 The final item of business is a member's business debate on motion 1-3-5-3-2 in the name of Bill Kidd on Glasgow and Berlin's successful European Championships 2018. This debate will be concluded without any questions being put. We can ask those members who wish to speak in the debate to press the request to speak buttons now. I call on Bill Kidd to open the debate. Mr Kidd, seven minutes are thereabout please. Thank you very much, Presiding Officer. Today I would like to bring the Glasgow 2018 European Championships forward for debate in the Scottish Parliament. The inaugural championships are based between Glasgow and Berlin from 2 to 12 August of this year. First of all, I would like to congratulate all the medallists from whichever country they came out with particular note to Scottish Gold medallist Laura Muir, Ailish Macaulgan, Grace Reid and Duncan Scott, and with further note to Silver and Bronze medallist James Walby, Katie Archibald and Jack Carlin. That contributed towards Team GB and Northern Ireland, ranking second place in the championships and winning the most medals overall. I am sure that those inaugural championships will be followed by many more and I hope that they return again soon to Scotland. The European Championships saw some of our best home-grown sporting talent performed on the world stage from occasions that we all know, such as the SSE Hydro, Strathclyde, Country Park, Gleneigos and Loch Lomond, as well as from newer debut locations such as the Glasgow BMX Centre in Nightswood, which I will mention more than once. I am proud that two of the venues using the championships were based in my constituency of Glasgow Annesland. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the volunteers, including Lorraine Harper, who bought me a pint of beer on the basis that I have mentioned her name, and many of whom were my constituents involved in making the sporting events operate so well and efficiently. Their enthusiasm lifted the events and showed international visitors true Scottish spirit and a welcome to our country. I am speaking here today because I want to highlight why international sporting events are good for Scotland and to encourage the people of Scotland to engage in the active legacy of those events by simply participating in sport going forward. From our sports, natural environment and rich culture, we have been able to showcase some of the best of Scotland to the world. At the same time, we have brought some of the best sporting talent of the world once again to Scotland. We are a nation with an international outlook. Sporting events such as the European Championships are looking back to 2014 and the Commonwealth Games evidenced this. Those events are inherently good for Scotland. International sporting events build a legacy for our country in which we can all participate. They inspire us, they make us want to go further, and even examples such as open water swimming in Loch Lomond can make some of us want to explore the natural beauty of Scotland that we all know and love in a new and daring way. Although I would not necessarily take on Loch Lomond myself, I have been inspired by those events and I hope that my colleagues here in the chamber and the people of Scotland are too. Looking at the facts, I can see that there is a shared response since the Commonwealth Games. There has been an upward trend in sport participation and positive impact can be seen today. Scottish Athletics, the national governing board for athletics in Scotland with approximately 150 athletic clubs across the country, recently reported a 10 per cent increase in athletic club membership. There has also been a surge in cycling. That has been highlighted by the 21 per cent rise in Scottish cycling memberships. Organisations such as Sustrans, which was recently awarded £27 million in Scottish Government funding, have helped to pave the way for cycle-friendly cities and provide route maps for exploring the whole of Scotland. This country has a lot to offer. We are blessed with our natural landscape, which offers bountiful opportunities for mountain walking, biking, hiking, bouldering and shinty playing. If you cannot yet embrace swimming at the length of Loch Lomond, you could at least try kayaking or sailing there. Perhaps you could explore the hidden gems and beautiful beaches that can be found across Scotland's 10,000 kilometres of coastline. Now, due to major international sporting events leaving their footsteps and new venues, there is a growing number of world-class sports centres available for our constituents to enjoy. Not only do we have Europe's largest climbing centre, the EICA in Rathol, outside of Edinburgh, we now have the Glasgow BMX centre in Nightswood, part of my constituency, mentioned for the third time, so I think that they are due me, a wee train and run on the BMX bikes. The BMX centre in Nightswood five times is a good example of the active legacy, which comes directly from last month's European Championships. The creation of a facility for this budding sport, which was officially adopted by the Olympics in 2008, provides essential space to allow development of new skills for a sport that is now extremely popular among young adults. The Glasgow BMX centre was purpose-built last year and it now makes Glasgow the only city in the world with venues capable of hosting all four Olympic cycling discipline events, BMX, mountain biking, road and track. The centre will also be the new home of Western Titans BMX club as it relocates from Clydebank. Another direct active legacy from the European Championships is the £0.5 million announced by the Scottish Government earlier this year for Sports Scotland to build upon the momentum of Glasgow 2018. The funding will be invested in Sports Scotland's community sports hubs to offer easily accessible venues throughout the country. I suggest that a final note is to get inspired, get involved, try a new sport, join a club or simply go for a walk in a beautiful countryside. Everything is open to you in Scotland, let's use it. I thank Bill Kidd for securing the debate. I also thank the many people who work so hard to deliver the events. I welcome the debate. The European Championships were held in Glasgow, particularly in the city centre area, which is a word that I will use quite often. The reason that I say this is that the city centre, having gone through some major events in Glasgow and in the city centre, was great to have the championships there so that the Glasweeds and the rest of Scotland can get the chance to celebrate and showcase our amazing talents. It was a great time to have the culture and our largest city in Scotland. In Glasgow, Kelvin, my constituency, played a great part in it. I know that Bill Kidd has mentioned about Berlin and Glasgow. I want to mention the fact that about the existing European Championships athletics, aquatics, cycling, gymnastics, rowing, triathlon and the new golf team championships. It is all quite breathtaking. It would be good if we could include some of us having entered into it. All I can say is that I went along to some of the events and it was absolutely fantastic. People welcomed with open arms. There were also numerous other sporting venues, such as Aquatic Cycling and Rowing, Triathlon and, obviously, Berlin hosted the athletics. There were 4,500 athletes competing quite a number. We will look at the situation in Glasgow. Glasgow is currently ranked number 5 in the world in the sports business ultimate sports city awards. It is also the number 1 city in the world in the legacy category of the SPUSCA, in the reflection of its outstanding and long-standing commitment to increasing participation, as Bill Kidd has already mentioned, and creating new sporting opportunities for citizens. That started off in the lead-up to the 2014 Commonwealth Games. I want to come back to the issue of legacy, just when I am finishing up. We mentioned, obviously, the people who had arranged this, but special thanks must go also to the many, thousands of volunteers. Absolutely fantastic. The championship volunteers team 2018. They were described as the welcoming smile, the selfie taker, the tourist guide, the comedian, the high five expert and the person to have a weeble everday above all, the heart and soul of our championships. I know many of them personally and they did a fantastic job when you think that the overall attendance was half a million, basically double what was projected before the championships even began. I think that that is fantastic. I just want to come back to the legacy. We will look at Glasgow's iconic George Square. It was central to the festival 2018, which ran alongside the 2018 European Championships. It really did create a fantastic carnival atmosphere, and I know that the cabinet secretary was there as well. It was great. People came from all over and enjoyed this fabulous big party in George Square. Part first, we tackled our line-ups and events. It was open to all, and it was fantastic. One of the issues that came up after that was the fact that George Square was closed to all traffic, and it was fantastic. People started to think that I wonder if we could have it permanently closed to traffic. That is part of the legacy that Glasgow City Council has put a consultation out. Basically, if that came about, the legacy of the games would be that we would have a traffic-free George Square, if that is what the people want. I encourage all the Glasgow regions to take part in the consultation. It is on Glasgow City's website, and that and something given back to the city would be absolutely fantastic. Thank you very much, Presiding Officer. Thank you, Ms White. I call Brian Whittle to be followed by James Kelly. Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I thank Bill Kidd for securing time in the chamber to debate and discuss the European Championships that was recently held in Glasgow and in Berlin. This is the first time that the European Championships have been a multi-sport Championships. It is a move that I very much welcome. You will not be surprised to hear that I have a bit of a soft spot for the European Championships. I would have appreciated back then the opportunity to have other sports. Back then, it was just the Olympics and the Commonwealth Games, so I think that bringing a lot of sports together is always going to be great for the athletes in the village and also for the crowds and supporters who come along to watch. It is difficult to get all the sports into one place. It is difficult to find venues where we can bring all the sports to one place. In this particular instance, Trackingfield ended up in Berlin because to host Trackingfield and to host all the different sports, you need the big stadiums and the 40,000 plus stadiums for Trackingfield are few and far between, but I think that it gave me the opportunity to go and watch other sports. I went to Toul Cross to watch the swimming championships, which was just absolutely phenomenal. I went to George Square to watch the cycling. It did not take me long whether they went. That was my cycling. Again, the city was incredibly vibrant and incredibly welcoming. I think that one thing is for sure. We can quite easily say that we are world-class at hosting and supporting sports events. It is a great pride that we should have as Scots in which we welcome people to our country in the way in which, as Sandra White alluded to, volunteers flock to help in the way that they went about their business. There is no doubt that we have world-class facilities and building on the legacy of the Commonwealth Games in 2014. It is not only the fact that the Euros are a multi-sport this year that made them unique. We are only four years on from the last time that a multi-sports event took place here in Scotland. That gives us an opportunity to look at legacy, to review the class of 2014 and see what has changed and what has developed. Without question, we have world-class performers. We had 47 Scots in the GBA team across seven sports, and the medals came to those Scots. I, unashamedly, am a massive big fan of Laura Muir and she underlined her huge talent with her dominant performance in winning her first outdoor title. I take my training squad along now and again to the indoor facility in Glasgow at the Emirates, where she trains often and always takes the time out to speak to a little group of 10-year-olds that I work with. She always takes time after training to along speak to them, so I think that she is a model of how international sports people should be. Elish Macalgan, a fantastic silver in the 5K following on from her mother's footsteps. She is very close to her mother's times, and let us hope that she emulates her. I want to make a special mention to Ailey Doyle, who once again made her way on to the podium. I think that that is now her sitting at 18 major medals the most by any Scottish athlete. In that 4x4 team, young Zully Clark, who I had the pleasure of working with, is an under-15 and an under-17. Duncan Scott and his three gold medals and a silver in the pool, which I went into some of that. I think that I did mention after the Commonwealth's watch out for Jake Whiteman, and he's got a fantastic future ahead of him and he took a bronze medal in there. I want to highlight, in a time of four minutes already—I've got halfway through my flipping speech—that the journey that the world-class athletes have been on, and to thank the clubs, the national governing bodies, the coaches and the funding from early on and locally to the funding that goes through Sport Scotland until they reach that elite funding at the UK sport level. That's a £13.2 million into the Scottish elite sport at the highest levels of sport. Those are fantastic successes. I just want to say, may it long continue, may we continue to bring elite sporting events to Scotland and hope that that inspires to the next generation. I thank you, Mr Whittle. I call James Kelly to be followed by Annie Wells, the last speaker. Mr Kelly, please. Thank you very much, Deputy Presiding Officer. I like the other speakers. Can I place on record my thanks to Bill Kidd for bringing this debate forward tonight? I think that it's right in the first week back that we do use some time to reflect back on the success of the championships because we had a couple of debates in the run-in to the championships when we discussed a lot of the issues around them and there was a lot of hope in optimism, but there was also some discussion around legacy. I think that although it's a member's debate, it's right to take this time to reflect back on the championships that were recently held. I want to place on record my thanks to all the organisers and all the volunteers who it wouldn't have been possible for the championships to be held, never be, mind be, such a success if it hadn't been for so many volunteers. It was quite a striking image in the run-in, the few days run-in to the events that people started to crop up around Glasgow with their tracksuits on, proudly wearing them, the volunteers. If you met them in the street, they were delighted to tell you where they were volunteering. I met one woman in a street near to me who was working at Toul Cross and she told me all about her day and how much she enjoyed it. You could see how much that woman got out of it, but you can see how they all got out of it and they put a lot into it, so we should be thankful of that. I want to congratulate all the medal winners. The motion is right to highlight Berlind as well as Glasgow. I want to reiterate what Brian Whittle said about Laura Muir. I thought that that was a fantastic performance. It was really great to see Laura Muir strike the front from so far out in that 1,500m race. Sometimes those races can be tactical in nature in people waiting till the last couple of hundred metres, but she really gutsy performance went right to the front from a long way out and just took it on in one comfortable in the end. That was a fantastic performance. I also want to highlight Kirstie O'Brien, who is a member of Canvaslang Harriers, who has a silver medal in the triathlon for the Over 35 group at Strathclyde Park. It sets an example not just to those in Canvaslang Harriers, but throughout the Canvaslang and Glasgow region. I think that Glasgow itself really has done proud. As Sandra White said, the crowds way outweid what we expected. There was a fantastic atmosphere when you went in to the city at night or you went in to take on any of the events. Like Brian Whittle, I took in the cycling at Glasgow Green. What really struck me about it was the sheer endeavour of the athletes. I decided to try and enter into the spirit of it in terms of some sporting participation. I always got a run in a Sunday morning. What I did was I ran. I watched the start of the cycling, which started at half past 10 in the Sunday morning. I ran from Canvaslang into Glasgow Green, which is about four miles. I watched a good bit of the cycling, and then I ran back home about half past two, and I watched the finish at half past four. It was six hours that cycle race was on. That was in the final Sunday. The weather was good throughout, but on that occasion it was pouring rain. It was astonishing to see that, as it came round lap after lap, the effort that they were putting in. You could also see how much the crowds were getting out of that. In sum and up, Deputy Presiding Officer, it has been a great event, a great success. It is very important that we look at the legacy. There are the main challenges in Glasgow in terms of the city's health, life expectancy and illnesses that remain a major challenge. However, the platform that the European Championship gives us in order to try to get more people into sport is an opportunity that we should all promote in the night around. Thank you very much, I call Annie Wells. Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer, and thank you to Bill Kidd for bringing this to the chamber this evening. No-one was more excited to hear that Glasgow was once again hosting a major sporting event this summer than me. Unfortunately, I was in holiday for the whole lot of it and did not get to see it, but it was continuing success of the 2014 Commonwealth Games. In the European Championships, again caught the spirit of the city, showcasing Glasgow's infamous hospitality and the warmth of its people. As the host of the first-ever European Championships, Glasgow again opened its doors to sporting fans from across the world. Jointly hosted by Glasgow and Berlin between 2 and 12 August, the new multi-sport event was the amalgamation of several existing championships, with Glasgow leading the way in aquatic, cycling and gymnastics rolling in the triathlon. Thousands of visitors came to the city during August, and with blanket coverage by the BBC and other major broadcasters in Europe, it has estimated that the TV audience has exceeded a billion viewers. Reflecting on the success of the championships, it is clear to see that Glasgow once again was the perfect host. With a buzz in the city and an atmosphere of friendliness and goodwill, the event provided perfect opportunity for everyone to get involved. As well as the four and a half thousand athletes competing from 52 countries, thousands of volunteers from across the world took part in helping out, including representatives from every Scottish local authority. Music, art, dance, theatre and comedy events were going in conjunction with the championships, and that added a carnival atmosphere to the occasion, providing the opportunity for Glasgow to showcase its creative culture and bring together communities. To top it all off, Britain came second overall behind Russia on the overall medal table with Scottish athletes winning 20 of the 74 team GB medals. With Scottish tourism worth more than £11 billion to the economy, the championships will no doubt give a boost to the country's visitors' economy. Visit Scotland spoke of the role of the event that would play in providing a platform to showcase what Scotland has to offer, attracting tourists to visit Glasgow's historical and contemporary cityscapes and the beautiful and dramatic landscapes that surround it. As Scotland's largest city, Glasgow has so much to offer, and I'm extremely pleased to see that duty events like this in time will be recognised as one of Europe's most exciting destinations to visit. Finally, as with all sporting events, I hope to see that the championships will increase Scotland's worldwide sporting reputation and encourage people to take part in more physical activity, including myself. As I've already mentioned, with Scotland winning over 25 per cent of team GPs' total medal tally, Scotland is doing amazing in these sports, and it's something that we need to milk for all that's worth. We're doing great in terms of the elite sports, and there's no doubt about it, but this is something that needs to filter down to everyone in Scotland, so regular sport and activity for all levels becomes a societal norm. With regard to that, I would like to take the opportunity to ask the Scottish Government what fresh approaches it will take to tackle Scotland's obesity crisis and improving current rates of physical activity. To finish today, Deputy Presiding Officer, I'd again like to congratulate Glasgow on its impressive hosting of the inaugural European Championships. What has been shown time and time again during the hosting of sporting events is that they are tight and people can come together and celebrate in unity. Glasgow has so much to offer, and again we've seen this. The championships have not only consolidated Scotland and Glasgow's sporting reputation worldwide, but most importantly, they showcased Glasgow and Scotland's best asset, its people. I thank Bill Kidd for securing this debate and giving us the opportunity to reflect on the fantastic achievement of the first ever multi-sport European Championships event to be held jointly hosted by Glasgow and Berlin this summer. Members who have contributed have paid tribute to all those who have made this happen. I want to add my voice to congratulate the athletes who took part in this thrilling competition, in particular Team GB in Northern Ireland for coming second, in the medal-plated table, and all the Scottish athletes in securing an impressive 23 medals. My highlights were seeing the power of Duncan Scott in the pool and, obviously, that great achievement by Laura Muir on the 1500m track. Thanks to all the officers and the delivery team of the 2018 European Championships, the local authorities, Glasgow, Edinburgh, Perthink and Ross, North Lallwickshire, Easton Bartonshire, Stirlingshire and, of course, Glasgow Life, Loch Lomond and the Trossocks National Park and our own Scottish Government officials. I want to put on record my thanks to Aileen Campbell, the former sports minister, for her contribution to this event. Of course, as we've heard, the amazing, committed 3,500 volunteers really brought energy and enthusiasm and welcomed to the event. Everyone remarked what an impact they made, both to the professionalism of the event but also the spirit of the championships. We should not underestimate what an innovation the European Championships were. This was the first ever multi-sport event on a European Championship level. It was far from clear from the outset what the response would be. That was a bold and courageous step by everybody involved. Glasgow saw 88 per cent of ticketing and attendance. Viewers in 10 major European markets saw a staggering 567 million hours of viewing, and the BBC alone reported 20 million viewers with a peak of 6.4 million. The Scottish Government was the main funder for this event in Glasgow in partnership with Glasgow City Council, but the vision of those involved in the various European sporting federations and the European broadcasting union must be exaggerated. We think that our politics are tough, but imagine trying to bring seven different governing bodies together to make sure that this happened. That was a major achievement. It was innovative as a concept. It was initially thought of some years ago, but it has effectively broken the mould of international championships. The intention is that this new multi-sport European Championship will now take place every four years between the Olympic competitions. Aquatics, athletics, cycling, gymnastics, rowing and triathlon federations came together with the addition of a golfing event. The European federations that I spoke to at the various events that I attended were all very positive about the hosting and the commitment of the Scottish Government ministers and city leaders in their attendance and support. We were able to build on our relationships with Berlin following the opening of the Scottish Hub earlier this year. The championships have helped to facilitate the Chamber of Commerce relationship between Glasgow and Berlin. The minister for Europe, Ben Macpherson attended events around the athletics in Berlin, and I was delighted to welcome the Berlin delegation to Scotland. This new event has proven to be a huge success, a celebration of quality sport and athleticism with an outstanding cultural programme, also Festival 2018, which was enjoyed across Europe and beyond. The event showcased our world-class venues, our capability to sustainably host sporting events based on existing and appropriate new infrastructure. The only entirely new venue was for BMX at Night'swood. That new track, as Bill Kidd has outlined, is the only outdoor championships and Olympic standard track in Scotland. It will be home to Glasgow's West and Titans BMX club, providing a lasting legacy for BMX in Scotland. It is truly world-class, and I was told that it is one of the few venues in the world that meets the latest competition regulations, so we should expect BMX champions from across the world to come and train in Scotland. Investment in the rowing tower at Strathclyde country park also equips this as a world-class venue. Hosting the event at venues across the country allowed us to spread the benefits to communities around Scotland. Broadcasts believed in the concept from the start. The way that it was presented, some people said that they did not quite know what was in Berlin and what was happening in Glasgow, but it was very slick because it allowed the interchange and a very efficient and effective and entertaining programming. Images were beamed across the world in up to 12 hours per day of coverage and free-to-air channels, showcasing Scotland's unique culture and attractions alongside the sport. We had backdrops of George Square, Loch Lomond, Strathclyde country park, together with Gough and Glen Eagles and Diving from Edinburgh, and it highlighted the very best of Scotland and added a measurement to the profile and the reach of our new and hugely exciting Scotland brand. The championships were not just about sport. That festival 2018 highlighted Scotland's reputation for cultural brilliance creativity. The live orchestral link-up between the Royal Conservatoire and the musicians from Berlin's renowned arts university was a real highlight and a first for both institutions. Of course, we should also pay tribute to those who were involved in transport. A successful transport operation is critical for any event. 12 venues spread across Scotland, with over 8,500 athletes and officials accommodated in over 60 locations. Transport of Scotland's knowledge and expertise was put to good effect, and good communications and planning were key. The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring a sustainable national legacy from hosting major events and sustaining a flourishing, innovative and competitive events industry that generates businesses, creates jobs and provides a legacy that benefits all of Scotland's communities. There are a range of things that I have covered today, but, of course, one of those aspects is highlighting Scotland as a dynamic, outward-looking and inclusive European nation. The Scottish Government put a particular emphasis on using sporting legacy to increase physical activity levels. There should be no barrier to participating in sport or improving your health and lifestyle, whoever you are and whatever your background. To support that, with Glasgow City Council, we invested £1 million to harness the profile of the championships. From that, Sport Scotland distributed 500,000 to community sports hubs, spread right across Scotland, play an essential role in delivering grassroots sporting activity, which we know provides the foundation for a better health for all, as well as providing for future sporting success. £500,000 was invested at Glow Live at the Green, and it offered 11 days of free activity and more than 120,000 people visited the site. That venue was packed with sport, fitness, lifestyle education opportunities and signposting in order to promote health and wellbeing. We must build on the triumph of these championships and look to the future. Next year, Scotland plays host to European short-course swimming and European indoor athletics and, of course, the Solheim Cup. The reputation that Scotland has developed as a host of world-class events brings opportunities for international promotion and the business that it brings to our economy. We cannot take that for granted. We constantly need to look for and plan for new events and opportunities. That is a key role for our very respected organisation event Scotland. I want to pay tribute to its role in the European Championships as well. It helps us to promote our stunning landscapes, our exciting cities, the contribution of our young people and, of course, our diverse communities. Our future events will look to use those world-class skills and expertise that we have developed to build further. As Bill Kidd has said in his motion, with the 2018 European Championships, Glasgow and Berlin have set a high bar. I hope that everyone will join me in congratulating all those involved in developing and delivering the ground-breaking event.