Party takes heart from power surge

LAST week, once I had finished with my surgeries I headed down to Perth to take part in my party's annual conference, and I must say I was heartened to observe that the national Press was full of articles stating that the SNP were on the brink of Government.

This gave everyone an extra bounce in their step. Conference is more than just a debating shop, it is a remarkable beehive where we are all together working and thinking with the goal of a common purpose, and to build on the positive press coverage of the conference gives my party the chance to stock the cupboard with new and fresh ideas to take into Government.

It also allows people the opportunity to see what alterative ideas and policies are on offer for Scotland's future.

Climate for change

ONE of the main areas of debate is that of our environment and climate change. Indeed, Scotland has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to develop our exceptional and extensive green energy resources. The political debate in our country must now focus on what is possible for Scotland as we enter a new and pressing period for energy production and use. I have no doubt that the decisions we take now will decide whether we are world-leaders.

As you may be aware, the SNP and I oppose the building of any new nuclear power stations. We believe that Scotland is well placed to be a leader in renewable energy, and as such it is our aim that Scotland by 2020 should produce 50% of its energy by means of renewables.

The fact is, Scotland has 25% of Europe's wind power, 10% of Europe's wave power and 10% of Europe's tidal power. These are Scotland's natural resources and we should be harnessing them to benefit Scotland's people.

Investment in these other forms of energy must be a high priority in Scotland's energy programme. As we all know, fossil fuels will not last forever, and nuclear power produces harmful waste that will last for generations to come. Energy is Scotland's opportunity and Scotland's challenge. It's time for Scotland to be energy wise and make decisions that will benefit us today and for the long-term; decisions that our children and their children can be proud of.

One of our new ideas is that nearly half of Scottish homes should be producing some of their own energy needs within 10 years. We set this vision out last week, stating that it is our aim of having wind turbines on roofs and in gardens, with solar panels and bio-fuel burners in more than a million of the 2.5 million homes in the country.

The impact of one million small turbines would be the equivalent of having half of a nuclear power station generating at capacity.

Wrong role models

WE need to tackle the real root cause of drugs in society; namely the supply of the deadly cargo, and the social factors that lead people into the arms of these pedlars of destruction.

We should be going after the Mr Bigs of the drugs world, not those people that are ensnared in their iron grip. For too long, drug dealers have thought of themselves as above the law. We need to change that impression; we need to aim to dismantle the profit from drugs.

It sends out the wrong message to children in estates who often see drug dealers as role models.

Local Food- Miles better

Last week in Parliament I was able to take part in a debate which highlighted that buying and producing food locally is a win-win situation for all involved.

Especially when we consider that some 75% of Scotland’s land mass is under agricultural production, making the industry the single biggest determinant of the landscape we see around us. Scotland’s farmers, crofters and growers produce output worth around £2 billion a year. If we were to make more use of Scotland’s produce we could even reduce our carbon footprint on the world according to a report published in the journal Food Policy local food is usually more "green" than organic food. The authors calculated that if all foods were sourced from within 20km of where they were consumed, environmental and congestion costs would fall from more than £2.3bn to under £230m - an "environmental saving" of £2.1bn annually.

However recent statistics show that a traditional Sunday lunch could easily have travelled 25,000 miles to get to our plates ranging from lamb from New Zealand and vegetables from Africa, so, why is this the case and what can we do in Scotland to end the food miles.

Well the call for local food to be labelled as such, perhaps with information on the food miles travelled shown on the label is a good idea that should be given some credence. Indeed given that the Arbroath Smokie gained the same rights as Camembert, Parma ham and champagne under the place of origin individual regional trademark scheme I fully believe that Scotland has a wide range of products that could also be protected under this scheme to worldwide acclaim. This would attract new visitors to the area and it would not just be the scenery that took people’s breath away but also the local produce and as we all know the North-east is renowned for the quality of its meat, seafood and other produce and that our farmers, fishermen and producers deserve our (and the Executives) support. And the prize to gain is worthwhile given that currently food tourism is already worth more than £900 million to Scotland's tourism industry, this figure could and should increase significantly given the right level of encouragement. The benefits are there for all to see, the local food sector has the potential to alleviate social and economic disadvantage. There is significant scope to increase the uptake of local food. With a co-ordinated approach, locally produced foods could be sold locally at affordable prices and still be profitable for the supplier.

We in Scotland should be proud of our National larder we should not be hiding it under a bush. Scotland’s food producers must adhere to the strictest and toughest food regulations in the world. As such our hygiene, health and safety standards of or food stuff is of the highest quality. However quality does not mean that you have to pay over the odds for produce many people may be shocked to realise that their local food producer may be cheaper that the big supermarkets, in fact when I go to my local butcher, who sells organic beef which is locally grown, I pay a lower price than I would pay at Tesco down the road. If more people where to consider the matter, they would discover that option for themselves.

But we all need to change our shopping habits to release the potential of our local food, and the Government and big business must change also as there are strange working practices for example, white fish is landed at Peterhead, the biggest white-fish port in Europe, and pelagic fish is landed at Fraserburgh. It costs £700 for a lorry to take the fish down to the supermarkets' distribution centres in the north of England, only for that fish to be returned to Tesco's store in Fraserburgh. Yes, the fish is transported all the way down to the north of England and back again. That is quite absurd. That money could be invested in supporting quality local producers without in any sense putting a penny on the price of food on the plate. It’s time that we all realised that with a little thought and care we can end the food miles, eat healthier and invest in the local economy and you don’t have to sell that idea to me.

Fishing Industry let down by Labour

I raised the point earlier about our regions fishing supply and heritage which reminds me that the Executive by answering one of my Parliamentary questions showed the true extent of the damage that Labour has created to our Scottish Fishing Fleet. There figures about decommissioned fishing vessels hit home to us that under a Labour Government Scotland has lost an integral part of our history and economic prosperity. The sad fact is that 1092 vessels have been decommissioned is not just a lamentable statistic but we should remember that each one of those vessels decommissioned represents a human story of lost livelihood and to a certain extent a skill that could be lost to Scotland forever. My party has continually called for more to be done to support our fishing fleet and an SNP government would see those thoughts are put into action, instead of having a cow-toeing, weak willed Labour Government. Under an SNP Government Scotland’s fishing communities would have a loud and clear supportive voice.