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Graeme Downie (Dunfermline and Dollar) (Lab)
I beg to move,
That this House has considered St Andrew’s Day and Scottish affairs.
I thank the Backbench Business Committee for the opportunity to mark St Andrew’s day and to discuss Scottish affairs. As a Fife MP, I begin by noting that the town of St Andrews is at the opposite end of the kingdom from my constituency, and it is always a pleasure to see the hon. Member for North East Fife (Wendy Chamberlain) in her place. St Andrews is obviously not as important or beautiful as anywhere in Dunfermline and Dollar, but it is a place long associated with Scotland’s patron saint and, of course, famous for being the home of golf.
Across Scotland, we celebrate not only our connection to St Andrew, but the thread that runs through our national story: a generous spirit, a quiet strength and a belief that community, work and learning can change lives. As the Member for Dunfermline and Dollar, I see those qualities every day in the people and places that have shaped our history and will build our future.
Today I want to speak in three parts: Scotland as it was, Scotland as it is, and Scotland as it could be. In doing so, I will speak to the opportunities that different generations have experienced, the prospects that Scotland now must champion, the importance of our infrastructure and the lessons we can take from St Andrew’s life itself. I will also celebrate organisations—
Christine Jardine (Edinburgh West) (LD)
I thank the hon. Member for giving way, especially so early in his speech. He talks about Scotland as we were. Does he share my concern that too often our history has been oversimplified, over-romanticised and focused on William Wallace, Robert Bruce and this entanglement with England, and has not looked at Scotland’s contribution not only to British but to world history and our achievements in engineering, for example?
Graeme Downie
I thank the hon. Member for her intervention and, indeed, for sponsoring my application to the Backbench Business Committee. She has anticipated one of the points that I will make later, and I should say that my speech does not mention either of those key figures in Scottish history she mentions, but it does mention many others. In this speech, I will embody some of those names that are particularly associated with my part of the world, such as King Malcolm, St Margaret and Mary Queen of Scots, through to Andrew Carnegie and beyond. I do not intend to start a civil war this afternoon, so I will perhaps not dwell on the most famous person to be born in Dunfermline: a certain Charles I—a name well known in these parts, of course.
When we talk about Scotland as it was, we should be proud of our history, but we should also acknowledge the difficulties and errors that have led to our present. As well as celebrating Scots abroad in every corner of the world, every airport people land in and every bar, we must remember Scotland’s past—the past we see when we look up in cities like Glasgow and across the country and see the remnants of the slave trade that Scotland also profited from. When we talk about the British empire and its legacy, both positively and negatively—as we rightly should—Scotland must also be part of all sides of that conversation. We must weigh the legacy that older generations built, the conditions they enjoyed and the sacrifices they made against the obligations we owe to younger people today.
In my constituency, Dunfermline is a place where the past walks with us. It is simultaneously Scotland’s newest and oldest city, and beneath our streets lies St Margaret’s cave, a place of reflection linked to a queen whose charitable deeds still resonate. It reminds us that the spiritual heart of our country rests not in institutions, but in the everyday acts of care for neighbour and stranger.
Few names loom larger than Andrew Carnegie. Born in Dunfermline, Carnegie’s journey from a weaver’s cottage to global philanthropy is the essence of the Scottish ladder of opportunity: education, enterprise and duty to community. Carnegie understood that libraries, learning and practical skills were not luxuries; they were the engines of mobility and civic confidence. The more a society invests in open knowledge, the more its people can change their lives.
Beyond Fife, Scotland’s identity was also forged in its coalfields. In Lanarkshire, Ayrshire, the Lothians and beyond, coal powered our factories, heated our homes and drove our railways and ships. Coalfield communities were not just clusters of employment; they were webs of support, with co-operative societies, miners’ institutes, working men’s clubs, brass bands—the social infrastructure that turned wages into lives.
Yet we must be honest. Older generations grew up in an era when the opportunity of a path from school to a skilled job was more certain, when housing was more affordable and when public spaces were continually endowed. For many, the apprenticeship or the training scheme led to stable employment and social housing, and the state, industry and unions wrestled—however imperfectly—towards fairer settlements. That does not mean life was easy. The safety net was less secure, working conditions were tougher, child poverty was higher and life expectancy was shorter, but the stability and prospects for generational improvement were clearer.
Let me move on to Scotland as it is, in my eyes. Where has the Scotland of the past led us? What do we see around us? I will focus on the support that we provide to older people in need, compared with what we provide for the young. We see an intergenerational gap in assets, wages and housing security. Graduates and non-graduates alike report difficulty finding stable, well-paid work in their field. The cost of renting has increased, a deposit for a mortgage remains out of reach for many, and the certainty associated with long-term careers is less common. For the first time since world war two, our children’s generation is projected to be poorer than that of their parents. Younger people come from an uncertain past. The financial crisis of 2008 left deep scars. Brexit—a decision made by older people—has reduced young people’s opportunities. The pandemic not only affected the people who were also hit hardest by the crash, but, by hitting their children, became intergenerational. In that pandemic, we asked young people to sacrifice their tomorrow to protect the today of their elders.
St Andrew spoke of the importance of service to others, respect and compassion. What better example can we find of those values than our nation’s young people? Is it any wonder, though, that those young people, with their uncertain past and present, look around and wonder why older people are the ones with the skills that the economy needs, and which young people have never had the opportunity to get; with the wealth that young people have never had the opportunity to gather; and with the security of their own home, while young people languish in childhood bedrooms? On top of that, successive Governments have granted older generations certain and increasing income—something that younger generations will likely never know.
This is not intended to be a counsel of despair; it is a call to rebuild the ladder with more rungs and stronger rails, and a call for clearer signposts. The answer lies in a proper economic strategy and skills. The UK Labour Government have acknowledged mistakes of the past, in which a university education was presented as a guaranteed path to securing higher income—a myth blown truly and utterly wide open. The Government have sought to place apprenticeships on the same level of importance and pride, because our economy desperately needs technical and professional skills. We need both learning by doing, and learning by the book. To misquote slightly a book that many of us read at school—I am sure that our teachers will be delighted to know that we still remember it—we need the Chris of the land and the Chris of the book. Scotland should be the best place in the UK to learn a trade, upgrade a qualification or pivot mid-career.
Florence Eshalomi (Vauxhall and Camberwell Green) (Lab/Co-op)
I am a London MP, but I feel that I must step in for the hon. Member for Strangford (Jim Shannon), who is not here. But my intervention does have a connection to the subject of the debate. It is about the vibrancy of Scottish universities. People from my constituency travel as far as Scotland to get a world-class education, and during a recent trade envoy visit to Nigeria, I spoke to Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office staff who had studied at Scottish universities. Does my hon. Friend agree that we must invest in education, as that is a good way to achieve economic regeneration and support?
Graeme Downie
I could not agree more. St Andrews University, which I mentioned at the beginning of my remarks, is the heart of education in Scotland, along with institutions in Edinburgh, Glasgow and elsewhere across the country. [Interruption.] I see that university arguments are breaking out already among Opposition Members—or is this a rare moment of agreement between the SNP and the Lib Dems? I should add, as someone who went to Stirling University, that we have many universities across the country that are able to contribute.
More employers should co-design curricula; colleges must be funded to deliver practical, modern teaching; and learners of all ages must be supported with opportunities, transport and clear progression routes. There is so much more that we can do to make it as easy for a care worker to earn a digital health certification as it is for a technician to gain offshore safety accreditation, or for a veteran to translate military skills into civilian qualifications.
I turn to the uncertainty that young people face in their future. Most people now approaching retirement have never seen world affairs so unstable, never dreamed of a land war in Europe, and never saw global power politics of the sort we have today, but that is the future that young people are navigating. A continuing series of once-in-a-generation crises affect this generation of young people. The war in Ukraine, which is fuelling rises in the cost of living, is one of the most long lasting they will see, in a world that has spent the resources that are needed to tackle the problem.
That gives me the opportunity to talk about my favourite topic: the contribution of the defence industry to Scotland. It will come as no surprise to anyone in the House that I am talking about this. Not only do young people have to face the security, technological and economic threat from Iran and China, and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, but they are the ones who will be asked to fight it—hopefully only in economic and social terms. Scotland’s defence footprint—in shipbuilding, aerospace, cyber and logistics—is both strategic and local. From the yards that turn steel into hulls and the bases that secure our airspace, to the small and medium-sized enterprises that supply components and services, defence sustains skilled employment, supports innovation and anchors communities. We should celebrate the engineers and fabricators, and the logisticians and technologists—world-class workers whose labours keep our nation safe and advance our industrial capability.
When it comes to energy, Scotland stands at the crossroads of legacy and leadership. The North sea still matters for investment, jobs, tax revenues and world-class expertise. At the same time, renewables are no longer a promise; they are a present reality. We have offshore wind, onshore wind, tidal, hydro, solar and emerging hydrogen technologies. The lesson of the first energy era is plain: if we export raw resource and import finished value, we risk missing wealth multipliers. In the second energy era, Scotland must build, service, innovate and train our workforce for the new jobs—good-quality, well-paid jobs—that follow.
Thanks to this Labour Government, our ports, fabrication yards and grid infrastructure are being upgraded, but the benefits will not be felt for years, and it is likely that costs will rise by far less than they otherwise would, rather than being reduced in absolute terms. As in the financial crisis, we are asking young people to thank us for avoiding a not-experienced counterfactual, rather than for real improvements.
Despite the challenges, I believe that Scotland stands on a solid foundation—we are outward-looking, innovative and compassionate—but to be future-focused, the promise of real and practical opportunity must be renewed for everyone: the nurse in Dunfermline, the apprentice in Dollar, the graduate in High Valleyfield, the veteran retraining in Rosyth, the parent seeking a second chance at college, and the care leaver negotiating their first tenancy. If St Andrew teaches us anything, it is that influence need not be loud to be profound. Tradition tells us that he was a bridge-builder, a bringer of people to a higher calling, and a man whose life spoke of hospitality, humility and service. In a divided age, Scotland could choose to lead by those virtues—welcoming, learning, working, serving—not as slogans, but as social habits. Scotland talks a great deal about those virtues, but we should remember that we face the same challenges in making them real as people in other parts of the United Kingdom and the rest of the world. We are not alone, nor are we exceptional. The rules apply to us as much as to others.
We must build a settlement in which older generations can contribute their wisdom, mentor apprentices and access retraining at any point without stigma, and in which younger generations find and build dignity through quality careers that help them to secure housing, develop skills and find stability and progression, so that they have the opportunity to build their life, and to hand the world on in a better state than it was in when it was given to them.
We can design skills pathways that reflect our national character by being practical, rigorous and humane. Imagine an ecosystem in which Carnegie’s legacy of free libraries becomes a digital learning commons, college workshops are connected to local firms, defence apprentices rotate into civilian advanced manufacturing, and energy sector traineeships are co-delivered by colleges, employers and unions. Credentials should be stackable and portable, so that a 19-year-old turbine technician can later specialise in grid management or hydrogen systems, or any other sector, without the need to start from scratch.
In celebrating St Andrew’s Day, we should always embrace our civic and cultural soul. Let me take the House back to St Margaret’s cave in Dunfermline, where Queen Margaret—whose saint’s day is on 16 November, just two weeks before St Andrew’s—came to pray over 900 years ago. It is a reminder that reflection and service are not opposites. Carnegie’s legacy tells us that public learning multiplies across generations. Our local institutions —schools, colleges and voluntary groups—prove that community is built by hands, hearts and habits. If we want Scotland as it could be, we must sustain the places where Scotland is: the library, the workshop, the youth organisations, the working man’s club, the community centre, the church hall, the café, the sporting venue and, yes, the pub, the bookies, the chippy and the bingo. The quiet networks of trust are the strongest parts of our infrastructure.
We must build a fairer society, with more opportunity, more dignity and more security for every young person starting out, and for every older person seeking to contribute anew. Scotland as it was gave us our foundations. Scotland as it is demands our fidelity. Scotland as it could be awaits our work.
David Mundell (Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale) (Con)
I congratulate the hon. Member for Dunfermline and Dollar (Graeme Downie) on securing this debate, which gives us an opportunity to consider some of the important issues facing Scotland. As a Member of the Scottish Parliament in 1999, I was very disappointed not to have the opportunity to take part in the debate reflecting on 25 years of devolution, because I wanted to pay tribute to three colleagues whom we lost over the summer. The first is Sir George Reid, who was the second Presiding Officer. Although an SNP Member, Sir George always put the Parliament ahead of politics. Indeed, I voted for him in the 1999 election for Presiding Officer against party advice, which was to support Lord Steel. I have never regretted that decision.
I also pay tribute to my colleague Jamie McGrigor, who was one of the great characters of the Scottish Parliament. Many a night was spent—after parliamentary proceedings, Madam Deputy Speaker—with his guitar and several drinks consumed. Finally, I pay tribute to my constituent, the late Ian Jenkins, who was the first Member for Tweeddale, Ettrick and Lauderdale, a Liberal Democrat Member of the Parliament and a very well-respected figure. Even when he left the Scottish Parliament, he played an enormous part in the community across the Borders, and he is greatly missed by all who knew him.
It may surprise Members to hear that for my constituents, this is not the single most important debate taking place at the moment, or the one that will most affect them, because at this very moment, SNP-led Dumfries and Galloway council is proposing that £68 million be invested in a flood prevention scheme in Dumfries. Only a few months ago, that scheme was to cost £25 million. The cost of the scheme has ballooned, with no proper explanation, to £68 million. There may be a few moments left in which to influence councillors, if I have any influence at all with them, so I urge them to reject that proposal, which, in my view, would be a criminal waste of money for a council that is closing rural schools and struggling to provide basic services, such as maintaining our roads. I hope that my plea makes it across the ether to Dumfries.
Dr Scott Arthur (Edinburgh South West) (Lab)
In my previous life as an academic, I got a little bit involved in that project, but that was many, many years ago, so I am really surprised that it has not yet been delivered in some shape or form. I am sure that the local authority is working hard on it, but surely if the work had taken place much sooner, it would have been much more cost-effective, and would have delivered benefits to people well before now.
David Mundell
I am sure that we do not want to go down the blind alley of a long discussion about this flood prevention scheme, but it was the subject of a public inquiry, because—this is one of the most important parts of the issue—it does not command public support. That, in my view, is the reason why there have been numerous delays and it has not been progressed. Today is the opportunity to end all the uncertainty and say, “No, this project is not going ahead.” But of course, in our democracy, it will be for councillors to decide, and we will respect their decision.
As all of us representing constituencies in Scotland know only too well, the story of the past two decades of SNP government has been one of stagnation, mismanagement and, in many cases, outright failure in stewardship of our public services. Education standards in Scotland’s schools are on the slide. We have fewer police on the streets, and those streets and roads are in a poor state of repair, as vital transport infrastructure does not receive the investment that it needs. But of all Scotland’s public services, few are under such intolerable strain as our NHS.
Just a few weeks ago, the SNP’s Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care was boasting of cutting NHS waiting times, while ignoring the fact that there are now 86,000 cases of patients who have been stuck for more than a year on waiting lists. That is higher than in 2022, when the Scottish Government pledged to “eradicate” the problem by September 2024. More than a year on from that broken promise, SNP Ministers are claiming that they will wipe out waits of over 12 months, this time by March next year—conveniently, just in time for May’s election.
Christine Jardine
The right hon. Member is giving an impressive speech and a very important speech for Scotland. Does he agree that in May next year, Scotland will stand at an important crossroads where our future may be decided on how we pursue that election and who wins it, and that the time has come for change to address the problems of which he speaks?
David Mundell
The hon. Lady will be pleased to hear that change in Scotland is the theme of my speech, because I agree that we desperately need it.
In relation to SNP promises, we have heard it all before. Year in, year out, SNP boasts about bringing down waiting times ring hollow in the ears of patients whose experience is of being left to languish on those very same lists. It is not just on waiting times that the nationalists have let Scotland’s patients down. Emergency departments—the service people turn to in their most desperate hours—are overwhelmed. A year ago, more than 76,000 people waited over 12 hours in A&E before getting treatment, compared with just 784 in 2011.
Dave Doogan (Angus and Perthshire Glens) (SNP)
I am grateful to the right hon. Member for giving way, but I am struggling a little bit to reconcile his rhetoric with the facts. The fact is that waiting lists have been falling in Scotland for five months in a row up until now. He then moved on to emergency healthcare. Scotland’s core A&E functions outperform England’s and Wales’s consistently, year after year. How does he reconcile that dichotomy?
David Mundell
As Members across the Chamber know, this is a well-used SNP tactic of constant comparison with other places, rather than focusing on the SNP Government’s delivery compared with their promises. It is clear that there is a huge discrepancy between what has been promised by the Scottish Government and what has been delivered.
Johanna Baxter (Paisley and Renfrewshire South) (Lab)
Is it not the case that there are more people waiting more than two years in individual health boards in Scotland than in the whole of England? Does the right hon. Member agree that that is a disgrace of the Scottish Government?
David Mundell
I do. What the hon. Lady points to is the shuffling of figures that we have just seen, so that the best figures are presented, but those 86,000 people I mentioned who have been on waiting lists for more than a year are erased from the debate. It is all about smoke and mirrors.
Analysis of this astonishing increase in waiting times by the Royal College of Emergency Medicine found that it has likely contributed to more than 1,000 needless deaths, despite the best efforts of frontline staff who have been failed by the SNP’s inaction. And what of the strain on those hard-working NHS workers? Last year, data revealed that NHS frontline staff were forced to cover understaffed shifts on 348,675 occasions. That is hundreds of thousands of times when there were simply not enough staff on hospital wards and in other care settings to meet Scotland’s healthcare needs. A recent report by the Royal College of Nursing Scotland warned that over the year to May 2025,
“at no point has NHS Scotland employed the number of nursing staff needed to deliver safe and effective care.”
The warning signs have been there for years, but the Scottish Government have failed to act on workforce planning, and it is patients and health service workers who are paying the price of that failure.
Of course, the healthcare crisis in Scotland is not restricted to our hospitals. Anyone who represents a rural constituency like mine will be acutely aware of the often severe pressure on GP services, where face-to-face appointments can be difficult to obtain, and that is to say nothing of the near impossible job of getting registered with an NHS dentist. In Dumfries and Galloway, which has one of the worst rates of NHS dental registration, more than 40% of residents are not registered with a dentist. That is not because they do not want to be, but because practices are not taking on new patients, and thousands of existing patients have been deregistered.
Dave Doogan
It is especially generous of the right hon. Gentleman to give way again. He touched on general practice. I am not suggesting for one minute that everything is perfect in Scotland, but our constituents enjoy 83 general practitioners per 100,000 population, compared with 67 GPs in Wales and 64 in England. How much worse must it be for constituents in England and Wales?
David Mundell
I am afraid we are back to the old record, Madam Deputy Speaker. We have heard it so many times. It does not wear thin; it must be digital now, so that it can be reproduced in just the same words that I have heard for the last 20-odd years. What the hon. Gentleman says does not relate to the experience of my constituents in Dumfries and Galloway when getting a dentist. They hold the Scottish Government accountable for whether or not they have a dentist, and for the promises that the Scottish Government have made in that regard. SNP Ministers say that the situation with dentists is “challenging”, but that is no substitute for the action we need to solve Scotland’s dental deserts, like Dumfries and Galloway.
And what of Scotland’s social care system—the very services meant to protect the vulnerable, the elderly, and those in need? Unions and public service watchdogs have repeatedly condemned persistent delays in discharging patients. Those delays clog up hospitals and deny timely care to people who should be at home or in community care. Staffing is chronically inadequate, care homes are overstretched, home care services are chaotic, and families often wait weeks—sometimes months—to get support for loved ones. Long-standing plans to deliver a national care service collapsed this year, having consumed tens of millions of pounds of taxpayers’ money, but without delivering a single additional hour of social care to those who need it. It is the record of the SNP Government summed up: make bold promises of reform; spend millions of pounds; blame everybody else, but especially Westminster, when it all falls apart.
For years, the SNP has made bold promises—promises of better health care, stronger social care, more GPs, more nurses, reduced waiting lists and an improved social care framework, but the facts speak for themselves. GP and dentist numbers remain too low, and constituents like mine struggle to get appointments. Too many newly qualified young medical professionals leave Scotland, even as vacancies are unfilled. More than £2 billion has been spent on agency and bank nurses, and midwives, over the past five years because of a lack of proper workforce planning. One in nine of Scotland’s population is currently on an NHS waiting list in Scotland, and despite the hard work of NHS staff working in the most challenging of circumstances, public satisfaction with the NHS in Scotland has plummeted to the lowest level since devolution. Once we strip away all the self-congratulatory boasting of Scottish Government Ministers, this is the reality of the NHS in Scotland after two decades of SNP rule: an older person waiting weeks for home care; a mother with a child waiting years for mental-health support; a nurse driven to burnout; a cancer patient left on a waiting list so long that even Scotland’s First Minister says it is “not acceptable”.
Chris Law (Dundee Central) (SNP)
The right hon. Gentleman is making a clear case about recruitment in Scotland, which is a fair point, but a key issue that has caused recruitment difficulties, not just in Scotland but in the rest of the UK, is Brexit, which his party supported—and now we are in this state today. According to the Royal College of Nursing, the UK Government’s new visa rules will mean that the NHS would “cease to function”. Does the right hon. Gentleman agree that there needs to be a bespoke visa system for Scotland, so that we can get adequate resources and people into the places that need to be filled in Scotland’s NHS?
David Mundell
One factual point worth making is that one third of those people who supported independence voted for Brexit. As the hon. Gentleman knows, when in government I looked at various schemes that could operate separately in Scotland, but ultimately we found that they were unworkable.
Christine Jardine
The right hon. Gentleman is being very generous with his time. He mentioned the problems that we are facing with mental health care in Scotland. A parent came to me last weekend, distraught because they have been told that there is no prospect at the moment of their son getting the treatment he needs, as there is not a psychiatrist available in that part of NHS Lothian to deal with him. This is not a singular case. Does the right hon. Gentleman agree that in Scotland we need a root-and-branch examination of where healthcare has gone wrong for everyone?
David Mundell
I agree with the hon. Lady, but there also needs to be fundamental acknowledgment that there has not been the workforce planning that was required and that is the responsibility of the Scottish Government, not people in England or Wales or somewhere else. These responsibilities lie with the Scottish Government, and they should be held accountable for the way they have exercised them. Given the list of deficiencies that I have set out in relation to the Scottish Government on a whole range of issues, most particularly the NHS, let us demand better from Scotland’s Government on behalf of all of Scotland.
Madam Deputy Speaker (Caroline Nokes)
I call the Chair of the Scottish Affairs Committee.
Patricia Ferguson (Glasgow West) (Lab)
Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer—sorry, Madam Deputy Speaker. When we talk of Scotland, I am afraid my mind does sometimes wander to that other place at Holyrood.
It is a pleasure to speak in this debate about St Andrew’s day and Scottish affairs. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Dunfermline and Dollar (Graeme Downie) on securing it and on an excellent opening speech. May I also add my thoughts for the families of the former colleagues we have lost this year to those of the right hon. Member for Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale (David Mundell)? They were, without exception, good parliamentarians, good people and good friends. They will be missed.
In a debate on Scottish affairs, it would be remiss of me not to mention the work of the Scottish Affairs Committee, which I chair. The Committee met for the first time in this Parliament just two days after it was formally re-established, and we have been working non-stop ever since. Although the Committee’s remit covers the Scotland Office, in practice we examine any issues affecting Scotland where the UK Government have a responsibility or interest. That results in a varied programme. In the last year, we undertook five inquiries covering topics that hon. Members might expect such as energy, the Barnett formula and Scotland’s industrial transition.
We also considered less obvious topics where Scotland leads the way or is implementing original approaches. For example, one of our inquiries looked at the impressive potential of Scotland’s space launch sector. We eagerly await the UK’s first rocket launch next year from the SaxaVord spaceport in the Shetland Islands. Members of the Committee thoroughly enjoyed the visit and found their experience at SaxaVord enlightening with regard to the potential of that industry for our country. We also examined in detail the establishment of the Thistle in Glasgow’s east end. The Thistle is the UK’s first sanctioned safer drug consumption facility, and reflects a pioneering approach to drugs policy.
So far, the Committee has produced four reports; those hon. Members who have not quite sorted out their Christmas reading might want to pop down to the Vote Office and collect a copy of each, as they do make very interesting reading. We have also launched four new inquiries for 2026, including on digital and fixed-link connectivity, defence skills and jobs, and the future of Scotland’s high streets.
One of the most enjoyable aspects of the Committee’s work is getting out of Westminster and visiting businesses, communities and leaders across Scotland. Just this week, the Committee was on the Isle of Skye hearing at first hand about connectivity issues experienced by some of the most remote communities in the UK. We have also visited Shetland, the Western Isles and key parts of Scotland’s energy industry on the east coast. On no other Committee of this House would Members find themselves visiting community energy projects in the Hebrides one week, and having tea and cake on a nuclear submarine the next.
Seeing operations and engaging with stakeholders at first hand provides unparalleled insight that we bring back to Westminster and use to inform our reports. The aim of this scrutiny is to ensure that the work of the UK Government reflects Scotland’s unique strengths, interests and needs. In each of our reports, we set out how the Government can do that. I would like to take this opportunity to thank my fellow Committee members, whose hard work, commitment and good humour makes our work possible.
This debate is about St Andrew’s day and Scottish affairs, so—surprise, surprise—I am now going to talk a little bit about St Andrew. He is the patron saint of Scotland, as well as of Russia and Greece. The New Testament tells us that he was the first of the apostles chosen by Jesus, and that he was ultimately martyred for his beliefs in Patras in Greece. We are told that Andrew asked those who would crucify him not to do so on a traditional upright cross, because he was not worthy to die in the same way as Christ, and that is why his cross is diagonal. That cross, with its blue and white design, forms Scotland’s national flag, the saltire.
We are told that Andrew brought his brother, Simon Peter, to Christ. He did not try to keep his new and inspirational friend to himself, but instead encouraged his brother and others to embrace and follow Christ. We are also told that it was he who found the little boy with the basket of loaves and fishes and brought him to Jesus, so that the crowd that had followed him could eat. He also arranged for some Greek people who wished to meet Jesus to do so. As a result of these stories, he is often spoken of as an intermediary, someone who was open and encouraging of others and who worked hard to bring people to Jesus through his missionary work. I mention that because I believe that those attributes are reflected in the character of Scotland.
We do not have an exclusive right to those values, and we do not always get it right, but we are generally a welcoming, supportive and encouraging place, with a warm welcome for the stranger. We have experienced waves of immigration over the centuries. Irish immigrants sought refuge from the economic difficulties of that island, my own family among them. At the end of the 19th century and beginning of the 20th century, many Italian families came to Scotland. After the second world war, many Polish people sought refuge with us. And many people from the Indian subcontinent came to our country after partition. I well remember the Chilean refugees, many of whom came to Drumchapel, in my constituency, seeking safety having escaped from the brutal regime of the dictator, Pinochet. In recent years, we have welcomed many Ukrainian refugees. It is always a pleasure to attend the annual event to celebrate Ukraine’s independence day, held in Victoria Park in my constituency, which is an absolute joy, even if my painting skills have not got any better over the years.
All of that is the reason why the comments made last week by the leader of Reform UK, the hon. Member for Clacton (Nigel Farage), were so objectionable. He attempted to sow division in Glasgow, by describing multilingualism in the city’s schools as “cultural smashing.” What he chose to misunderstand—I think he made a choice to misunderstand—is that many languages are spoken by families in our city, including Scots, Gaelic and British sign language, and that for many children in Gaelic-medium education and in BSL education, English is not the language in which they are taught. Such comments by any politician are despicable.
Dave Doogan
I am grateful to the hon. Lady, my colleague and Chair of our Select Committee, for giving way. She is making a powerful point about Scotland’s identity and our values. She is a Unionist and I am a nationalist, but I do not think for one second that I am any more proud of my flag than she is proud of her flag. Does she agree with me that we must do everything that we can to prevent our St Andrew’s flag from being hijacked by those who would seek to use it against the very values that make Scotland the welcoming place that it has always been?
Patricia Ferguson
I thank the hon. Gentleman, my colleague and friend, for his comments. I will come on to talk about flag shortly, so I will not answer him directly at this moment.
As I was saying, I think that comments such as those that we heard last week are despicable. I for one will continue to praise and welcome the work of teachers across Glasgow who work to support bilingual families and multiculturalism. There is much good work going on to promote that within the city of Glasgow. In my own area, every year Thriving Places Drumchapel hosts a well-attended Hope not Hate event, which showcases the talents that young people from other countries and traditions have brought to our local area.
I mentioned earlier that the saltire is the flag of St Andrew and the flag of Scotland. It does not belong to any one of us and it does not belong to any political party. Like the man whose death we should remember when we consider that flag, it is a flag of welcome and inclusion—we would all do well to remember that. I have no problem with people celebrating their nationality by flying their flag, whichever flag that happens to be, but when that flag is used to threaten, intimidate or suggest to people that they are not part of that country, then that is bullying, which is despicable.
That is why I found the showing of flags across the country this summer, wherever they happened to be, to be totally reprehensible, because in many instances—perhaps not all—that was being done for entirely the wrong reasons. We have to be proud of our flags as symbols of our identity. Whatever our political differences, we share certain values—values that we will work with anyone to protect. At the end of the day, those values are what make us who we are and they are important; if they are not, they should be.
Madam Deputy Speaker (Caroline Nokes)
Order. I remind hon. Members that if they are going to refer to other hon. Members in the House and criticise them, they should have informed them beforehand.
Wendy Chamberlain (North East Fife) (LD)
As the hon. Member for Dunfermline and Dollar (Graeme Downie) highlighted in his opening remarks, as the MP for North East Fife, I represent St Andrews, so I thought it was important to be here today.
St Andrews was the ecclesiastical capital of Scotland until the Reformation, but it was not always a safe harbour for religious leaders. Cardinal Beaton, the last Scottish cardinal prior to the Reformation, was murdered by Fife lairds angered by the execution of Protestant preacher George Wishart. He was stabbed and his body was hung from the window of St Andrews castle. In the last Parliament, The House magazine invited MPs to write about something of particular interest in their constituency. I do not know what it says about me, but I chose to write about the murder of Archbishop Sharp, who was murdered by Covenanters outside St Andrews as his made his way there from Ceres. Indeed, the centrepiece of the annual parade and celebration by the Kate Kennedy Club, which is part of the University of St Andrews and celebrates its centenary next year, is a re-enactment of that murder. Members should definitely come and see it—it is great.
I liked the comments made by hon. Members about Charles I. When I give a tour of the Houses of Parliament, I take pleasure in pointing out, “That is where the Fifer was sentenced to death.” As a member of the History of Parliament Trust, I am clear that we should not refer to the English civil war but the war of the three kingdoms, because that whole conflict started in Scotland, with the first bishops’ war.
I pay tribute to some of the groups and organisations that work in St Andrews, such as the community hub; the St Andrews community council, which recently hosted the hoolie that marked St Andrew’s day in the town; and the university. I was here not that long ago marking the passing of my predecessor-but-one, the right hon. Lord Campbell of Pittenweem, or Ming Campbell, who was the chancellor of the university.
I note the debate that is taking place in Westminster Hall. I thank the hon. Member for Glasgow North (Martin Rhodes)—who is not here, but in the other chamber—because he is marking Fairtrade. It is the 20th anniversary of the same group in St Andrews as well.
Let me mention the St Andrews Harbour Trust, which is not a normal trust, because it was gifted to the town by James IV. One of the challenges we have post- Storm Babet is that the harbour needs essential funding to maintain the whole coastline, and the trust is struggling to do that. I have written to the Secretary of State for Scotland looking for support because of how critical that infrastructure is.
As the MP for St Andrews, I get to be on the board of the Links Trust—my father does not share my politics, but he is a keen golfer, so he is very happy about that. We are known for golf, and the Open returns to St Andrews in 2027. Let me take this opportunity to highlight a recent report by the Links Trust, which demonstrates that St Andrews and the courses there deliver £300 million of economic impact to Scotland’s economy. Visitors and their families support nearly 1,700 full-time jobs in St Andrews and more than 4,000 jobs across Scotland. For every pound that passes through the tills of the St Andrews Links, an additional £3.43 is generated for other businesses in St Andrews. More than 100,000 visitors made St Andrews Links their destination in 2024, with more than 91% coming from outside Scotland.
St Andrews is absolutely vital to the wider Scottish economy as well as the wider North East Fife economy. Earlier this week, I was speaking to the owner of a hotel in my constituency outwith St Andrews, who pointed out how essential St Andrews is to their trade. However, they also pointed out how they are hampered by their rural location, poor footpaths between communities and poor local transport links. With the decision following the Scottish Transport Appraisal Guidance on a station in St Andrews being turned down, it is important that we get the other recommended transport links, so that we can connect tourists and the local workers who support the industries I mentioned but cannot afford to live in St Andrews.
I have aspired to the lofty opening of the hon. Member for Dunfermline and Dollar—he really tried to set the scene—but I will highlight one concern. As a former police officer, I thank my former colleague Martin Gallagher and “Jobs Forgotten” for their work on a particular issue in relation to the McCloud judgment. The McCloud judgment in 2018 and the changes to public sector pensions have been challenging for all Governments, but it seems that the Scottish Government have found it the most challenging. They have missed numerous deadlines, despite knowing since 2022—arguably since 2018, because that is when the judgment happened—that work to ensure remediation for the people affected by the McCloud judgment in relation to their public sector pensions was mitigated.
I am concerned to hear reports that retirement statements are apparently not being provided when requested, simply because an individual is yet to submit their intention to retire. Why would somebody make a decision on whether to retire if they do not have the financial information they need? That makes me wonder and be concerned about what the overall liabilities are, particularly given the 8% per year increase in interest rates in relation to those delayed decisions, which are paid for by UK taxpayers. The Chair of the Scottish Affairs Committee may be interested in that, because just recently, on 2 December, the chief executive of the Scottish Public Pensions Authority gave evidence to the Scottish Parliament’s Finance and Public Administration Committee. He apologised, but he failed to provide information or confidence in the system or to say whether the issue can be totally resolved by 2027.
I have here a freedom of information request suggesting that less than 3% of individuals who retired on the grounds of ill health have had their statement in relation to the McCloud judgment. That is very concerning, and I hope the Minister will agree that the Scottish Government should not have got themselves into this situation. It is unacceptable for public sector workers such as firefighters and police officers—some of whom, as I mentioned, retired on the grounds of ill health directly related to their service—to be left in this limbo. In particular, there are concerns that back payments might need to be made and that they might lose money as a result.
It is really important that we have the opportunity to debate St Andrew’s day, our patron saint and Scottish affairs in this place, and I am grateful to have had the opportunity to do so.
Several hon. Members rose—
Madam Deputy Speaker (Caroline Nokes)
Order. It would be very helpful if Members could keep their contributions to around five minutes or less. That will enable me to get everybody in.
Torcuil Crichton (Na h-Eileanan an Iar) (Lab)
I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Dunfermline and Dollar (Graeme Downie) for securing this debate on St Andrew’s day and for giving us the opportunity to take stock of the issues and challenges facing Scotland. I will not detain the House for long, Madam Deputy Speaker, because you caught me on the hop—I had hoped to be writing my speech while others made theirs.
I will plough on to discuss poor St Andrew. I have been checking in on Scotland’s patron saint, and he does not look very good. As a Scot, his average life expectancy would be just 77 years; his sister, Andrea, could expect to live to 81. Some 26 years into devolution and 18 years into an SNP Government who were meant to make things better, Scotland has the lowest life expectancy not just in the UK, but in the whole of western Europe.
But do not worry, because the SNP is coming to the rescue of Scotland’s ailing saint and ailing population—or it would do, if it could get ambulance waiting times in order. In January last year, one patient in Lothian on category red—that is a heart attack situation—had to wait more than 17 hours for an ambulance, and an individual in the highlands this year had to wait for 18 hours. It now takes a median wait of 22 minutes for NHS 24 to be answered in Scotland. The NHS app, which I have had for many years as a patient at the Royal London hospital, will not be available in Scotland until 2030. Why? Because the SNP Scottish Government refused the English NHS app, because the political optics of putting the St Andrew’s cross on an English app just would not look good, so Scots have to wait.
Scots are being ill-served. They have been waiting a long time through our revolving carousel of Health Ministers. A rotating carousel of 130 health strategies—one for every seven weeks of this SNP Government—has meant that 618,000 Scots are still waiting for specialist care in Scotland’s NHS. One figure is going up in Scotland’s health scene: the number of private health operations, which is up by 55% since 2019. Those are not just for those who can afford them, but those who need them because the waiting lists are so long that they have no alternative.
Scotland has a large number of health boards, with 14 health boards, 31 integration authorities and numerous quangos, all under tight Scottish Government control. Mike McKirdy, an eminent surgeon assigned by the Scottish Labour party to assess the future of Scotland’s health, has said it is a “complex structure”. He said that structure
“means reforms and improvements are difficult to roll out at scale or pace, while accountability and transparency are easier to avoid.”
Scotland is being ill-served in its health, and the ailing St Andrew is being ill-served by this SNP Government when it comes to health.
Torcuil Crichton
I do not think I will.
Of course, St Andrew was bilingual, or trilingual or quadrilingual—as my hon. Friend the Member for Glasgow West (Patricia Ferguson) pointed out, he is celebrated in Russia and Greece. He appears on the Basque flag, and Basque is the oldest language in Europe. If he and his children were living in Glasgow, they would make up that one third of Scottish schoolchildren in the “Dear Green Place” who speak more than one language—something that the hon. Member for Clacton (Nigel Farage), in his desperate attempt to divide Scotland, found so appalling. To allay your fears, Madam Deputy Speaker, I emailed the hon. Member for Clacton—I assume the email went to his constituency office. I saw that the email received no reply, because he is rarely seen in this place or in Clacton. But he has been informed.
The hon. Member for Clacton is appalled by the celebrated diversity of our great city, but I am not. I am very proud of the dozens of pupils at the Glasgow Gaelic school, and I am proud that dozens of pupils who speak Arabic, Urdu, Polish, Punjabi or Chinese are students as well, but these children—like St Andrew, ailing in his unhealthy bed on those waiting lists—are ill-served by Scotland’s SNP Government.
As was pointed out by the right hon. Member for Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale (David Mundell), a former Secretary of State for Scotland, there is a statistical fiction in education as well as in health. Professor Lindsay Paterson, the esteemed Scottish academic, has said that the attainment statistics for Scotland’s schools
“fail to capture the serious decline of attainment that has been picked up by PISA.”
Of course, the Scottish Government previously used international assessments to measure the gap between teachers’ appraisals and real attainment, but those surveys were abandoned in 2008. Now Professor Paterson says:
“What is euphemistically called pupils’ achievement of the curriculum levels is in fact teachers’ impressions of whether their own pupils have achieved the levels… They are simply hunches.”
In 2016 the then First Minister, Nicola Sturgeon, promised that her Government’s priority would be to close the education attainment gap. On this week’s figures and at current rates, it would take 133 years to close the poverty rate attainment gap in Scotland—that is shameful. Scotland and St Andrew’s children are being let down again by this SNP Government.
Torcuil Crichton
I will, if only because the hon. Member displays the best budget cut I have seen this year.
Dave Doogan
The hon. Member is very concerned about St Andrew. We should focus on St Andrew today, but in parallel I am concerned for St David, and what he and his family might be enduring under the catastrophe of Labour-run Wales. I wish things were better in Scotland, and I know that my colleagues in the Scottish Government are working extremely hard to make things better under the egregious constraints of this Union, but the Labour Government in Wales are not so motivated. Can the hon. Member explain why it is only St Andrew’s bairns in Scotland who are getting elevated out of poverty on these islands, while child poverty is rising in Labour England and Labour Wales?
Torcuil Crichton
I thank the hon. Member for that intervention, which allows me to highlight that some 95,000 children in Scotland are to be lifted out of poverty by our Chancellor’s Budget, which got rid of the two-child benefit cap.
It is not just in terms of education and health that St Andrew’s children are being failed. St Andrew was a fisherman and was used to boats, as are many of my constituents in the islands, but these modern-day St Andrews are being let down. They see thousands of pounds of shellfish exports rotting in the harbour, or having to be deep-frozen at extra cost, because of the failing SNP’s ferry fiasco. For that situation, Madam Deputy Speaker, I need no notes, because the ferry fiasco is writ large in the experience of all my constituents, who have suffered for years because this SNP Government did not manage to procure enough ferries and took their eye off the ball. This crisis, which they thought would affect a few hundred islanders, has become an international symbol of the failure of nationalism in Scotland.
This week I welcomed the extra £820 million that the Chancellor found to give to the Scottish Government this year. In my book—in anyone’s book—£820 million is eight CalMac ferries, but the SNP Scottish Government can only manage 2.5 ferries for £500 million. It is a shame and a scandal. People in the Western Isles know that the S in SNP stands for “stunt”—the portholes had to be painted on to the ship so that Nicola Sturgeon could have a pretendy launch. That £500 million means that the S in SNP stands for “squander”, with millions wasted, affecting the ability and confidence of my constituents to stay in their homes and be connected to the rest of the islands. I hope that S will also stand for “swept away”, because in May that is what Scotland needs.
John Cooper (Dumfries and Galloway) (Con)
St Andrew was a guest at my wedding. No, I am not that old— I just look that way. Italia ’90 will be remembered by most for “Nessun Dorma”, Totò Schillaci and—my sympathies—England going out on penalties to Germany, but for me it was not about football; it was in Italy in 1990 that, in secret, I got married. The ceremony was held in Amalfi, under a portrait of a bearded St Andrew who looked rather like Matthew Goode as Inspector Carl Morck in “Dept. Q”. Most of St Andrew’s relics reside in Amalfi, having been moved there for safekeeping after the fourth crusade and the sack of Constantinople in 1204. Some think that Andrew brought Christianity to Scotland, but that was St Ninian, whose first footfall and church were in Whithorn, in my constituency of Dumfries and Galloway.
So much for history. What has Andrew done for us lately? I have often thought that St Andrew’s day suffers a bit because of the date: 30 November tends to be dreich, in the slough of despond between Halloween and Christmas. I also think that we make rather too little of it—compare it with the global Irish celebration of St Patrick’s day and, increasingly, the festivities on St George’s day. Scotland should look ahead and not back, so while we are refreshing our take on St Andrew’s day, might we also move away from the dirge that is “Flower of Scotland” as our anthem, with its maudlin fixation on days that are past and
“in the past…must remain”?
The SNP needs to snap out of it, too. Scotland’s wars of independence are long over, Mel Gibson’s “Braveheart” is most certainly not a documentary—that may trigger woad rage—and Scotland is no colony, but as one with Britain.
However, this Labour Government need to look again at their relationship with Holyrood. The much-vaunted reset between Westminster and Holyrood is just “devolve and forget” with better PR. Money is trolleyed north with little care for what happens once it is in SNP coffers. The nationalists oppose devolution; whether it is throwing a spanner in the works of defence firms by refusing to fund ordnance or a de facto boycott of our ally Israel, they will agitate in any way they can to break up Britain. Andrew was a fisherman before becoming a disciple—he of all people knew the value of mending your nets. Is it too much to ask of this Labour Government that they tend to the fabric of the Union? This is not about putting Holyrood in its place, but about delivering on what the people of Scotland voted for in 2014: remaining part of this great United Kingdom.
Madam Deputy Speaker (Caroline Nokes)
I call Julie Minns, to make what I think is a birthday contribution.
Ms Julie Minns (Carlisle) (Lab)
Thank you, Madam Deputy Speaker—today is indeed my birthday. I thank my Scottish colleagues for letting me, as an English Member, crash this debate on St Andrew’s day.
I have the great privilege of representing the great border city of Carlisle, the only city in the United Kingdom to have been governed by both the Scottish and English Crowns during its history. Standing just a few miles south of the Scottish border, Carlisle is a fortress city, its provenance bloodily contested for centuries. From its origins in Roman times—when not one but two Roman forts were built to defend the empire’s northern frontier—to the Jacobite rebellions, Carlisle has been the prize in a centuries-long struggle between England and Scotland.
In the middle ages, Carlisle was a city under siege again and again. In 1135, Scotland’s King David seized it, turning its castle into the beating heart of Scottish power. Two decades later it returned to English control under Henry II, whose treaty of York in 1237 finally fixed the border—or so Carlisle thought. In 1315 Robert the Bruce, of whom we have already heard mention today, marched south and laid siege to Carlisle, fresh from his triumph at Bannockburn. For days the city’s defenders fought, the walls shook under bombardment, but Carlisle held firm.
In the 17th and 18th centuries, the Jacobite rebellions again threatened Carlisle’s status. Indeed, it is joked locally that the reason why our old town hall’s clock tower, which has four faces, does not have a clock on its north-facing side is because we people of Carlisle would not give the Scots the time of day.
Torcuil Crichton
My hon. Friend may well be right about that clock tower, but she will also know that Carlisle will always be a little bit of Scotland, because it was apparently in Carlisle that the Loch Lomond ballad, with its famous lines
“You take the high road, and I’ll take the low road, and I’ll be in Scotland before you”,
was written by a Jacobite prisoner facing the gallows. That song, which is much more fondly remembered than “Flower of Scotland”, was written in Carlisle, was it not?
Ms Minns
Indeed, and my hon. Friend makes an excellent point. I was just about to mention Bonnie Prince Charlie and the 300 Jacobite soldiers he left in Carlisle castle after riding into Carlisle, standing on the steps of our historic market cross and claiming the city again for the Stuart Crown, and then riding south to do battle with the Duke of Cumberland. He then turned tail and rode back north, bypassing Carlisle entirely and leaving those 300 soldiers to their fate. As my hon. Friend says, the lyrics of that song are the lament of one of those ill-fated Jacobite soldiers.
Of course, Carlisle castle also had the honour of playing host, shall we say, to Mary, Queen of Scots, in 1568. Members may be interested to know that, thanks to the diligence of her guard, who recorded her every single movement, the Queen’s observance of a football match on an adjacent field resulted in the first written account of a football match played to rules.
Just as St Andrew’s day celebrates Scotland’s heritage, it is also a moment for all of us in the Border communities to honour our shared history and the deep connections between Scotland and its neighbouring communities—connections that my constituency of Carlisle and north Cumbria understands better than most. Our shared Christian traditions are a strong bond. St Andrew symbolises humility, and the service values that should guide all Members of this House, regardless of our geography. Carlisle cathedral, which owes its existence to the English Crown’s desire to create a diocese to ward off the diocese of Glasgow, still marks St Andrew’s day with prayers for Scotland. The St Ninian’s way pilgrimage links Carlisle to St Andrew’s, and echoes the spiritual roots that unite our nations. Such connections remind us that faith and fellowship have long bridged division. On that point, I pay tribute to the Border Kirk in my Carlisle constituency, which works tirelessly with a number of organisations to offer support and assistance to the refugee community in Carlisle.
Today, the ties are practical as well as historical. Our economy depends on cross-border trade, shared infrastructure and cultural exchange. The A74 and the west coast main line are lifelines for businesses and our communities, and I thank the right hon. Member for Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale (David Mundell) for his work on the Borderlands growth deal, a deal that we both wish to see rejuvenated because it offers great potential to the Borders region.
Tourism flows both ways. Visitors come to Carlisle for our castle, our cathedral and for the western gateway of Hadrian’s wall. My residents travel north for Scotland’s shopping at Gretna gateway and the fantastic Devil’s Porridge Museum, while Scots come south of the border to discover Hadrian’s wall and Carlisle’s heritage, and to shop in Carlisle’s big Asda, where minimum unit pricing does not apply.
Today, let us remember and celebrate the links, not the rivalry, between our two countries. St Andrew’s day is not just Scotland’s celebration. It is a reminder that when Carlisle and Scotland thrive together, the whole of the United Kingdom is stronger. I call on colleagues to reaffirm that spirit of unity. I call on the Scottish and Westminster Governments to work together to minimise the friction that too often arises because of divergent policy on devolved matters, such as health and agriculture—friction that causes unnecessary and costly problems for residents of our Border community. Let us invest instead in cross-border co-operation, culture and business, bringing our communities closer and ensuring that the decisions made in Westminster and Holyrood reflect the shared interests of the people who live and work along our historic border. St Andrew’s day is a day of pride for Scotland, but it is also a day of friendship for all of us.
Stephen Gethins (Arbroath and Broughty Ferry) (SNP)
I thank the hon. Member for Dunfermline and Dollar (Graeme Downie) for securing the debate, and for the very constructive way he approached it. He focused on young people, migration and those who make our country so much richer, which I thought was a useful thing to debate on St Andrew’s day. In that spirit, can I be the first to wish the hon. Member for Carlisle (Ms Minns) a very happy birthday, and thank her for her speech? She touched on some really positive aspects of the cross-border element of the debate, which I will come on to in just a moment. I thoroughly enjoyed her speech, and I hope that she manages to enjoy the rest of her day.
The hon. Member for Dunfermline and Dollar talked about history, and touched on this point very effectively. It is sometimes useful for all of us, regardless of our political allegiance, to reflect on the fact that history, like politics, is not black and white, but various shades of grey. There are things we get right and things we get wrong, and sometimes we do not do nuance as effectively as we could. Sometimes that is a debt we owe. On that point, we should talk about migration, which the hon. Member talked about very effectively. In recent times, we have talked about migration in very black and white terms, forgetting, as the Chair of the Scottish Affairs Committee, the hon. Member for Glasgow West (Patricia Ferguson), set out very effectively, the rich tapestry that makes Scotland, as McIlvanney described it, “a mongrel nation”.
I represent Dundee as well as Angus, which had an even higher proportion of Irish people in its population than Glasgow. I am a product of that—I am a Stephen Patrick, after all—but to this day, I am very proud of my Scottish heritage. I will not mention any one individual, Madam Deputy Speaker, but when we debate migration, that includes the question of emigration from Scotland. We all know people who have moved away, and we have a rich diaspora around the world who will be celebrating this day, along with Scots in Scotland and elsewhere in the UK. We have benefited from that, but we have also benefited richly from those who have migrated to Scotland. Dundee is a richer city and Angus is a richer county as a direct consequence of that.
I would like to reflect on how our predecessors have talked about the subject. The hon. Member for North East Fife (Wendy Chamberlain) is not in her place, but of course Ming Campbell was my immediate predecessor in North East Fife, which was my previous seat. He sadly passed away this year; the right hon. Member for Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale (David Mundell) mentioned others who have passed away and contributed so much. I may not have always agreed with him, but he contributed so much, as did others who represented my constituency. There was Winston Churchill, but there was also, of course, former Labour MP E. D. Morel, who did so much on the slave trade and on what was going on in Congo, along with Roger Casement. I encourage anybody who is not aware of Morel’s fine work to read up on it. As we are talking about that, I also pay tribute to my predecessors, Gordon Wilson and Andrew Welsh, who contributed so much to this place and to the broader debate. It is a debate that it is right to have.
We talk about young people. We parliamentarians—this is a good thing on which to reflect on St Andrew’s day—have a responsibility to leave the world a little bit better than we found it. We should leave more rights for young people than we enjoyed, but unfortunately, we do not always get that right. For example, our immigration debate does not benefit our higher education sector, which thrives when it is international, and when it brings students in from around the world. Scottish students benefit from sitting in the same classroom as students from elsewhere around the world. Scotland thrives internationally as an energy hub—others rightly talked about that—yet we are the only country that has found oil and gas not to have implemented a future generations fund. Norway’s is now worth £1.5 trillion. That is not the fault of the current Administration, but it is worth all our while to reflect on that.
Torcuil Crichton
The hon. Member mentions a national sovereign wealth fund, which the SNP called for, to be funded from oil revenues, in the ’70s and ’80s—
Torcuil Crichton
And the ’90s, and maybe until today. The SNP Government had the opportunity to put one in place when they auctioned the ScotWind licenses for offshore wind for £700 million—they would have done it for £70 million, but were given guidance on that. They had the opportunity to either invest that £700 million in a sovereign wealth fund, or to give it back to the coastal communities from which those revenues flow, but they did none of that. They have used half of that £700 million in day-to-day expenditure, have they not?
Stephen Gethins
We focus an awful lot on the Scottish Parliament. I have no problem with that, but Members who sit here choose to be part of a Parliament that has powers that far outweigh those of the Scottish Parliament. I do not like that, but other Members here do.
On the future generations fund, since we are having a biblical debate and there has been biblical reference, I say to the hon. Member—he will not mind—that, to paraphrase Matthew’s gospel, sometimes you talk about the speck in my eye and ignore the plank in yours. Some £1.5 trillion, and 1.5% of every share on earth from the top 5,000 companies, is now in Norwegian hands, and Norway can use that, with transformative effect. If he thinks that Westminster control over oil and gas and other aspects of energy—it still has that responsibility—has been positive, I encourage him to think again. It has not been wholly positive; things have failed. As he has prompted me, it should be reflected that the failings of Holyrood are dwarfed by the gargantuan failings of Westminster. There has been Brexit, austerity—the right hon. Member for Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale was part of the Cabinet who brought that in—the Truss Budget, which put up all mortgages, and our relationship with the rest of Europe. Those failings have now been brought to bear.
Stephen Gethins
I will give way one more time, out of respect for the Chair of the Committee, if she can tackle the issue of our relationship with the rest of Europe.
Patricia Ferguson
There is something that has always perplexed me about the arguments around Brexit. I remember campaigning very hard to try to stop the UK leaving the European Union, but I do not remember seeing many SNP members out campaigning. Records show that the SNP spent less money campaigning against Brexit than on a local authority by-election. I have always wondered why that was; perhaps the hon. Member can tell us.
Stephen Gethins
I fought hard against Brexit in this place, and I continue to fight hard against it. I worked in the European institutions. I was an Erasmus student whose life was transformed by our membership of the European Union. The hon. Member’s party has removed, or refused to take decisions on, those opportunities for young people, having embraced a hard Tory and Reform Brexit.
Labour could change everything right now, but Labour Members could not even bring themselves to vote with the Liberal Democrats, the SNP and others on entering into a customs union. It speaks to the cautious nature of the Scottish Labour party that whereas 13 Labour MPs managed to rebel, not one Scottish Labour Member rebelled, just as only one Scottish Labour Member—they were chucked out—was able to rebel on the two-child cap.
The EU goes to the heart of what we are about. Labour Members talk about devolution, yet a third of the Labour group in Wales has had to write to the UK Government about the rolling back of devolution. I would be grateful to the Minister for tackling that. It speaks to our place in the world. To go back to St Andrew, I encourage anybody visiting Kyiv—I did so on a constructive visit with the hon. Member for Dunfermline and Dollar—to visit the church of St Andrew. It is one of the founding churches, from when Christianity was brought to Kyiv. It is beautiful, and it speaks to my vision about where we sit in the world. Hon. Members have referred to their constituency; let me make my inevitable reference to the declaration of Arbroath at its abbey, an event that has influenced other parts of the world.
I hear gripes, but I rarely hear any sort of positive vision from anybody else. Here is mine, and it speaks to the points raised by the hon. Member for Carlisle. My vision is one of normalcy—of a Scotland that joins a European family of nations. We see all our neighbours outperforming us when it comes to fairness and the economy. Why? Because they have the normal powers of independence. They have the powers that Westminster has, but that Labour refuses to use to make life better for people.
On borders, we can look at Antwerp and Rotterdam, Strasbourg and Baden-Baden, and Nice and Italy. We see borderlands across Europe that thrive because they sit within the European Union; they thrive because of that partnership. It is not for me to tell England what its future should be, but surely the EU provides a 21st-century model for union—one that is embraced across Europe—whereas ours is an 18th-century model of union, with no article 50 to allow us to get out, no equal rights, and no place for the smaller parts. The situation is different for the Åland islands, Greenland and others.
In Central Lobby, we have St David over the door above the Commons, St George above the door to the Lords, and St Patrick above the door to the way out. The old joke goes that St Andrew sits above the door on the way to the bar, but maybe St Andrew is merely taking a slightly longer way out than St Patrick.
Several hon. Members rose—
Madam Deputy Speaker (Caroline Nokes)
Order. There will be a formal four-minute time limit on speeches.
Dr Scott Arthur (Edinburgh South West) (Lab)
I thank my hon. Friend the Member for Dunfermline and Dollar (Graeme Downie) for introducing the debate. He is my mother’s MP, so I will be able to give a good account of him on Christmas day.
I want to talk about Scotland. I will talk a little bit about St Andrew, but above all else I will talk about Edinburgh South West, which I believe is a microcosm of Scotland. I am talking not about the housing crisis, the potholes, and the long child and adolescent mental health services waiting lists, but about the dramatic landscape, including the fantastic Pentland hills, which I share with the Minister, and the unique culture—the Army School of Bagpipe Music and Highland Drumming is in my constituency. There is also our iconic food and drink; much of the shortbread that people will get as presents this year will have been made in my constituency at the Ferrero FBC factory, where Jammie Dodgers are also made—I am not sure whether they are Scottish, but I am happy to claim them.
Influential inventions also have their home in my constituency. This morning, I met a company called Lumino Technologies, which told me how it is using photons, telescopes and satellites to rival data transfer using cables under the Atlantic ocean. I did not understand it, but it sounded fantastic.
We also have literary giants. Robert Louis Stevenson used to come to my constituency for his summer holiday to meet his grandfather, and he undertook much of his work there.
I turn now to St Andrew—a Galilean fisherman and, as we have heard, the first of the 12 apostles chosen by Jesus; it is no accident that St Andrew’s day comes at the start of advent. It might be because he was a fisherman that he is also the patron saint of fishmongers. The striking thing about him is his name. It is not a Hebrew name, but a Greek one, which tells us that his family was perhaps a little bit more outward looking.
As we have heard, St Andrew travelled extensively in the Black sea region including Greece, and perhaps as far as Ukraine and Poland. There is no evidence yet that he visited Edinburgh South West or even the UK. But I think if he had visited, he would probably have come on a small boat; he would have been a man from the middle east coming perhaps to escape religious persecution.
What does it mean to have St Andrew as our patron saint in Scotland? He was a man who was called to love and care for other people. He believed in treating others with the same kindness, compassion and selflessness as he desired for himself. He saw foreigners and strangers as brothers and sisters. It is important to remember that.
Where would St Andrew go if he were to come to Edinburgh South West? I think he would visit the Edinburgh Interfaith Association, which operates right across the city and is a fantastic, cohesive force in the city for people of all faiths and none. He would visit Holy Trinity church in Wester Hailes, which does fantastic work on debt relief for people in prison and out of it, and obviously those who have never been in prison. He would also visit Soul Food, which is a fantastic community meal in Oxgangs every week. He would visit the people who operate the Edinburgh Food Project and Community for Food, who provide food for people right across the city. They were fantastic in campaigning against the two-child cap, and it is due to people like them, right across the UK, that we managed to get rid of that awful injustice.
These are troubled times, and people seek to divide us. We have to remember St Andrew’s values of being open and treating strangers not as foreigners, but as our brothers and sisters. I look forward to celebrating St Andrew’s day next year in that spirit.
Johanna Baxter (Paisley and Renfrewshire South) (Lab)
On St Andrew’s Day, we honour a Scotland rooted in community, fairness and responsibility—the values that have shaped our nation for generations, and which continue to guide communities like mine in Paisley and Renfrewshire South. Legend has it that St Andrew foretold the future site of the city we now know as Kyiv, and today the solidarity between Scotland and Ukraine is not just symbolic; it is lived.
I am very proud to welcome the Ukrainian diaspora into my constituency. In October, I invited members of that community to my constituency office so that I could hear directly about their experiences of building a new life in Scotland. They have found a place that opens its doors wide, and they have brought so much in return. One Ukrainian woman told me that she has put her skills to work as a seamstress, helping to carry forward the proud textile heritage of Paisley. It is a reminder that when people are given the chance to contribute, they do not just settle in; they help us all move forward.
I have touched on Scotland’s values of community, fairness and responsibility. Those are the values that shaped one of the proudest achievements of the last Labour Government: devolution. It was never meant to be about flags or slogans; it was about a simple, powerful belief that decisions are best made closest to the people they affect. That is why Labour delivered Sure Start, the national minimum wage, the Human Rights Act 1998 and devolution. It is why this Labour Government have raised the national minimum wage and lifted the two-child benefit cap, which will lift 1,560 children in my constituency out of poverty, and why we are delivering £150 off energy bills for every household next year.
But in Scotland our potential is being squandered by an SNP Government in Holyrood who are fixated endlessly on rerunning referendums, paralysing government north of the border. Instead of building homes, they build division. Instead of fixing schools and hospitals, they fall out with themselves. And instead of delivering for Scotland, they lurch from sleaze to scandal. Whereas other parts of the UK can move forward, Scotland is stuck with a Government who are more interested in constitutional games than in the hard graft of governing, and my constituents are feeling the pain of that.
The Scottish Government have just received the biggest funding settlement since devolution began, yet the SNP-run health and social care partnership in Paisley and Renfrewshire South is slashing vital frontline services to fill an £18.5 million hole that it dug itself. The disability resource centre, a vital lifeline for people with physical disabilities in my community, faces closure. The Weavers Linn respite unit, a cornerstone of support for families in my community, is being stripped to the bone. The housing and health hub, the community health champion service, and grants that help older people to stay well and live independently are being shut down. The Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, which is the voice of Scotland’s councils, has warned of a £16 billion shortfall across Scottish local government, calling it nothing less than an “existential threat”.
This is austerity in action—short-sighted decisions that undermine the fabric of communities and leave us exposed when a crisis hits. We all know there is a clear link between child poverty and lack of access to safe, secure and affordable homes, yet under the SNP’s watch, Scotland is in a housing crisis.
Kirsteen Sullivan (Bathgate and Linlithgow) (Lab/Co-op)
I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Dunfermline and Dollar (Graeme Downie) on securing this debate and on his fantastic opening speech. The debate is an ideal opportunity to look at Scotland’s proud industrial heritage and contribution to the world.
Although Scotland’s history and inventions are iconic the world over, the spirit of innovation and industry is very much alive in my constituency of Bathgate and Linlithgow. The Kinneil estate in Bo’ness hosts Scottish history from across the centuries. As a UNESCO world heritage site, Kinneil has large parts of the Antonine wall running through it, alongside the labs of the esteemed James Watt. The ruined buildings in Kinneil are the labs where he tested his prototype steam engine. The estate is also home to the beautiful walled garden and orchard where His Majesty the King planted an apple tree in 2023 to celebrate 100 years of the estate becoming a public park.
The experimental spirit does not stop with James Watt, however. Sir James Young Simpson experimented with spirits of his own, discovering and isolating the anaesthetic that we use in operations and medical procedures today. Thanks to his medical discovery, many millions of people the world over have been saved from suffering and life-threatening conditions. For that contribution, Sir James is also honoured with a memorial in Westminster Abbey, just across the road from here.
Each of these pioneers is a reminder of what Scotland gives to the world, but what Scotland gives to us as Scots is a landscape that has fostered our people. Across my constituency, from the shale bings to the Pyramids business site, industry has constantly evolved from mining and weaving to the manufacturing of the non-lithium vanadium flow batteries of today. I see the Scotland of innovators at first hand whenever I go out and visit community groups and businesses in the constituency.
As I have said, Bathgate is host to the only non-lithium vanadium UK-based battery manufacturer, and in the coming weeks the cap and floor scheme decided by Ofgem could create long-lasting industrial jobs in the heart of Scotland. From steam power to green power, my constituency has been a hub of engineering and energy for centuries, and where Sir James Young Simpson left off, Catalent Pharma Solutions continues with medical manufacturing in Bathgate today.
Dedication to the innovating tradition of the area is also at the heart of many community groups. Invoking the best tradition of scouting and being prepared, the scouts in Bo’ness have installed solar panels on the roof of their hall, and they aim to become the first net zero Scout group in the UK. Local energy projects give people the benefits of new green energy directly into their back pockets. Climate action networks like the one in West Lothian and the many community development trusts are putting themselves in the driving seat.
Finally, the spirit of St Andrew’s day is as poetic as it is practical. It draws together our history, but also our future. We can recognise it and honour it. Though it binds us together, we are not bound by it for the future. Invention and innovation, whether the steam engine or the spaceport, are at the heart of Scotland, so while we celebrate the innovators of our past, let us also acknowledge the pioneers who will shape our future.
Richard Baker (Glenrothes and Mid Fife) (Lab)
I warmly congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Dunfermline and Dollar (Graeme Downie)—how appropriate that he should lead this debate given the history of Dunfermline not only as historical capital of Scotland, but as our capital in the great Kingdom of Fife. What a time to be a Scot with our team qualifying for the world cup finals! I am sure that the tartan army will once again be a great advert for Scotland, our hospitality and our conviviality.
As we celebrate our patron saint, let us recognise the vital role our faith community organisations play in our communities. Only last weekend, I visited St Luke’s Scottish Episcopal church in Glenrothes, where Father Gerry Dillon has established Luke’s Larder, providing a community pantry and activities to support wellbeing. This Christmas, St Luke’s and the Heart of Fife Church of Scotland will provide a Christmas lunch for people in the local community—another example of the importance of our local faith organisations.
Our patron saint’s national day is a time to celebrate Scottish civil society—not only our faith organisations, but our charities, from Fife Gingerbread, supporting lone parents and families, including through employability programmes, to Kingdom Offroad, tackling antisocial behaviour through providing safe organised off-road motorcycling activities. These charities thrive through their commitment, expertise and innovation, attributes for which Scotland has been known over the centuries.
Those attributes are also very much present in the H100 Fife scheme in Buckhaven in my constituency—a world-first demonstration project to bring 100% green hydrogen to domestic customers for the first time. That is pioneering innovation. In academia, in the third sector and in business, Glenrothes and Mid Fife is continuing the proud Scottish tradition of innovation, and releasing the potential of Scotland’s people through their skills and expertise.
We have to be more ambitious still for our country. I regret to say that we particularly need greater purpose, direction and ambition from a Scottish Government who are clearly failing to provide the leadership our country needs and, after two decades in power with far too little to show for it, are exhausted and out of ideas. That is why we need fresh leadership and a new direction with Anas Sarwar as Scotland’s next First Minister.
Perhaps I can finish on a point on which I hope we can achieve consensus. That is to recognise that in recent years St Andrew’s day has become an important day to mark the work that goes on in Scotland to tackle racism and xenophobia, not least through the work of the Scottish TUC. In a world that seems increasingly intolerant and where international tensions are heightened, that work and promotion of tolerance, understanding and compassion could not be more important and could not be more in keeping with the spirit of St Andrew. Scotland shares St Andrew as our patron saint with countries throughout the world, so as we move on from St Andrew’s day and look towards Burns night, when we remember our national bard who wrote so powerfully of our common humanity, we must note that a truly Scottish celebration does not dwell on what divides the peoples of our world, but what unites us all.
Madam Deputy Speaker (Caroline Nokes)
That brings us to the Front-Bench contributions.
Susan Murray (Mid Dunbartonshire) (LD)
It is an honour to speak today at my first St Andrew’s day and Scottish affairs debate as the Liberal Democrats spokes- person for Scotland. I congratulate the hon. Member for Dunfermline and Dollar (Graeme Downie) on securing the debate.
St Andrew’s day, as we have been hearing, is a moment to reflect on the story of Scotland. We remember St Andrew not only as our patron saint, but as a symbol of solidarity and welcome, a fisherman whose cross now flies above a country built on resilience, hard work, learning and connection. Across the centuries, Scots have made their mark on the world. From the enlightenment thinkers who reshaped modern science and democracy to the coal- miners, foundries, engineers and shipbuilders who powered the industrial revolution, and, of course, the distillers, fishermen and farmers who are known across the world for their specialties in food and drink, Scotland shows again and again how a small nation makes a big contribution.
The story of my own constituency of Mid Dunbartonshire sits right at the heart of the national story. Along the line of the Antonine Wall, now a UNESCO world heritage site, Roman soldiers once stood to watch the northern edge of an empire. Later, figures such as Thomas Muir of Huntershill, the father of Scottish democracy, carried the banner of political reform and democratic rights from our own communities to the wider world. The arrival of the Forth and Clyde canal turned Kirkintilloch and Bishopbriggs into hubs of industry and transport, carrying coal, iron and goods from west to east. As time has moved on, Mid Dunbartonshire has changed. Heavy industry has given way to new businesses and growing communities. Milngavie is the starting point of the West Highland Way, welcoming walkers from across the world. Mid Dunbartonshire is home to residents who value being part of our diverse communities and the green space of the Campsie fells.
In this journey we see the history of Scotland: resilience in the face of change, pride in community, and a belief that education and hard work can open doors, not just for yourself but for the community around you. It is precisely because we are so proud of that history that we must be honest about the present. We know the people of Scotland have been let down in recent years, with mismanaged finances, abandoned healthcare projects and falling educational standards. Scotland is truly an incredible place, and I am proud to be Scottish, but right now it feels too often that things are not working. Household bills are soaring. Families are cutting back on heating, food and the small treats that make life bearable, just to keep up with rising costs. Long waits to see a GP are now all too common. People are in pain or struggling with their mental health. They are told to wait weeks, if not months, for treatment. We see enormous sums of money frittered away. Take the ferries fiasco: a saga of delay, overspend and broken promises has left island communities feeling abandoned. Sadly, when the Government fail to deliver infrastructure, ordinary people and local businesses pay the price.
The story is the same with Scottish education. Once the best in the UK, our system has slipped in international rankings. Teachers work hard, yet promises are broken. They are asked to do more with less, while support for pupils with additional needs is stretched even thinner. People are tired and frustrated, and they are right to be.
The Liberal Democrats believe that Scotland deserves better. We believe in fairness for everyone, no matter who they are or where they come from. That is why we have a realistic plan to get things done. We should have a health service that is genuinely there for people when they need it—first-rate care so that people can see their GP, dentist or mental health professional without waiting weeks or months. Health professionals should have fair pay and working conditions, so that talented people stay in our NHS instead of burning out or leaving altogether. That also means that Milngavie needs a new health and care centre, which is badly overdue.
We need to tackle the cost of living at its root. In a country that has as much renewable energy as Scotland, it is simply wrong that people are living in fuel poverty. By insulating cold homes, backing community energy projects and making full use of Scottish renewable energy, we can drive down household bills and bills for industry, cut emissions and create good, green jobs in every part of the country.
That is tied directly to transport. By fixing our ferries, roads and rail services, we can create an integrated transport network to get Scotland moving again. Rather than cutting services, we need to look at how to expand public transport. Importantly, we need to look at how we can power it with home-grown renewable energy and connect our island communities to give them a sustainable future.
Scotland’s past success was built on education, and at the heart of a fairer Scotland lie our schools, colleges and universities. Returning Scottish education to its best means expanding pupil support in every school and giving every child the best start in life. It means more classroom assistants, specialist support for additional needs, and a renewed focus on literacy, numeracy and science. It means providing enough places for Scottish students in our world-class universities, and enough further education to fill our skills gaps, offering a future to young people who do not currently feel that they can look forward to a brighter future. Above all, it means backing our teaching professionals with the resources they need and recognising that education is an investment in Scotland’s future.
St Andrew’s day reminds us that Scotland’s story has always been one of connection between the past and the future, and between our own communities and the wider world. Scottish people and their descendants are found all over the world, as are the red telephone boxes, which were manufactured in my consistency, that are all over London and all over the world. The choices that we make now will decide whether the next chapter of our story is one of decline and managed disappointment, or of renewal built on fairness and opportunity. Scotland deserves better. I want us to honour Scotland’s history and the history of places such as Mid Dunbartonshire by matching the ambition, courage and sense of justice shown by those who went before us.
Madam Deputy Speaker (Caroline Nokes)
I call the shadow Secretary of State.
Andrew Bowie (West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine) (Con)
It is a great privilege to speak in this debate, and I congratulate the hon. Member for Dunfermline and Dollar (Graeme Downie) on securing it.
Today’s debate is timely and important because Scotland stands on the cusp of an election that will determine the future of our country. Regardless of our politics, we know how lucky we are to live in Scotland, represent it, bring our families up in it, and work for a better future for it.
Unusually for a history graduate of Scotland’s finest university, I am going to focus my remarks on the future. I am a Scotland rugby fan, a Scottish football fan, an Aberdeen fan and a Scottish Conservative, so I have to be an optimist. And I am: I do believe that a better Scotland, in a more secure and prosperous United Kingdom, is possible, but only with change—a change in Government in Edinburgh and a change of direction by the Government here in London.
Scotland has suffered 18 wasted years—18 years when we should have been focused on binding our country together, building a better economy, promoting Scottish business and building up and improving our education system. However, we were not doing that. Instead, we have had 18 years of division, constitutional obsession and the bitter and, at times, petty politics of grievance. It was Edwin Morgan who, in his poem “Open the Doors”, commissioned on the opening of the new Scottish Parliament building in 2004, wrote,
“What do the people want of the place? They want it to be filled with thinking
persons as open and adventurous as its architecture.
A nest of fearties is what they do not want.
A symposium of procrastinators is what they do not want.
A phalanx of forelock-tuggers is what they do not want.
And perhaps above all the droopy mantra of ‘it wizny me’ is what they do not want.”
I am afraid that in the Scottish National party, that is indeed what the Scottish people have had for the past 18 years—a party that leads a Government so misguided from the priorities of the Scottish people that they have allowed themselves to be distracted by narrow political fads instead of focusing on the real issues, with hard-working Scots suffering ever higher taxes to pay for them. However, those are as nothing when compared to the eye-watering social security spending, which is forecast to hit more than £9 billion in Scotland by 2030—triple what it was in 2017. For a population of less than 5 million people, that is insanity.
In Scotland, we have an economy that has lagged behind the rest of the UK ever since the SNP first took power. If Scotland’s economy had kept pace, the Scottish Government would have had £12 billion more to spend over that period. It is said that the problem with socialism is that you eventually run out other people’s money; the problem with nationalism is that you eventually run out of other people to blame.
Stephen Gethins
The hon. Gentleman always makes an entertaining speech. He quoted Edwin Morgan, who, after writing that poem, donated a significant sum of money to the SNP. I just thought that should be on the record.
Andrew Bowie
Well, it is obviously for Edwin Morgan to determine where he spends his money. I do think that the hon. Gentleman and his party should reflect on the desire of the Scottish people when they voted for a Scottish Parliament in 1999 to address the real issues facing them. He must acknowledge that far too much of the past 18 years has been spent on issues that divide Scots, rather than building our country into a better place that we all want to see for our children.
Scotland knows who to blame. They know who could not build two ferries and who let Scotland’s drug deaths become the worst in Europe. They know on whose watch it was that our education standards slipped from their once great heights. They know that today, Scotland is worse off because of the decisions taken and promises broken by the Scottish National party, from its broken promise to dual the A9 and A96, as often highlighted by my hon. Friend the Member for Gordon and Buchan (Harriet Cross), to its neglect of the A75 in the constituency of my hon. Friend the Member for Dumfries and Galloway (John Cooper), long raised in this House by my right hon. Friend the Member for Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale (David Mundell). Remember the SNP promise to scrap council tax 18 years ago, the promise to close the attainment gap or the promise to deliver a national care service? For 18 years, the SNP has let Scotland down with broken promise after broken promise.
Torcuil Crichton
Does the hon. Gentleman regret that the Scottish Conservatives propped up the SNP for four of those 18 years?
Andrew Bowie
In 2007, when the decision was taken by the Scottish Conservatives to ensure continuity and certainty for Scottish business at the heart of the Scottish Government, it was indeed the right thing to do. However, hindsight is 20/20, and I can assure the hon. Gentleman and other Members present that no such agreement would be reached if we were to be asked at the next Scottish parliamentary election to support a Scottish National party Government for a further five years.
Scotland was suffering under the SNP, and the very last thing it needed was another Government letting them down. Then, enter stage left—far left—the Labour party. My goodness, it is not going well. After having been sold a story of false hope, folks in Scotland now have no hope in the Labour Government. The harm that this Government are inflicting on key Scottish industries is staggering.
Look at our farmers: already hammered by the daft policies that emanate from Bute House, they now have to contend with the brutal and callous family farm tax. The stories that we hear—and I know that hon. Members on the Government Benches are hearing them, too—are just heartbreaking.
The Government are knowingly destroying an entire way of life for thousands of families across Scotland, placing entire rural communities and our food security in jeopardy.
My hon. Friend the Member for Berwickshire, Roxburgh and Selkirk (John Lamont) spoke recently of how this Government have no grasp whatsoever of the constant struggle facing our family farms. He was absolutely right. It is exactly the same for our energy industry. Oil and gas workers are an afterthought—if they are even thought about at all by the Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero, whose messianic zeal to destroy the oil and gas industry knows no end.
I have stood at this Dispatch Box many times now over the past 18 months and raised the plight of our oil and gas industry. Almost every week we find that another business operating in the North sea has made the decision to cut jobs in the UK. It was Harbour Energy the other week. Before that it was ExxonMobil at Mossmorran. It was the Port of Aberdeen before that, then Petrofac, then Hunting, then Ineos, then Apache—I could go on. One thousand jobs are going to be lost every single month, and £50 billion-worth of investment is being passed over. The country is being made more vulnerable through increased reliance on imports. A poison is spreading through the energy industry, and this Government are doing nothing to stem it.
All of that begs the question of what the Secretary of State and his Ministers are going to do. Maybe the Secretary of State knows that the Prime Minister’s days are numbered and is just biding his time. Maybe, like every other member of the Cabinet, he is looking around the Cabinet Room and measuring the curtains. But time is something that workers in our oil and gas industry and on our family farms do not have.
Scotland does, of course, have another option—something that neither the SNP nor Labour can offer—and that is common sense. That is something that only the Scottish Conservatives are offering, and Scotland desperately needs it. The Scottish Conservatives would put an end to the stagnant, tepid policies that have come from the SNP Scottish Government and put growth at the heart of every single decision.
We would end the hostility to entrepreneurs and make it clear that Scotland is open for business. We would reverse the decline and go for growth. We would scrap the SNP’s 21% tax band and cut income tax to 19% for all taxable income up to £43,000.We would slash the number of quangos, restore regular police patrols, and allow for the building of new nuclear, bolstering our energy security, securing new jobs and driving investment. We would restore pride to our education system, so that it enables Scots to compete in a globally competitive marketplace for ideas.
Scottish Conservatives in this House would scrap the energy profits levy and the family farm tax. We would proudly, without fear or favour, stand up for Scotland’s continued place within our United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. To be British as well as Scottish is, I believe, something that should be cherished. It is, in my view, to win the lottery of life. It is the best of both worlds—our freedoms, our shared culture, our institutions and our history. Being British has never relied on the rejection of being Scottish, English, Welsh or Northern Irish. Those identities are entirely complementary, not contradictory.
To be British is to be part of something larger—a shared civic and cultural inheritance built across these islands together. Whether you find yourself in Dundee or Doncaster, you will realise that those shared values are to be discovered at every turn. The United Kingdom at its best is not a denial of national identity but a partnership that allows each nation to contribute its own unique character to something greater together.
From the Scottish Enlightenment thinkers who shaped British democracy to the engineers and writers who helped forge its industrial and cultural strengths, Scots have never been passengers in the British story but always at the tiller. We will continue to be so, but we need change in Scotland, we need common sense in Scotland, and we need it desperately. The Scottish parliamentary election in May can be that moment. Change can and will be delivered. Of that I am certain.
The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Scotland (Kirsty McNeill)
I would like to begin by taking the opportunity to thank my hon. Friend the Member for Dunfermline and Dollar (Graeme Downie) for securing this debate. I thank him, the hon. Member for North East Fife (Wendy Chamberlain) and my hon. Friend the Member for Carlisle (Ms Minns) for the very interesting history lessons they gave us today, from which I learned a great deal. It is fitting that we are holding this debate to mark St Andrew’s day—even if it is slightly after the date itself. Let me take the opportunity to thank all Members across the House and wish them a very happy, albeit belated, St Andrew’s day.
The occasion remains important, as it invites people across Scotland, the United Kingdom, and indeed the world, to reflect on Scotland’s heritage and contribution to our collective UK story. Scotland has always punched above its weight, and it is right that we take this moment to celebrate what our nation contributes to the world. We are, as we have heard often today, a nation that helped to lead the industrial revolution. We have long been a world leader in engineering, philosophy, science and medicine, and we continue proudly to be a key contributor to Scotland and the UK’s defence capability.
Our contribution is woven into the fabric of global progress too. In recent years, we have added new chapters to that story—from advances in renewable energy and medical research to the cultural and creative excellence that resonates far beyond our borders. Our world-class universities are advancing innovation in quantum, clean energy and life sciences, and this Labour Government continue to support them. Indeed, in June we invested £750 million in the UK’s largest supercomputer at the University of Edinburgh—headquartered, of course, in Midlothian—which has so often been at the forefront of scientific progress.
We have achievements on the world stage that speak to our spirit and resilience. Honestly, I cannot believe it took until the contribution from my hon. Friend the Member for Glenrothes and Mid Fife (Richard Baker) for it to be mentioned in this House that Scotland has, of course, qualified for the world cup. We are also, with Glasgow, hosting the Commonwealth games next summer and will be in a position to showcase not only our sporting ambition but our ability to welcome the world with warmth and confidence.
However, our accomplishments should not be measured only in medals and milestones; they should be measured, as for all Governments, in the lives that we change. We secured places in Scotland for Afghan women medical students whose futures were thrown into uncertainty. By opening our doors, we offered not just education, but hope and dignity.
As we look outward, Scotland is strengthening its place in the global economy. Labour’s trade deal with India is set to grow the Scottish economy by £190 million every year, in a transformative partnership that opens new markets for our businesses and deepens our ties with one of the world’s fastest-growing economies. Together, those achievements tell a powerful story: Scotland is a nation that leads, welcomes and builds. It is in that spirit that I welcome today’s debate.
My hon. Friend the Member for Dunfermline and Dollar began the debate by paying tribute to working men’s clubs, institutes and miners’ welfare. I am delighted that he did so, because it gives us a chance to reflect on the fact that not only do we belong to those kinds of institutions, but they belong to us. They are theatres of self-help and community power, which is exactly what this Labour Government’s Pride in Place programme is all about.
The hon. Member for West Aberdeenshire and Kincardine (Andrew Bowie) and I do not agree on much these days, but we do agree on this: Scotland has too long been troubled by division. I suspect our remedies for that division would differ, but I believe that we need a new direction with a Government focused resolutely on public services and growth—a new direction offered by Anas Sarwar.
The hon. Member for Mid Dunbartonshire (Susan Murray) talked about the ferry fiasco and how terrible it was for islanders. That is true, but it also speaks more widely to a deep sickness at the heart of a Scottish Government who are much more interested in announcements than achievements. The hon. Member for Dumfries and Galloway (John Cooper) suggested that this Government are sending money to the Scottish Government without worrying very much about what will happen to it. I can assure him that, on the £11 billion that has been sent to the Scottish Government as a result of this Labour Government’s decisions, we will be watching like hawks. That money is intended to be spent on Scotland’s public services and Scotland’s communities, and if it is not, we Scots will ask, “Where’s the money gone, John?”
The hon. Member for Arbroath and Broughty Ferry (Stephen Gethins) asked us to comment on the Government’s commitment to devolution, and I am pleased to reassure him too. Devolution is not simply a destination and it is not even a process; it is, to my mind, a habit of mind that the Scottish Government have simply never acquired because they are obsessed with centralising inside Scotland and talking about what powers will come to Scotland and not what powers will be distributed inside Scotland to communities, where they belong.
My hon. Friend the Member for Na h-Eileanan an Iar (Torcuil Crichton) and the right hon. Member for Dumfriesshire, Clydesdale and Tweeddale (David Mundell) talked about how, despite the very best efforts of our NHS staff, the state of Scotland’s NHS should shame us all. I can refer to stories in Midlothian too, which are similar to those that have been mentioned on the Floor today: one person waiting 120 weeks on a CAMHS waiting list; parents talking about the fact that they had been referred to an urgent ear, nose and throat waiting list, but will still be on that list for two to three years with a child in pain; and a woman in excruciating pain who has been waiting for a gynaecology appointment since the start of the year. What is the answer to that from the SNP? It is simply, “Look at England.” That is of no comfort at all to any of our constituents, and I suspect that that complacency will be roundly rejected in May.
My hon. Friend the Member for Glasgow West (Patricia Ferguson), who chairs the Scottish Affairs Committee, whose work I commend, talked with great passion about how, as Scotland, we have to forge a place where people can come together, and although we might not agree on everything, we have to find ways to agree about more.
My hon. Friends the Members for Edinburgh South West (Dr Arthur) and for Bathgate and Linlithgow (Kirsteen Sullivan) gave moving tributes to the extraordinary community groups in their constituencies, which I was delighted to hear about. Some of them I have visited and I look forward to learning more about others. My hon. Friend the Member for Paisley and Renfrewshire South (Johanna Baxter) paid a moving tribute to the children of Ukraine. I know we all commend her for the work she is doing to see their safe return.
From many Members across the House, we have rightly heard commendations of lots of Scottish laddies. I want to even it up a little and put on the record some commendations for Scottish women. We heard from my hon. Friend the Member for Dunfermline and Dollar about Queen Margaret, but I am sure the House will join me in paying tribute to Jane Haining, recognised as “Righteous Among the Nations” in the Holocaust and most recently commemorated in Edinburgh; to Mary Barbour, who showed that when working-class women come to fight for working-class women, there is nothing they cannot achieve; to Jennie Lee, without whom we would have no Open University; and to Mary Somerville, whose achievements were quite literally astronomical.
As we come to the end of the debate, and indeed the end of the year, it is a good time to reflect on what we have achieved together across this House. From the Labour perspective, we are proud of our local growth programme, which will deliver real, visible benefits for communities right across Scotland. The Pride in Place programme and impact fund will see up to £292 million invested in regenerating Scottish communities, which will transform neighbourhoods across Scotland. That funding will revitalise our high streets and town centres. It will create jobs, boost productivity and improve safety, security and connectivity. Local communities are at the very heart of Scottish life, and the Scotland Office is proud to back them.
David Mundell
In her eloquent description of the importance of cross-border economic activity, the hon. Lady referred to Borderlands, which in many ways was a precursor to Pride in Place. Like her, I feel that the Borderlands initiative needs a bit more oomph behind it, so will she commit the Scotland Office to providing that oomph?
Kirsty McNeill
I am always delighted to commit to oomph and would be delighted to meet all relevant MPs from the Borderlands growth deal, to which I know the right hon. Member is very committed. I am following it closely.
Our Brand Scotland effort promotes Scotland’s exports, culture and global reputation. We fund a range of initiatives, including delivering trade missions to key markets and supporting our overseas network to undertake Scotland-specific promotional activity. We have delivered a number of successful ministerial visits—to Norway, Japan, Spain, Washington DC and New York—and we recently supported a major trade mission to Shanghai by Glasgow city chamber of commerce.
We are seeing the results of having a UK Government with Scotland at their beating heart. The Budget provided an extra £820 million for the Scottish Government. That means that since the general election the Scottish Government have received an additional £11 billion. We have announced £14.5 million to back Grangemouth’s transition to a hub for low-carbon technologies, and a further £20 million for Inchgreen near Greenock, which will upgrade the port’s dry dock; £20 million has been found to support the regeneration of Kirkcaldy’s town centre and seafront; and £25 million will be released following the full sign-off of the Forth Green freeport.
All in all, the UK Government will be investing more than £2 billion in local and regional growth programmes in Scotland. That is alongside the biggest upgrade in workers’ rights in a generation, with a pay rise for 200,000 of the lowest-paid Scots. We also focused on ensuring job security for 350 skilled workers at Harland & Wolff shipyards in Methil and at Arnish. We have secured a deal worth £10 billion to supply Norway with Type 26 frigates, securing 2,000 jobs in Scotland until the late 2030s. Of course, we did not stop there. We are firmly committed to tackling child poverty, having removed the two-child cap, which will change the futures of 95,000 Scottish children.
As we mark St Andrew’s day—a moment when we celebrate Scotland’s history, identity and shared values—we are reminded of the strength that we can draw from solidarity across these islands. Yes, we have deep pride in being Scottish, but it is pride with a purpose, because if we remain focused on our common purposes of stronger growth, fairer opportunities and resilient communities, Scotland will not simply be part of the UK’s prosperity; it will be at the very heart of it.
Graeme Downie
I thank everyone from across the House for taking part in the debate. Having listened to the debate, I am reminded of a comment made by a colleague shortly after the general election in a similar debate in Westminster Hall, when he reflected on what it must be like for someone to walk into the room during a debate involving Scottish politicians. He referred to it as being like walking in at the end of a wedding when everyone has had far too much to drink, just as the first fight starts to break out. That is possibly a very helpful way to think about it. Indeed, as my hon. Friend the Member for Glenrothes and Mid Fife (Richard Baker) and the Minister said, it is unusual for football in Scotland to be a unifier and not a divider, as it so often is. I thank everyone else for taking part in the debate, the Minister for responding, the Opposition spokespeople and yourself, Madam Deputy Speaker— I hope you have enjoyed the entertainment on show this afternoon.
Question put and agreed to.
Resolved,
That this House has considered St Andrew’s Day and Scottish affairs.