The Official Report is a written record of public meetings of the Parliament and committees.
All Official Reports of meetings in the Debating Chamber of the Scottish Parliament.
All Official Reports of public meetings of committees.
Displaying 2045 contributions
Rural Affairs and Islands Committee
Meeting date: 31 May 2023
Jim Fairlie
I presume that the code is being worked up with stakeholders.
Rural Affairs and Islands Committee
Meeting date: 31 May 2023
Jim Fairlie
If you could come back to us, that would be grand.
Rural Affairs and Islands Committee
Meeting date: 31 May 2023
Jim Fairlie
I have a great deal of sympathy for you when it comes to trying to get workable legislation, because there are considerations of livestock, of grouse moors, of wildlife and of the environment. It will be difficult to get the right balance. I am not going to ask any more questions. I will think a bit more before I open my mouth.
Rural Affairs and Islands Committee
Meeting date: 31 May 2023
Jim Fairlie
What are the barriers?
Rural Affairs and Islands Committee
Meeting date: 31 May 2023
Jim Fairlie
All four corners need to be involved, because of the different topography.
Rural Affairs and Islands Committee
Meeting date: 31 May 2023
Jim Fairlie
I find it strange that we are talking about Irish agriculture when the Irish are predicting a cull of 200,000 cows.
Cabinet secretary, will you give us your expectations regarding the future of agricultural funding support schemes in the longer term? Do you have long-term security of funding from the United Kingdom Government, given that it is the source of 96.4 per cent of the funding that comes to agriculture in Scotland?
Rural Affairs and Islands Committee
Meeting date: 31 May 2023
Jim Fairlie
Does it not concern you that you do not know why agriculture has been lumped in, given the fact that the funding that goes to it is almost double what it would be under a Barnettised system? I know that I keep going back to the Barnettised system, but that is generally how cash is generated other than through the block grant. Does it not concern you that there has been no explanation of why that was the UK Government’s approach?
Rural Affairs and Islands Committee
Meeting date: 31 May 2023
Jim Fairlie
Okay. The summit that Rishi Sunak held in 10 Downing Street was very welcome. The UK Government seems to have had a change of direction on farm to fork. However, I was incredibly disappointed that you were not invited to that event, cabinet secretary, given that we are supposed to have a four-nations approach. Was any reason given for why you should not have been at a discussion at a UK level on what was going to happen with the farm industries across the UK?
Rural Affairs and Islands Committee
Meeting date: 31 May 2023
Jim Fairlie
On a point of order, convener. My colleague Alasdair Allan raised a point of order with you earlier on, which you did not seem to have answered, about whether your language—when you accused the minister and her official of being hypocrites—was appropriate. The cabinet secretary has been extremely generous with her time in coming to this committee on multiple occasions.
I would also like to ask you these questions: have we, as a committee, written to the secretary of state for agriculture in Westminster? Have we had a response to that request for her to appear here? If so, what was that response?
Rural Affairs and Islands Committee
Meeting date: 31 May 2023
Jim Fairlie
Can I clarify? We have written to the secretary of state—