Chamber and committees

Ruth, do you have any further questions?

On Paul Sweeney’s recommendation, are we happy to keep the petition open and write to the relevant stakeholders?

Members indicated agreement.

On PE1906, on the M8, does the committee agree to delegate to the convener responsibility for signing off the number of stakeholders?

Members indicated agreement.

That concludes the public part of our meeting. The committee’s next meeting will take place on Wednesday 9 March. We will now move into private session to discuss our final agenda item.

Thank you for that. Does the committee agree with those recommendations?

Members indicated agreement.

Thank you. If the committee agrees, we will ask the Scottish Government to engage with stakeholders on the review. If we can get the Scottish Government’s commitment that it will do that, we will then decide what to do with the committee. Do members agree to that?

Members indicated agreement.

Our final continued petition for consideration is PE1910, which was lodged by Ian Nicol. The petition calls on the Scottish Parliament to urge the Scottish Government to introduce an exemption for smaller houses from the requirement, which came into force at the beginning of February 2022, to have interlinked smoke and fire alarms fitted.

When the committee considered the petition at its meeting on 1 December 2021, we heard that the Scottish Government had put in place a fund to help vulnerable households to install new alarms. The committee subsequently wrote to the Scottish Government to query how it planned to review the effectiveness of the financial support that has been offered and to establish what work was being done to protect vulnerable home owners when they arrange the installation of new alarms in their homes.

The Scottish Government’s response states that it receives regular returns from Care and Repair Scotland on the use of its fund and the number of homes that have received free and subsidised alarms. It says that it is reviewing those returns and maintaining engagement with Care and Repair Scotland to identify any gaps in support and ensure effective use of its fund. It also highlights a recent media awareness campaign that includes information on types of alarm and the importance of using reputable tradespeople to fit them.

The petitioner’s recent submission raises concerns about a lack of public awareness of precisely what is required to comply with the new standards, a shortage of appropriate equipment and tradespeople, and a lack of clarity on the penalties for non-compliance. The petitioner explains that he bought equipment when he first read about the legislation and he subsequently found out that it did not meet the requirements.

Do members have any comments or suggestions?

As there are no other comments from committee members, do we agree to close the petition under rule 15.7?

Members indicated agreement.

Thank you.

I will start the questions. What first led you to explore the experience of witches who were convicted in Scotland, and why did you feel that it was important to bring the petition before us now?