Wed 15th Oct 2008:

McArthur to stand up for Scottish fishing.

Speaking ahead of the Scottish Fishermen’s Federation’s annual dinner, Liberal Democrat Fisheries spokesperson Liam McArthur MSP called for real support for the fishing industry.

Salmond ignoring parliament over alcohol plan.

Liberal Democrat Health spokesperson Ross Finnie MSP challenged the First Minister about the SNP’s flawed plan to raise the legal age for buying alcohol in shops to 21.

Lib Dems campaign for fairer votes.

Liberal Democrat Local Government spokesperson Alison McInnes MSP is campaigning for STV to be used for Scottish Parliament elections.

Lack of answers from Salmond about broadcasting.

Liberal Democrat Culture spokesperson Iain Smith MSP criticised the First Minister for failing to give clear answers about leadership for Scottish broadcasting. Commenting after the First Minister’s statement about broadcasting, Mr Smith said: “I was disappointed that the First Minister failed to give a clear answer to my question about what action the Government is taking to address skills and leadership in the broadcasting sector.

HBOS should remain independent.

Commenting on the £50 billion rescue package for British banking, unveiled this morning by the Chancellor, Tavish Scott, Leader of the Liberal Democrats in Scotland said:

SNP must respect opposition to alcohol plan.

Commenting on the responses to the Scottish Government’s alcohol consultation, Liberal Democrat Health spokesperson Ross Finnie MSP said:

SNP squirming over prison crisis.

Liberal Democrat Justice spokesperson Robert Brown slammed the Public Safety Minister for refusing to answer questions about how the Scottish Government was going to resolve the overcrowding crisis in Scottish prisons.

Tagging may force sheep farmers out of business.

Prospective Parliamentary Candidate for the EU George Lyon has urged MEPs to back the Scottish farming delegation who are arguing that European Commission proposals for every sheep to be electronically tagged are unworkable in Scotland, given the way in which the industry is structured.

SNP fails to get seriousness of housing crisis?

Scottish Liberal Democrat leader Tavish Scott has criticised the Scottish Government’s attitude towards the crisis facing the housing sector in Scotland.

Minister facing battle to reassure crofters.

Liberal Democrat Rural Affairs spokesperson Liam McArthur MSP has seized on comments made by the Scottish Crofting Foundation as evidence that the Environment Minister has a real battle to convince the rural community that he is doing enough to support them.

Willott: Unemployment figures show banking crisis has hit real economy.

Today's Office for National Statistics figures on unemployment revealed that the number of people out of work in the UK rose by 164,000 between June and August - the biggest rise for 17 years - taking the total to 1.79 million. The figures also showed the number of people claiming Jobseeker's Allowance rose by 31,800 to 939,900 in September. In a further sign of the economic slowdown, the number of people in work and the number of vacancies both fell. Shadow Work and Pensions Secretary, Jenny Willott said: "These figures come as no surprise and are only likely to get worse over the coming months.  The effects of the banking crisis have filtered down to the real economy and are affecting people across the county." “Now the banking rescue package has been agreed, the Government must turn its attention to unemployment and inflation. Real families across Britain are suffering, not just those working in the Square Mile. “As the number of vacancies shrink, it will be harder and harder to get people back into work. It will not simply be a case of retraining the unemployed if there are no jobs for them to return to.”

Tue 14th Oct 2008:

Legal challenge to SNP alcohol plan.

Commenting on remarks made by the Justice Secretary that the Scottish Government would contest any legal challenge to its plans to raise the minimum purchase age for alcohol, Liberal Democrat Justice spokesperson Robert Brown MSP said:

TV switchover - Don't lose the remote, Moore tells government.

Remote rural areas are in danger of being left behind in the move to a new TV age, Michael Moore warned in a parliamentary debate on the ‘digital switchover’ In November Mike's constituency in the Scottish borders will become part of the second area of Britain (after Whitehaven in Cumbria) to have the traditional analogue television signal switched off, so everyone will have to access TV digitally. The plan is for all parts of the UK to be ‘switched over' by the end of 2012. Mike welcomed the move to digital for the increased choice it is creating. But he attacked the "two-tier service" being created - what Digital UK had called "Freeview Lite". He highlighted research showing that across his local Border Television region as little as 55 per cent. of the population would receive the full Freeview service. Mike suggested that the licensing of digital TV should follow the same principles as that of licenses for mobile phone networks, where the licence requirements demanded that huge parts of the United Kingdom were covered. Ceredigion MP Mark Williams said that his constituency was also one of the ‘geographically challenging' areas where there might be no picture at all after the digital switchover. It is estimated that 1.5 per cent of the population who will not get any kind of Freeview picture - about the same percentage of the population that does not get an analogue picture at the moment. The party's Shadow Culture Secretary Don Foster also spoke in the debate. He began by congratulating Mike on obtaining the debate and paying tribute to his work on behalf of his constituents on this issue. Don also raised a number of concerns, but said that, in general, the picture was encouraging: "Digital is an exciting development within television and that it is providing more choice and more services. Among Don's concerns was the ‘tangled web of accountability' around the targeted help scheme, designed to help vulnerable groups with the switchover. He urged that particular attention be paid to ensuring that Sky, who have the contract for the scheme, are not able to use the large amount of data they gain access to for other marketing purposes. Don concluded by expressing his disappointment that the set-top boxes being provided under the targeted help scheme will not include a ‘return path'. As well as enabling access to general internet services, such a facility could be used to enable smart metering, to help people with independent living, or to extend local government e-services. Click here for the full text of the debate.

Cooperative working vital for renewables.

Commenting on the Scottish Government’s renewable energy framework consultation published today, Liberal Democrat Energy spokesperson Liam McArthur MSP said:

Call for flooding and landslide plans.

Commenting on a Transport Scotland report published today, Scottish Liberal Democrat Transport spokesperson Alison McInnes said:

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