AEDs are widely deployed across Scotland in public buildings, workplaces and community locations, playing a vital role in responding to out-of-hospital cardiac arrest. More than 3,000 people suffer cardiac arrest in Scotland each year, yet survival remains low. Early defibrillation is critical, with survival chances falling significantly for every minute treatment is delayed.
The Circuit database, the UK-wide national defibrillator network developed by the British Heart Foundation in partnership with the NHS and emergency services, helps ambulance services direct 999 callers to the nearest registered AED. However, there is currently no legal requirement for AEDs to be registered, inspected or routinely maintained. Devices may therefore contain expired pads, depleted batteries or faults, rendering them unusable in an emergency.
In contrast, Scottish fire safety law mandates fire extinguisher maintenance, despite 42 fire-related deaths in 2023–24. This petition calls for similar legislation for AEDs to help save lives.
Protect Scotland’s volunteer-run community fairs and gala days
- 652 Signatures
Volunteer-run community fairs and gala days play an important role in bringing local communities together. However, organisers are increasingly concerned that rising costs, growing bureaucracy and complex licensing requirements are placing these events under significant pressure.
In areas such as Edinburgh, organisers report increasing financial and administrative demands associated with requirements from the local authorities, including market operator licences, public entertainment licences, park occupation charges, reinstatement bonds and extensive compliance documentation.
Organisers fully support appropriate public safety measures. However, there is growing concern that the current system lacks proportionality for volunteer-run community events organised for community benefit rather than commercial profit.
There are also concerns regarding inconsistent interpretation of licensing requirements, changing guidance and increasing unpaid workloads for volunteers.
Hyperscale data centres in our planning system would more than double Scotland’s current peak energy demand. Since they use energy 24/7 this will badly impact our climate targets as they cannot be powered by renewables alone and it is likely that they will require onsite gas generation if the grid cannot support them. They also require diesel or gas back-up generators which produce air pollution and greenhouse gas emissions. These hyperscale data centres are for AI Large Language Model training and inference, and are orders of magnitude bigger than our existing data centres which provide the computing and data storage infrastructure of the modern economy. (Scotland had between 10MW-30MW of co-location data centres in 2024).
We are calling for a pause on hyperscale data centres until the government carries out a thorough assessment of their impacts and puts them on Schedule 1 of the EIA Regulations.
Business Improvement Districts in Scotland operate under the Planning etc. (Scotland) Act 2006, along with the Business Improvement Districts (Scotland) Regulations 2007 (SSI 2007/202) and the Business Improvement Districts (Ballot Arrangements) (Scotland) Regulations 2007 (SSI 2007/261).
Evidence shows that BID guidance to local authorities has not prevented BID proposers (often private companies) from accessing information on who has voted during the ballot. This is a matter of concern because it takes more than just a majority to win a ballot but also an aggregate of non-domestic rateable values that is higher than for those voting against.
If a ballot is secret, in the traditional meaning of local authority ballots, this would ensure that results were a robust reflection of eligible non-domestic rate payers. If BIDs are to be truly democratic then the levied businesses should be entitled to expect the highest standards of secrecy in the holding of BID ballots.
Current BID rules and guidelines leave BIDs to decide how to levy businesses based on rateable value.
The Scottish BID regulations SSI 2007/261 Executive Note stated: ‘The BID levy will most commonly be a percentage related to the Rateable Value of the properties in the BID area.’
In England and Wales, 89% of BID levies are based on a percentage of non-domestic rates, and Government endorsed guidelines resulted in a levy norm of 1.55% in 2025.
A single percentage levy based on rateable value means all liable businesses pay the same proportionate percentage rate (This would create a fairer, more consistent approach to BIDs across Scotland).
This petition seeks a national change to the regulations to meet the original legislation’s intention, so that BID levy guidelines recommend a single percentage of rateable value of between 1 and 2% with a statutory upper limit of 4%.
Concerns have been raised by some parents and carers that there is significant inconsistency in how RSHP education is delivered across Scotland, particularly in relation to the age-appropriateness of materials and the way sensitive topics are introduced in primary education.
There is concern that some children may be exposed to content that they are not developmentally ready to process, which may lead to confusion, distress, or difficulty in understanding personal boundaries and safeguarding concepts without sufficient context or support.
Concerns have also been raised regarding safeguarding capacity within the classroom environment, including whether all teaching staff are adequately trained and supported to manage sensitive discussions and potential pupil disclosures in a safe and appropriate manner.
Further concern exists regarding children with additional support needs or trauma histories.
There is currently no clear Scottish legislation regulating where beehives can be placed in relation to public spaces, nor any requirement for safety signage when beekeepers are working on hives. Other activities with far lower risk require visible warnings, yet beekeeping does not.
Two family members, including a young child, were the victims of a severe bee attack in a public access area after encountering a beekeeper working on hives with no warning signs or barriers. When the bees were disturbed, they became defensive and swarmed. Both family members suffered over 150 stings each, had to be airlifted to hospital, and continue to experience ongoing trauma and anxiety.
This incident highlights a serious gap in public safety measures.
Simple, common sense regulation could prevent similar incidents and protect children, vulnerable people, and the wider public.
Review legislation in order to strengthen the Scottish Outdoor Access Code
- 1,344 Signatures
The petition seeks to acknowledge that the right of responsible access must not be lost.
The success in delivering an increasing number of visitors has not been matched with sufficient infrastructure investment to accommodate them or any operational review process to monitor and improve the experience for visitors and residents. Scotland’s rural attractions are therefore now woefully underserved in several key areas including infrastructure, support and consultation with locally impacted communities and non-tourist related industries.
This is now having a massive environmental impact across Scotland – wild fires, extensive litter and human waste pollution, destruction of and damage to flora and fauna, erosion of road verges by parked cars and vans, obstruction to other road users (including emergency services), fouling of watercourses by chemical waste, barbeques and campfires and damage to significant Scottish heritage sites.
The above is evidenced in the Highland Council Outdoor Access Rangers’ reports.
Repeal the Mental Health (Care and Treatment) (Scotland) Act 2003
- 12 Signatures
On 4 March 2013 Juan Mendez, then UN Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment, addressed the UN Human Rights Council and stated: “The UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities offers the most comprehensive set of standards on the rights of persons with disabilities and it is important that states review the anti-torture framework in relation to persons with disabilities in line with the CRPD. States should impose an absolute ban on all forced and non-consensual medical interventions against persons with disabilities, including the non-consensual administration of psychosurgery, electroshock and mind-altering drugs for both long- and short-term application.”
In my opinion the 2003 Act is very similar to the Witchcraft Acts, the Inquisition and slavery.
It is easy to label someone mentally ill, a witch, a heretic or a slave and very hard to refute this allegation.
Our family member, we suspect, is autistic. In August he is due to start our excellent local school. They will make some accommodations to support him but likely he will be very unhappy there and won’t learn much.
We can flexi school or home school or send him to school and risk his mental health and future attainment.
Many children with additional support needs such as his need a smaller, calmer, more structured environment or an alternative approach, which is not possible in an overcrowded classroom.
The local authority has a responsibility to educate these children not to cause them distress and physical harm.
The money could go towards providing a better setting for the child and parents could top up the cost.
Scandinavian countries have a variety of schools to choose from as standard-language immersion, Montessori, Steiner, Arts etc and heavily subsidise private schooling to make it accessible for all.