S4M-09329 Showmen’s Guild (125th Anniversary)

The Deputy Presiding Officer (John Scott): The next item of business is a members’ business debate on motion S4M-09329, in the name of Richard Lyle, on celebrating 125 years of the Showmen’s Guild. The debate will be concluded without any question being put.

Motion debated,

That the Parliament congratulates the Scottish Showmen’s Guild on its 125th anniversary; understands that the Scottish section of the Showmen’s Guild is the largest by area, covering fairs from John O’Groats to Carlisle and Kendal; considers that the Scottish Showmen’s Guild plays an important role in Kirkcaldy Links Market, Europe’s longest street fair; commends the Scottish Showmen’s Guild on inspecting all rides, games and attractions for safety certificates; supports what it considers the Scottish Showmen’s Guild’s continued success in regulating Scotland’s fairgrounds, providing safe entertainment for people in Scotland; compliments all the members of the guild on the way that they serve the people of the Central Scotland region, and wishes them continued success in the future.

12:32
... ... ...
13:00

Stewart Stevenson (Banffshire and Buchan Coast) (SNP): I congratulate Richard Lyle on securing time for the debate. The debate focuses on the 125th anniversary of the Scottish Showmen’s Guild, which is an impressive achievement.

I am sure that I speak for many people who have enjoyed the entertainment that the guild provides in streets and in country locations across Scotland. My parents used to let me go—I must have been a particularly responsible child. [Laughter.] I see that that argument gains little support from members.

We should put what the guild does in the context of the modern world. We can go to the cinema, watch telly for hours and play on our phones and iPads, but the live entertainment and the unique carnival atmosphere that we can enjoy when the showmen come to town are very different and still attract us. It is therefore right that we express our gratitude for that spontaneous and genuine entertainment.

The Roman philosopher Seneca said:

“As the soil, however rich it may be, cannot be productive without cultivation, so the mind without culture can never produce good fruit.”

The Scottish Showmen’s Guild is an essential and integral part of our culture. The showmen travel around Scotland, showing us things that we might not otherwise experience. They are grounded in Scotland’s past, but they adapt to meet the needs of Scotland’s future. The entertainment is family friendly and unique, and I hope that it never goes unnoticed.

Maureen Watt talked about local shows. I woke up on Tuesday morning to the sounds of the showies in the Tesco car park in Linlithgow—when I am down here I am in my wee house in Linlithgow. The showmen’s coming to town is an essential part of the annual Linlithgow marches celebration, which is about beating the boundaries of the town.

In the area that I represent, we are looking forward to the Turra show in the first weekend in August. It is the second biggest agricultural show in Scotland, after this week’s Royal Highland Show. A person cannot get into the Turra show without walking through the showground—the noise, the hubbub, the people, the toffee apples, the sugar on sticks and the sheer excitement of it all.

Over two days, the Turra show attracts tens of thousands of people, and the showmen are an integral part of that. The show complements what the showmen bring, with horses, dancing and a range of competitions, as well as around 250 trade stands and, in the adjacent industrial marquee, more than 1,700 craft displays. The showmen add lustre and excitement to that important event, to which people come from all over the world.

Thousands of people depend on the entertainment that is provided by the Scottish Showmen’s Guild. The events aid tourism by dragging people in; they are an important part of our economy.

I hope that we never forget the showmen’s contribution, but we should also recognise the challenges that we sometimes create. Let me suggest an example from my personal experience. In 1971, we had decimalisation. The penny in the roll-the-penny stall that I was particularly addicted to became a totty wee coin, but the new 2 pence coin was, of course, five times as valuable. That was a significant challenge and when we were doing decimalisation, nobody thought about it.

I owe gratitude to my American intern for my remarks. She has been absolutely amazed to discover about the Scottish Showmen’s Guild, and all that it does, in her research to help me with my contribution today. We are truly reaching out to international engagement.

13:05