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Official Report · Committee

Item in Private

Tuesday 25 March 2003 Public Petitions Committee Procedure 13 contributions · 3 speakers

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The record

13 contributions
John McAllion Lab The Convener · Dundee East
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Before we begin consideration of petitions, I seek the committee's agreement that we take item 3, on our draft report on petition PE327, from the Blairingone and Saline Action Group, in private. Is that agreed?

Phil Gallie Con South of Scotland
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We have always been critical of such items being taken in private. Given that we considered our draft report in private, would not there be some advantage in our dealing with the issues in public today?

John McAllion Lab The Convener · Dundee East
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In fact, we dealt with the draft report in public last time, not in private, and we have learned from our mistake. Several people who were affected by the draft report were in the room, and they were upset that certain views were expressed, to which they were unable to respond, as it was not the committee's final report. Information was getting out into the public domain without it being stressed that what we were discussing was not the final report, as approved by the committee. We have learned the lesson and perhaps we should wait until the committee agrees its final report before going into the public domain with it.

Phil Gallie Con South of Scotland
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Okay. If Dorothy-Grace Elder is happy with that, I am happy with it too.

Dorothy-Grace Elder Ind Glasgow
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We might want to make changes. Last time, we discussed the report in public in the interests of openness, but the press and others simply could not understand the fragments that were coming out. Some new information for our current report on Blairingone has come in even overnight.

John McAllion Lab The Convener · Dundee East
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When the final report is agreed, it will be launched publicly by the committee at a press conference.

Dorothy-Grace Elder Ind Glasgow
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Perhaps the German delegation from our sister parliament might be able to remain for that item.

John McAllion Lab The Convener · Dundee East
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I think that they will be gone by then. They have a busy agenda this morning and will not be here for the whole meeting.

Phil Gallie Con South of Scotland
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We are right up against the deadline for the ending of the parliamentary session and the committee, but the person who knows most about the situation at Blairingone—the person who has done virtually all the work on the report—is Dorothy-Grace Elder. I am told that, sadly, Dorothy-Grace will not be standing for re-election, so she will not be here when the committee reports. Could she be invited back to participate in the launch of our report?

John McAllion Lab The Convener · Dundee East
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We intend to launch our final report this week, before Dorothy-Grace steps down. She will still be a member of the Scottish Parliament and a member of the Public Petitions Committee.

Phil Gallie Con South of Scotland
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That is great. I am amazed at the speed of the response.

Dorothy-Grace Elder Ind Glasgow
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Thank you very much, Phil, for the kind thought. Do not worry. If anything affects Blairingone in the future, I will be back.

John McAllion Lab The Convener · Dundee East
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I remind members that we have a full agenda this morning, so they should try to make their contributions brief. It has taken us about five minutes to get beyond the first item and the welcomes.

In this meeting

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