 The final item of business is members business debate on motion 13551 in the name of Stuart McMillan on Texas instruments and the debate will be concluded without any questions being put. May I ask those who wish to speak in the debate to press request to speak buttons and I call on Stuart McMillan to open the debate. Thank you very much. First of all, I would like to thank every member who has signed the motion to allow this debate to take place. I would also like to thank the team for allocating me the time. I want to begin with a short history of where we are regarding the Texas instrument situation before exploring other aspects around the business and also inverclyde. In January 2017-16, TI announced that they were to close the ground plant with a loss of over 300 jobs. That came as a blow to my area, one that really hasn't been without its economic challenges over many, many years since the decline of the majority of the shipyards, heavy engineering, sugar and, also in recent times, a huge reduction in the IT sector. The local site manufactures semiconductors but they also had a design centre. The 25 posts in the design centre were made redundant in April and May 2016. The population of Inverclyde is robust and we have had to be as the TI announcement followed a trend of other industries in the past. The vast majority of those TI jobs are technical, highly skilled and the financial contribution to local economy is vast. Those workers deliver results and the Greenock facility is productive. TI took the decision purely for business reasons. The Greenock site is one of the smallest in its portfolio. It therefore wished to consolidate its business by closing the Greenock site and transferring the work to the USA, Japan and also to Germany. TI is the second-biggest manufacturer of semiconductors in the world, so it has that scale and the size to make that type of decision. I am grateful, however, that TI provided a long lead-in time before the closure takes place. TI extended the closure date to 2019, which has provided additional valuable time to try to find a buyer. The Texas Instruments Task Force was established by Inverclyde Council and it consists of councillors, parliamentarians, Scottish Government ministers, Scottish Office representatives, public agency representatives and the site director of Texas Instruments. It is a genuine team-inverclyde approach. The primary goal of the TI Task Force was and still is to find a buyer to maintain the site. If that proved unachievable, the task force would focus its efforts on providing the best possible outcomes for the workforce and the local community. Government agency staff have visited the plant to talk to the workforce to make them aware of the services that are available to them and I would like to thank TI for their co-operation in that regard. TI contracted Atrag to help to sell the site and, despite some companies coming forward, they unfortunately amounted to nothing. Earlier this year, the joint statement by Inverclyde councillor Stephen McCabe and Paul Wealhouse MSP, the then Minister for Business, indicated the past efforts and dialogue with potential buyers and that one was still on the table. We have been informed that discussions are continuing, which I am sure everyone with a stake in the outcome for the workforce and also the local economy welcomes. I believe that the TI Task Force has provided a forum to discuss the challenges and any possible obstacles facing a successful outcome for the plant and also the excellent workforce. I want to put on record two things. Firstly, my thanks to everyone on the task force for the collegiate manner in which everyone has worked. Secondly, but most importantly, to the workforce. With the threat of redundancy hanging over their heads, they continue to perform, deliver and contribute to the highest possible standards. They are the consummate professionals and when TI leave the area, their loss will be the gain of someone else, whether it is in this industry or in some other industry. This summary of hope helps Parliament to appreciate the efforts that have been in their way but also the efforts that continue. As I said at the beginning, the 300-plus workforce and what they contribute to my area is hugely important. They have transferable skills and if that became a necessity but maintaining their quality of life by living and working in Inverclyde, it is important for them but also for our area. I am in absolutely no doubt that anything and everything that can be done is being done and I do not doubt that for one minute. My message to Texas Instruments, to any potential buyer, to the Scottish Government, its agencies and also to Inverclyde Council is very simple. Do not leave any stone unturned to get a deal. The TI will be able to leave the area knowing that a positive legacy is the outcome and the TI will be aware that there has not always been in that case locally, so it can show that it is trying to be irresponsible. Any potential buyer will be getting a first-class, dedicated and highly motivated workforce. The fact that the workforce has done this daily for years and this has continued after the closure announcement proves that they are a credit. If they can still deliver under the stresses that they are feeling, just think of what they can do with job security. The Scottish Government will have an area that has not been hit with a major economic shock and income tax receipts will continue as compared to nothing. Inverclyde Council will not have to worry about an increased number of people leaving the area, adding to the historical population decline and thus the economic aftershock that will bring. It is in everyone's interests that a deal is done. Some of the challenges that we face include a population decline and the claimant count. Our population is down to just under 80,000, when once we had more than 110,000. The recent national records of Scotland population figures and projections highlight that stark message. Between 1997 and 2017, Inverclyde's population has decreased by 8.9 per cent, while Scotland's population increased by 6.7 per cent. During that period, the 25 to 34 age group has decreased by 28.6 per cent, while the 75-plus age group has increased by 20.9 per cent. Between 2016 and 2026, it is projected that Inverclyde's population will decrease by 3.8 per cent, while Scotland's population will increase by 3.2 per cent. Between 2016 and 2026, the 16 to 24 age group will decrease by 13.2 per cent, while the 75-plus group will increase by 20.8 per cent. Our claimant count rate-based on the recent ONS figures stands at 5.4 per cent. That is 2,670 people listed since September 2018. With most of the heavy industries gone, we have our challenges. However, there are many positives too. Shipbuilding remains in Port Glasgow with Fergus and Marine, thanks to the support of the Scottish Government and action that I am immensely proud of. We also have ship repair in Greenock at Dale's Marine services. We are the home of the national ferry company with CalMac and Gurwick. We are the recreation and marine capital of Scotland, with an increase in the level of marine-based activities, including over 60 cruise ships docking in Greenock this year. That number is expected to increase hugely next year, and the new George Welley museum will be incorporated into the new docking area for cruise ships. That will be part of the opening of one of the city deal projects. Those are just some of the many wonderful aspects and examples as to why Inverclyde should be a destination of choice and a location for investment. Inverclyde is my home. I grew up there. I live there, and I am immensely proud of my area. We, just like every other part of Scotland or elsewhere globally, have our challenges, but we also have our opportunities. We are no different from anywhere else. I do not want the workforce of TI to be added to the claimant count figures. I want them to continue to produce the high-quality, high-value products that they are doing. Doing that enhances my community, Inverclyde's economy and Inverclyde's reputation. The TI workforce has consistently delivered. It has perseverance and hope. I genuinely hope that we can give them the best Christmas present that they could ever wish for. That is the deal to secure their jobs for the long term. I move on to the open debate with speeches of around four minutes, please. Jamie Greene, followed by Neil Bibby. First of all, can I open by thanking Stuart McMillan for his impassioned speech and for using parliamentary time to bring this very important issue to the chamber? It is an excellent use of the limited time that Parliament has to discuss this very issue. It is such an important matter because, as Mr McMillan said, it greatly affects not just those who work on site but their families and the wider economy. I, like Stuart McMillan, grew up in Greenock and I am fully aware of the changes that the town has gone through in terms of some of the big employers who have come and gone over the years and the effect that that has on the town is substantial. Sadly, this is another one of those cases. Since the task force was set up in 2016, the concept was to bring together the council, the Government and some of the Government agencies, such as Scottish Enterprise and the site itself, as well as local politicians, to get around the table and have some frank and honest discussions about the situation there. There have been many meetings of the task force that I have tried to attend as many as I can, with the exception of a few diary clashes. I have always found those meetings to be very constructive and very open. I would like to pay tribute to the Texas Instrument task force chair, councillor Stephen McCabe, for the work and effort that he has put into it. I think that acceptance that, unless we were collegiate and sat around the table and worked together as politicians and as agencies, the task force would never achieve anything. I can say honestly that the task force has worked tirelessly to look at and explore all avenues right up until this point. To be fair to the Government, it has done the same. The agencies have participated in these meetings and they have sought to go out to the wider market, both in Scotland and overseas, to see what buyers might be out there. There have been so many instances in these meetings of expressions of interest. Do not get me wrong, some of those companies may have been tire kicking and looking for an opportunity for sight. Many have come and gone and it has been a disappointing thing that we have got to the stage where we are at at the moment. As I said, Grunach and Inverclyde in general has been a resilient and robust part of Scotland. If we look at some of the companies that have come and gone to a great extent, such as IBM and national semiconductors, the members of my family worked for decades right up until the retirement of those iconic industries. When they closed their doors, they left a legacy on the town. This will be another one of those. I share Mr McMillan's values on that. We do not want those people to be simply more statistics or simply to be joining the queue of benefits claimants. I think that we need to look at what is next. I think that there are only a few potential options. I think that this is really the last chance alone, as we call it, to find a buyer. As the motion says, we really should redouble all efforts to do so. I think that for those who want to use this opportunity to retire, they should be helped to do so and not judged for doing that. Many people have their reasons for that and understand those. However, there are many who wish to continue in employment, and that brings me on to another issue. That is that about what we do around retraining and re-employability. Just last Friday, I went to West College Scotland and Paisley. They have a campus in Greenout. It used to be the old James Walk College. Many people will know it. One of the conversations that I had with the new principal who has just recently taken up office was about how we can use further education facilities such as West College Scotland to help with adult retraining and re-employability. It really is an issue when people find themselves made redundant at a certain time of life, but too early to retire and still want to continue in the workplace. We are struggling to adapt after decades and one environment to the new digital industries that seem to be coming forward. We have to have a conversation about how we help many of those people to retrain practically and academically to get some of those new opportunities. I know that Pais is working with many people on site and will continue to do so, so I only hope that that will continue. In the short time that we have here in closing, it is a great site. I have really struggled to understand why no buyer has been forthcoming. I do hope that there is still an opportunity out there, but if there isn't, those people who want to continue in the workplace must be given all the support that every Government and every agency can provide them. As Stuart McMillan said, it is a great place to live and to work. I hope that, if the plant closes, we at least can see those people move forward in their careers and move into the next stage of their careers. I hope that all politicians, both at local level and in this chamber, will do everything that they can to assist them. I welcome tonight's debate, brought forward by Stuart McMillan. I support the motion that we debate tonight on Texas instruments, because it must be a priority for all of us to protect and create quality jobs in our communities. I would agree with Stuart McMillan on the importance of this plant to the Greenock community and to Inverclyde as a whole. It would be difficult to overstate its importance. In an age in which global competition has seen reliable, productive, high-value industrial jobs move elsewhere, the plant has continued to give skilled workers in Inverclyde the opportunity to sustain a valuable and profitable trade. Just as hundreds of people benefit from this highly skilled industrial work directly, still hundreds more are enjoyed in direct employment supported by the presence of Texas instruments. Thousands benefit from the injection of millions of pounds into the Inverclyde and West Scotland economy. In total, as has been estimated, the loss of this factory would mean a loss of 572 direct and indirect jobs and £32.2 million in GVA. As others have said, we cannot allow Texas instruments to withdraw from Inverclyde without a viable alternative coming forward. I also join other members in commending the work of the Texas Instruments Task Force that has worked hard to find such an alternative. By working together to find a way forward, the council-led task force with other agencies and the business community in the west of Scotland have exemplified how the public and private sectors can co-operate to promote economic interests of a community. I would like to commend everyone who is involved, particularly Councillor Stephen McCabe and his council officers, for the leadership that they have shown, but also for the workforce for the commitment and resilience that they have shown in the face of adversity. The truth, Presiding Officers, is that the story of this factory is not just another story of the stark realities of global competition. The potential loss of these highly skilled jobs is not a sign of the times nor a result of modernity. The truth is that the plant was profitable and continues to be in the 2017-18 fiscal year at generated profits of upwards of £3 million. The sharp decline in silicon-glen and the erosion of our electronics industry over the years has been dramatic, but that does not mean that we do not have options now. We do not just have to accept the loss of what remains of our electronics industry in Inverclyde. I would agree with what Stuart McMillan has said about everything that can be done should continue to be done to protect this important asset. Members of the task force and I have said for the past two and a half years that a buyer can be found and a buyer must be found. The plant still can have a long-term future and I hope that this can be confirmed in the near future. In pursuing a viable buyer for the plant who can continue to support these jobs, the industry and electronic innovation in the future, we commit ourselves again to building a bossed economy that we can achieve and which our people deserve. The last of the open debate contributions is from Maurice Corry. Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I, too, express my thanks to Stuart McMillan for bringing this important motion to the chamber and I support the motion accordingly before us this afternoon. I welcome this opportunity to speak about Texas instruments. Semi-deduct conductor plants such as this are an important part of Scottish industry and so it is. The upcoming schedule closure is of a great concerning situation. It has a potential not just to affect Greenock and the Inverclyde area, but the worth of Scotland's nation-wide industry. I also echo the points of my colleague Jamie Greene, which has said earlier this evening. I hope that through this debate we can raise awareness of the issue and strengthen our motivation to keep fighting for the work base of Texas instrument in Greenock. This highly skilled number deserves to have no stone unturned in our aim to ensure that they have continued employment. Also three years ago, it is announced that the Greenock Texas instrument plant, the semiconductor factory, will be scheduled to close in 2019 and has been referred to earlier. We cannot be mistaken that the loss of this plant will be a severe blow to the Inverclyde economy and community and its workers are an asset to the industry. The potential loss of Texas instruments will have a worrying impact. First and foremost, its closure will affect 550 positions. 318 direct jobs are expected to be lost. What does that mean for the area? Without the jobs, families in the area might feel that they must move elsewhere in search of more concrete employment. That will alter the face of the community and reduce options for incoming businesses and industries to Inverclyde. The closure of Texas instrument may also result in the loss of healthy competition across the industries in Scotland and the potential financial loss is high. Our economy could lose over £32 million. To be clear, this is not just a local problem. Texas instrument has been of enormous financial benefit to Scotland's economy. To keep this going, we must safeguard it. I am thankful for the work put in by the Texas Instruments Task Force, which I am pleased to be associated with. This group exists as an on-going collaboration between Inverclyde Council, the UK Government and the Scottish Government, as well as councillors, parliamentarians and multi-public agencies. Our aim since the announcement of closure has been to protect the employees and to ensure a long-lasting and secure future for the future of the plant in Greenock. That has been, as expected, a challenge for such a niche and specialist industry. Finding a buyer for this plant has proved very difficult. Our efforts have so far not received the answer that we would hope for, but with each new possible opportunity, the task force remains hopeful of success, even with on-going tentative negotiations. I am keeping my fingers crossed on that. I hope that the efforts that are made by the task force will continue to be supported from all corners, and only with full support can all avenues be explored in depth. I know that the task force is committed to protecting the skills base that we have on our doorstep and utilising it as much as possible. Ensuring long-term stability will open doors to the next generation of community. For this reason, it is essential that we continue to include the semiconductor science as part of our high school curriculum. That will encourage young people to direct their sites and their skills towards the future of the industry. I hope that our teenagers will have the opportunity to put their skillset, which they gain for practical use in real-life situations. I hope that the Greenock plant is here to provide it. In conclusion, I echo the call to continue an agency-wide co-operation in our efforts to protect the Greenock workforce and also support the Government's efforts. We need to assess our options and every possible solution to keep the momentum going. The semiconductor plant is part of the global industry of much value to the surrounding community as well as our economy. In recognition of that, we must further our efforts and enthusiasm for securing its future, both for the sake of employment and the community. I now call Jamie Hepburn to respond to the debate for around seven minutes. I join with others in thanking Stuart McMillan for having lodged his motion before partner for securing the debate. This evening, as Jamie Greene mentioned, Stuart McMillan spoke with a passion that is something that he always expresses when talking about his home area, particularly in the case of his efforts around the Texas Instruments task force. I also welcome the contributions that others have made this evening. We often have debates, particularly in members' business debates, in which we speak with one voice with great consensus. That, of course, is quite correctly the case. We are all of the same mind here because we want to secure a positive outcome for the future of the Texas Instruments site above all for the workforce there. The points that have been made have been well made. Stuart McMillan reminded us of some of the history of his hometown, his home area, which, in line with most of the west of Scotland, has sadly been one over the past few decades of some industry of the climb. He spoke, of course, of the shipbuilding heritage of his area, the sugar industry that was once the hallmark of Greenock. Of course, in the later wave of industries, we saw that Greenock and Inverclyde established itself as a hub for the IT and technology sector, which, of course, has seen some decline. With Texas Instruments now probably being the last remaining big employer of that sector, and clearly we want to do everything that we can to retain that expertise locally. We are, of course, moving nearer towards the plant's proposed closure in June of next year, so in that sense it is absolutely correct that we have this debate this evening. The loss of over 300 jobs at that site would, of course, be an enormous blow to the economy and Texas Instruments has added a significant contribution to Inverclyde's local labour market, local economy, by providing a large number of high-value jobs. There is no area in Scotland that could afford to lose that number of jobs, but I am acutely aware of the wider socioeconomic context that Inverclyde operates under and its issues of depopulation that Stuart McMillan very ably set out, so it is something that we need to be focused on. Scottish Enterprise has produced a report that assessed the economic impact of the company's closure, and in that regard Neil Bibby was quite correct to say that this is not just about the jobs at that site alone. If you include those supported by the site's supply chain and the included impact of falling household expenditures, the assessment that Scottish Enterprise took forward suggests that there could actually be 570 jobs lost to the local economy. In that sense, the scale of the issue goes far beyond the business itself. Stuart McMillan set out that it was welcome, as it undoubtedly was, that Texas Instruments gave us some leading time to their announcement. That has allowed us time to seek a long-term future for the site and for the workforce. Since taking up my role as Minister for Business, I have been able to attend both meetings of the Texas Instruments taskforce that has been convened in that time. Paul Wheelhouse attended in the past when he occupied the post of business minister. As has been set out, the taskforce was a creation of Inverclyde Council. However, it has been a good approach, because yes, Inverclyde Council established the taskforce and convened it, but the Scottish Government has been critical participants. It has given the development of Scotland at the table, Scottish Enterprise at the table. Critically and crucially, Texas Instruments are at the table because they are best placed to tell us what is precisely happening at the site at that time. MSPs of various political colours are at the table. Since I have been at the Minister for Business, Stuart McMillan has been present, Maurice Corry was at one of the meetings, and councillors of different parties are there. In that sense, we are having that open, frank and necessary dialogue that was spoken of. We as a Government have a strong commitment to work with that taskforce and with efforts to secure that long-term future for the plant and its workers. That is an ambition that I think we all share. We are pursuing the matter, outwith the confines of the Texas Instruments taskforce itself in February this year. The then Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Keith Brown met the Senior Vice President of Texas Instruments to discuss the situation. We have made contact with the company's chief executive to request a further meeting. We have continued to engage with the managing director of the Greenwood Plant officials. Scottish Government officials are now focusing efforts in conjunction with the council's officers through a working group that has started meeting earlier this year. We have maintained that open dialogue with Inverclyde Council to consider interventions to support the wider region that we can take together. Scottish Development International has been working actively and with the utmost determination to find a buyer for the plant, which is at the nub of the issue. As others have set out, it has been very clear from the outset that finding a buyer for the site has been a significant challenge. Stuart McMillan set out several expressions of interest. Unfortunately, I have not come to fruition, but I can say that discussions are still on-going between Texas Instruments and a potential buyer. I believe that it is important that we have to give them the time and space and some confidentiality to find an agreement. That being said, I have been absolutely clear that the Scottish Government remains utterly committed to doing everything that we can to support the purchase, to secure a long-term future for the plant. I thank the minister for taking my intervention and for all those warm words this evening. Perhaps he may have picked us up from being at the meetings. One of the senses of frustration that the task force has had is that when other parts of the country have seen such high-profile potential losses—in the number of hundreds, as he mentioned—that those have seemed to have garnered much more focus from the media and a more of a national conversation. That one largely seems to have gone under the rider. I hope that that does not affect the way that the Government will seek to tackle this or to help the community. To put it simply, to assure Mr Greene and all other members that it will not, just as Mr Greene might be frustrated on occasion, just as I am frustrated, I cannot control what the media output is. However, notwithstanding the validity of the point that he makes, it will not impact on this Government's determination to find and secure a future for the site and the workforce. In that regard, let me say that the engagement right now is more than a tire-kicking exercise. Let me conclude by saying that I think that this debate is important because it does take head on that very issue about giving the matter a degree of prominence. It is right that we debate this as a Parliament. It does reiterate the scale of concern not only for the plant and its workforce but more broadly across the region. We are doing all we can to secure a viable future for the plant. We will continue to work in partnership to seek and obtain a solution that is in the best interest of the employees of Texas Instruments for Inverclyde and for the Scottish economy. Let me assure the student milling and other members that we will leave no stone unturned.