MSPs took time out from Holyrood yesterday to attend an election husting in the nearby MacDonald Holyrood Hotel.
Jointly organised by the Scottish Countryside Alliance, NFU Scotland and the Scottish Rural Property and Business Association in association with 20 other organisations with rural interests, the event was a rare opportunity to get the similar point of view across to politicians.
All the rural lobbies were well supported and heard brief presentations by NFUS president Jim McLaren and SRPBA chairman Keith Arbuthnott. Between them they outlined their agenda for the next Scottish Parliament that is summarised as follows: l Local sourcing of produce, more emphasis on food provenance, fewer food miles and the promotion of a "Buy Scottish" campaign.
l Increasing promotion of and investment in all forms of renewable energy including greater support for biofuels.
l Rural-proofing of all Scottish Executive policy.
l Securing the future of farming industry through workable support structures and initiatives.
l Increasing private sector involvement in the provision of good quality affordable housing.
l Joint working to promote country sports, and to ensure their contribution to landscape and biodiversity conservation and the rural economy is fully utilised and further enhanced.
l Supporting and working with land managers to enhance Scotland's wildlife and habitats.
l Protection of vital services such as schools, post offices and transport links.
Speaking in alphabetical order, Shiona Baird, joint convener of the Green Party, highlighted the power of the supermarkets and the need for an independent regulator. Referring to the highly successful "fair trade" campaign for third world producers she asked: "What about a fair price for milk?"
Sarah Boyack, Labour's Deputy Minister for the Environment and Rural Development, stressed that her first objective is a stable economy for Scotland.
She believed that land management contracts and the new Scottish rural development plan will be important and her party would try to maximise the benefits from these schemes.
Referring to a recently- launched initiative in East Ayrshire she believed that public sector local procurement was one way to help farmers access local markets.
Ross Finnie, the Lib Dem Minister for the Environment since the Scottish Parliament's inception claimed he had developed strategies that engage with the relevant bodies. Having watched Eire's highly-successful Bord Bia, he stressed his belief in Scotland Food and Drink, the new organisation led by the food industry and supported by the public sector and others.
"I am convinced we need a better Bord Bia in Scotland", he said. Referring to Monday's decision by European ministers to allow the UK to voluntarily modulate the single farm payment scheme he stressed the need for match funding from the Treasury.
Underlining the fact that the Tories are extremely unlikely to be part of the next Scottish legislature, Annabel Goldie got sidetracked with her support for rural country sports. Referring to fox hunting she said: "There are times that what may seem barbaric is in fact humane as it guarantees the animal is dispatched quickly."
SNP spokesman on the Environment, Richard Lochhead reckoned that the recent CAP reforms had been better implemented in Scotland compared to south of the border.
He believed that food security in Scotland is now a priority. "We have to build that into our economic policy."
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