Seòmar agus comataidhean

Alexander Stewart will ask some questions about how Callum has handled the fundraising.

Thank you, Callum. We wish you lots of success. You will be seeing the First Minister shortly. Before the committee agrees on its next actions, is there anything else that you would like to say to us?

We have quite a clear steer on the petition. Out of interest, how many bottles did the money buy?

Crikey!

We know that Callum will meet the First Minister. In considering Callum’s evidence and taking forward the petition, does the committee agree to write to the First Minister following the meeting to outline the objectives that Callum has set and to find out what she and the Scottish Government might be able to do to advance the objectives of the petition?

Members indicated agreement.

I suppose that, like you, I have made assumptions about the existence of a regulatory and legislative environment. Why do you think that we all thought that?

In essence, then, there is protection against commercial harvesting without permission.

Thank you very much. Before I bring in colleagues, let me say that we saw the portfolio of photographs, which were striking. We found the series of images to be arresting. It is extraordinary how much stuff can just be dropped in and be so successful at invading a space and crowding round it.

What has got us to where we are now? Is it a lack of knowledge or a lack of regulation? Is it a lack of enforcement of the limited regulation that there might currently be? You might say that it is all those things.

Good morning, everyone, and welcome to the fourth meeting in 2022 of the Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee.

Agenda item 1 is consideration of continued petitions. PE1896, which was lodged by Callum Isted, calls on the Scottish Parliament to urge the Scottish Government to provide every primary school child in Scotland with a reusable water bottle. The petition calls for the disposable water bottle that is provided with many primary school lunches to be replaced with a sustainable, reusable metal bottle.

We give the warmest of welcomes to Callum, who is the Scottish Parliament’s youngest ever petitioner. We are absolutely delighted that he has found time to come in and have a chat with us about his petition. We welcome his dad, James, who joins him, and his mum, Sarah, who is in the public gallery. His local MSP, Sue Webber, also joins us, and I am very jealous to see that she has already been gifted a very fancy and colour-appropriate reusable water bottle.

Callum, it is great to have you with us. To start off, tell us a bit about yourself—how old you are, which primary class you are in at school and why you decided to lodge the petition.

I hope that you have a lot—or a few—friends in the class.