish schools, 138 languages are spoken. English is of course by far the most common home language; it is followed by Polish, Punjabi, Urdu, Arabic, Cantonese, French and then Gaelic, Bengali, German and Spanish.

Changing the way in which we introduce children to languages and teaching a second additional language from the later stages of a child’s primary education gives schools the scope to do more than just teach young people about engaging with the world beyond Scotland. It also creates opportunities to teach young people more about the country in which they live. I ask the Scottish Government to reflect on those points as it decides how to prioritise the languages that our children are taught. There should be more awareness of languages that are already spoken in today’s Scotland and better teaching of English as a second language for those who have a different home language.

Of course, the comprehensive teaching of languages is of great value not only to the individual but to the economy. Our failure to keep up with the rest of Europe means that Scotland is losing out as some international investors are taking their jobs and contracts elsewhere. Members are aware of reports that the decline in language learning is costing the Scottish economy an average of £500 million per year—evidence from the Confederation of British Industry Scotland and Scottish Enterprise backs up that claim.

Schools will have to make a choice about the languages that they teach. It is sensible to build on the good work that is done in teaching the main European languages, but we must also look further afield, so that future graduates can communicate and perform in the changing world economy.

There is broad agreement that a strong and sustainable recovery in Scotland will have to be export led and that we will have to gear our economy towards the BRIC nations. The working group is aware of the case for teaching Portuguese, Arabic, Russian and other eastern European languages, but the point is not developed, so it is unclear to me how schools will decide which languages to teach as a priority.

I will talk about implementation, in the context of the Labour amendment in Neil Findlay’s name. The introduction of languages, particularly at an earlier age, requires planning and resources, which are currently scarce. I draw members’ attention to the words of Dr Dan Tierney, from the University of Strathclyde, in The Herald. He said:

“The targets are welcome, but extremely ambitious and will be very difficult to achieve. To achieve coherence from P1 through to secondary will require better planning in terms of teaching and learning and teacher supply.”

The working group has proposed a major shift in how our schools teach languages. If its recommendations are to be implemented successfully, the minister will have to address as an urgent priority the lack of trained teachers and foreign language assistants. I agree that there is a strong and compelling case for change, but if we are to have confidence in the Scottish Government’s commitment to languages, we need clarity about how language teaching will be prioritised and resourced.

Graeme Dey (Scottish National Party, Angus South)

During my schooldays in Aberdeen there was little choice available when it came to learning languages—there was little associated fun, too. There was no access to a foreign language at primary level and no choice when we entered secondary school. Like everyone else, I was sentenced to French—at least, that is what it felt like.

I recognise entirely the picture that Sandra White painted. The teaching approach in those days, certainly at my school, was simply to drum the vocabulary into us. No attempt was made to get us to embrace French, and the net result was that we—or mostly the boys, it should be said—were utterly disengaged long before the advent of S3 and the escape route that it offered. To this day I can reel off the days of the week, name certain colours and count to about 20 in French, but if I am asked to converse in the language I am completely lost.

That is something that I deeply regret. The lack of a decent grasp of French or indeed any other foreign language returned to haunt me in post-school life. My career in journalism took me to many corners of Europe, and I was thankful that our cousins in mainland Europe are widely capable of conversing in English, which allowed me to get by. However, my trips were not without moments of linguistic embarrassment for me and for colleagues who were similarly linguistically challenged. Perhaps the worst moment for me came on a trip to Italy, when I thought that I was asking for butter to apply to my bread but had actually requested a donkey. I was not alone. A colleague who tried to tell a Spanish waiter that he was embarrassed about something or other declared that he was pregnant.

Sadly, unlike Kezia Dugdale, I am too long in the tooth to put right my lack of grasp of foreign languages.

Members: Never!

Well, I am aware that my predecessor constituency member, Andrew Welsh, became well versed in Mandarin while serving in the Parliament.

Neil Findlay (Labour, Lothian)

I am astonished by the revelation that members of the Scottish press corps were ignorant of foreign languages.

Graeme Dey (Scottish National Party, Angus South)

I don’t think you really mean that.

We can and must ensure that coming generations of Scots are encouraged and supported to do better than I did. That will require starting them younger, and where better to start than in primary 1, when kids are most receptive to learning, as Liam McArthur said?

A Dutch acquaintance who moved to Scotland in the late 1980s brought his young daughter with him. She had no difficulty settling into school life in Dundee, because even as a youngster she had a decent command of English. Indeed, she had a developing command of four languages, all told, because at her school in Holland several languages were on the curriculum. If my memory serves me rightly, I think that at the time Scotland had not even started to introduce French or German into the latter stages of primary education—at least, not to a significant extent. Here we are, years later, still playing catch-up.

I watched a late night TV programme on the subject last week and was taken by the manner in which primary school children were learning French. They were role playing and acting out a scene in a cafe, with customers giving orders to waiters. It struck me that if I had been taught French—or any language—through such methods, I might well have taken to the subject. However, in his foreword to the languages working group’s report, the chair, Simon Macaulay, said:

“there has been a significant and worrying decline over the past decade in the number of languages taken forward to SQA certification. There is, moreover, evidence that young people are not always sufficiently challenged and motivated by current language learning approaches.”

The suggested solution to that—earlier access for primary school children to language learning and so on—strikes me as entirely sensible. The need to head down that road is just as obvious. Of course there are challenges to be overcome, not the least of which is how to ensure equality of access. How do we ensure that a child attending Isla primary school or Mattocks primary school in my constituency is as able to learn French, German or Spanish as the kids who are schooled in Arbroath and Kirriemuir? We must also ensure that a full range of languages is available, stretching from Gaelic all the way through—in light of the growing influence of China’s economy—to Chinese.

As we look to build a more prosperous Scotland, there can be no doubt about the need to equip our children to engage more fully with the world, and to do so in the other languages of the world. It would be arrogant in the extreme not to challenge the perception that learning languages does not matter, because everyone speaks English. As the minister and Liam McArthur reminded us, 75 per cent of the world’s population do not speak English. In addition, it is worth noting that less than 27 per cent of internet usage last year was conducted in English.

It would be wrong not to go beyond merely learning the language and seek to develop an understanding of the culture and protocols of the country where that language is spoken. Hopefully, the 1+2 approach will allow many more Scots to do just that.

Some months ago, I was approached by a German television station that wanted to interview an SNP MSP on the subject of the referendum. The production team chose Arbroath abbey as the location of the interview because they understood its historic connection with Scottish independence. It was also clear from the questioning that they understood entirely the arguments that can be advanced for and against a yes vote, and the context that they are set against. It was not just that they put a wee bit of preparatory work into putting together the piece; they actually understood the subject. It should go without saying, too, that the interview was conducted in perfect English, much to the discomfiture of this interviewee, who could not help but think of his complete lack of German, not to mention his limited knowledge of that country’s political scene.

Scotland’s people have a rich tradition of going out into the wider world and making their mark. There are many high-profile examples of that, and many other less well-known examples, too—how many members here today are aware that the Buick motor company was founded by an Arbroath man? However, it is a different world now, and we must furnish our children with the language skills that they will need if they are to follow in those footsteps. The 1+2 approach offers hope that we might just be able to do that. That is why I am delighted to support the motion.

Elaine Smith (Labour, Coatbridge and Chryston)

We come to closing speeches. I remind members that, if they have participated in the debate, they should be in the chamber for the closing speeches.

Elizabeth Smith (Conservative, Mid Scotland and Fife)

This is a timely debate and it has included thought-provoking and informed contributions from many members. As various speakers have noted, learning a language is not only a useful discipline in itself but can open many other doors to the history, geography and literature of the country whose language is being studied. It can also help with an understanding of the true meaning of internationalism and of how we can widen our horizons in what is an increasingly global community.

That global community is changing fast, all the time. It is becoming increasingly competitive, especially with the emergence of new economic powers, and it is vital that we respond to those changes and do not automatically assume that English is the main language of international trade.

Those employers who tell us that there must be more focus on foreign language skills when it comes to marketing Scottish products also tell us that we must not underestimate in any way the powerful effect of fluency in a language, especially with regard to business lobbying, networking, getting a job—as in the case of Claudia Beamish’s daughter—and earning a higher salary. We ignore any of those observations at our peril.

Liam McArthur and Margaret McCulloch said that many economists have calculated that the problem of insufficient language skills is a barrier to trade. In fact, they have defined it as a tax that costs the Scottish economy up to as much as £591 million. The evidence for that was made clear in the CBI’s April 2011 report and can be seen in the fact that, sadly, some major European companies are bypassing Scotland when it comes to major contracts.

There must be a happy blend between meeting Scotland’s needs in a global economy and learning a language because of its intrinsic value. That is perhaps the biggest challenge that we face, because there are tensions in that regard—certainly for the SQA, which rightly says that its qualifications provision will depend on demand. Although there may be perfectly legitimate and scholarly reasons for learning Latin, Greek, Hebrew or any of the other languages that do not necessarily feature on the school curriculum these days, there are powerful economic reasons for learning Mandarin, Spanish or Russian—the growing languages.

Hanzala Malik and Sandra White raised extremely important issues in that regard. They highlighted concerns—in relation to the SQA and the Scottish funding council respectively—about the exact criteria that are to be used in offering the relevant qualifications; what happens when schools, colleges and universities decide which courses they will offer their students; and which examinations students may be able to take. As I pointed out at the start of the debate, decisions on those may determine how we ensure progression from learning in the early years of primary school right through to the learning that we expect students to undertake in the tertiary sector.

I stress again the importance of ensuring that the development of the 1+2 policy and the Barcelona agreement principles, which are mentioned in the Scottish Government’s motion, is underpinned by giving pupils as firm a grasp as possible of their own language in the first instance. I know that debate very well, and I have spoken to many language teachers about it. We must have a proper balance between rigour and the old-fashioned basis of ensuring that children have a grasp of grammar, which is important, and making learning much more relevant than it perhaps was during the schooldays of many members. When I discuss with modern language teachers what we need to take language teaching forward, they raise that issue almost without fail.

I will dwell for a moment on foreign language assistants, because they are worth their weight in gold, especially if they are able to work across the transition years. As several members have said, the current scarcity of foreign language assistants, particularly in the state sector, is nothing short of a disgrace and the drop is far in excess of that south of the border.

Kezia Dugdale made an important point about how we address the resource situation. I return to the argument that I made in my opening remarks, which is that rather than focusing simply on resources being provided by local authorities, which, as we all know, have great difficulties in providing such resources just now, we must be imaginative about drawing on other resources. That could involve seeking European funding or encouraging the private sector to make at least some provision to help with classroom assistants. We must address the issue.

One of the most interesting recommendations in the working group’s report highlights the need to do much more about the transition between primary and secondary school. That is very important, not just in language teaching but in other areas of education. I am interested in drilling down further in that regard, because we need some detail—particularly in the context of curriculum for excellence—on exactly what can be done in those crucial years.

Careful planning is required, and there is an issue with finding space in the curriculum—we cannot get away from that. We have heard far too often about the difficulty of allocating time for many subjects such as physical education, history and music. There has been a great deal of publicity about that in recent months and the Government must face up to the challenge of dealing with it—it is a challenge, and I do not think that any of us are in a position to solve it. There is a dilemma in the fact that the curriculum for excellence is based on much greater flexibility, and we must ensure that no Government, of whatever political colour, decides in too much detail exactly what students are learning.

I will finish by stressing two important points that Linda Fabiani and Malcolm Chisholm raised: the need for a long-term strategy to get away from the piecemeal approach that has been taken in the past, and the importance of ensuring that any policy that we develop is based firmly on evidence.

The debate has been important and enjoyable, and I am happy to support many of the themes that have been developed.

Neil Bibby (Labour, West Scotland)

The speeches in this morning’s constructive debate leave little doubt that we can and should do more to promote language learning. As my colleague Neil Findlay said, Labour welcomes the languages working group’s report, which makes a number of positive recommendations.

We know from a recent survey that has already been mentioned that in many European countries nearly all secondary school pupils learn two or more foreign languages, while more than half of the senior secondary pupils in the UK do not study a foreign language at all. As Neil Findlay, Stuart McMillan and a number of other members have made clear, language learning is life enhancing and opens up possibilities that are not available to those restricted to only one language.

Claudia Beamish, Liam McArthur and others set out the economic case for language learning; indeed, as we know, the report estimates that the decline in language learning has cost the Scottish economy around £0.5 billion. As a result, the cultural and economic motivation for improvement is clear.

Many members recognised the dedication and commitment of modern language teachers and assistants up and down the country, and I am pleased that the working group report has acknowledged the

“considerable innovative practice in relation to the teaching of languages”.

Although the 1+2 policy that the working group has outlined is to be welcomed, and although increased language learning is a good and ambitious idea—as Neil Findlay, Kezia Dugdale, Liz Smith and Liam McArthur have stated—there are clear and obvious concerns about its proposed implementation. There is universal recognition that developing language skills from an early age is best supported by well trained teachers and language assistants but, as many of my Labour colleagues and other members have pointed out, the numbers of both have fallen significantly since 2007.

The report states that foreign language assistants in primary schools and secondary schools will have a key role to play in the successful implementation of a 1+2 policy but, as we have heard in this debate, there are only 59 such assistants this year, down from almost 300 in 2005-06. The report clearly states that this ambitious goal will be achievable only with the right resources, and it is obvious that the Scottish Government must take action to address that decline if we are to avoid another strategy that sounds great on paper but fails to deliver on the ground. Given estimates that council funding for foreign languages will have to double—or possibly even treble—to make this policy a reality in our schools, I would welcome more detail from the minister on how the Government intends to fund this initiative. He mentioned a figure of £4 million and we look forward to seeing more detail on what that £4 million is for and what it will provide.

Although the 1+2 model of language learning in primary schools is to be welcomed, it is not enough in itself and the languages working group report makes a number of other key points and recommendations. As Neil Findlay mentioned in his opening remarks, there is also an issue about the emphasis placed on learning additional languages from P1 and the lack of a requirement for secondary pupils to study an additional language beyond a certain age. Such subjects are no longer part of the core curriculum. As Margaret McCulloch, Hanzala Malik and many others pointed out, we must tap into the many international languages that the children and young people in our schools already speak.

We must also look at enhancing partnership working between primary and secondary schools to ensure continuity of learning. The working group’s report highlights that very issue and research carried out by Scotland’s national centre for languages indicates that up to a third of the primary schools that responded have no regular language links with secondary schools in their areas.

Perhaps the most worrying part of the working group’s report is the recognition of a significant decline in the number of languages taken forward to SQA-certificate level. I do not believe that that is just an issue of take-up—to believe that would be to blame pupils’ motivations; possibly, it is part of a worrying trend of high school pupils being unable to choose the highers and advanced highers that they want to choose at their local school.

I am aware that in at least one local authority the overall number of highers and advanced highers in languages and other subjects taught in school has fallen. It is vital that that is part of any audit. I suggest that the Government carries out a similar audit to see if the general number of highers and advanced highers is reducing in schools in the other 31 local authorities to ascertain whether our young people are getting the choices locally that they deserve.

As many members have mentioned, the reality is that 75 per cent of the world’s population does not speak English, and we should give consideration to learning the languages of countries whose economies will undoubtedly play a stronger role on the world stage in the future. Claudia Beamish mentioned China. Brazil, Russia and the countries of Eastern Europe are other obvious examples. Although the working group did not set a specific hierarchy of languages to be learned by pupils, it did note the strong case to be made for learning languages such as Portuguese, Arabic and Russian, as well as other Slavonic and Eastern European languages.

I note that part 5 of the report details the working group’s recommendation that the Government should engage with higher education to look at the implications of the report for that sector and for students. I was pleased to see the suggestion that universities should look to expand the number of languages offered to take account of a future increase in the number of languages taught in schools and the anticipated increase, over time, of pupils studying to higher level and beyond. The Government therefore needs to be serious about supporting the teaching of languages at Scottish universities.

Sandra White referred to the Public Petitions Committee, which is considering a petition in the name of Dr Jan Culik, a senior lecturer in Czech studies at the University of Glasgow, calling for the Scottish Parliament to protect lesser-taught languages at our universities. The petitioners are rightly concerned that a lack of targeted funding for lesser-taught languages will mean that Scotland is at risk of losing much of the teaching provision for lesser-taught languages. The petition seeks the Scottish Government’s support for the University of Glasgow’s unique languages-based programmes in Czech, Polish and Slavonic studies, and in Latvian, Estonian and Hungarian. Once lost, the existing expertise will not be easy to regain and I hope that the Scottish Government will give the petition serious consideration.

The Labour Party is committed to providing opportunities for young people across Scotland. Members have given numerous examples of how language learning can help to do that and provide significant cultural and economic benefits. Therefore, it is vital that any policy is realistic and takes into account the challenges faced by schools and education authorities.

The 1+2 policy must be fully resourced, to allow well-trained teachers and language assistants to help children develop language skills from an early age. We need enhanced partnership working between primary and secondary schools. Action must be taken to address the decline in language courses being offered in secondary schools. Support must be given to higher education institutions that provide strategically and economically important, but vulnerable, language courses.

Increased language learning is a good idea but the challenge is as the report states, that we need

“the right approach and the right resources”

to make it achievable.

Angela Constance (Scottish National Party, Almond Valley)

In contrast to Dr Allan, who has a self-expressed passion for languages, I was encouraged to do art instead of languages at school. I was also encouraged to do cooking instead of science, but perhaps that is a story for another debate.

Like many other members who participated in the debate, when I look back on my education I very much regret my lack of application and, indeed, the lack of encouragement to pursue—or the discouragement from—learning a language. However, looking forward as a mother of a wee boy who will start primary 1 later this year, I am very much enthused by the prospect that, in time, the education that my son and thousands of children like him will receive will include active encouragement to apply themselves to learning not just one language, but two. It is quite clear from the debate that that ambition for Scotland’s children is shared across the chamber and across the political divide.

I regret to say that the Government will not be supporting the amendments of Liz Smith and Neil Findlay; I do so with a heavy heart. That is because neither amendment reflects the comprehensive and considered comments that those members made during the debate. As the Labour amendment seeks to delete the part of the motion from “supports”, it supports nothing. The Conservative amendment focuses primarily on foreign language assistants. I make it clear that foreign language assistants are important. They add to teaching, they help children to become fluent, they can bring a language alive and they can contribute to learning across the curriculum. However, foreign language assistants are just one element of our policy; the introduction of the 1+2 model is not dependent on them.

Elizabeth Smith (Conservative, Mid Scotland and Fife)

I entirely acknowledge that they form only one part of the Government’s policy. However, I devised my amendment after speaking to many modern language teachers who believe that more foreign language assistants and teachers gaining a higher level of qualification is essential if we are to ensure that the Government’s ambitious policy works.

Angela Constance (Scottish National Party, Almond Valley)

What I dispute is the idea that the policy will stand or fall on foreign language assistants. We can agree that they are a valuable addition to the skills and expertise of teaching staff and that they complement the work that should be being done under curriculum for excellence. I would have hoped that members across the chamber would welcome Dr Allan’s announcement that an additional £4 million will be provided in 2013-14, on top of the £4 million that is already in the system.

Neil Findlay (Labour, Lothian)

The minister referred to the Labour and Tory amendments, but does she not find it surprising that Alasdair Allan’s motion makes no reference to funding the roll-out of the programme?

Angela Constance (Scottish National Party, Almond Valley)

Like me, Mr Findlay has been in the chamber all morning, so he will have heard Dr Allan’s extensive remarks about how we will take forward the funding and the planning of the programme. I would have hoped that Mr Findlay and others would recognise that this Government has had the courage and the honesty to provide an honest critique of the position that we start from as we seek to achieve our ambition for children to speak two languages in addition to their mother tongue.

Before I respond to the substantial points that other members have made during the debate, in my capacity as the Minister for Youth Employment, I want to reinforce Dr Allan’s central message. In essence, that message is that, in today’s globalised world, learning other languages is more important than ever and that our commitment to our long-term ambition will maximise the opportunities for young people to learn languages.

As Stuart McMillan pointed out, multilingual youngsters have a competitive advantage. For example, I am acutely aware that many major international hotel groups are reluctant to recruit on to their trainee management programmes young people who are not multilingual, because they want to have the opportunity to deploy their young recruits in other parts of the world. I am aware that successive CBI surveys have pointed to the concerns that some employers have about the lack of language skills in the workforce.

The link between language skills, employability and the corresponding economic benefits is obvious. If we want to compete, we need to show the rest of the world that Scotland is, indeed, open for business. We need a workforce with the right linguistic skills of confidence and the ability to communicate, and outward-looking individuals who understand and are tolerant of difference.

Dennis Robertson (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire West)

In respect of the points about employability and language, will the minister acknowledge that those who do not have English as a first language, such as those who are deaf and use BSL, are currently disadvantaged, and that we should be encouraging the teaching of BSL as a language at primary level to raise awareness?

Angela Constance (Scottish National Party, Almond Valley)

Absolutely, and I hope that Mr Robertson welcomes the Government’s commitment to treat BSL as a language and not just as a mode of communication.

While I am talking about skills and employability, I want to take advantage of the opportunity offered by the recent media commentary on our young people’s employability and skills. To be absolutely clear, young people are the future of this country. They are part of the solution and not part of a problem. Our young people will help us to grow our economy and to grow as a nation. They have every right to expect an education system that will enable them to compete effectively at home and abroad. Liam McArthur is absolutely right on that point. Our young people should look at the learning of all languages as an entitlement and not just as an added extra. Many members have spoken about the economic cost to this county, of in excess of £500 million, because we do not have suitable linguistic skills.

Many members have also rightly spoken about how learning a foreign language is complementary to understanding our own language better, and vice versa. Dave Thompson spoke eloquently about Gaelic-medium education and how that enables young people to be fleet of foot in learning many different languages. Marco Biagi and Claudia Beamish talked about how learning cannot be compartmentalised and how adults must lead by example. On that note, I encourage Graeme Dey and others and say that, despite their age, they too can lead by example. It is never too late to learn.

It is also important to recognise that all children have the opportunity to learn a language. Maureen Watt spoke well about that when she made the connection between language and football, particularly for boys. Recently I had the privilege of visiting Glencryan school in Cumbernauld, which is a school for children who have learning disabilities. Despite their difficulties, those children are also learning languages in the context of the world of work. As well as learning employability skills in the school’s restaurant, they are also learning some modern languages, which will enhance their employability in the local hospitality sector.

Linda Fabiani made a useful contribution during which she spoke about Scots being the world’s best diplomats. I might have been sitting in this chamber for too long but that is not something that I have previously been informed about.

I thank Kezia Dugdale for the information on European funding. She will know that the Government always takes an interest in European funding and that, recently, we have had some success in unearthing an additional £25 million from the European social fund for young people.

Liam McArthur, Maureen Watt and Sandra White also spoke about further and higher education. They are absolutely correct that those sectors need to complement what is currently happening or will be happening in schools. We need that continuity to build on the curriculum for excellence. I assure Sandra White and Hanzala Malik that the Scottish funding council is monitoring language provision in the college and university sector. I am keen on our improving and getting more connectivity between the worlds of education and work if we are going to take advantage of the economic opportunities that lie ahead of us.

Dr Allan began the debate by saying that we need to create a cultural and educational environment in which multilingualism is the norm. We are right to be ambitious for our children and young people. We need to be bold and embrace the opportunity for change, and redress the situation in which our young people are losing out. We need to boost our children’s language skills over the next decade if we are to have any prospect of improving their life chances, as well as the economic performance of this country.

Rural Policing

Elizabeth Smith (Conservative, Mid Scotland and Fife)

1. To ask the Scottish Executive whether it will undertake an audit of rural policing resources and police stations prior to the establishment of a single police force. (S4O-01029)

Kenny MacAskill (Scottish National Party, Edinburgh Eastern)

The police service, under the leadership of Chief Constable Kevin Smith, is collecting information on policing resources, including police stations, as part of the work to create the police service of Scotland.

Elizabeth Smith (Conservative, Mid Scotland and Fife)

The cabinet secretary will acknowledge that in recent years a considerable number of key stations have closed down; in some cases, they have been sold. What assurances can he give that the formation of a single police force will not mean a further reduction in the essential local policing that rural areas require?

Kenny MacAskill (Scottish National Party, Edinburgh Eastern)

I can give the member that assurance. I am aware of her concerns. The intention behind having a single service is to ensure that in the face of swingeing cuts, we manage to preserve the integrity of the police service in Scotland and provide the necessary resources to cover a variety of matters in all parts of Scotland, and not in just those areas in which there is perhaps some critical mass.

Equally, we are conscious of the old adage that all policing is local. It is important that policing remains that way, and it is therefore our intention that the information will be available to boards and to the new police authorities that are coming in at local authority level. We can trust in their good judgment, as we can trust those who will be on the Scottish police authority and the new chief constable—whoever he or she is—to ensure that the local, visible police presence that has resulted in a 35-year low in recorded crime is maintained.

David Stewart (Labour, Highlands and Islands)

Does the cabinet secretary share my view that there is a strong case for hubs in the current Northern Constabulary and Grampian Police force areas, which emphasises the comparative advantage that they would bring to a single police force in relation to, for example, rural roads policing, wildlife crime, finance and information technology?

Kenny MacAskill (Scottish National Party, Edinburgh Eastern)

Those are ultimately operational matters for the police service. I have never interfered with the structure of the eight current forces and I would not do so with a single service.

The member’s point has been made previously by those who have been pursuing the benefits of a single police service in Scotland. It is not about centralising everything into one hub but about ensuring that we have flexibility. It is equally about ensuring that all areas of Scotland are covered, given the geography of the country.

Some of the member’s points will be taken on board by those who are involved in the restructuring.

Liam McArthur (Liberal Democrat, Orkney Islands)

I am sure that the justice secretary will be aware that Kevin Smith recently attended a meeting in Inverness at which concerns about the threat of police staff job losses and centralisation of support services were clearly expressed. What assurances can he provide to those in the Northern Constabulary region about those concerns, particularly in relation to Orkney, where staffing levels and station provision are back at what could be considered bare minimum levels? What guarantee can he offer that a single force will not result in a reduction in staffing or station provision?

Kenny MacAskill (Scottish National Party, Edinburgh Eastern)

The Government has made it clear that there is a correlation between the record number of police officers and the 35-year low in recorded crime. It is our intention to maintain the 1,000 additional officers, not simply numerically but in terms of their contribution in our communities. In restructuring, as we go from eight services to one, it is accepted that some civilian jobs cannot be justified. Such matters, whether in human resources or in other areas, are part of the cost saving that will be made as a result of restructuring.

We recognise the importance of the wider police family and, as I have said previously, the importance in Orkney of maintaining at least the rank of the current chief inspector who is based there when we have divisional commanders, and of maintaining the numbers, which, I recall, is something like 26 in the Orkney Islands. All that will be dealt with. I have no doubt that those who serve in the wider police family by carrying out civilian tasks will be equally required post restructuring.

However, in other areas in Scotland, whether in relation to communications or human resources, we simply cannot continue to do things eight times over, because we cannot justify the cost. On that basis, we will preserve the visible police presence in our communities, whether in Orkney or our major cities.

Prisons (Independent Monitoring)

Annabel Goldie (Conservative, West Scotland)

2. To ask the Scottish Executive what progress is being made to ensure the continued independent monitoring of prisons. (S4O-01030)

Kenny MacAskill (Scottish National Party, Edinburgh Eastern)

My officials have worked closely with Her Majesty’s chief inspector of prisons in Scotland to develop a statutory monitoring service that will be both operationally and financially integrated within the inspectorate and which will report to HM chief inspector of prisons. The new service will be split on a geographical basis and carried out regularly by three monitors. I consider that to be proportionate to facilitate regular monitoring in Scotland’s prisons and that it will create a more robust reporting mechanism.

Annabel Goldie (Conservative, West Scotland)

Currently, the independent monitoring of prisons is significantly enhanced by prison visiting committees, which provide cost-effective access for prisoners to independent advice. Can the cabinet secretary reassure me that the new arrangements will embrace those twin virtues of cost effectiveness and independence, and that those will be protected?

Kenny MacAskill (Scottish National Party, Edinburgh Eastern)

Absolutely—I can give that assurance. I understand the member’s concerns. I again pay tribute to those who have served on visiting committees. The Government has taken action to develop an advocacy service, which we think is necessary to deal with offenders’ needs, particularly those who are part of the churn of constant reoffending. Another aspect of the work of visiting committees is independent monitoring. I give the member an assurance that the system that will be provided within the office of HM inspectorate will be independent, will have the appropriate skills and information and will meet the requirements that she and others understandably seek.

Flood Prevention (Scotland) Act 1961

Nigel Don (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

3. To ask the Scottish Government whether a scheme promoted under the Flood Prevention (Scotland) Act 1961, which does not yet have confirmed statutory consents, will be eligible for grant support, including beyond the current spending review period, and to a level of 80 per cent of eligible costs. (S4O-01031)

Stewart Stevenson (Scottish National Party, Banffshire and Buchan Coast)

The Government and the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities agreed last year that the flooding component of the general capital grant for the spending review period would be distributed for large schemes and by application. The first round prioritised confirmed Flood Prevention (Scotland) Act 1961 schemes with planning consent. An announcement regarding a further round of applications is likely to be made towards the end of this year.

Nigel Don (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

The minister will be well aware that my concern is about the flood prevention scheme in Brechin in my constituency. What assurances can the minister give that, as that scheme and the many others like it in Scotland get the appropriate consents, money will be available, subject to the 80 per cent limit and the availability of funds?

Stewart Stevenson (Scottish National Party, Banffshire and Buchan Coast)

I need to be careful, because there is a planning issue. I understand that there is an objection to the flood prevention scheme to which the member refers and which the council in the area has submitted. It is important that, through that process and the planning system, we make progress towards a scheme that is implementable. I am willing to talk further when the process is complete and we have a scheme that can be implemented. Of course, it will be necessary for the scheme to demonstrate a positive cost benefit ratio, and the commencement of the scheme will have to be within the spending review period.

Claudia Beamish (Labour, South Scotland)

In view of on-going concerns about flooding in parts of my region such as at Whitesands in Dumfries and in Peebles, can the minister give the Parliament details about Scottish Government research projects on flooding and say how those will help with flooding mitigation in the south of Scotland and more broadly in Scotland, and how that connects with the land-use strategy?

Stewart Stevenson (Scottish National Party, Banffshire and Buchan Coast)

For the first time we have a national picture of the distribution and potential effects of floods, which will help us to focus resources where they will be required and target our efforts on areas where the greatest benefit can be gained.

The member is correct to make a link to land use. Part of what we will do in that context is look at the role of natural flooding to relieve water pressures on urban and developed areas that are affected by flooding. The natural systems that can help us will therefore form part of our consideration under the land-use heading.

Air Rifles (Regulation of Use)

Colin Beattie (Scottish National Party, Midlothian North and Musselburgh)

4. To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to introduce legislation regulating the use of air rifles. (S4O-01032)

Kenny MacAskill (Scottish National Party, Edinburgh Eastern)

Yes. We have a long-standing commitment to address the misuse of air weapons and we will bring forward legislation to regulate their ownership and use at the earliest possible opportunity.

Colin Beattie (Scottish National Party, Midlothian North and Musselburgh)

With frequent reports of attacks on members of the emergency services such as fire brigade and ambulance staff, among others, does the minister agree that there is a need to control better who can possess those potentially lethal weapons and to introduce some form of licensing without delay and as soon as the intended devolution of the power to do so makes that possible?

Kenny MacAskill (Scottish National Party, Edinburgh Eastern)

Absolutely. Sadly, people have been using those weapons entirely inappropriately. I say for the record that I recently met the parents of Andrew Morton and gave them the same commitment that I give members. I also pay tribute to Andrew’s parents for their efforts to ensure that we bring in an appropriate regulation scheme.

Air rifles are not toys: they hurt, maim and, tragically, even kill, as we know all too well. It is the Government’s intention to bring in a regulation scheme that will license new weapons. We are working with the consultative committee to ensure that we take on board the legitimate use of air rifles by those who have to deal with pests and control vermin and those who are members of legitimate, authorised sporting clubs. However, the days of taking those weapons out and using them entirely inappropriately in housing schemes must end. We owe it to the memory of Andrew Morton to ensure that action is taken on that.

Fife Energy Park (Foundry)

David Torrance (Scottish National Party, Kirkcaldy)

5. To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on RGR Foundry Ltd’s plans to build a new foundry at Fife energy park in order to supply the offshore wind market. (S4O-01033)

John Swinney (Scottish National Party, Perthshire North)

The Scottish Government is fully supportive of RGR Foundry Ltd’s plans to build a new foundry at Fife energy park as that will create an opportunity to develop a large-scale cast components facility for the offshore wind industry. That will be crucial in building on Scotland’s success in attracting major investment in our offshore wind sector.

David Torrance (Scottish National Party, Kirkcaldy)

Samsung, 2-B Energy, BiFab, the Hydrogen Office and RGR Foundry are just some of the companies that are investing in Fife energy park. Given that investments in the renewable energy sector provide a much-needed boost to the local economy, including important employment opportunities, what further support can the Scottish Government offer?

John Swinney (Scottish National Party, Perthshire North)

Our enterprise agencies are fully involved in the development of different business opportunities at the Fife energy park. The park is a source of enormous investment. There is also enormous excitement about what the facility can create for the Scottish economy.

Scottish Development International is working with RGR Foundry to explore how regional selective assistance could be utilised to assist the development of the project. SDI has also brokered discussions between RGR Foundry and wind turbine companies that are looking to set up in Scotland. Those are just two examples of the areas in which SDI and our other agencies can provide assistance. That assistance is available in a variety of different locations around the country.

NHS Ayrshire and Arran (Patient Care)

Kenneth Gibson (Scottish National Party, Cunninghame North)

6. To ask the Scottish Government what it considers the most significant improvements have been to patient care in the Ayrshire and Arran national health service board area since 2007. (S4O-01034)

Nicola Sturgeon (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Southside)

A range of significant improvements have been made to patient care in Ayrshire and Arran since 2007.

There have been big improvements in the priority area of infection control. For instance, between 2007 and 2011 the number of Clostridium difficile cases fell by 66 per cent. On waiting times, although there are no comparable figures for 2007, in December 2011 some 91 per cent of patients were being treated within 18 weeks of referral—up from 72 per cent in January 2011.

My first act as health secretary in 2007 was to overturn the previous Administration’s decision to close the accident and emergency department at Ayr hospital. That has meant that local people have continued to benefit from the A and E unit and its full range of support services, with around 43,000 attendances every year.

Kenneth Gibson (Scottish National Party, Cunninghame North)

Will the cabinet secretary confirm that NHS Ayrshire and Arran has launched a pre-planning consultation to build a new 206-bed hospital in North Ayrshire to provide state-of-the-art care and rehabilitation for adult mental health patients? Can she inform members what the impact of that will be in improving the delivery of mental health care in Ayrshire and Arran in the years ahead?

Nicola Sturgeon (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Southside)

I confirm the ambition of NHS Ayrshire and Arran to deliver real improvements for patients with mental health issues. Kenny Gibson mentioned the plans to build a new hospital, which will provide state-of-the art, high-quality care for those who require hospital treatment. In tandem with that, NHS Ayrshire and Arran—in common with other health boards—is developing community services so that people can be as well supported as possible within the community. That reflects the vast improvements in mental health that we have seen in recent years. However, as members will be aware from our on-going work around our mental health strategy, there is still more work to do. Developments such as those in NHS Ayrshire and Arran are examples of that further work.

Aberdeen City Council (Planning)

Maureen Watt (Scottish National Party, Aberdeen South and North Kincardine)

7. To ask the Scottish Government what discussions the Minister for Local Government and Planning has had with Aberdeen City Council regarding its plans to improve public buildings. (S4O-01035)

Derek Mackay (Scottish National Party, Renfrewshire North and West)

I have had no formal discussions with Aberdeen City Council on its plans to improve public buildings.

Maureen Watt (Scottish National Party, Aberdeen South and North Kincardine)

Given that the redevelopment of Aberdeen art gallery is contingent on the use of tax increment financing, does the minister agree that Labour’s undemocratic decision to overturn the referendum on the city garden project could scupper the prospect of that redevelopment? Does he also agree that the Labour-Tory-independent council administration would do better to invest in Aberdeen’s infrastructure instead of rewarding itself with pay rises and plush offices?

Derek Mackay (Scottish National Party, Renfrewshire North and West)

The Scottish Government has made it clear that it is up to Aberdeen City Council to decide whether to proceed with using tax increment financing for the city garden project, and that continues to be the case. In view of the referendum, it would be very disappointing if the city council did not take that opportunity.

Lewis Macdonald (Labour, North East Scotland)

Does the minister agree that it is for Aberdeen City Council to determine how best to improve public buildings and community-owned assets in the city? If so, will he have an early meeting with Aberdeen City Council in that spirit to offer support from the Scottish Government for the improvement of the city and the public realm in Aberdeen?

Derek Mackay (Scottish National Party, Renfrewshire North and West)

Mr Macdonald is absolutely right. I would be the first to say that, as an independent corporate body, the council will make that decision. However, it would be wise to listen to the people of Aberdeen, who voted in a democratic referendum to proceed with that project. Perhaps the council would be wise to listen to its electorate’s views on pay rises for elected members as well.

Scottish Enterprise (Meetings)

Gavin Brown (Conservative, Lothian)

8. To ask the Scottish Executive when it last met Scottish Enterprise. (S4O-01036)

John Swinney (Scottish National Party, Perthshire North)

I last met Scottish Enterprise at a meeting of the industry group chairs that took place on 30 March. Scottish Government officials meet their counterparts in Scottish Enterprise regularly to discuss a range of subjects.

Gavin Brown (Conservative, Lothian)

What would be the annual cost of additional business rates paid by Scottish Enterprise as a result of the proposed legislation on unoccupied properties?

John Swinney (Scottish National Party, Perthshire North)

I will have to write to Mr Brown with the specific detail on that.

The Government’s proposals on empty property relief are designed to provide every incentive to ensure that business rents are set at an appropriate level to encourage occupancy and growth in the economy and to get companies active in the economy to create jobs. I am surprised that the Conservatives are so obstructive of such a good objective from the Government.

Linda Fabiani (Scottish National Party, East Kilbride)

At his next meeting with Scottish Enterprise, will the minister discuss match-funding and whether something additional can be done to help those who invent extremely useful products for Scotland’s future?

John Swinney (Scottish National Party, Perthshire North)

Along with its counterpart, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, Scottish Enterprise establishes clear working relationships with individual companies, many of which produce the inventions and creative solutions to which Linda Fabiani referred, and works out how they can best be supported in taking their products to market.

Under the approach set out by ministers, the enterprise agencies are required to ensure that the companies are well supported both through the business gateway system, in partnership with our local authority colleagues, and by the enterprise agencies directly. If Linda Fabiani is referring to any specific companies that she thinks could benefit from further support from Scottish Enterprise, ministers would be only too happy to mention them to Scottish Enterprise for further investigation.

Engagements

Johann Lamont (Labour, Glasgow Pollok)

1. To ask the First Minister what engagements he has planned for the rest of the day. (S4F-00701)

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

I will be taking forward matters of importance to the people of Scotland.

Johann Lamont (Labour, Glasgow Pollok)

These are tough times. People across Europe are fearful of what will happen if Greece defaults on its loans and leaves the euro zone. The situation in Spain, Portugal and Italy is also looking increasingly perilous. If Greece leaves the euro, and others may follow, what are the First Minister’s estimates of the impact on the Scottish economy?

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

It is precisely because of the seriousness of the situation that we have identified Government time next week for a debate on exactly that subject. The Government will contribute our thoughts on the matter and I am sure that the Labour Party and other parties will contribute as well. Clearly, it is a very serious situation and there are potentially substantial implications for the United Kingdom and for the Scottish economy.

Johann Lamont (Labour, Glasgow Pollok)

It would have been good if the First Minister could have shared some of his thoughts now, since that was the question that I asked him.

The last time that our banking sector hit crisis, a Labour Government immediately rescued our banks so that ordinary families in this country could still get money out of the cashpoints. That included Scottish banks, of course. There was no question, no hesitation and no negotiation. It was the kind of action that the Greeks and the Irish can only dream of. Our banking system was saved by one of the most successful economic unions in history—the United Kingdom.

Is not the real lesson of the euro crisis that you cannot share a currency and have monetary union without a fiscal union and a political union?

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

I gently remind Johann Lamont that the governor of the Bank of England, who was in office during the period that she talks about, published last week the most devastating assessment of the delay and dithering. In fact, he accused the last Government and its lack of action of being responsible for the depth of the recession.

If that is what the governor of the Bank of England, who was in office when Alistair Darling was chancellor and Gordon Brown was Prime Minister, says, I do not think that I have to add to that by pointing out that Labour’s absolute responsibility for the depth of the recession is clear on the record and cannot be escaped by any member of the Labour Party.

Johann Lamont says that a monetary union must inevitably carry with it a fiscal union. There are two totally different situations. In the case of the euro, we are talking about a situation in which the productivity rate of Greece is about 40 per cent below that of Germany. That creates huge difficulties and tensions within the euro area.

It would be better at this juncture if people came forward with positive ideas as to how to give opportunities and hope to the people of Greece within that euro area, rather than merely carping from the sidelines, which seems to be what the United Kingdom Government is doing. To be absolutely frank, I have not heard anything from Ed Balls that is a substantial argument as to how the euro zone can be maintained in its current condition.

I hope that, when we come to the debate next Wednesday, Johann Lamont will come with not just a bit of remembrance of the past and Labour’s absolute responsibility for the mess that the economy was in, but also some positive ideas for the future.

Johann Lamont (Labour, Glasgow Pollok)

This is the man who said that the problem with the banking system was that it was overregulated. We also note that he refuses to confront the logic of his own position that the Bank of England would be the lender of last resort for a Scotland that was outside the United Kingdom.

People in this country and throughout Europe are looking for certainty and stability in an uncertain world. The First Minister used to say that we needed a Scottish pound because interest rates set in London were bad for Scotland, yet now that is what he advocates. He used to say that we would join the euro because the pound was failing. Now, louder than William Hague ever did, he is saying, “Keep the pound.” You know, consistency is a wonderful thing.

Is not the real reason why the First Minister keeps changing the economic case for leaving the UK that he cannot find one that adds up?

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

When I heard the words “consistency is a wonderful thing”, the three words “council tax freeze” came to mind as far as the Labour Party is concerned.

The former Labour Prime Minister, Gordon Brown, argued in a speech that there should be no-touch regulation of the financial sector. He actually argued that position. The Labour Party was in favour of adopting the euro, and it was going to have a referendum to consolidate that position when Tony Blair was Prime Minister. Lectures from the Labour Party on economic consistency with regard to the euro area absolutely take the biscuit in this chamber.

It will substantially assist the Scottish economy if we have fiscal control—that is, if we control Scotland’s taxes and resources and have the ability to manage our economy on that basis. Independence will give us that strong position and there seems to be no other option available that could offer a strong position. I would have thought, despite Alistair Darling wanting cuts that were tougher and deeper than Margaret Thatcher’s, that there would now be agreement between the Scottish National Party and the Labour Party that direct capital spending is necessary to revive our economy. We have articulated that case with our Labour colleagues in the Government of Wales to try to convince the chancellor in London that that is the right mechanism to use right now to revive the economy. Would it not be better if we as a Parliament could just decide to get on and do that with independence, instead of having to go cap in hand to UK Tory chancellors? [Applause.]

Tricia Marwick (None, Mid Fife and Glenrothes)

Order.

Johann Lamont (Labour, Glasgow Pollok)

Instead of the First Minister giving us his greatest hits in lines of not answering the question, he should take responsibility and reflect on what is happening in Europe now and the consequences that that will have for Scotland. We have all heard that the First Minister is planning a big day out at the pictures tomorrow. For many of us, the cinema is a form of escapism, but evidently, for the First Minister, his economics are escapism. Europe is facing the greatest economic crisis since the depression, but instead of looking up E for “Economists” in his address book, he is looking up C for “Celebrities”. I suppose that that makes a change from dialling M for Murdoch. [Interruption.] This is a serious business.

Johann Lamont (Labour, Glasgow Pollok)

Like people across Europe, Scots fear what will happen to them if the euro zone collapses, but the First Minister’s message to them is, “Turn off the news and put down the paper. There is nothing to worry about.” I think that we know now what will be showing at the multiplex in Fountainbridge tomorrow: “Alex in Wonderland”. [Interruption.]

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

I hope that by the time that Johann Lamont gets to the debate next Wednesday, which has been called in Government time so that the Parliament can seriously address a serious issue, she will have something more to say than she has managed this afternoon.

The economy is a huge and abiding concern for the Government. That is why we are working daily to bring jobs to Scotland. We take some satisfaction from recent employment figures in Scotland rising and the unemployment figures falling, but we are not complacent about that. That is why we are calling for direct investment in shovel-ready projects around Scotland and why we are making the case for having control over the fiscal levers of the economy, which can come only with independence.

The idea that we are the only party that is planning and getting arrangements made for a constitutional debate seems to me to be rather wide of the mark. I read in The Mail on Sunday—it was the first time that I had read that newspaper—that

“Senior aides to David Cameron took part in a secret all-party ‘council of war’ at former Labour Chancellor Alistair Darling’s Edinburgh home ... The six men spent three hours discussing their battle plans at the meeting held a month ago at Mr Darling’s home in the Abbotsford Park area that has become their unofficial HQ.

Fortified by tea and sandwiches ... they agreed that the only way to defeat Mr Salmond”—

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

That was described as the “Abbotsford accord”. If that is what the no campaign has to offer, the campaign that will be launched tomorrow will be fundamentally successful.

Secretary of State for Scotland (Meetings)

Ruth Davidson (Conservative, Glasgow)

2. If the First Minister is looking at what is on at Cineworld tomorrow, I say for his information that “Dark Shadows” and “The Dictator” are playing.

To ask the First Minister when he will next meet the Secretary of State for Scotland. (S4F-00692)

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

I have no plans to meet the secretary of state in the near future.

Ruth Davidson (Conservative, Glasgow)

Two years ago, the Scottish National Party Government withdrew its commitment to publicly fund the new sick kids hospital in Edinburgh. Yesterday, NHS Lothian confirmed that the project has been delayed yet again—not for the first or second time but for the fifth time. The health secretary approved the plans that promised us a new sick kids that would be completed by early next year. When will the doors open at a new children’s hospital facility in Edinburgh?

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

The full bouquet of the absurdity of that question comes from the fact that a party in government in London that cuts the direct capital budget by 30 per cent and then calls for direct capital investment has a credibility gap that is as wide as the River Forth.

We are looking at the non-profit-distributing model to build the sick kids hospital. The hospital will be built, but NPD programmes inevitably take time, because of their nature. The commitment from the Government is there.

If the Conservative Party and the Liberal Democrats wish to see a direct capital investment plan to help the sick kids hospital and other such projects in the national health service, they should restore the money from the capital cuts that the chancellor in London has made.

Ruth Davidson (Conservative, Glasgow)

Those excuses do not work. The Government promised a hospital and the hospital has not been built. I can tell the First Minister that the projected date of completion has now slipped to 2017, but the sad truth is that the chair of NHS Lothian reported yesterday that NHS Lothian is being forced to prepare a plan B, which would keep the hospital at the old site.

I have a personal interest, as I am one of the many thousands of people across Scotland whose lives were saved by the specialist care that they received at the sick kids hospital in Edinburgh. I know how beloved the old Sciennes building is. However, the site’s limitations, the building’s age and its distance from an acute emergency hospital mean that the facility is no longer suitable to provide the world-class care that our children deserve into the future.

Plan B is not good enough. Plan A has slipped five times on the First Minister’s watch. The Government cannot sit on its hands and let the project fall apart, because it is too important. Will the First Minister now show the political leadership that patients and their families expect? Will he make the hospital a political priority and bring to bear all the power that the Government has to get the players round the table, to get the bricks laid, to get the doors open and to get children treated by 2017?

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

When we have debated capital spending, the Conservative Party has referred to the budget consequentials that have increased the Scottish Government’s budget. I asked officials to prepare figures for the Government’s capital budget with the addition of the consequentials from the last autumn statement and the last budget. In 2010-11, the capital budget—including those consequentials—that was allocated to the Scottish Government was £3.293 billion. In 2014-15, that budget will fall to £2.489 billion, which is a cut of almost 30 per cent. A party that, in government at Westminster, imposes a 30 per cent capital cut and then calls for direct capital investment across the country is guilty of the most overwhelming hypocrisy.

The alternative to keeping our commitments to the people of Scotland—which I say that we shall keep, as another ex-patient of the sick kids hospital in Edinburgh—is to go for non-profit-distributing funding. The securing of non-profit-distributing funding inevitably takes time, but it shall be done.

The capital programme in the national health service in Scotland is infinitely superior to what is happening south of the border. Just occasionally, Ruth Davidson and her colleagues should take a glance at the decimation of the national health service in England, which will never happen as long as we are in government in Scotland.

Alison McInnes (Liberal Democrat, North East Scotland)

The First Minister will be aware of the plight of Mr Ken Maitland, from Aberdeen, who suffered from dementia and died earlier this month. His wife revealed last weekend that he had had 106 different carers in one year. Sadly, that is not the only case in which a multitude of different carers have trooped in and out of someone’s home.

In 2009, the Scottish Government made dementia a national priority and drew up a charter of rights for people with dementia and their carers in Scotland. Standards of care for people with dementia include the statement:

“I have the right to be regarded as a unique individual and to be treated with dignity and respect”.

Does the First Minister agree that Mr Maitland’s care package failed to ensure that he was treated with dignity and respect and that something has gone badly wrong in the way in which home care is provided? Will he instruct his health secretary to take stock of the situation throughout Scotland and issue new, stricter guidelines, which ensure that councils and care agencies provide proper, person-centred care plans, with a focus on continuity of care?

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

I heard Mrs Maitland articulate her case on the radio and I thought that she did so with great dignity, under the circumstances. Clearly the situation that her husband faced was completely unsatisfactory.

I disagree with Alison McInnes. It is not a case of publishing new guidelines; it is much more a case of looking to two things: first, the integration of health and social care, which should help enormously in the management of home care cases; and secondly, the bill that we are about to pass, which will entrench patients’ rights in the rule of law and give people options to command their own care packages. I would look for the integration of health and social care and the legislative basis for action to protect patients, rather than just for the issuing of guidelines.

James Dornan (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Cathcart)

The First Minister will be aware of the recent announcement that 90 job losses are planned at the ClydeUnion Pumps plant in my constituency. What discussions has the Scottish Government had with ClydeUnion Pumps about the job losses? Former owner Jim McColl, when he sold the company, said that he thought that new owners SPX

“would be a good responsible owner of this business and would continue to support its growth”,

and that he wanted to

“see the ... employees go on and prosper”.

Does the First Minister agree that, given the plant’s 125-year history in the community of Cathcart, new owners SPX should seriously consider Jim McColl’s wishes?

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

I share the member’s concern about the announcement by SPX that around 90 jobs will be lost at ClydeUnion Pumps in Cathcart, and about the impact that that will have on the affected employees and their families.

I can confirm that we acted immediately to provide assistance through the partnership action for continuing employment initiative. On Tuesday this week the Glasgow PACE team met the company to discuss support for employees who might face redundancy. I assure the member that PACE will provide as much support as possible to the employees, to minimise the time that individuals are affected by redundancy and are out of work.

Cabinet (Meetings)

Willie Rennie (Liberal Democrat, Mid Scotland and Fife)

3. To ask the First Minister what issues will be discussed at the next meeting of the Cabinet. (S4F-00697)

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

We will discuss issues of importance to the people of Scotland.

Willie Rennie (Liberal Democrat, Mid Scotland and Fife)

The First Minister will have seen the open letter from 40 leading figures that calls for a Scottish public inquiry into the Lockerbie prosecution. The group made it clear that it wants a Scottish inquiry, whether or not there is an appeal.

The Scottish Government’s Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission identified six grounds for appeal, including the conduct of the Crown Office, withheld evidence and doubt about identification.

The First Minister has said that he would be prepared to co-operate with a United Kingdom inquiry. If he has no objection in principle to an inquiry, will he agree to hold the Scottish inquiry that the group wants?

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

The place where an individual’s guilt or innocence is determined is a court of law. As Willie Rennie should know, the relatives of Mr al-Megrahi have the ability, if they so choose, to go back to the Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission and seek further leave to appeal. That is the process that can be followed. The Parliament would do well to take the view that a court of law is not just the best place but the only place to determine guilt or innocence.

Willie Rennie described the SCCRC’s report. The Scottish Criminal Cases Review Commission is part and parcel of the Scottish judicial system. It exists to provide checks and balances in the system. It is right and proper for the SCCRC to refer cases back to the court of appeal, if it thinks that there is reason to do so. That does not automatically mean that cases will be successful on appeal—we should look at the record to see that.

Mr Rennie should in fairness note that, now that we have the full detail of the SCCRC report—as he knows, I campaigned for years to have it published—we can see that the forensic trail that led to Malta and Libya was upheld in the SCCRC’s exhaustive review. That is not always clear in the reporting about the report.

Willie Rennie (Liberal Democrat, Mid Scotland and Fife)

This is not just about guilt or innocence; it is also about the conduct of the Crown Office. Surely, a liberal society should be prepared to look hard at its justice system, even if it is worried about what it might find. Whether or not that is determined surely cannot be left in the hands of a family somewhere in Tripoli. If the First Minister chose to act on the inquiry, he would have the support of Desmond Tutu, Terry Waite, John Pilger and many others.

This is not a normal case; it is Scotland’s biggest terrorist atrocity. These are serious questions that have been raised by serious people, and the world is watching. Will the First Minister act?

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

I have no axe to grind as far as the Crown Office of 10 years ago is concerned. This Government was not in office then. There is no reason for me to be unreasonably protective of law officers, the Lord Advocate and members of the Crown Office from that time. However, the basis on which we must proceed is to see whether the appeals are exhausted within the system. It is not something that we can shrug aside and say that it should not be up to the family of Mr al-Megrahi whether they want to go back to the SCCRC. That is the process of Scots law. That is what the SCCRC is there to do.

Given the exhaustive nature of the SCCRC report, the evidence that it compiled and the witness statements that it took over a period of years, we have every reason to suppose that it will do its job properly, as it clearly has done before.

I ask Mr Rennie to remember that the SCCRC is part and parcel of our judicial system. It is not something that is outside the judicial system. The SCCRC is part of the judicial system.

The people whom Mr Rennie cited genuinely believe that Mr al-Megrahi was innocent. That is why they are arguing that case. The place to determine guilt or innocence is in a court of law. Other people who want an inquiry into Lockerbie are not looking for an inquiry into the points in the SCCRC report; they are looking for an inquiry into the ultimate responsibility for Lockerbie. That touches on matters of huge international import, and it would be beyond the ability of a Scottish inquiry to summon witnesses and compel evidence and so on in that context. That is why we have said, clearly, that we would co-operate with any such inquiry. However, if an application to determine the guilt or innocence of Mr al-Megrahi comes forward, that is a matter for the SCCRC, which is an independent body, and that is the process by which things can be properly pursued.

Economy (Euro Zone Impact)

Kenneth Gibson (Scottish National Party, Cunninghame North)

4. To ask the First Minister what impact the continuing uncertainty in the euro zone is having on the Scottish economy. (S4F-00690)

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

I think it is important to recognise that employment in Scotland is rising and unemployment falling—both at a faster rate than across the United Kingdom as a whole.

This week’s Bank of Scotland labour market barometer showed the 18th month of improvement in the Scottish labour market, which was a highly satisfactory finding.

However, as we have said many times, the recovery remains fragile and action is required to boost growth and create job opportunities. With around 45 per cent of Scottish international exports destined for European markets, an end to the on-going uncertainty and a strong recovery in Europe is important for not just the Scottish economy, but the global economic recovery.

Kenneth Gibson (Scottish National Party, Cunninghame North)

The UK coalition Government, which controls macroeconomic policy, has now matched the previous Labour Government by leading the UK back into recession. Although continuing euro zone uncertainty has impacted on Scotland and the UK, does the First Minister agree that the fact that the UK is in double-dip recession and has the worst economic performance since the recession of any G20 country excluding Italy is clear evidence of the negative impact of UK economic policies? Will the First Minister again call on the coalition Government to abandon its austerity-at-all-costs approach, lest its actions continue to jeopardise Scottish economic recovery, and does he agree with former Bank of England officials, Howard Davies and Marian Bell, who said:

“The markets recognize that if the economy turns out weaker than expected and you try to compensate for that by tightening even further, then that way madness lies”?

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

Yes, I agree with that. It is important to recognise that, when even the International Monetary Fund is calling for an alternative approach to combat recession, it is high time that the Chancellor of the Exchequer recognised the role of direct capital investment in stimulating the economy.

As members in the chamber know, I have made that case many times, but I am pleased to see that there are at least some converts to the cause. Even if Labour members here do not recognise their absolute responsibility for the current plight of the economy, they may have noticed last week the comments from Nick Pearce, who was Gordon Brown’s head of policy at number 10. He called for a major capital investment programme, while admitting in the same quote:

“That cut, by the way, was a decision of the last Labour government which the Coalition inherited—so to register this ... is not to make partisan points”.

Oh, that we could have such admission and honesty from the Labour members in this Parliament.

Gavin Brown (Conservative, Lothian)

It may be time for a supplementary question that the First Minister has not seen in advance.

Given the substantial implications for the Scottish economy, can the First Minister tell us how many times his Council of Economic Advisers has met since the euro zone crisis reared its head again a few weeks ago, and when it is next scheduled to meet?

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

The Council of Economic Advisers has met twice since the election. It meets three times a year and provides on-going substantial advice on substantive routes forward, and it is comprised of some of the greatest economists in the world.

I say to Gavin Brown that I would not need notice to answer his questions.

Lockerbie Bombing (Criminal Investigation)

Graeme Pearson (Labour, South Scotland)

5. To ask the First Minister what progress is being made with the criminal investigation of the Lockerbie bombing. (S4F-00693)

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

As Graeme Pearson—of all people—will know, criminal investigations and prosecutions are conducted independently by the Crown Office and the police.

I am informed that the investigation into the involvement of others with Mr al-Megrahi in the bombing of Pan Am 103 has not been closed—it is a live criminal inquiry—and the Crown is working with Dumfries and Galloway Constabulary and the United States authorities to pursue all available lines of inquiry.

An international letter of request was issued by the Lord Advocate to the new Libyan authorities in February this year to allow the investigation to proceed in Libya. The letter of request details the specific lines of inquiry in which law enforcement officers are interested.

The Lord Advocate travelled to Tripoli in April this year to meet the interim Libyan Prime Minister and the Minister for Justice to discuss and encourage co-operation with Scottish law enforcement officers.

It is a live criminal inquiry, and it would not be appropriate for me to comment further on the investigation. However, I can say to Mr Pearson that we have every confidence and belief that the new Libyan authorities will co-operate fully with the inquiry.

Graeme Pearson (Labour, South Scotland)

I thank the First Minister for that reply, and note his earlier replies on the matter and his continued declarations of open government. Would he be surprised to know that, following my unanswered questions in the chamber on 29 February, I wrote to the Cabinet Secretary for Justice to request specific facts about his visit to Greenock prison, the meeting between departmental officials and Libyan representatives and his view on a possible conflict of interest in those matters?

In spite of repeated reminders, I had to wait for 70 days, before finally submitting an additional freedom of information request and receiving a refusal of my request within hours. How does the First Minister intend to repair the damage that has been done to Scotland’s reputation for justice and good governance if he cannot demonstrate the accountability of his Government to this Parliament and to members in the chamber?

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

Graeme Pearson should know—he certainly should have known before he entered the chamber—that all relevant documents were published on the web by the Scottish Government in August 2009, including all the information that could be disclosed.

That is in marked contrast, of course, to the decisions of the Labour Government at Westminster. It was only with the publication of Gus O’Donnell’s report on 7 February 2011 that we found out that United Kingdom Government

“Policy was ... progressively developed that Her Majesty’s Government should do all it could, while respecting devolved competencies, to facilitate an appeal by the Libyans to the Scottish government for Mr Megrahi’s release under the Prisoner Transfer Agreement or for release on compassionate grounds ... Such an approach was understood across all relevant departments.”

While Labour Party members in this chamber were attacking the justice secretary, their colleagues in London were campaigning for Mr al-Megrahi’s release on any grounds.

Ministry of Defence (Radioactive Contamination of Land)

Nigel Don (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

6. To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government’s position is regarding reports that the Ministry of Defence might have sold land in Scotland that was contaminated with radioactive material. (S4F-00712)

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

The Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and the Environment recently wrote to the United Kingdom Secretary of State for Defence urging the MOD to make available all necessary information on any such land that might be potentially contaminated to the Scottish Environment Protection Agency, the agency responsible for regulating such matters in Scotland. We understand that assessments to identify any such contamination at RAF Kinloss and other MOD sites are on-going and it is vital that the MOD co-operates with SEPA to ensure that local communities can be provided with peace of mind as quickly as possible.

Nigel Don (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

Does the First Minister agree that the MOD really must learn the lesson of Dalgety Bay, investigate all current and former sites in Scotland and be free with the information that it discovers for the benefit of our local communities?

Alex Salmond (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

Lessons should be learned from the radioactive contamination at Dalgety Bay. Although that contamination was first detected in the early 1990s, it has only been in the past few months that the MOD has taken the necessary steps to begin a full-scale investigation. The fact that it was left to SEPA, rather than the MOD, to identify and remove high-activity particles in Dalgety Bay last year shows that the MOD has been dragging its feet on this issue for far too long and I call on the ministry to carry out its investigations at other sites in Scotland in a prompt, comprehensive and transparent manner and in full co-operation with the regulatory authorities in Scotland and the communities affected. Only by doing so can it regain the confidence and trust of the people in those communities.

Supported Employment (Public Contracts)

Kenneth Macintosh (Labour, Eastwood)

1. To ask the Scottish Executive how it procures public contracts for supported employment. (S4O-01039)

Alex Neil (Scottish National Party, Airdrie and Shotts)

Public bodies in Scotland can procure goods and services from organisations with supported employment, either by reserving contracts under article 19 of the European public procurement directive or in open competition with other potential suppliers. The Scottish procurement directorate is in the process of establishing a national collaborative framework agreement for supported factories and businesses, which is expected to be in place by the autumn.

Kenneth Macintosh (Labour, Eastwood)

The cabinet secretary and many other members will share my concern about the future of Remploy. I believe that the consultation on the issue is about two thirds of the way through. The biggest support that the Scottish Government can offer the employees and trade unions is to place further contracts with Remploy. Has he been able to use article 19 or the other techniques that are available to him to place such contracts and is he looking to do so in future?

Alex Neil (Scottish National Party, Airdrie and Shotts)

Since October 2010, through the public contracts Scotland mechanism, 13 contracts have been issued to supported businesses, which are valued at £14.6 million. In addition, Scottish public bodies have spent £24.1 million with Scotland-based supported businesses in the most recent financial year for which figures are available, which is 2010-11.

We are in discussions with Remploy. I have made it clear to it that we are committed to trying to maximise the opportunities for Remploy and other supported businesses to get contracts from the Scottish Government, particularly under article 19 and similar mechanisms. I am also encouraging supported businesses, when appropriate, to tender for more general work, because they sometimes offer a more competitive tender than private companies can offer.

Stewart Maxwell (Scottish National Party, West Scotland)

Ken Macintosh mentioned the future of Remploy following the decision by the United Kingdom Government. Will the cabinet secretary update the Parliament on what actions the task force on the issue is taking? How often is it meeting and what impact will it have on the possibility of Remploy surviving and flourishing in future?

Alex Neil (Scottish National Party, Airdrie and Shotts)

The task force is looking at all the consequences and implications of the UK Government’s regrettable decision to close the Remploy factories in Scotland. It is equally regrettable that factories south of the border are being closed. We have a number of objectives. First, we want to ensure that the people who are displaced as a result of the decisions have the best opportunity to find alternative employment. Secondly, as I said, we want to ensure that Remploy can maximise its opportunities for future procurement and work through public sector contracts. Thirdly, we are anxious to ensure that we assist those who depend on Remploy, either directly or indirectly, for employment and income. The task force is addressing all those issues. It meets fairly regularly with a view to putting together a plan to do the best that we can in Scotland to overcome the consequences of what I think is a fairly harsh and inhumane decision.

British Geological Survey (Meetings)

Chic Brodie (Scottish National Party, South Scotland)

2. To ask the Scottish Government when the Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure and Capital Investment last met the British Geological Survey. (S4O-01040)

Alex Neil (Scottish National Party, Airdrie and Shotts)

I have not met the British Geological Survey.

Chic Brodie (Scottish National Party, South Scotland)

The cabinet secretary will be aware of the increased worldwide demand for rare-earth minerals and the possible restrictions on them from the likes of China, which would have a serious impact on our industries. He will also be aware of the Tellus geosurvey project in Northern Ireland, which cost £5.8 million in 2006 and 2007 and which has since generated £21 million for the Government in exploration licences. The British Geological Survey has expertise on the geology of Scotland. In 2008, it carried out a geological survey across Ayrshire and specifically around Patna. Will the Scottish Government now engage with the British Geological Survey to commence a full-scale Scottish project like the Tellus project in Northern Ireland?

Alex Neil (Scottish National Party, Airdrie and Shotts)

There have always been major golden nuggets around Patna, so I am sure that we would find a lot of productive resources there—some have left, of course.

The Scottish Government has no plans to commit to full-scale geological surveys of the type indicated. The matter is for the British Geological Survey, but we are happy to discuss with it any opportunities that might arise for economic development and jobs in Scotland from the work that it has done and may do in the future, although that is primarily a matter for my colleague Fergus Ewing.

A90 Upgrade (Balmedie to Tipperty)

Elaine Smith (Labour, Coatbridge and Chryston)

Under rule 7.5 of the standing orders, members should not refer to any matter in which legal proceedings are active except with the consent of the Presiding Officers. I consider the Aberdeen western peripheral route plan, which is currently before the Supreme Court, to be such a matter.

3.

Alison McInnes (Liberal Democrat, North East Scotland)

Thank you for that guidance, Presiding Officer.

To ask the Scottish Executive whether it is considering accelerating the work on upgrading the A90 between Balmedie and Tipperty. (S4O-01041)

Keith Brown (Scottish National Party, Clackmannanshire and Dunblane)

The A90 Balmedie to Tipperty scheme will be procured alongside the Aberdeen western peripheral route in a non-profit distributing model form of contract.

Alison McInnes (Liberal Democrat, North East Scotland)

The short stretch of dualling would make a big difference to my constituents because it would not only ease congestion for those travelling from Buchan and Ellon into Aberdeen but tackle road safety problems. Currently, residents of Balmedie and Balhelvie have to negotiate a very difficult junction at the north end of Balmedie where the dual carriageway currently ends. In addition, residents of Newburgh have great difficulty turning on to the main road at Fontainebleau.

The problem with the minister’s chosen approach is that he has rolled a series of projects together and progress has been hindered because one component of the package has stalled. I urge him to think again and get on with building the Balmedie to Tipperty link now. Let us not wait any longer for the outcome of legal wrangling.

Keith Brown (Scottish National Party, Clackmannanshire and Dunblane)

If Alison McInnes and the Liberal Democrats were so keen for this scheme to proceed as soon as possible, they would have done something about it in the eight years during which they had the opportunity to do so.

As I have said before to Alison McInnes, the approach that we are taking has been supported by the local councils and we will continue with the approach on the basis that the benefits of doing it in that way are substantial. Of course—I am bearing in mind the Presiding Officer’s injunction—if we proceeded ahead of the result of the legal proceedings only to find out that we did not get the legal outcome that we are looking for, we would be criticised by Alison McInnes and others for wasting public resources. We will proceed in the way that we always said we would, and we will get this road built.

Victoria and Albert at Dundee (Transport Infrastructure)

Joe FitzPatrick (Scottish National Party, Dundee City West)

4. To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that there is adequate transport infrastructure in place for visitors to the V&A at Dundee. (S4O-01042)

Keith Brown (Scottish National Party, Clackmannanshire and Dunblane)

The Scottish Government will review the transport needs for the V&A at Dundee after Design Dundee Ltd has produced a transport strategy to support its planning application for the museum. Ahead of that, Transport Scotland contributed £1 million towards the redevelopment of Dundee railway station into a major transport interchange hub in advance of the opening of the museum in 2015.

Joe FitzPatrick (Scottish National Party, Dundee City West)

I assure the minister that the people of Dundee are grateful for the Scottish Government’s contribution towards improving our train station.

The V&A has the potential to be one of the biggest attractions in Europe, let alone Scotland. Given that we are expecting up to 500,000 additional visitors to Dundee as a result, will the Scottish Government carry out an impact study for Dundee on how rail, bus, road and air services can be improved to accommodate the increased volume of visitors?

Keith Brown (Scottish National Party, Clackmannanshire and Dunblane)

The Scottish Government will carry out a joint economic study with its partners to look at the role of the city airport in serving Dundee and the surrounding area. The study will look at the opportunities for developing air services, as the member mentions, and at how the airport can contribute to the wider regeneration work that is being done in the city, including, crucially, the waterfront development, so that we can promote and enhance those developments.

Scotland’s Digital Future

Jamie Hepburn (Scottish National Party, Cumbernauld and Kilsyth)

5. To ask the Scottish Government what progress has been made in implementing “Scotland’s Digital Future—Infrastructure Action Plan”. (S4O-01043)

Alex Neil (Scottish National Party, Airdrie and Shotts)

The Scottish Government is making excellent progress in implementing “Scotland’s Digital Future—Infrastructure Action Plan”. We will publish very soon our procurement plan, which sets out the Government’s approach and the action that we will take to deliver a step change in broadband speeds and reduce the digital divide by 2015. The plan has been developed in collaboration with local authorities and sets out our commitment to delivering the much-needed digital infrastructure across Scotland in partnership with them.

Procurement in the Highlands and Islands is now at an advanced stage of negotiations, with contract award expected in August and the delivery of improvements expected early next year. Procurement covering the rest of Scotland will go to tender in September, with contract award in early 2013 and the delivery of improvements as soon as possible thereafter.

Jamie Hepburn (Scottish National Party, Cumbernauld and Kilsyth)

I thank the cabinet secretary for that comprehensive answer. He has previously said that a key criterion in deciding where the broadband strategy will be rolled out first will be which areas are ready for it to be rolled out in. He has suggested that North Lanarkshire Council could not be described as being ahead of the game in that respect. Many constituents have complained to me about poor broadband access, and I have written to North Lanarkshire Council, urging it to get involved with the Scottish Government’s broadband strategy. Has North Lanarkshire Council made any formal approach for support from the Scottish Government?

Alex Neil (Scottish National Party, Airdrie and Shotts)

Members know that I am not one to criticise North Lanarkshire Council unfairly. I will state the factual position. North Lanarkshire Council is not known by the Scottish Government to have developed a local broadband plan. Although representatives of the council attended an early Scottish Government broadband workshop on local authority engagement in June 2011, the council is not known to have acted proactively with regard to broadband development since that time. However, as part of our on-going engagement with local authorities in connection with the implementation of programme 1, we will enter into dialogue with the council to identify its priorities over the summer. We will hold a series of workshops with local government to progress the matter and North Lanarkshire Council will be invited to participate.

Richard Baker (Labour, North East Scotland)

I am sure that the recently returned Labour administration of North Lanarkshire Council will be happy to take part. However, is late 2013 not quite late in the day to be awarding specific sums for local projects when some of the targets in the infrastructure action plan are for the next two years?

Alex Neil (Scottish National Party, Airdrie and Shotts)

No, it is not too late at all. We have said that, by 2015, 85 to 90 per cent of Scotland will be covered by superfast broadband, with speeds of between 40Mbps and 80Mbps in most cases. Over the past two years, in particular, substantial progress has been made in the Highlands and Islands, and a number of areas including Grampian, the south of Scotland and Fife are well advanced in their plans. I urge Mr Baker to encourage other local authorities, including North Lanarkshire Council, to follow the example of those councils that are well ahead of the game.

Community-led Regeneration (South Scotland)

Paul Wheelhouse (Scottish National Party, South Scotland)

6. To ask the Scottish Government what support is provided to community-led regeneration in South Scotland. (S4O-01044)

Alex Neil (Scottish National Party, Airdrie and Shotts)

The Scottish Government is committed to community-led regeneration, which is at the heart of our approach as set out in “Achieving a Sustainable Future: Regeneration Strategy”. On 8 May, I launched the people and communities fund, which is designed specifically to support community-led regeneration across Scotland. Also, we will shortly launch our consultation on the community empowerment and renewal bill, which will support communities to achieve their own goals and aspirations.

Local authorities are responsible for local regeneration and we expect them to deliver that alongside their other critical functions and place community-led regeneration at the heart of their regeneration plans.

Paul Wheelhouse (Scottish National Party, South Scotland)

I thank the cabinet secretary for his helpful answer. As he is aware, alongside Stranraer, where the Scottish Government already has a task force, Eyemouth and Hawick were identified in a recent Scottish Agricultural College study as being among the 10 towns most vulnerable to public sector job losses. Both towns face particular regeneration challenges but have great potential, and there has been a significant amount of community-led regeneration activity in Eyemouth in the past six months. Can the cabinet secretary offer any mechanism whereby ministers might support that local work and encourage partnership working between the Scottish Government, Scottish Borders Council and the Government agencies to maximise the chances of both towns’ successful regeneration?

Alex Neil (Scottish National Party, Airdrie and Shotts)

Okay, Presiding Officer. I will be very succinct, as usual.

I am very much aware of the challenges that face those two towns in the Borders in particular. I invite the member, along with representatives of Scottish Borders Council, to meet me to discuss how we can do more to help the council and others to regenerate the two towns.

Borders Railway (Construction Costs)

John Lamont (Conservative, Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire)

7. To ask the Scottish Executive whether it expects the estimated costs of constructing the Borders railway to change. (S4O-01045)

Keith Brown (Scottish National Party, Clackmannanshire and Dunblane)

The estimated capital costs of constructing the Borders railway are expected to remain within the £235 million to £295 million range at quarter 4 2012 prices.

John Lamont (Conservative, Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire)

I thank the minister for confirming that the construction costs of the railway will not exceed the current estimates. Will he say what the projected income will be from the railway once it is operational?

Keith Brown (Scottish National Party, Clackmannanshire and Dunblane)

I am happy to write to the member with details of that. As he will know, the information was outlined in the business case that was made for the railway. Given the question that he asked, I hope that we are now seeing from him some support for the railway, which is different from his previous stance. I am sure that the railway will be an outstanding success and the Government remains committed to seeing it through.

Veterans Associations

Annabelle Ewing (Scottish National Party, Mid Scotland and Fife)

8. To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions it has had with veterans associations and what issues were discussed. (S4O-01046)

Keith Brown (Scottish National Party, Clackmannanshire and Dunblane)

I regularly meet and visit a range of veterans organisations at both national and local level. I also meet representatives of Veterans Scotland, which is the umbrella body for veterans organisations in Scotland, four times a year to discuss ways in which veterans charities and bodies can and do help to inform Scottish Government policy in respect of its devolved responsibilities where they impact directly on veterans.

Annabelle Ewing (Scottish National Party, Mid Scotland and Fife)

I imagine that, in recent weeks, veterans will have been concerned about what might be coming down the line given the United Kingdom Government’s refusal, which was repeated again yesterday, to rule out further cuts to Scotland-recruited units. What representations will the minister make to the UK Government to seek to ensure that Scotland’s ever-decreasing defence footprint is not further reduced by the London Government?

Keith Brown (Scottish National Party, Clackmannanshire and Dunblane)

The member is right about the concern that that is causing among veterans. We have already made representations to the UK Government. Bruce Crawford, the Cabinet Secretary for Parliamentary Business and Government Strategy, wrote to the Secretary of State for Defence on 2 March and again on 11 May calling on the UK Government to retain the Army’s links with Scotland’s proud regimental names, battle histories and traditions, and he will discuss that and other defence matters of concern to Scotland when he meets Nick Harvey, Minister of State for the Armed Forces, in the near future.

Affordable Housing (Highlands and Islands)

Jamie McGrigor (Conservative, Highlands and Islands)

9. To ask the Scottish Executive what action it is taking to build affordable housing in the Highlands and Islands. (S4O-01047)

Keith Brown (Scottish National Party, Clackmannanshire and Dunblane)

The Scottish Government recently announced funding of nearly £33 million, as part of the affordable housing supply programme, to build houses in the Highlands and Islands over the next three years. The funding will provide additional developments to those that were successful in the 2011 innovation and investment fund and initiatives such as the national housing trust, which is already providing affordable housing in the Highlands.

In addition, schemes such as the new supply shared equity with developers scheme provide further opportunities to increase affordable housing in the Highlands and Islands.

Jamie McGrigor (Conservative, Highlands and Islands)

Will the minister join me in welcoming the news that Argyll Community Housing Association will begin work next week on new-build affordable homes at Dalmally in Argyll and Bute? Despite the good work that is done by ACHA, however, does the minister agree that too many people are having to wait too long to get affordable homes in Argyll and Bute? What action will ministers take to ensure that new affordable homes are built in the most rural and remote island communities as well as in towns and the larger villages?

Keith Brown (Scottish National Party, Clackmannanshire and Dunblane)

I outlined in my previous answer the action that the Government is taking, not least in relation to the £33 million across the Highlands. Each council area has been given its allocation, and the work is being done in collaboration and through dialogue with the Scottish Government. However, it is for local government to take forward initiatives with local partners to ensure that there is a proper spread of affordable housing and that it meets all the rural parts of each council area.

If the member has particular concerns and thinks that the Scottish Government can play an additional part, I will be more than happy to listen to that.

Dave Thompson (Scottish National Party, Skye, Lochaber and Badenoch)

The minister will be aware of the important housing construction summit in Inverness last week. Will he provide an update on the results of the summit?

Keith Brown (Scottish National Party, Clackmannanshire and Dunblane)

The member is right. The Cabinet Secretary for Infrastructure and Capital Investment hosted a construction summit in Inverness on 14 May along with the Minister for Energy, Enterprise and Tourism and the Minister for Local Government and Planning, and a range of key construction industry stakeholders were involved. The purpose of the summit was to hear attendees’ experiences and thoughts on the challenges that the construction sector is facing to enable the Scottish Government to identify areas in which it can better provide support on a local and regional basis.

As with previous construction summits—I attended one in Inveraray a few months ago—issues to do with planning, procurement and affordable housing were raised, which resulted in positive discussions taking place.

Council Houses (Right to Buy)

Margaret Burgess (Scottish National Party, Cunninghame South)

10. To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions it has had with local authorities regarding the right to buy council houses. (S4O-01048)

Alex Neil (Scottish National Party, Airdrie and Shotts)

We are committed to consulting on ways of further reforming the right to buy, and my officials have had discussions with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and the Association of Local Authority Chief Housing Officers about the content and timing of the forthcoming consultation.

Margaret Burgess (Scottish National Party, Cunninghame South)

I am sure that the cabinet secretary is looking forward to working with the new Scottish National Party administration in North Ayrshire, which is led by Councillor Willie Gibson. In North Ayrshire, the right to buy has reduced the stock of social housing by up to 47 per cent and put some areas under severe pressure. What measures has the Scottish Government taken to help to increase the supply of social housing in North Ayrshire, given the impact of the right to buy?

Alex Neil (Scottish National Party, Airdrie and Shotts)

We are doing two things in North Ayrshire, as we are throughout the country. Through a subsidy to councils, we are encouraging them to build council houses again. Between the council and housing associations, 245 new houses have been or are being built in North Ayrshire with our assistance. Our previous reforms to the right to buy mean that councils can build new houses knowing that they will not be asset stripped in future. It is a great pity that the new Conservative-Labour coalition in East Lothian has decided to reintroduce the right to buy, which makes nonsense of Labour’s position on that policy issue.

Arts and Culture (Local Authorities)

Drew Smith (Labour, Glasgow)

1. To ask the Scottish Government how it promotes arts and culture in partnership with local authorities. (S4O-01049)

Fiona Hyslop (Scottish National Party, Linlithgow)

The Scottish Government recognises that local authorities are crucial partners in the delivery of arts and cultural activity across Scotland. We continue to work closely with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and the Voice of Chief Officers of Cultural and Leisure Services in Scotland, which is Scotland’s national association for local authority culture and leisure managers, to support the sector and improve and maintain cultural service provision. Examples of how the Scottish Government, its agencies and national bodies are doing that can be found across the wealth of activity that is taking place in the year of creative Scotland, Creative Scotland’s place partnerships, the cultural programme for London 2012, and the range of activities across Scotland’s local authority areas that are being undertaken by the national performing companies.

Drew Smith (Labour, Glasgow)

I welcome the initiatives that the cabinet secretary has highlighted.

The cabinet secretary will be aware that my colleague Patricia Ferguson recently raised with her the issue of incentivising and supporting local authorities to continue to invest in the arts, even when budgets are tight. In my region, Glasgow City Council has a proud record of support for the arts and culture. Has the cabinet secretary raised the issue of local authority arts budgets with her appropriate ministerial colleagues? Does she believe that the cuts to local arts budgets are having a major effect on cultural provision across Scotland?

Fiona Hyslop (Scottish National Party, Linlithgow)

On the national budget for culture, we have managed to protect front-line services very well. The share of the local authority percentage of Scotland’s budget has been maintained, of course, and it is up to individual local authorities to make their decisions. I am pleased with the response of local authorities in difficult times in recognising the value of culture and the economic drivers of cultural tourism. Drew Smith’s perspective might be coloured by Glasgow—I do not know whether it is—but across the country, there are good and strong stories to tell. If he knows otherwise, I am more than happy to hear from him.

Alison Johnstone (Green, Lothian)

The way in which Creative Scotland funds organisations such as Drake Music and Edinburgh Mela in my region has changed. There has been a change from two-year funding for good-quality companies to produce good-quality art to a grants system that is based on project proposals. How will the Government ensure that the new system delivers sufficient financial certainty and continuity for arts organisations and ensure the widest possible participation in the arts?

Fiona Hyslop (Scottish National Party, Linlithgow)

The recent announcements clearly show two things: nobody has had their funding cut and there is continuity, as the vast majority of the organisations will secure funding. It is responsible of Creative Scotland to review all the flexibly funded organisations. A range of organisations can achieve certainty about the quality of production, including those that Alison Johnstone cited. However, it must be remembered that the system that Creative Scotland inherited originally involved competitive bidding. Certainty—particularly in times in which more lottery resources are available from Creative Scotland—is a good news story for cultural organisations. Creative Scotland is able to talk to individual organisations; it must speak to them if they have uncertainties, and I encourage it to do so.

Cultural Initiatives (Aberdeen)

Kevin Stewart (Scottish National Party, Aberdeen Central)

2. To ask the Scottish Government how it supports cultural initiatives in Aberdeen. (S4O-01050)

Fiona Hyslop (Scottish National Party, Linlithgow)

The primary responsibility for the delivery of cultural services and activity in Aberdeen lies with the council. However, we support cultural initiatives in the city through the work of our agencies and our national sponsored bodies. For example, Creative Scotland has a formal place partnership agreement with the council and is supporting activity that is taking place as part of the year of creative Scotland, and as part of London 2012.

Kevin Stewart (Scottish National Party, Aberdeen Central)

Does the cabinet secretary agree that it is great that Aberdeen is looking to become the 2017 city of culture? However, the controversial Labour-led administration, which has just put the pay of senior councillors up by 5 per cent while Scottish National Party councillors in Angus have reduced theirs by 5 per cent, is also being controversial in that it plans to drop tax increment financing funding, which will halt the possible development of cultural icons such as Aberdeen art gallery.

Kevin Stewart (Scottish National Party, Aberdeen Central)

I asked a question at the start, but I will ask another one.