Seòmar agus comataidhean

You have said that the 1981 act needs to be updated. The new national planning framework is out for consultation. Have you been able to see that? Have you fed into that process as a way of changing regulation?

I thank the 12 local authorities that responded to our call for evidence. However, out of 32 local authorities, that is a pretty poor response; all the local authorities have licensing boards in place.

I support the call for an evidence session before the committee. I would also like to write to the Scottish Government to highlight the 20 per cent decrease in the number of taxi drivers to see what the Government would be able to do. Will it monitor the situation and see what it can do to encourage people back into the taxi business?

The Scottish Government highlights in its submission that it would lose £552 million to invest in public services. It says that it does not support what the petition calls for, so I do not think that there is anywhere for the committee to take the matter. I am happy to close the petition under rule 15.7 of standing orders.

Considering the Scottish Government’s statement in its submission that it will do more research in the area, I wonder whether we should close the petition under rule 15.7 of standing orders. In doing so, however, we could consider how the petitioner could feed into the research that the Scottish Government is going to do.

What team do you support?

The petition is very important, but can I ask that the clerks check the work programme of the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee? If it is going to hold an inquiry on the issue, I would like to pass the petition on to it. The petitioner could also give evidence to that inquiry.

Good morning, Callum. In the 11 years that I have been on this committee, I cannot recall a petitioner twice your age, never mind one as young as you. Well done, and welcome to the committee.

Before I ask questions about the petition, what is your favourite sport?

I will not say which Scottish team I support, because it is in the headlines quite a lot just now, but I am a Leeds United fan.

When did you first notice in school that there were lots of children using plastic bottles?

So nearly everybody in your class was using plastic bottles.

Why do you think that they should not use plastic bottles? I can see that you have lots of examples in front of you.