 The final item of business is a member's business debate on motion 10747, in the name of Gordon MacDonald, on contribution of the Scottish convenience store sector. This debate will be concluded without any questions being put, and I would ask those members who would wish to speak in the debate to please press the request to speak buttons. I call on Gordon MacDonald to open the debate, Ms MacDonald. Thank you, Presiding Officer, and I will take this opportunity to thank those members who supported my motion in order that this debate could take place this evening. I also welcome to the gallery members of the Scottish Grocer's Federation, who, back in 2017, were instrumental in support of my steps to establish the cross-party group on independent convenience stores. This most recent Scottish shop local report for 2023 produced by the Scottish Grocer's Federation and the Association of Convenience Stores was distributed to all members in the last couple of weeks. This annual report highlights not only the contribution the sector makes to the Scottish economy, but more important the essential contribution convenience stores make to the local communities that they serve. Across Scotland, there are 5,171 convenience stores, many of which are open 24-7, and are an important source of local employment, providing over 49,000 local jobs for local people from a first job for a young person or indeed a route back into employment through offering flexible hours for those who have to balance on-going family or caring commitments. Our economy also benefits as those local retailers not only provide jobs within their own business, but through the use of local tradesmen, produce suppliers, shop fitters and garages, as well as local legal and accountancy firms. They support employment across the town or city that they are located. In the last year, convenience stores invested £62 million in their business, purchasing refrigeration equipment, shelving, signage, lighting and new technology, again supporting employment in the wider economy. A survey by Scotland's town partnership found that 91 per cent of Scots recognised that choosing local businesses supported local jobs and employment opportunities. In addition, choosing local keeps money circulating in the local community longer, reduces unnecessary journeys and helps tackle the climate crisis. Why shop local? In my constituency of Edinburgh, Pentlands and across the country, 83 per cent of convenience stores offer mobile top-ups, 76 per cent offer bill payment services, 47 per cent of free ATMs and 27 per cent of post offices. Others also have online shopping with home delivery included. The data also highlights that 36 per cent of convenience stores are in rural areas, and another 27 per cent are in outlying parts of our cities and towns, providing a focal point for communities as they are often the only retailer in the area. The stores carry a wide range of products, and the shop local report highlights that an average independent convenience store, 4,735 individual products, are stocked during the course of a year, including staple items such as bread, milk, toiletries and pet food. Those stores become a meeting place for locals, and therefore there are more than just places to shop, but are vital community hubs with services such as post office, parcel collection and bill paying, while also providing cash back and free-to-use ATMs, which customers may use to make purchases in other nearby businesses, thereby supporting the growth of the local economy. The Scottish Government policy is to encourage local living and a development of 20-minute neighbourhoods where people can meet most of their daily needs within a reasonable distance of their home. Convenience stores are by their very nature at the heart of this policy, with 51 per cent of store customers living within a quarter of a mile of their nearest retailer, and 59 per cent of those customers travel to their local store by foot or by bike. Because those stores are at the heart of their communities, the average customer visits their convenience store nearly three times per week, and 36 per cent know that people running and working in their local shop very well or quite well according to the survey. As a result of the close connection with local residents, 81 per cent of retailers are engaged in some form of community activity in the last year. That takes many forms and can include collecting for charities, providing funding for local events or sponsorship for local sports teams. This close relationship between store owners and customers is highlighted in one example from my constituency. Linda and Dennis Williams, who have run the Oxgang's Premier Store for 40 years, along with daughter Sophie, realised that, during the pandemic, many of their customers were struggling to put food on the table. They decided to set up a coronavirus hardship fund using their own money to help the most vulnerable members of the local community and asked the community to match fund with the aim of raising a total of £500. As the daughter of a grocer, I am utterly loyal to local convenience stores, and I am very much enjoying this debate. Does the member agree that local stores also have almost a health and wellbeing benefit, just as he started to describe it, in that, for example, if Mrs Smith, who is usually in three times a week, is not appearing, staff in a store would recognise that. There is a sort of extended benefit there. I absolutely agree with that. Also, the fact that some of them do deliveries to homes where people are housebound or have got care and responsibilities, then they can keep an eye on the most vulnerable in society. I am surprised that they hit their initial target in the space of 24 hours from the local community. However, as more people became aware of the much-needed initiative to help those struggling during the pandemic, the money continued to be received and eventually raised over £10,000. The hardship fund was handed out in small amounts, with no questions asked to ensure that the money was used to help as many people as possible, whether it was to pay for food or household bills. Their efforts made a huge difference to many in the community, and they quite rightly received wide recognition, winning a number of awards, including last month the Raj Agarwal trophy by the Association of Convenious Doors, awarded to retailers who have demonstrated an exceptional commitment to community retailing over the last year, supporting their colleagues, customers and fellow retailers, representing the very best of community retailing. The convenience store sector has faced many hardships in recent years, from the financial crisis of 2008, the pandemic, Brexit food shortages and now inflationary pressure on overheads. The Scottish Government offered support earlier this year by funding the Go Local project, offering a match funding grant worth up to £5,500 per store to convenience shop owners to provide dedicated long-term display space for locally sourced fresh and healthy Scottish products. Stores that took part in the initial pilot saw a 40 per cent increase in sales of local products and delivered additional local economic benefits in excess of £159,000 per store. The initiative enabled stores to support Scottish producers and give those businesses a vital route to market to help with the recovery and regrowth from Covid-19. At a time when households and businesses are bearing the brunt of Westminster's cost of living crisis, it is right that we celebrate the hard work and resilience of Scotland's convenience sector. Thank you, Mr MacDonald. I now call Willie Coffey to be followed by Murdo Fraser. Presiding Officer, thank you very much and thank you once again to my colleague Gordon MacDonald for highlighting the crucial role that Scotland's convenience stores play within all of our communities, the length and breadth of the country. He has been a dedicated supporter of the sector for many years and it's right to recognise his commitment tonight. The Scottish local shop report for 2023 is absolutely packed, full of helpful facts and figures that give us a flavour of the incredible diversity of the sector and its importance to the local communities that they serve. Gordon has shared a range of them to give us a sense of this and there are a few others that stood out for me. One was the convenience store sector sales turnover in the UK is about £49 billion per year and predicted to hit £50 billion by 2026. That's an impressive figure and it certainly surprised me about the value and extent of the whole business to the wider Scottish economy. The secret is in the title, of course, it's convenience. As we know, the origins are rooted in an era where few people had cars in the supermarket model drawing thousands of shoppers at a time to out-of-town locations was only just emerging. Their continuing success is that they are located where people need them, in the heart of the communities they serve and the shop report also tells us that roughly two out of every three customers who use their local convenience stores still walk there to use them every day. It's a remarkable success story that we often take for granted and it's probably no surprise given the size and success of the sector that the supermarkets are doing their best to mirror the convenience store model and grab a slice of that business through their multiple small shops that seem to be ever-expanding. Gordon MacDonald has highlighted the increasing diversity of products and services that our local shops now offer in the modern era and those include things like wi-fi services, click and collect, paying bills, cash back services, postal facilities, home deliveries, picking up prescriptions and cutting keys. Some of those services are provided a vital lifeline for many families during the Covid emergency and have thankfully remained in place. I don't recall any of those services being available when I was a youngster being sent to the shop by my mother for odds and ends every day. It's a testament to how they have adapted to fast-changing needs and demands within their communities. All of us will know a convenience store locally to us to whom we turn for those essentials. One of my local stores is WND Minto, who has operated in Dean Street in Kilmarnock since 1953, at 70 years. Every day I pass by, Dugi Minto can be seen in the shop, bringing in all those goods that we have been talking about, but it is much more than that. His shop himself and his staff are a community focal point too. He knows everyone in the area, he knows who needs help and he is much more of a community champion than anyone I have ever on, so long may Dugi and his shop continue. The biggest change, says Dugi, in his time is the plummeting sales of newspapers. Technology has played a huge part in that, but so too, I suspect, is the editorial and style and content of many of today's newspapers that seem to be ever more extreme and out of touch with the ordinary people of Scotland. Our convenience shops are much more than their title suggests. In many ways they are the cornerstone of our communities, providing us with vital goods and services nearest to where we live. Hopefully they will continue to offer these services far into the future. Lastly, I thank my colleague Gordon MacDonald once again for bringing the success of our convenience stores to the attention of Parliament once again. I now call Murdo Fraser to be followed by Martin Whipfield. I congratulate Gordon MacDonald on securing this debate and I associate myself with the wording of his motion, which I was very happy to sign. I also acknowledge the work that he does as convener of the cross-party group on independent convenience stores, which I am happy to be a member and supporter of. Gordon MacDonald, in his opening remarks, referred to the recent Scottish local shop report, 2023. I think that he quoted every single statistic from it, so I am not going to repeat every single one of them, but just a few highlights, Presiding Officer. 49,000 jobs in the sector in Scotland are very significant footprint in terms of employment. 9.1 billion pounds in taxes across the UK, paid by the sector, so a significant economic and fiscal contribution. There are 5,171 convenience stores in Scotland. 70 per cent of those are independently owned. This is a sector made up of small, often family businesses. People, as we have already heard in the debate, are working extremely hard, working very long hours and providing a vital service to their local communities. The key point about convenience stores is that they are convenient. They are convenient for local people, often at the end of the street. If we are concerned as a society about meeting net zero targets, we want to have convenient services available to people so shops that people can buy their groceries in within walking or cycling distance of their homes make a lot of sense. As Gordon MacDonald said, convenience stores provide a range of other services such as mobile phone top-ups, they often provide post office services, they provide facilities for bill payments, for cash back and a whole range of other activities that are available within local neighbourhoods. That is all very welcome. I was pleased to attend as a guest the Scottish Grocer's Federation conference in Glasgow just last month. I think that I might have been the only MSP who was there. I very much enjoyed being part of that event, hearing about the success story, celebrating all of the good news in the sector that we have already heard about. There were also a number of challenges being raised by the sector that came out during that conference. There is a challenge around business rates. Many of the convenience stores will be beneath the threshold for paying business rates due to the small business bonus. Some of them will not, some of them will be larger, some of them will pay business rates. It was raised with me a concern that retail businesses south of the border have a 75% rates relief in the current financial year, something that was not passed on by the Scottish Government to shops here in Scotland, and that has caused concern to those involved in businesses here. There was concern raised about the deposit return scheme, the shambolic deposit return scheme, that I am pleased to see has been shelled for the time being with businesses in the sector. I am concerned that in due course that may come back and what that will mean for them and the costs involved in that. I am also concerned about what might come down the track in terms of restrictions on the marketing of alcohol products, because alcohol forms an important part of the range of products that are on offer in many convenience stores. If there were overly restrictive rules in terms of promotion of alcohol, as were being originally suggested, that could have a really negative impact on the sector. That is another issue that we need to be careful about. However, the biggest concern in the sector is the rise in crime. The violence against shop workers, which has been growing. I know that Daniel Johnson is not with us tonight and took forward a member's bill previously to make it an enhanced offence to attack a shop worker. That is very welcome, but we still see too many attacks on shop workers. We are seeing a dramatic increase in reports of shoplifting. Shoplifting does not seem to be due to increases in the cost of living and people's shoplifting due to poverty, but shoplifting is being arranged by organised crime gangs going in and targeting particular products and targeting local shops. There is a real concern that this is happening and there is a lack of deterrent. We do not have enough police around to try and deter these crimes. It is very difficult to catch people when they do the penalties that they receive that are not sufficient enough to act as a deterrent. We definitely need a more effective police presence. We need a justice system that is properly punishing those who are caught. That is what those in the sector are calling for. If we support the sector, we should be endorsing those calls and supporting them in their efforts to see more protection for those who are trying to earn a living in what can often be a difficult business. I am very grateful to the Deputy Presiding Officer and I, too, complement Gordon MacDonald on securing this most important debate. It is a pleasure to follow Murdo Fraser, although I fear he may have been looking at my speech. I am not sure how, the magic of the far bench. I also welcome the publication of the Scottish Local Shop report in 2023, because this does rightly shine a light on an incredibly important element of our communities. Once upon a time we used to talk about the banks and the police stations. We used to talk about the services that were there. We used to talk about the cornerstones of our communities. Cornerstones are needed for communities to build resilience, to build knowledge and understanding and to build network. Sadly, on so many levels, it is our convenience stores that are taking all four corners of that to make sure that our communities can survive. In the plethora of data that has already been submitted, I would like to add two aspects to that, which I find fascinating. The first is in relation to the location of these convenience stores, where we have 36 per cent in our rural communities, 37 per cent in our urban communities and 27 per cent in our suburban communities. I wonder what other economic unit can claim such coverage across Scotland. They do really sit at the heart of our communities. Again, when we look at the sort of communities they serve, 39 per cent are isolated stores. Frequently the only option for families, 27 per cent sit on small parades, 10 per cent on large parades and 24 per cent in the main streets in our cities. Again, it shows that our convenience stores are not just the fabric of our communities, but they are an essential jigsaw. I think that's reflected certainly in the knowledge that I have, both of the community in which I live in, but also across the south of Scotland with stories that have been shared with me, both by convenience store operators and owners, but also by individuals. I look back to Covid, where at the beginning people didn't know where to turn, didn't know where to look and so many of them went first to the shop that they go in nearly every day of their lives and almost to the end they were greeted, supported and welcomed. I am aware of shopkeepers who put their hands in their own pockets for people who assisted with food provision. I am aware of shops that went above and beyond delivering to people who couldn't come out to their houses. Something that, imaginatively and entrepreneurially, they have continued to do. Can I say, quite frankly, better than a lot of the large delivery services? I trust my local convenience store to take in the package from those delivery services because I know it will be safe there. I know I can pick it up from someone I know and I know it will be there when they say it's there. I don't think we can overstate the value of our convenience stores, but I think that we should pay tribute to every single one of them, to the staff who go in, the staff who struggle sometimes because of some of the challenges that I will come to shortly, but the fact that they are there when our people, our communities need them is a great tribute to them. We have a responsibility to allow that economic vehicle to continue. That allows me to turn to some of the challenges that have already been raised in part by Murdo Fraser, the business rates, the energy bills, the fact that so many of the convenience stores run refrigerated units that they were suddenly thrown out in the sense of bill renewals that came up, the DRS that has been mentioned and may well come back. I do want to spend a small part of the time talking about the violence and the theft, because that's what shoplifting is, the theft from these premises. And I find myself in slight disagreement with Murdo Fraser as to the reasons behind it, but I'm not sure there is value tonight in going into that. What I am aware of are shopkeepers who say to me, well, I let that person take that thing because I just knew they didn't have it and they needed it. And I am also aware of shopkeepers who have gone to the police with CCTV, with the name, with the address of the person who has taken stuff from the shop and indeed have received little or no support in pursuing that. And these are small shops that cannot survive if they continue to be exposed to that sort of theft. But in concluding, I would like just also to mention on a sad note the violence that these shops and the people who work in them are facing. I think in part it's due to the pressures that exist within society, in part it's to do with a change in attitude. But I am aware of situations which have had the most horrible consequences for events that have started off in a shop. I am aware of people who have given up working in shops because of the violence they face. To go back to the beginning of my contribution tonight, these are a crucial part of our community and if we want to serve them the way they have served us for literally generations, we need to find a way to support those workers who are in that and support the owners. I'm very grateful, Deputy Presiding Officer. Thank you Presiding Officer. I'm honoured to take part in today's debate on the contribution of the Scottish convenience sector and I thank the member, Gordon MacDonald, for bringing it forward. While the member's motion talks in great detail about the sector's contribution to the economy, I would like to spend some time discussing the importance of Scottish convenience stores to our cultural and social fabric. I am a proud daughter of a former shopkeeper. Many of you sitting here today undoubtedly have an image in your mind of your neighbourhood convenience stores. The welcoming faces, the familiarity, the dependability and the constancy. Convenience stores are like little lifesavers when we are in a hurry or just near a quick fix, but as the daughter of a shopkeeper, I know they are much more than that too. Convenience stores are the staple of communities. For many it can be a light-hearted outing to pick up your goods, socialise or discuss neighbourhood drama, but for some it is a sanctuary. As many of you are aware, I frequently bring up the comfort, safety and open ear my mum provided to victims of domestic abuse. Well, it was in my family's store in Ergyll Street in Glasgow that she'd done that so, and I know that she will not be the only shopkeeper to have done this. The relationship forged over decades between customers and shopkeepers, particularly in the United Kingdom, is something to be celebrated. I think that community bonds are the reason why Scottish convenience stores are so successful. As well as that, they are champions of the local community with 65 per cent collecting money for a local or national charity, 33 per cent donating to a food bank and 17 per cent providing funding or in kind support to community events. They also provide around 49,000 secure local jobs. It goes without question that the Scottish convenience stores are both socially and economically invaluable to the Scottish economy. However, the question is whether this Parliament is doing all it can to ensure that industry reaches its full potential. Before I conclude, I would like to make a mention of Scottish retail crime, which my colleague Murdo Fraser has touched upon in his speech today. The amount of retail crime that the convenience industry is currently dealing with is astounding. Our legal system is doing very little to help. Our courts and police personnel are in disarray. These days, organised crime groups and criminal stints are untouchable. Last week, we heard at the UK retail breakfast round table event held in the Scottish Parliament that thugs are continually coming into stores, taking what they like and leaving. Some shopkeepers do not even bother reporting the crime anymore due to the fear of retribution and the fact that no police will attend or will arrive far too late. I do acknowledge that this is not directly the fault of the police service but is indeed a result of chronic underfunding of Police Scotland, a lack of resources and workforce shortages. Nonetheless, it is a huge problem and the Scottish Government must urgently address this situation. Small businesses cannot sustain continued losses. We heard that today from the member, Martin Whitfield, that businesses are very little and every penny counts to them. That is on their profit margin. We really need to do much more to help these micro-small businesses. In conclusion, Scottish convenience stores are vital to this country's economy and society. They are evidence of relationships that have grown over decades between store owners and their patrons. While the future of the Scottish convenience sector seems promising, the SNP needs to recognise that our retail sector is beginning to exhibit signs of a deficient justice system. A combination of fewer officer's numbers and a soft-touch justice system has allowed criminals to free rein. The SNP must act urgently to address that. Today's motion has been an opportunity to be upfront about the challenges facing the Scottish convenience sector. I hope to see real actions taken following this debate to support the sector. Thanks to Gordon MacDonald for bringing this motion before Parliament and for members' contributions, highlighting the importance of the retail convenience store sector to Scotland. Those debates are always enlightening. I was not aware that the Parliament had at least two daughters of grocers in Audrey Nicholl and Pam Gossel. It is always useful to hear more about the experiences. I am sure that Pam and Audrey will have many stories to tell. It is without doubt that our local retailers and convenience stores provide vital local access services and flexible employment opportunities. As Gordon MacDonald and others said, they contribute so much to their communities, often acting as the only local hub in towns and villages and neighbourhoods across Scotland. Like coffee, I highlighted how they have taken on many of the traditional roles that we would have seen elsewhere on the high street as society has adapted to changing trends and digital age, whether that be postal and banking services or energy and communication needs besides the food and drink offer that they have. It was useful to hear about the pilots and the go-local offer. They are crucial to community resilience, building social interaction, fostering a positive sense of community and supporting active and vibrant local communities. It was good to hear from several members talking about the contribution of grocers across Scotland during the pandemic. We all want our town and neighbourhood centres to be diverse, sustainable and thriving places for communities to live, work and enjoy. We want our towns and town centres to be vibrant, creative, enterprising and accessible, where people can meet most of their daily needs within a reasonable distance of their home, enabling them to live better, healthier lives and support our net-zero ambitions. I think that Mordor Fraser made the point about how, if we are going to get to net-zero, the convenience stores are the stores that are within walking distance to most of our population, walking or cycling or healing. In the statistics that I presented to the House, 39 per cent are located in isolated areas where they are literally the only available store for people. How does the minister see supporting those in towards both the net-zero but also their basic survival? Particularly if it is the only hub and it will be providing that range of services, we all have a role in supporting our local stores. I will come on to talk a little bit about some of the work that we are doing, but it is important to be clear that this is not, and it never is, a party political sphere. I work closely with the cosla spokesperson, councillor Gail MacGregor, who is a member of Mr Fraser's party. We work very closely, because I think that we all realise the huge importance of this sector, not just to our economy but much, much more to our local communities. Clearly local convenience shops and retailers play that key role in ensuring that people can live well, in ensuring access to food and the plethora of other services that we have talked about. Members have also talked about the services that many of those stores provide for people who have disability issues, infirmity and lack of transport, so it is really, really important. As Mr McDonald said, convenience stores are massively important to local jobs. In many cases, offering a range of flexible hours can also offer skills development and flexible and successful careers for a first job in a local store to be the potential of distribution, supply chain businesses, large stores, ownership or management. Real opportunities for the local community. Going back to Mr Whittle's point, they can only continue if we support them, so I think that that is one of the really important things. That is why I think that the Scotland loves local scheme is so important. I would really encourage people to consider that if they are spending money locally, they are not only supporting that local shop, they are supporting their friends, their family and their neighbours. It is really, really important. I am mindful that I am taking a bit of time, so I want to try to touch on one or two of the challenges that members have rightly raised. Martin Whittle and I have both talked about non-domestic rates. Obviously, there is a budget process that we have to go through, but it is important to remember that in last year's budget, the big ask of the Scottish Government was in terms of freezing the poundage, and Scotland did manage to freeze the poundage, so we have the lowest poundage in the UK for the fifth year in a row, a package of reliefs worth an estimated £749 million. I would contend that we provide the best support across these islands to retail business, particularly the smaller end of that spectrum, but recognise that the challenges that are raised, and that is why the new deal for business group, which has been established, has a consultative subgroup to advise on non-domestic rates, so that those discussions are being taken forward by the Minister for Community Wealth and Public Finance, and clearly decisions have to be made in time for the budget. Several members raised the issue around crime, and model phraser in particular, and Pam Goswell talked about the challenges around organised crime. That is, without question, a serious issue. It seems to be developing, and it is something that we need to work together. The Scottish Government and its partners on the serious organised crime task force are fully committed to tackling serious crime, and all its guises are reducing the harm that it causes to our communities. The partners on that task force will use every means at their disposal to disrupt the activities of organised crime groups and hold them to account for the harm that they cause to communities and businesses, particularly those that are most vulnerable. However, I tend to agree with Martin Whitfield that there are other factors at play. Last month, the First Minister cited Dr Sianade Fury, a senior lecturer in consumer management and food innovation at the University of Ulster University. It was very clear that stealing to eat has taken place in previous times of economic downturn. Although there is no suggestion that there is the only driver, clearly there are concerns right now in terms of the impact of the cost of living crisis. It is never an excuse of course. Mr Whitfield particularly mentioned violence against retail workers, which can never be acceptable. The Parliament voted to bring in the Retail Workers Act 2021, which came into force in August 2021. Statistics from that are just coming through. However, in that quarter from August 2021 to August 2022, statistics just last week published showed that there were 27 individuals who were prosecuted under that legislation. 26 of those were convicted, a conviction rate of 96 per cent. It is important that 50 per cent receive a custodial sentence, which shows the seriousness of the nature of the offences. It is an area that I, as the Minister for Responsibility for Retail, take seriously. The industry leadership group will be looking at this in terms of a deep dive as to what more we can do collectively to deal with the challenge. I see time is on us. I will conclude by saying a huge thank you to our convenience sector across Scotland for the vital services that they provide to our communities across the country. I also want to extend my particular thanks to the Scottish Grocer's Federation on promoting responsible communities' community retailing amongst its membership.