Meeting of the Parliament

Meeting date: Tuesday, November 8, 2022

Official Report 934KB pdf

Point of Order

On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I seek your guidance on a matter that I believe cuts to the heart of the Parliament’s standing. I hope it is not controversial to say that the truth is essential to the way that Government interacts with the people and with the Parliament.

Scottish National Party ministers and MSPs have been repeating the claim made by the First Minister on 29 September that 98.8 per cent of our energy was from renewable sources. The First Minister corrected her incorrect claim quietly in the Official Report, but it remained inaccurate.

I sought clarification from the chairman of the UK Statistics Authority, who has written to me. He states that the First Minister’s clarification is incorrect. The First Minister will no doubt seek to clarify that her clarification was wrong. The figure is, for the record, 63.1 per cent.

Whether the First Minister misled Parliament on purpose or otherwise is a matter for her conscience, but she has a responsibility, as we all do, to be accurate. When ministers say things to the Parliament that are untrue, correcting the Official Report behind the scenes, and on the quiet, is not enough. Furthermore, the Official Report should not be treated by ministers like a “Nineteen Eighty-Four” ministry of truth that gives ministers a get-out-of-jail-free card for mistaken or misleading statements.

Once the misleading statement is made, it is in the public domain, through the Scottish Parliament TV archive, and through the way that we all use the videos of these sessions. I very much doubt that many people check that everything that was said in the chamber is reflected in the Official Report.

It has been said in the past that if you tell a lie big enough and repeat it often enough, people will believe it—[Interruption.]

The truth is important, despite the heckling from members on the SNP benches.

Presiding Officer, what powers do you have to compel ministers, especially the First Minister, to come to the chamber and clarify in person, verbally, when they have made a mistake? What powers does the Parliament have to allow oral statements in the chamber to correct mistakes and misleading information? We must find a way to avoid the perception that lies are being told for political ends.

I thank Mr Kerr for his point of order. I remind all members that we have a duty to treat one another with courtesy and respect at all times. I would certainly prefer it if we did not have suggestions that members were treating one another in the way that Mr Kerr describes.

Mr Kerr will be aware—as will all members—that members have a personal responsibility for ensuring that their contributions in proceedings are accurate. In the event that a member becomes aware that they have provided inaccurate information, they can seek to make use of the existing corrections mechanism.

Mr Kerr asked what powers the Presiding Officer might have. This Parliament has previously agreed a mechanism and appropriate steps to make other members aware when a correction has been made. Corrections are highlighted in the Business Bulletin and on the Parliament’s website to ensure transparency around the use of the mechanism.

The procedure also allows for a member to seek to make a statement to the Parliament if they realise that a significant error has been made. The decision on whether or not to seek to make such a statement is a matter for the member concerned.