Seòmar agus comataidhean

In relation to the good food nation, the Government has estimated that the proposed Scottish food commission will cost about £1 million per year to run. We would be interested in hearing the timescale for establishing the commission and any details that you have on its coming into existence.

I was just about to ask the cabinet secretary about how involved she is in the remote, rural and islands housing action plan. Do you collaborate with the Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice, Housing and Local Government on that?

Thanks.

How is the process relating to the Government’s good food nation plan going?

Good morning, cabinet secretary. Last week, three councils gave evidence to the committee in which they said, on the basis of their first experience of it, that the competitive bidding approach did not support communities. What are your thoughts on the competitive bidding approach, and do you think that it achieves the right balance between funding national priorities and supporting local decision making?

I understand that the fleet of the enforcement arm of Marine Scotland—Marine Scotland compliance—is composed of just three vessels. I am also aware of stakeholders’ concerns that Marine Scotland’s enforcement of marine regulations is underfunded, of the many instances of illegal fishing that are going on unchecked due to a lack of enforcement capacity, and that enforcement officers undertook industrial action earlier this year.

Given that work is being taken forward on inshore fisheries through the Bute house agreement, is increasing enforcement capacity a priority for the Scottish Government? Do you expect there to be increased funding in the budget for the coming year? If not, how will enforcement be improved?

Is any consideration being given to increasing the size of the vessels, given that we have such a vast amount of water to cover and that stakeholders are raising concerns?

Thanks. I will now move on and bring in other members. I will go way over my allocated time if I try to get round everybody with my questions, so I ask members to bring in witnesses who have not yet spoken.

I call Willie Coffey.

Elena Whitham is next.

Great. Thank you for making that point.