Seòmar agus comataidhean

Okay—that is what we will do.

I wonder whether we might also write to the UK NSC just so that we can understand where it thinks it is in the process of the research that it is undertaking. It would be useful to know whether it anticipates that research coming to fruition or whether the situation is still very open ended at this point. It would be helpful to know that. It would also be useful to write to the bodies that David Torrance has suggested.

PE1856, on support for the taxi trade, was lodged by Pat Rafferty on behalf of Unite the union. It calls on the Scottish Government to protect the future of the taxi trade by providing financial support to taxi drivers; to set up a national stakeholder group with trade union driver representatives; and to review low-emission standards and implementation dates.

In its submission, the Scottish Government acknowledges how acutely difficult the Covid-19 pandemic has been for taxi and private hire drivers. It confirms that, at the time of its submission—do we have the date of the submission, just out of interest? I cannot see one. It confirms that £29,000—is that right? Sorry—£29,125,500 had been paid out to 19,417 drivers. I thought that £29,000 was not right—that would not go far.

The submission confirms that

“Transport Scotland will explore with trade unions and other stakeholders the best forum for engagement with the taxi trade.”

It also explains that it is for local authorities to design their low-emission zones and make decisions about timelines.

In their submission, the petitioner welcomes the national funding from the Scottish Government but expresses the view that it is not sufficient. The submission continues by explaining that many drivers still report takings of less than £20 for a 12-hour shift. The petitioner believes that the taxi trade will be one of the last sectors to recover, given its reliance on tourism, hospitality and business travel, and asks that pre-Covid plans are adjusted to take into account just how severe the taxi trade has been impacted by the pandemic.

Since the publication of the meeting papers, the committee has received a further submission from the petitioner, which has been circulated ahead of today’s meeting.

In the submission, the petitioner notes that Unite members

“report business presently at 50% of pre-pandemic levels”,

and reiterates that the impact has been felt from, as previously suggested, sectors such as travel, tourism and hospitality.

The submission calls for

“greater clarity on exemptions to the LEZ”

and for taxi cabs to be considered exempt from LEZ charges, in line with other functions of the public transport network. It also raises concerns about council proposals to introduce an age cap for vehicles on the road, noting that some taxi drivers finance vehicles over a longer period and that that could result in their investment becoming non-compliant, meaning that they are required to finance another new vehicle.

The submission welcomes the informal engagement that has taken place with the Government but emphasises that formal consultation arrangements are required to protect the future of the taxi trade.

I am interested to hear colleagues’ views.

The final new petition today is PE1864, which was lodged by Aileen Jackson on behalf of Scotland Against Spin. We have our first special guest of the new live proceedings from Parliament in our colleague Oliver Mundell MSP, who has attended for the petition.

The petition calls on the Scottish Government to increase the ability of communities to influence planning decisions for onshore wind farms by adopting English planning legislation for the determination of onshore wind farm developments; empowering local authorities to ensure that local communities are given sufficient professional help to engage in the planning process; and appointing an independent advocate to ensure that local participants are not bullied and intimidated during the public process.

In its written submission, the Scottish Government highlights that it is reviewing Scotland’s national planning policies and expects to publish a draft national planning framework 4 in the autumn of this year. It states that it consulted on the NPF4 position statement, and it will carry out extensive public consultation following its publication. The Government’s submission also notes that, in preparing NPF4, the Scottish Government is considering priority policy changes to support a spatial strategy for net zero, which includes strengthening its support for repowering and expanding existing wind farms.

The petitioners have provided two submissions. The issues raised in those submissions include the costs that are involved in challenging planning applications, including the financial costs and the time and expertise required, and the disparity between planning application fees in Scotland and England. The fee to apply for a 50MW to 100MW onshore wind farm in Scotland is less than half of the fee for the equivalent in England.

The committee has also received more than 100 additional submissions, most of which are from people living in rural communities. Many of the issues that they raise echo the points that the petitioners made in their petition and submissions. Issues raised consistently across the submissions include people and communities feeling overwhelmed by the volume of information and the planning process; the fact that the advice that is available from organisations such as Planning Aid Scotland is general and there is a lack of capacity to deliver it to all who need it; and the cumulative impact of wind farms not only on the environment but on the ability of individuals and organisations such as community councils to repeatedly respond to applications. Across the majority of submissions, there is a consensus on the need to act to avert a climate emergency. However, the submissions highlight that, in the main, it is Scotland’s rural communities that are burdened with the adverse effects of producing wind energy.

Since the publication of our meeting papers, we have received a submission from Dr Rachel Connor in support of the petition. In her submission, Dr Connor raises several of the concerns that are highlighted by the petitioner and throughout additional submissions that the committee has received.

Finlay Carson was hoping to join us today, but he has a prior commitment, as he is convener of the Rural Affairs, Islands and Natural Environment Committee, which is meeting now. He has therefore sent a message asking that the petition be continued with further information sought. He suggests that it could be referred to the Rural Affairs, Islands and Natural Environment Committee, but I note that, as the petition relates to the planning system, the relevant subject committee in the first instance would be the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee.

I am minded to bring in our colleague Oliver Mundell, unless anyone wishes to speak ahead of him. As nobody does, I will bring in Oliver Mundell.

What do you advocate?

PE1859, which has been lodged by Barry Blyther, on retaining falconers’ rights to practise upland falconry in Scotland. It calls on the Scottish Government to amend the Animals and Wildlife (Penalties, Protections and Powers) (Scotland) Act 2020 to allow mountain hares to be hunted for the purposes of falconry.

In its submission, the Scottish Government explains that, during the passage of the Animals and Wildlife (Penalties, Protections and Powers) (Scotland) Act 2020, an amendment was made to schedule 5 to the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 to include mountain hares as a protected species. The submission confirms that, when considering the amendment to include mountain hares as a protected species, it took into account the recommendations from the grouse moor management group report, which stated that

“the shooting of mountain hares should be subject to increased legal regulation”

and that

“should the conservation status of mountain hares prove to be ‘unfavourable’ then a licensing system for the shooting of mountain hares should be introduced.”

The submission highlights that, in certain circumstances, birds of prey can still be used to take mountain hares for purposes including to protect timber or agriculture.

In his submission, the petitioner explains that mountain hares need to be conserved at a high density to attract falconers, which in turn creates significant commercial value and supports isolated rural economies through visits by falconers.

The petition references UK animal welfare standards and guidance from the Scottish Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals and the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals that states that there is a

“legal obligation to allow ... trained captive-bred birds of prey ... freedoms”,

including

“the freedom to express the natural behaviours for the species”.

Therein, I feel, lies a bit of a conundrum with regard to consideration of the petition.

The petitioner has sent us a response to the Scottish Government’s submission. In it, he takes issue with what has been said about the ability of the species to exist by eating other species that are unsuitable.

Do members have any comments? I have to say that I found the issue to be quite complicated and technical as I tried to understand the relative merits of the legislation that is in place and the rights of birds of prey to express the natural traits of their species.

Mr Sweeney, did you want to add anything?

Do members have any other thoughts? I am minded to close the petition, but is there any merit in writing again to the Scottish Government to get some further guidance on when in the session it might bring something forward? The session is quite a wide canvas at this stage; it has only just begun, so it could be at any time in the next five years. It would be interesting to know when the Government is thinking of lodging any secondary legislation. However, we could close the petition in any event, seek that information and advise the petitioners of it. Is that agreed?

Members indicated agreement.

I was, at first pass, inclined to agree, but is there any way of quantifying how often the courts have overridden such principles? We are told that in the case of limitation it is already possible for a court to override the principal limitation time limits where it is persuaded that it is equitable to do so, but part of me worries that, despite that sentiment, this is actually a hurdle that is nearly impossible to overcome and, in fact, is overcome only very rarely. Instead of our taking this as some general provision that just sits there and allows us to say, “This is what people can do”, can we identify whether such an opportunity has been successfully pursued? I am mindful of constituents who have written to me and who I know felt as though they were banging their head against a wall when they tried to pursue matters. I just wonder how widely known the provision is.

Are members happy to find out a bit more about the process and whether our constituents have been able to exercise it, how many of them have done so and whether they have been successful in doing so? If we find that nobody knows that the process exists or that nobody is using it, it is not really serving its function.

There is nothing in the Scottish Government’s submission to suggest that it has any plans to amend founding legislation for public bodies on the basis that lifeline services to island communities require community representation on their boards. Shall we write to it to check whether that is the case?

Members indicated agreement.