While the crowning of the herring queen harked back to the fishing of the past, the brand new marina development looks like it should have been there for years and indicates the ambitions of the harbour authority for the future.

I was delighted to join in the Friday celebrations and meet so many happy folk. My friends Andrew Anderson and family from Keiss made their homecoming like many others.

Among those I met was Gordon Gunn, the famous Wick fiddler, on Saturday evening further down the A9. His suntan was gained during a Saturday on the quays.

I hope that harbour plans will develop the numbers of sailing craft involved at future events as it's such a natural setting and anchor for community life. Well done Liz and David Richard-Jones and the whole team.

*

TWO decisions last week in Holyrood lead Europe and the world. Firstly, the Climate Change Bill has passed all stages and been amended into the strongest of its kind. We will have action plans on every aspect of its measures to pass as secondary laws.

For example, an action plan will increase the total output of renewable heat to 11 per cent of demand by 2020. It's one per cent this year so that's a tough challenge.

So a successful scheme in Wick would contribute. Remember we have the wood and other biomass in Scotland and it isn't new technology on the continent.

The agreed Scottish target of 42 per cent cuts in emissions of greenhouse gases by 2020 relies on the Climate Summit in Copenhagen adopting much tougher targets. It will all change the way we live and I will chronicle these in detail in the coming months. That's because, as my colleague Brian Adam said, public engagement is as important as rules made in Holyrood if we are to succeed.

Secondly, on Tuesday this week, the outcome of the year-long Energy Enquiry by the economy, energy and tourism committee was published. It shows that an action plan for Scotland should play to our biggest strengths. These lie in renewables whose potential is of European significance.

On Monday, Scottish and Southern Energy announced that more large hydro power schemes like Glendoe on Loch Ness are now in the planning. This provides the chance to complement offshore wind and tidal power sources as they develop with clean power from the waters of our lochs and rivers. That's an elegant symmetry. For Scotland leads in these developments as France leads in nuclear.

Scotland can supply secure power to England as well as our North Sea neighbours on top of home needs. So there are three cheers for that route to secure, clean power which communities and businesses here can surely profits from.

*

THE message from a record-breaking Royal Highland Show and from the SNP Government is that sales of Scottish produce have soared by a stunning 21 per cent, and Scottish food exports to countries outside the UK increased by 16 per cent between early 2007 and early 2009, despite the economic downturn. We expect to create more jobs, sales and exports as Scotland invests the £75 million as part of plans to expand our markets.

This feelgood factor and wealth of talent across the country is creating a food and drink revolution. This vision has its sights firmly set on wider drivers such as climate change, food security, affordability, animal welfare and fair trade.

Delivering this next wave of success can't be achieved by single groups or individuals working in isolation. It is a challenge that can only be met through a collective response from all those growing, making, buying or selling food and drink in Scotland. The prize is a great one – a healthier, wealthier, more environmentally sustainable Scotland, and 2009 can be remembered as a real landmark year for Scottish food and drink.

*

THE final set piece debate of the session was on the Calman Report on devolution. I wasn't picked to speak. However, that afternoon at questions on health and wellbeing I was able to ask health minister Shona Robison what importance for the nation's health she considered that the current powers for making decisions concerning food content and labelling have.

She replied that this is a complex matter over which the Parliament has some powers in relation to food content and labelling, but there are also reserved matters involved.

In my supplementary I asked the minister to consider the potential effects of the transfer of those policy areas back to Westminster, as proposed by the Calman Commission, on our ability to create a healthy food policy in Scotland?

She said any of those powers going back to Westminster would be a retrograde step. In fact, it would make more sense for us to have the whole range of those powers at our disposal in Scotland.

I wholeheartedly agree. Calman does not rate Scottish food labelling or give us more tax-raising powers. But it suggests that an irritant to UK Government, such as food labelling, could be linked to the success of the Scottish Government's food and drink policy and our Scottish opposition to genetic modification in our food and in animal feed. London loves GM and imported food. I shall pursue this matter much further during and after a well-deserved recess.

*

IN that frenetic last week of the session, my team was happy to welcome Lynsey Harper from Thurso High School to do her work placement in the parliament's room 4.06. She got a taste of committee work on road safety, the bear pit of First Minister's questions and much else.

For upper school students who want to see politics in the raw it's a great chance to see how an MSP and his team work. I look forward to see Lynsey's report when she pens it for her teachers.

www.robgibsonmsp.blogspot.com

Printer friendly version

Email this article to a friend

Bookmark this

---