Scottish Parliament, 13 January 2022

266 contributions from 66 members. The official report.

General Question Time

Alison Johnstone (Presiding Officer, Lothian)

Good morning. I remind members of the Covid-related measures that are in place and that face coverings should be worn when moving around the chamber and across the Holyrood campus.

The first item of business is general question time. In order to get in as many members as possible, I would be grateful for short and succinct questions and responses.

General Practitioner Services (North East Scotland)

Mercedes Villalba (Labour, North East Scotland)

1. To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to improve the provision of GP services in the north-east. (S6O-00616)

Humza Yousaf (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Pollok)

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring access to general practitioner services across Scotland, which is why we have pledged to increase the number of GPs by at least 800 by 2027. Currently, a record 5,195 GPs are working in Scotland, which is an increase of 74 from 2020.

The Scottish Government offers a wide range of initiatives to attract GPs to rural settings in particular, including golden hellos and bursaries for newly qualified GPs to take up posts in hard-to-fill rural locations. We established a graduate entry medicine programme focusing on general practice and rural working; we pay tuition fees for eligible students; and, in 2022, we will expand to the north-east the “Rediscover the joy” recruitment initiative.

Mercedes Villalba (Labour, North East Scotland)

The provision of GP services in Aberdeen is coming under increasing strain due to six of the city’s publicly run medical practices being put out to tender for private contract. I understand that the Scottish ministers are unable to intervene in the arrangements for individual practices, but the cabinet secretary has already informed me that he expects satisfactory systems to be in place for the benefit of all patients.

Given that an external investigation has upheld complaints from campaigners about the tendering process for Old Aberdeen medical practice, will the cabinet secretary now ask the health and social care partnership to pause the tendering process so that a full and independent review of it can be undertaken?

Humza Yousaf (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Pollok)

I recognise that Ms Villalba has raised the issue on a number of occasions, and I know that other members have concerns—understandably so. However, I will not ask the health and social care partnership to pause the tendering process, because that would be doing exactly what Ms Villalba has recognised that I should not do, which is intervene in local decision making. What I will do in relation to an independent review, which she has mentioned, is raise the issue again with colleagues in Grampian and ask my colleagues to raise it with the local health and social care partnership.

In the tendering that has taken place recently, the needs of patients and the local community have been put front and centre to achieve a more sustainable model of GP practice in the future.

Liam Kerr (Conservative, North East Scotland)

In early December, I asked about Carden medical centre in Aberdeen, which is closing due to the Government’s failure to carry out workforce planning and to train and recruit GPs. True to form, the cabinet secretary evaded my question, so I will ask it again. When precisely does he project that the north-east will have enough GPs to run the services that the people of Aberdeen need and deserve?

Humza Yousaf (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Pollok)

Liam Kerr is incorrect in his assertion. Scotland has more GPs per head—per 100,000 people—than any other part of the United Kingdom. That is not by a margin or just slightly, but significantly more. There are 94 GPs per 100,000 people in Scotland, compared with 76 GPs per 100,000 people in England. We are investing, we have record numbers of GPs and we continue to recruit.

In relation to the patients of Carden medical centre, the medical practice that Liam Kerr referred to, it is my understanding that they will be or have already been automatically registered to a new practice. There are nine GP practices within a one-mile radius of Carden medical centre and a total of 27 practices in the Aberdeen city area. The needs of patients are being put first.

The reason why we have such a good record in GP recruitment and retention is because we invest in our GPs. I am sure that that is why the Scottish public has chosen to re-elect us for a fourth term and Liam Kerr continues in opposition.

Mental Health (Awareness)

Jenni Minto (Scottish National Party, Argyll and Bute)

2. To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to improve awareness of mental health. (S6O-00617)

Kevin Stewart (Scottish National Party, Aberdeen Central)

The Scottish Government has highlighted the importance of mental health and wellbeing and provided a range of advice and support through the Clear Your Head radio, television and online campaign and NHS Inform, and via Young Scot’s “Aye feel” platform.

In addition, our mental health transition and recovery plan includes a wider range of actions to support and promote good mental health and wellbeing in response to the pandemic. Those include: providing long-term funding for See Me, Scotland’s campaign to end the stigma and discrimination associated with mental illness; working with employer groups, trade unions and mental health organisations to promote mentally healthy workplaces; launching a £15 million communities fund to support adult mental health and wellbeing in communities across Scotland; and working with partners to provide a range of resources to meet the needs of children and young people, including more than 200 new community support services.

Jenni Minto (Scottish National Party, Argyll and Bute)

Next Monday, 17 January, the Samaritans will hold its yearly event #brewmonday to remind everyone to reach out for a cuppa and a catch-up with the people whom they care about. Will the minister join me in supporting that event, which can also be carried out virtually?

Kevin Stewart (Scottish National Party, Aberdeen Central)

I certainly join Ms Minto in her support for the Samaritans. I greatly value the important work of the Samaritans and am delighted to support its #brewmonday event, which is really important. I recognise that January can be a difficult time of year for lots of people at the best of times. We all have our good days and bad days, but there is always a sense that the short days, the poor weather and the end of the festive season can have an impact, so we should all come together to help one another through it. I applaud the Samaritans for its efforts in that regard, and I urge every member to support the #brewmonday event.

Carol Mochan (Labour, South Scotland)

At Tuesday’s Health, Social Care and Sport Committee, a leading occupational therapist, Suzanne Shields, called on parliamentarians to give

“children and families access to free physical and leisure activities, with support in place.”

Does the minister agree that that is a key area that the Scottish Government must focus on as an immediate priority in relation to mental health policy? What assurances can he give today to the many children and families for whom physical and leisure activities are either too expensive or too far away?

Kevin Stewart (Scottish National Party, Aberdeen Central)

I believe that play and physical activity are extremely important in ensuring folk’s mental wellbeing. That is one of the reasons why, for example, the Government’s manifesto contained a commitment to putting resources into play parks.

I recognise what Ms Mochan says about the cost of accessing leisure activities but, as she is aware, much of the responsibility for such charges rests with local authorities. I encourage local authorities to use their budgeting process to look at what offers they can make to families that might have difficulty in accessing such services. I know that that happens in many parts of the country and I encourage the local authorities that do not have such schemes to have a look at them.

Phenylketonuria (Support)

Neil Gray (Scottish National Party, Airdrie and Shotts)

3. To ask the Scottish Government what support and treatment is available for people diagnosed with phenylketonuria. (S6O-00618)

Maree Todd (Scottish National Party, Caithness, Sutherland and Ross)

The inherited metabolic disorders service for adults and paediatrics is a national commissioned specialist service working out of sites in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and NHS Lothian. The service is available to all IMD patients in NHS Scotland including those with conditions such as phenylketonuria.

The service aims to improve life expectancy and quality of life, and to provide diagnosis as well as advice and treatment to manage and control symptoms. Most people will require lifelong follow-up and support from the specialist service.

Neil Gray (Scottish National Party, Airdrie and Shotts)

For an adult or child with PKU, even the smallest amount of protein in their diet can have a major impact, and prolonged exposure can lead to brain damage. Right now, my constituents with PKU are having to follow the most restrictive diet imaginable, which means cutting out foods that would not have been thought to contain any protein.

Generic versions of the drug sapropterin are now available, which could transform the lives of eligible people with PKU in Airdrie and Shotts and across Scotland by reducing the need to restrict their diet. As generic versions cut the cost of supplying sapropterin, which had previously been a barrier to the use of Kuvan, will the Scottish Government in principle support PKU patients seeking sapropterin prescriptions on the national health service in Scotland?

Maree Todd (Scottish National Party, Caithness, Sutherland and Ross)

The Scottish ministers’ policy priority is to increase access to medicines, especially those that are used in relation to rare, very rare and end-of-life conditions. As a result of Scottish Government reforms and investment in recent years, we have significantly increased access to new medicines.

Neil Gray is correct—the first generic version of sapropterin has received a marketing authorisation from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency. To ensure best value for NHS Scotland, National Services Scotland National Procurement will shortly tender for the future supply of sapropterin to NHS Scotland. Given the launch of the first generic version, we are currently considering how best to provide advice to health boards on whether sapropterin should be made available for routine use in NHS Scotland, based on the latest available evidence.

Blood Donation

Fulton MacGregor (Scottish National Party, Coatbridge and Chryston)

4. To ask the Scottish Government what action it has taken to encourage people, who are able, to donate blood, particularly during the winter period and on-going Covid-19 pandemic. (S6O-00619)

Maree Todd (Scottish National Party, Caithness, Sutherland and Ross)

I would like to thank blood donors for continuing to come forward over the particularly difficult winter period, in spite of the on-going pandemic. That has meant that the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service has been able to provide enough blood to meet the needs of patients, although the situation can be volatile, so I encourage those people who can donate blood to continue to do so.

SNBTS has well-developed plans in place to ensure that it has sufficient donors. Over the festive period, there were successful radio, television and media campaigns to encourage donations.

Fulton MacGregor (Scottish National Party, Coatbridge and Chryston)

I thank the minister for that response and for her positive response to my members’ business debate on the subject yesterday. I echo her calls to encourage people to give blood if they have not done so for a while or if they have never given blood before.

Given the importance to the wider national health service of donating blood, and the fact that the number of donors dropped during the first year of the pandemic, will the Government commit to considering what more it can do to increase the number of active blood donors, including by encouraging workplace schemes that allow employees time off to donate blood?

Maree Todd (Scottish National Party, Caithness, Sutherland and Ross)

I know that SNBTS is already doing good work with many organisations to highlight the need for blood donors, but I am very happy to look at what the Scottish Government can do to support that.

Paul O'Kane (Labour, West Scotland)

I was delighted to participate in Fulton MacGregor’s members’ business debate on the topic last night and to raise the fact that, last year—historically—we removed the ban in Scotland on gay and bisexual men donating blood, which has opened up the ability to donate to a whole new range of people.

What is the minister doing to promote that among communities so that people who may think that the previous stigmatising rule still exists can be told that it does not and that they can become blood donors?

Maree Todd (Scottish National Party, Caithness, Sutherland and Ross)

I again thank Paul O’Kane for raising the issue. It is indeed a wonderful step forward that the range of people who are able to donate blood has been widened. In last night’s debate, we spoke about what a fabulous experience that is for so many people who have been denied the opportunity to help their communities by giving blood.

My impression is that most people who are affected by that change in the rules are well aware of it. I know that my predecessor, Joe FitzPatrick, worked hard to raise the profile of the issue before the regulations changed, but I am more than happy to look again to see whether there is anything else that we can do to help to raise awareness of that change. It is indeed a wonderful step forward in reducing stigma.

Hate Crime (LGBT+ Community)

Jamie Greene (Conservative, West Scotland)

5. To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the latest figures showing that recorded hate crimes against members of the LGBT+ community have risen for five years in a row. (S6O-00620)

Shona Robison (Scottish National Party, Dundee City East)

Any form of hate crime towards our LGBTI communities is completely unacceptable.

Although the rise in recorded hate crimes may be driven by the willingness of victims to report incidents, we are not complacent and remain committed to building inclusive communities. We are providing more than £3 million in funding between 2021 and 2024 to tackle inequality and realise rights for LGBTI people.

Our recent report shows the progress that we and partners have made in tackling prejudice and fostering community cohesion. We will continue to work with stakeholders to co-create a new hate crime strategy, to guide how we tackle hatred and prejudice in Scotland.

Jamie Greene (Conservative, West Scotland)

I share the cabinet secretary’s sentiment. There is simply no place in Scotland for intolerance and hatred of that nature. However, with more than 7,500 incidents reported since 2014, the picture for many in the LGBTI community is often grim.

Will the cabinet secretary commit to undertaking an analysis of the underlying causes of the stark rise in case numbers? Is it a rise in verbal or online abuse or—and worse—a rise in physical attacks? What is the Scottish Government doing to ensure that Police Scotland has trained LGBTI liaison officers in all parts of Scotland to support the victims of those horrid crimes?

Shona Robison (Scottish National Party, Dundee City East)

I am willing to do that and to report back to the member. Police Scotland is part of the strategic partnership group on hate crime and is actively involved with other stakeholders in the development and implementation of the new hate crime strategy.

We are committed to understanding the causes of such crimes and ensuring that we respond fully to them. We know that hate crime, including that related to sexual orientation, remains significantly underreported and that it is unlikely that the figures reflect the community’s true experience. Involving stakeholders in developing our new hate crime strategy will help us to tackle many of the barriers that communities face in reporting incidents.

I am happy to report back to the member about the specifics of what he asked.

Small Rural Businesses (Support)

Rachael Hamilton (Conservative, Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire)

6. To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to support small rural businesses. (S6O-00621)

Ivan McKee (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Provan)

Our enterprise agencies and Business Gateway provide a range of advice and funding to small rural businesses.

In addition, we are providing £375 million of funding, targeted at the hardest hit sectors, to businesses impacted by the current additional public health measures. We are working to make payments to affected businesses as soon as possible.

Information on the support available to businesses is available on the Find Business Support website, which is updated daily.

Rachael Hamilton (Conservative, Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire)

With its introduction of a licensing scheme, the Scottish National Party is about to put a wrecking ball through the rural short-term letting industry. Some organisations have quit the SNP Government’s working group. In a recent parliamentary survey, more than 60 per cent of respondents said that the scheme will drive up costs for small short-term letting businesses.

Rural organisations such as the Association of Scotland’s Self-Caterers, Scottish Agritourism and the NFU Scotland have all voiced concerns about the impact of this reckless scheme. Is it not time for the SNP to stand up for Scotland’s rural businesses?

Ivan McKee (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Provan)

We do stand up for rural businesses across Scotland. I have outlined the steps that we are taking to support businesses through the current difficult situation and beyond.

Regarding short-term lets, the licensing scheme seeks to ensure that every short-term let in Scotland meets basic safety standards. I am sure that the member will agree that that is important in urban and rural areas and for large and small businesses. Our proposals deliver national consistency on safety standards by giving local authorities flexibility to tailor the scheme to local needs. Residents in some areas are continuing to experience issues caused by short-term lets and it is right that we are taking proportionate action to give local authorities the ability to take measures in that regard.

I have met many of the organisations that the member mentioned and have listened to their concerns. We have addressed some of those concerns in the legislation that my colleague Shona Robison is taking forward. We believe, for all the reasons that I have indicated, that that is the right measure.

The Presiding Officer

Regrettably, due to time constraints, I cannot take any further questions. We move on to First Minister’s questions.

First Minister’s Question Time

Alison Johnstone (Presiding Officer, Lothian)

Members who wish to ask constituency or general supplementary questions should press their buttons during question 2. Members who wish to ask supplementaries on questions 3 to 6 should press their buttons during the relevant question.

Financial Support for Businesses

Douglas Ross (Conservative, Highlands and Islands)

1. On 14 December, I asked the First Minister to confirm that vital financial support that was needed by businesses that were affected by her Covid restrictions would be delivered before Christmas. The First Minister stood there and promised to do everything possible to deliver that, but she has failed. Many businesses have contacted us to say that they cannot even apply for that funding yet, let alone receive a single penny. Can the First Minister tell us how many businesses in Scotland have received funding so far and how many are waiting to receive it?

Nicola Sturgeon (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Southside)

This is an important issue for many businesses across the country. I said before Christmas, and I repeat today, that the Scottish Government, in partnership with local authorities, which are responsible for administering the significant bulk of the funding that we have made available, is working to get that money to businesses as quickly as possible. As I am sure that everybody will accept—including, I hope, Douglas Ross—there are some checks that councils have to make to guard against fraud and any businesses trying to claim money that they are not entitled to. I am not suggesting that many would do that. That process is on-going.

For the hospitality strand, for example, businesses that previously got support have been contacted, or the vast bulk of them have been contacted. They have been asked to complete a declaration, and then money will start to flow when those declarations have been returned. I know that many councils are in the process of making the payments. The City of Edinburgh Council and Midlothian Council, for example, have started to make payments, and Glasgow City Council is starting today on the back of that process.

The nightclub closure fund, on which I know there has been commentary this week, is also open for applications. Nightclubs are being asked to submit an application. As soon as they do so—within days—money will be allocated to them.

This is an on-going process, but everybody is working hard to get the money into the bank accounts of businesses as quickly as possible.

Finally, I remind Douglas Ross in particular that, where the Conservatives are in power—that is a touchy subject today, I know—some of this money is not being provided at all to businesses. This Government has made sure that we are providing financial support to businesses. Many businesses that are suffering the same impacts of Covid south of the border are not getting the money that businesses will get in Scotland.

Douglas Ross (Conservative, Highlands and Islands)

Let us look at the First Minister’s answer. Apparently, this is an important issue, yet she could not tell us how many businesses in Scotland have received the funding and how many are still waiting. She stood in this chamber and promised to do everything possible to deliver the funding before Christmas. Here we are in the middle of January and businesses are telling us that the process is going at a snail’s pace, but the First Minister somehow defends it or blames councils for not acting quickly enough.

The responsibility is on the Scottish Government. The Scottish National Party added the restrictions in Scotland, which have impacted businesses, but it has not delivered the funding. A business group here in Scotland said yesterday:

“not a single penny of the funding we were promised before Christmas has reached businesses”.

Now, a month after the funding was announced, John Swinney has come forward to say that it is

“difficult to give a precise timescale”

for when the money will be paid.

I say to the First Minister that this has happened time and again during the pandemic. The SNP is quick to demand more funding from the United Kingdom Government but very slow to get it out to the businesses that need it. Is a month-long wait for this vital funding really good enough for our businesses?

The First Minister

At least under an SNP Government, money is being allocated to businesses and will get to them. Under a Tory Government, money is not getting to businesses at all.

I am sure that, if either central Government or local government was to disburse money without basic checks to guard against fraud, for example, Douglas Ross would be one of the first to get to his feet and complain about that as well.

The nightclub closure fund, for example, is open for applications. Businesses that have previously received support are being contacted and asked to complete their application, and then payment will be made within a matter of days once that application has been received.

With the hospitality fund, for example, businesses are being asked only to complete a declaration, not to submit a new application. Businesses are being proactively contacted and councils are starting now—some have already started and some are starting today—to pay that money. I am not criticising councils. I know how hard and how quickly they are working to get that money out of the door.

I come back to the point that we all want this to be done as quickly as possible but, although businesses in every part of the United Kingdom are suffering some of the same impacts of Covid, in Scotland they will be getting financial support that businesses are not getting south of the border, where the Conservatives are in government.

Douglas Ross (Conservative, Highlands and Islands)

Businesses in other parts of the United Kingdom were not shut down in the same way that they were shut down by Nicola Sturgeon. We all remember her Public Health Scotland telling people not to go to Christmas parties, and the First Minister went on television the next day to confirm that. That is why funding is required here in Scotland, and that is why it was required in December, not the middle of January.

The First Minister said that the delay is because there are basic checks to be made to ensure that the money goes to the right people. We cannot make the basic checks if in some areas the application process has not even opened. That is the problem that businesses are telling us about.

This week in Scotland, businesses were dealt another blow. Restrictions on them were extended by a further week without any clear evidence. The omicron data is now far more positive, and the First Minister herself has accepted that the Government’s predictions in December were wrong, so why are hospitality businesses still being held back by her Government? Can she explain to people across Scotland why it is now safe for tens of thousands of people to go to stadiums but not safe for someone to walk from their seat to the bar in their local pub?

The First Minister

Douglas Ross must be the only person in the entire country who, in the run-up to Christmas, did not hear the howls from hospitality businesses south of the border about the collapse in footfall, the loss of revenue and the dire straits that they were in. He is standing here trying to suggest that businesses in every part of the UK have not suffered these Covid impacts. The difference in Scotland, of course, is that the Scottish Government has responded in a much greater way than the Government south of the border has.

On the application process for hospitality—I have already said this; Douglas Ross might want to listen—businesses are being contacted and asked to complete a declaration. That process is under way and the money has started to flow. The application process for the nightclub closure fund is open, and that money will be flowing soon as well, because we take seriously our responsibilities to allocate money and get it to businesses in a way that the Tory Government is simply not doing to anywhere near the same extent.

The projections before Christmas were not wrong. What happened was that we did not just fold our arms and accept them as inevitable. We took proportionate, sensible and balanced action. The public responded—as they have done throughout the pandemic—magnificently, and we were able to change the course of those projections. Is Douglas Ross really saying that, if he had been standing here—something that I know is hard to contemplate for people in Scotland, and even harder for some people in his own party, it seems—he would not have responded to those projections in December? If that had been the case, we would have been in a seriously difficult position right now. Because we took sensible action, we are now lifting the restrictions, but we are doing so in a safe and responsible way.

Had I followed the advice of Douglas Ross over these past months, we would not have face coverings still being used in Scotland and we would not have some of the mitigations that we have in schools. We would not have taken many of the sensible actions that we have taken, and we would be in a much worse position than we are in now. I will continue to follow a sensible and responsible course to lead this country as safely as possible through the remainder of this pandemic.

Douglas Ross (Conservative, Highlands and Islands)

If the First Minister had listened to me and voices from the Scottish Conservatives in December, businesses would not be telling her in January that they are not getting the funding that they need. She said that I have to listen to her answers. I ask her please to listen to the businesses here in Scotland that are telling her that she made a promise to them that she failed to deliver. [Interruption.] They are waiting for that vital funding to protect their businesses and protect jobs, and the First Minister shaking her head and dismissing what they are saying undermines everything that they are trying to do to keep their business alive through this toughest possible time.

The First Minister tells us to live with Covid, but she does not trust the public. She imposes restrictions but does not deliver compensation. She says that the data on omicron—on Covid—is more promising, and then she threatens businesses with a wider vaccination passport scheme. She demands more money from the UK Government, and then she does not give it to businesses here in Scotland.

When our economic recovery is so fragile, that is simply not good enough. Why are Scottish jobs and Scottish businesses always an afterthought for the First Minister and her Government?

The First Minister

That is—not for the first time from Douglas Ross—arrant nonsense. We cannot give more money from the UK Government to Scottish businesses because we did not get more money from the UK Government—money that not just the Scottish Government but the Welsh and Northern Ireland Governments asked for.

We managed to find, within our own resources, additional money, so that we can get extra support to Scottish businesses, because we accept how important it is, in the face of this on-going challenge, to provide as much support as we can to businesses. Right now, the Scottish Government is working with local government to get that money out of the door and into the bank accounts of businesses.

I come back to a central point. That is money that will get to businesses; counterpart businesses south of the border will not get that money, even though they have suffered much the same impact as businesses here in Scotland have suffered.

Week on week, I lose track of what exactly Douglas Ross thinks we should or should not do to tackle Covid. All that I can conclude is that his approach to tackling a global pandemic is simply to oppose everything that the Scottish Government tries to do. Thank goodness he has not been responsible for these difficult decisions because, given his display in Opposition, the country would be in a sorry mess over Covid had he had anything to do with them.

We will continue to take responsible decisions, we will continue to support businesses and we will continue to lead this country, as safely as possible, through the Covid pandemic.

NHS Lanarkshire

Anas Sarwar (Labour, Glasgow)

2. Almost 10 months ago, the First Minister said that her focus was on getting the NHS back to normal. Today, however, almost two years into the pandemic, things are getting worse, not better. Although I accept that omicron has put more pressure on our NHS services, many of the problems that we are facing were avoidable.

In September, residents in Lanarkshire were told to expect delayed and cancelled operations when the health board was put into code black. This week, the health board has gone further, introducing a suspension of many general practitioner services for at least the next four weeks. Patients were told that NHS services would be cut except for the ones that, in the health board’s words, it would “never wish to stop”.

This is an unprecedented situation that is affecting the health and wellbeing of more than 650,000 Scots. Is it not the case that, for people in Lanarkshire, their entire health service has in effect been turned into an emergency-only service?

Nicola Sturgeon (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Southside)

No, that is not the case.

Let me reflect on Anas Sarwar’s first point, which is that, 10 months ago, I stood here and accepted that that would be the case and said that we were focusing, at that point, on getting the NHS back to normal and back on track. Ten months ago—if my memory serves me correctly—we had not had the delta variant, nor, of course, had we had the omicron variant. This pandemic has dealt us two significant additional blows since that time, 10 months ago.

I accept that that means that what we had hoped would be the case—

Anas Sarwar (Labour, Glasgow)

It was after delta.

The First Minister

Anas Sarwar says that it was after delta. That may or may not be the case, but what I am saying—which any reasonable person who is listening to this would accept—is that the pandemic has continued to deal us blows that we were not necessarily anticipating. Yes, that means that our NHS is still struggling with the weight of Covid in a way that we all hoped would not be the case by now. However, every single day, our NHS boards and those who work in the NHS are undertaking the task magnificently.

NHS Lanarkshire has operationalised level 2 of its general practitioner escalation framework. That is not the most serious level—there are levels 0, 1, 2 and 3. The health board has said that level 2 is initially for a four-week period, but we have asked it to review that weekly and to report to the Scottish Government on the status of that. The health board previously had to do that at an earlier stage of the pandemic, in 2020. That ensures that, given the staff absences that are being experienced right now, the health board can continue to focus on the patients who most need care.

None of us wants to be in this position. We hope that we will be out of it sooner rather than later, but that involves all of us continuing to take the responsible action to get Covid under control so that we can get our NHS fully back to normal.

Anas Sarwar (Labour, Glasgow)

The First Minister says that what I said about emergency-only services is not the case. However, the previous guidance did not include primary care. That is now included, and the board has said that it is now essentially protecting only what it calls its “never” services.

It is also important to note that that was after delta, as the First Minister said, so we cannot say that it is all due to omicron. NHS Lanarkshire was warning of pressure last July, and code black was put in place in October. That was long before omicron arrived in the United Kingdom. By allowing the situation in NHS Lanarkshire to reach crisis levels, the First Minister has let down patients and staff who believed her when she said that a recovery plan was in place.

Across Scotland, more than 650,000 people are now languishing on NHS waiting lists, and 60,000 have been on a waiting list for more than a year. In one month alone, more than 1,600 operations were cancelled just hours before they were due to happen. The number of people and the length of time that they are waiting keep going up.

The First Minister promised a recovery and a catch-up plan. Should recovery not mean that things are getting better rather than worse? Should catch-up not mean that waiting lists are coming down rather than mounting up?

The First Minister

First—and I say this not to be pedantic, but because it is a really important part of the context—Anas Sarwar, in his first question—as, I think, the Official Report will bear out—referred to something that I said 10 months ago and then tried to say that that was somehow after delta. Delta was identified as a variant of concern in, I think, April or May of last year. Since delta, which caused significant additional disruption to the health service and society, we have, of course, had omicron, and we have been dealing with that. None of us wants to be in this position, but any reasonable person would realise that that has seriously frustrated the attempts on the part of the NHS, just as it has frustrated attempts across wider society, to get back to normal. That is the context that we are dealing with.

When it comes to NHS Lanarkshire, I think that Anas Sarwar is mixing up two different escalation frameworks. There is the Scottish Government’s NHS board performance escalation framework, which he has cited to me before in the context of the Queen Elizabeth university hospital. However, at the start of the pandemic, the GP escalation framework was also put in place, which goes from level 0 to level 3. NHS Lanarkshire is currently at level 2, which means that practices may need to request reduced access to some services in order to focus on the most seriously ill patients. That level has been put in place in Lanarkshire for a short period, and we have asked for it to be reviewed weekly.

On waiting times more generally, we are focusing as much as possible on supporting boards to recover the position in terms of backlogs and waiting times, but key to doing that is reducing the pressure on boards and in hospitals that is being caused by Covid. Hopefully, over the next few weeks, as we start to see the omicron position ease, that will happen and those recovery efforts will escalate and accelerate.

This is a really difficult position for the NHS, but it is one that we need to support it through. The sooner that we get Covid back under control, the sooner those efforts can step up again.

Anas Sarwar (Labour, Glasgow)

Ten months ago was the first time that the First Minister said that we would get the NHS back to normal, and the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care published the catch-up plan after the election in May, which was also after delta. What patients expect, and what it is reasonable to expect after almost two years of the pandemic, is a return to normal NHS services—access to basic health services—so that we can protect people’s lives and livelihoods.

Nicola Sturgeon wants to pretend that all the problems in the NHS are because of the pandemic. However, she has been in Government for 14 years and has been the First Minister for seven years. The NHS was underresourced and undervalued by the Government and we had a workforce crisis before the pandemic. There were more than 3,500 nursing and midwifery vacancies. Let us not forget that Nicola Sturgeon, as health secretary, cut the number of training places. The Royal College of Emergency Medicine has said that we are at least 1,000 beds short in the NHS. The Government cut double that number and—staggeringly—450,000 of our fellow Scots were on NHS waiting lists even before the pandemic.

Patients are suffering and staff are burnt out. Is it not the case that we need a plan for recovery not just from Covid but from 14 years of this Scottish National Party Government?

The First Minister

The people of Scotland had the opportunity to make that choice less than a year ago, and they recorded a verdict on that.

On the impact of the pandemic, I am not suggesting for a second that all the challenges that the national health service faces are down to the pandemic. Before the pandemic, the NHS was dealing with changing demographics and the impact of technology, all of which was putting pressure on the NHS. We stood here and had exchanges on that at the time. However, Anas Sarwar seems to be trying to deny the significant effect that Covid has had—and continues to have—on the NHS. Over the most recent period, as the NHS has been dealing with omicron, there has been a 65 per cent increase in Covid-related staff absences. That is the kind of pressure that the NHS is dealing with. We need to get that under control, bring the NHS and the country out of the pandemic and get back to dealing with other challenges.

I come back to my starting point. The SNP Government has put in place the solid foundations to deal with those challenges. Health spending is at a record high level in Scotland right now. NHS staffing is at a record high, and, since the SNP Government came into office, NHS staffing has increased by 27,000 whole-time-equivalent staff members. We have put in place the foundations. We need to get through Covid and then we will support our NHS to recover in full and continue to deliver the services that patients across Scotland need and deserve.

The Presiding Officer

We move to supplementary questions.

Independence

Audrey Nicoll (Scottish National Party, Aberdeen South and North Kincardine)

Does the First Minister agree that the unmasked disdain that the UK Government has shown in the past 24 hours for its own colleagues in Scotland—including by dismissing the Scottish leader as “a lightweight”—makes it crystal clear that Scotland needs to become an independent country so that we can escape the sleazy, corrupt and criminal Westminster system for good?

Nicola Sturgeon (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Southside)

As we have just seen, I have big political differences with Douglas Ross, but even I am not as derogatory about him as his own Tory colleagues. The comments that he is “not a big figure” and “a lightweight” are not just personal insults directed at the leader of the Scottish Conservatives but say something much deeper about the Westminster establishment’s utter contempt for Scotland. If they cannot even show basic respect for their own colleagues, what chance do the rest of us have?

Westminster thinks that Scotland does not need to be listened to and can be ignored, and now we are being told that we have to follow a Prime Minister whose own colleagues think he is not fit for office. Independence is fundamentally about empowerment and aspiration, but an added benefit of being independent is that we will no longer have to put up with being treated like something on the sole of Westminster’s shoe. Today, I suspect that even Douglas Ross finds that a really attractive proposition.

In-Patient Vaccination

Sue Webber (Conservative, Lothian)

There are a number of people in hospital who have missed their vaccination appointments. In her answer to my colleague, Rachael Hamilton, the First Minister stated that that was for clinical reasons. Could the First Minister investigate the possibility of reviewing the policy and protocols in acute hospital settings in order to give those patients—and anyone else who wants it—an in-patient vaccination?

Nicola Sturgeon (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Southside)

I am happy to ask the Cabinet Secretary for Health and social Care to look at that to see whether any changes require to be made. However, I repeat the point that I made earlier, and ask the member to take it in good faith: there is no blanket policy in place right now that prevents in-patients in hospital getting a vaccination if their clinician thinks that they should have it. If she can accept that that is the case, I undertake to see whether there is anything else in the wider protocols that is leading to a situation where people who could or should be getting a vaccination are not getting it. I will ask the health secretary to look into that and write to the member once he has had the opportunity to do so.

NHS Lanarkshire (Code Black)

Monica Lennon (Labour, Central Scotland)

I listened to the First Minister’s reply to Anas Sarwar and I have to be blunt: people in Lanarkshire are very afraid of becoming sick. Those who are already physically or mentally unwell are already at breaking point because many of them—such as Liz Barrie, who I have mentioned before—have been on waiting lists since before the pandemic.

The code black situation has been going on for 12 weeks now. On 9 December, I wrote to the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care, who is, I think, sitting beside the First Minister, to ask for an urgent meeting with all the MSPs in Lanarkshire, because we are all worried, and I did not even get a response.

What am I supposed to tell constituents in Lanarkshire who are reaching for the Samaritans Scotland phone number because they cannot get through to general practice surgeries and they feel that they are not allowed to go to accident and emergency? The letter from NHS Lanarkshire yesterday did not even mention mental health. It is very scary for someone who is not a doctor and cannot decide whether they are an urgent case to hear about the suspension of services. Can we please get the meeting that I asked Humza Yousaf for, and can we get sight of a plan so that people in Lanarkshire can sleep better at night?

Nicola Sturgeon (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Southside)

I understand that this is a really anxious time not only for patients in Lanarkshire but for patients across Scotland and, indeed, the wider public, because of the on-going challenges of Covid and the impact that it is having on the national health service, secondary care and primary care, and in many aspects of life that, pre-Covid, people would have taken for granted as normal. All of us want to get back to normal as quickly as possible, and key to that is getting and keeping Covid under control and supporting the NHS to recover as we do that and come out of Covid.

On the step that has been taken in NHS Lanarkshire, of course nobody wants any health board to be in that position, but it is about ensuring that access can be maintained to essential GP services at a time of unprecedented demand and unprecedented staff absences. People can, of course, continue to use GP services where that is essential, wider community pharmacy services or NHS Inform if they have questions or queries that they need to be answered.

The measure is a short-term one. Nobody wants or will allow it to be in place for longer than is necessary, and we will continue to take steps to support the NHS to get all services back to normal as quickly as possible for all patients across the country.

National Entitlement Cards

Mark Ruskell (Green, Mid Scotland and Fife)

This week, we have seen tens of thousands of young people successfully applying for national entitlement cards, which will open the door to free bus travel across Scotland at the end of this month. We have also seen some schools and libraries help those who are the hardest to reach to apply for the card. What more guidance can the Government give to councils to ensure that those who could benefit most from the scheme successfully get their cards by the end of the month?

Nicola Sturgeon (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Southside)

I am delighted, as I am sure many people are, that applications are now open for free bus travel for young people under 22. The scheme will go live from 31 January, and it will make public transport much more affordable for children and young people.

Obviously, local authorities are key delivery partners, so we have already provided them with a toolkit to help them to communicate the scheme to local residents, including providing information on the range of ways in which people can apply. As Mark Ruskell has said, schools in some areas are co-ordinating applications on behalf of pupils. Councils are using public libraries. All partners are working hard to make the application process as accessible as possible.

We know that some people might need additional support, so we are working with delivery partners to ensure that all young people and their families can be reached so that they are aware of the scheme and know what they need to do to make an application.

I hope that everyone across the Parliament recognises the substantial social and economic benefits that the scheme will bring for children and young people and families and, crucially, for our climate and environmental policies, and I hope that they will help to promote it to young people and families in their own constituencies.

Health Certification Rules (European Union)

John Mason (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Shettleston)

We understand that new European Union health certification rules will come into effect this weekend. Has the Scottish Government had any reassurance from the United Kingdom Government that Scottish exporters will not be damaged by yet more delays at borders?

Nicola Sturgeon (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Southside)

We seek assurances from the UK Government on an on-going basis that the implications of Brexit will not cause disruption or, indeed, continued disruption, to Scottish exporters. I do not think that I could say that we have been given adequate assurances, because I am not sure that there are adequate assurances that can be given. By its very nature, all that Brexit brings in its wake causes disadvantage and disruption. For our part, the Scottish Government will seek to do everything we can to support businesses through that. That underlines again the fact that Brexit is against Scotland’s interests and that it has been done to us against our democratic wishes.

Airports (Support)

Douglas Lumsden (Conservative, North East Scotland)

At the House of Commons Scottish Affairs Committee this week, we heard that 400 jobs had been lost at Aberdeen airport since the start of the pandemic. Can the First Minister outline what support the Scottish Government will give to our airports, or is that industry another industry that the First Minister has turned her back on?

Nicola Sturgeon (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Southside)

To take one example of the support that we are giving to aviation businesses, I note that we extended the rates relief that leisure, hospitality and aviation businesses were entitled to for another year. If I am getting this wrong I will stand corrected, but I think that that is more than the United Kingdom Government did around aviation. We are already providing additional support.

Airports, aviation and the travel sector more generally have been very severely hit by the pandemic, not just in Scotland or the UK, but across Europe and the world. We will do everything that we can to support the sector as it gets back to normal, as it hopefully does as we come out of the omicron wave.

Scottish Qualifications Authority (Examinations Process)

Oliver Mundell (Conservative, Dumfriesshire)

3. To ask the First Minister what deadline the Scottish Government has set for making any further changes to this year’s SQA examinations process. (S6F-00639)

Nicola Sturgeon (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Southside)

Given that we are still living through a global pandemic, contingencies are needed in education as in all other aspects of life right now. Should any of those contingencies be required—there are two key contingencies in education as far as exams are concerned—we would notify that as soon as possible.

I hope that that is not the case: I hope that we do not need to activate those contingencies. As has been clear since August, our firm intention this year is that exams will go ahead.

Oliver Mundell (Conservative, Dumfriesshire)

The First Minister is right that contingencies are needed—but not the type that her Government proposes. She should be guaranteeing that exams will take place this year. Does she reflect negatively on the confirmation from the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills yesterday at the Education, Children and Young People Committee that no additional resources are being put in place to allow that to happen safely?

What has happened to suggestions about acquiring larger community spaces? What about putting additional invigilators in place? What about one-to-one support, most importantly for young people who have lost out on their learning?

The First Minister

Oliver Mundell says that the contingencies that we have put in place are not the type that should be put in place, but that is probably a standard for the Conservatives: we say one thing, and they will say another.

Let me say what those contingencies are, so that people can judge for themselves. The first contingency is that, if education is further disrupted because of developments in the pandemic—and we all hope that it will not be—additional support will be provided for those who are studying for exams. I am interested to hear that Oliver Mundell does not think that that is an appropriate contingency; I think that it is, indeed, an appropriate contingency.

The second contingency is that, if public health advice says that it is not safe for young people to come together to sit exams in the traditional way, we will go back to a situation that is akin to the past two years, where teacher judgment comes to bear instead of exams. Again, I think that that is an appropriate contingency.

We do not want to have to use either of those contingencies because we want exams to go ahead, as we think that is in the interests of young people.

Oliver Mundell asks me to guarantee things. I would love to be able to guarantee all sorts of things, but we are still living through a global pandemic. As we were reflecting on in my exchange with Anas Sarwar, we have had two new variants in the past few months alone. None of us can guarantee the immediate future in the context of the pandemic, but we make plans based on what we hope will be the case. Right now, that is to allow young people to sit their exams this year as normal, but to have sensible and appropriate contingencies in place in case something happens that makes that impossible.

Willie Rennie (Liberal Democrat, North East Fife)

To be frank, the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills has made a right mess of this. She issued two conflicting statements within two days, which included making a major announcement on Twitter, which is hardly the forum for such announcements. There was such confusion that the SQA had to step in to clarify things. Does the First Minister think that that is the right way to treat pupils who are preparing for exams right now?

The First Minister

That is a complete misrepresentation of the position. I am sorry if Willie Rennie missed it, but the education secretary set out in a statement to the Parliament in August last year, I think, what the Scottish Government’s intention was in relation to exams this year, which was that exams would go ahead.

As she was reflecting, and as I have just reflected again, contingencies have to be in place when we are living through a global pandemic. However, the intention for exams to go ahead has not changed.

If Willie Rennie is referring to the same Twitter exchange that I saw, the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills was rightly seeking, not to make announcements on Twitter, but to deal with some of the confusion that, if I may say, the misrepresentations of Opposition politicians have added to, as we have just heard from Willie Rennie.

Green Transition (North Ayrshire)

Kenneth Gibson (Scottish National Party, Cunninghame North)

4. To ask the First Minister what steps the Scottish Government will take to urgently progress the green transition in North Ayrshire, following the closure of Hunterston B power station on 7 January. (S6F-00650)

Nicola Sturgeon (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Southside)

The workers of Hunterston B have made a really valuable contribution to our energy security over many years, and I have no doubt that they will continue to distinguish themselves through the safe decommissioning of the site.

Although that process will take time, we must plan and invest in the green transition of North Ayrshire. We have invested £103 million in the Ayrshire Growth Deal, and we are working with partners to deliver projects that I know will help to create the good green jobs that are needed in the region.

We will also publish a draft energy strategy and just transition plan this year, which will set out how we will work with businesses, trade unions and communities, to manage the economic and social impacts of a changing energy system.

Kenneth Gibson (Scottish National Party, Cunninghame North)

The closure of Hunterston B is the end of an era for North Ayrshire, regardless of one’s view on nuclear power. One hundred and twenty-five jobs have been lost, with more to follow over the next eight years, as the plant defuels and is then decommissioned.

Significant investment that would bring 900 jobs is considered with regard to subsea solar energy cable manufacturing at Hunterston Port and Resource Centre—PARC. Does the First Minister agree that the efforts of the Scottish Government agencies that are working with North Ayrshire Council must be redoubled and on-going to attract and consider further potential job-creating developments at Hunterston?

The First Minister

Yes, I agree. As Kenny Gibson knows all too well, I grew up in North Ayrshire not too far from Hunterston B power station, so I know first-hand how important it has been, over many years, to the local economy.

As the station is decommissioned, it is important that we support that green transition, to which the Ayrshire Growth Deal is central. The Scottish Government and our agencies are working with regional partners to support the delivery of the Hunterston Port and Resource Centre project, the proposed subsea cable manufacturing project, to which Kenny Gibson referred, as well as multiple other projects across Ayrshire that are included in the deal. Colleagues in North Ayrshire Council lead and drive those projects on behalf of the wider deal.

It is important that we fully support that transition and I give an assurance that the Scottish Government will continue to do so.

Katy (Labour, West Scotland)

Last month, I raised the point with the Minister for Business, Trade, Tourism and Enterprise that, although North Ayrshire Council has set up a task force to look at the economic development at Hunterston, its ambition has always been that the Scottish Government be involved, with a ministerial task force to look at the development of the Hunterston PARC site.

Will the First Minister look at that, given how important it is to ensure the creation of good quality trade-unionised green jobs? Since the area is of environmental importance and includes a site of special scientific interest, will biodiversity and environmental concerns also be taken into account?

The First Minister

I am happy to consider that wider point. I accept the importance of the environmental consideration for the reasons that the member has set out.

It is for the Scottish Government to set the wider policy and strategic framework, which we will do through the draft energy strategy and the just transition plan to which I have referred, both of which we will publish over the course of this year.

Beyond that, it is right that local councils and agencies drive those plans. As I said earlier, the Scottish Government is contributing more than £100 million to the Ayrshire Growth Deal. That balance between local leadership and strategic direction from the Scottish Government is always one that we need to be careful to get right. However, I will consider the wider point and revert to the member as soon as possible.

Jamie Greene (Conservative, West Scotland)

I, too, thank the workforce at Hunterston, who have been an integral part of the North Ayrshire economy and community.

Nowhere in Mr Gibson’s question, or in the First Minister’s answer, did I hear an explanation as to how the Scottish National Party’s current moratorium on exploring new nuclear energy technology, or even having a sensible debate about it, will support either job creation in North Ayrshire or secure reliable energy for Scotland.

Why is the Scottish Government simply not interested in exploring Scotland’s potential to be a world leader in that field?

The First Minister

People will continue to debate the issues and that is right and proper. I and my party have made clear our views on new nuclear power over many years. In summary, there are two reasons why I am behind that view: new nuclear power is not good value for money for taxpayers, to be blunt about it, and there is still the issue of what we do with the nuclear waste that comes from nuclear power, which nobody has really been able to satisfactorily resolve.

Scotland has an abundance of renewable energy potential. In the not-too-distant future we will, for example, hear the outcome of the ScotWind leasing round, which is about ensuring that we maximise our offshore wind potential. We are focused on making sure, both for our energy needs and for the jobs and economic needs of the country, that we maximise the vast renewable low-carbon potential that we have and that is what we will continue to do.

Cancer (Data)

Brian Whittle (Conservative, South Scotland)

5. To ask the First Minister what data the Scottish Government has collected on the number of people diagnosed with cancer, and the stage at which they were diagnosed, since the start of the Covid-19 pandemic, and how this compares with pre-pandemic data. (S6F-00665)

Nicola Sturgeon (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Southside)

Public Health Scotland published the latest staging data for breast, lung and colorectal cancers in November last year. That report showed that the number of people diagnosed at the early stage is lower than would have been expected had the Covid pandemic not happened. However, more recent data shows that more patients are now being treated on an urgent suspicion of cancer pathway compared with the situation pre-Covid. Also, since the start of the pandemic, we have established the first early cancer diagnostic centres and launched public campaigns, including on lung cancer, to raise awareness of the vital importance of early diagnosis. We have also committed an additional £20 million to the detect cancer early programme.

Brian Whittle (Conservative, South Scotland)

I have a friend who has just been diagnosed with an aggressive form of prostate cancer that has unfortunately spread to other areas. He was diagnosed at stage 3, having waited six months for his test. As we are all aware, the national health service is under severe pressure and that kind of story is, I am sure, replicated across the country, so collection of that kind of data for non-Covid conditions is critical in planning for the challenges that may be coming down the track.

Today, in the COVID-19 Recovery Committee, we were told by an adviser that the data that is being collected is inadequate to make properly informed decisions on those matters. Does the First Minister agree that data collection and analysis is crucial for forward planning, including post-Covid planning, and if so, what will the Scottish Government do to support the development of data collection as quickly as possible to help the NHS as it plans its future strategy?

The First Minister

First, I agree strongly that data is important in all sorts of areas, and particularly in this one, to make sure that we are diagnosing cancer as early as possible and treating it as quickly as possible after that. I spoke in my initial answer about the data on staging that Public Health Scotland publishes. I will certainly speak to Public Health Scotland about the additional data that it may be possible to gather and collect.

We put a big focus on early diagnosis, for reasons that everybody understands. Through the “Detect cancer early” programme, we have focused on some of the most common cancers, but one of the functions and purposes of the new early diagnostic centres is to make sure that symptoms that are perhaps not the ones that people may suspect are cancer are also treated more urgently. We are trying to widen that net as much as possible.

Staging is really important in anybody’s cancer journey, to make sure that they are diagnosed as quickly as possible, but so too is access to treatment. Even during the Covid pandemic, once the decision to treat was made, cancer patients waited between two and five days on average for treatment. All of those different stages are important and data is vital to understanding performance now and how we improve performance. I will certainly take back the points that have been made and discuss them further with Public Health Scotland.

Elena Whitham (Scottish National Party, Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley)

Covid-19 has undoubtedly had a challenging impact on the delivery of NHS services. Does the First Minister agree that the establishment of the three early cancer diagnostic centres that she has just mentioned, including the one in my constituency, are providing a welcome referral route for patients who do not have the standard cancer symptoms and that those centres will be the way in which we can get patients on the most urgent of pathways, specifically in unfortunate cases of later-stage diagnosis due to the lack of the traditional presenting symptoms?

The First Minister

I agree very much with that, and that is the point that I was seeking to make in response to the previous question. The urgent suspicion of cancer referral route is really important, but it refers people who have symptoms that are most traditionally and commonly indicative of cancer. The early cancer diagnostic centres seek to add to that and provide primary care with access to a new fast-track diagnostic pathway for patients who have non-specific symptoms that might be suspicious of cancer, such as weight loss and fatigue, which could be cancer but may be other things. That widens the ability of primary care to get people who might have cancer into that fast-track pathway as quickly as possible. The centres add something very important and I hope that they will give additional reassurance to people who may be worried that the symptoms they are suffering are indicative of a cancer diagnosis.

Energy Costs (Support)

Christine Grahame (Scottish National Party, Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale)

6. To ask the First Minister what support the Scottish Government can provide to people struggling to pay their energy bills. (S6F-00662)

Nicola Sturgeon (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Southside)

Powers over the energy market are reserved. We have written to the United Kingdom Government calling for urgent action to support such households. In our view, such support should include a reduction to VAT, as one of the simplest short-term measures, and action on the warm home discount and the cold weather payment.

We have also taken action, within our powers and from our resources, through our £41 million winter support fund, which includes a £10 million fuel insecurity fund to help people with heating costs and provides £25 million of funding to local authorities to tackle financial insecurity. In addition, we continue to invest in making people’s homes warmer and more affordable to heat, with more than £1 billion allocated since 2009 to tackling fuel poverty and improving energy efficiency.

Christine Grahame (Scottish National Party, Midlothian South, Tweeddale and Lauderdale)

I note those mitigations, but added to the misery of skyrocketing energy bills are the five per cent increase in the cost of living, the £20 cut to universal credit and the national insurance hike, which all push more Scots into poverty and desperation. All those issues are reserved to Westminster, but the impact and fallout lands on our devolved public services. Does the First Minister agree that only with independence and full power over our economy could we prevent that economic tsunami? While I am at it, I invite Douglas Ross to join us in that, because I am sure that he would have a better political future in an independent Scotland.

The First Minister

Those issues are really important; we sometimes debate them in the chamber as if they are abstract, but they have real meaning in people’s lives. Inflationary pressures will be one of the biggest issues that we deal with in the months to come and will have a severe impact on household budgets. We have to recognise, as we try to decide how best to help people, where the powers and resources lie. Right now, levers over energy costs, 85 per cent of welfare spending, the minimum wage and national insurance are all held at Westminster. Although the Scottish Parliament might want to act, it is not able to do so. We have also seen the Westminster Government take £20 a week out of the pockets of the poorest families in our country. Instead of helping, we see it do things that make life harder for those who are already struggling.

It is the case, in not an abstract but a tangible sense, that we should take more of the powers that are being misused by Westminster into the hands of the Scottish Parliament, so that we can use them in the interests of people across the country. Yes, Christine Grahame is right. We can try to do that through increased devolution—and we will always try to do that—but fundamentally, the best way of resolving the situation is for Scotland to become an independent country so that the Scottish Parliament can take the decisions that are in the interests of the country and not constantly have to hope that a Prime Minister who everybody in the chamber, I think without exception, thinks is unfit for office, will take those decisions for us.

The Presiding Officer

That concludes First Minister’s question time. There will be a brief pause before we move on to members’ business.

Holistic Family Support

Liam McArthur (Liberal Democrat, Orkney Islands)

I ask members who are leaving the chamber to do so as quickly and quietly as possible. I also remind members that Covid measures are in place and that face coverings should be worn when moving around the chamber and the rest of the Holyrood campus.

The next item of business is a members’ business debate on motion S6M-01840, in the name of Martin Whitfield, on championing the right to holistic family support. The debate will be concluded without any question being put.

Motion debated,

That the Parliament notes the belief that all families across Scotland that need additional support should be able to get help when and where they need it; considers that article 18 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child establishes the right of families to help and support; believes that delivering accessible holistic family support is central to Scotland’s commitment to Keep The Promise for children and families, and notes the finding from Change Programme ONE, that work in this area is underway, but not yet sufficient; notes the calls for a shift in public investment towards prevention; believes that many families were already struggling to access support services prior to the COVID-19 pandemic, and that vulnerable children, young people and families in Scotland have been the most affected by the impact of successive lockdowns; welcomes the commitment by the Scottish Government to deliver a Whole Family Wellbeing Fund of £500 million over the course of the current parliamentary session, and notes the calls for an urgent action plan to outline how the Whole Family Wellbeing Fund will be invested to implement the Family Support Delivery Group blueprint and route map, thereby making the right to whole family holistic support a practical and accessible reality for families, which would be consistently available across the country, including the South Scotland region.

Martin Whitfield (Labour, South Scotland)

It is a great pleasure to present this debate, because I think that the term “holistic family support” is at the heart of what we in Scotland believe about the environment in which our young people should grow up.

The idea is founded on article 18 of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. I would like to draw attention to the specifics of article 18, because it is normally paraphrased as a child or young person having

“the right to be brought up by both parents if possible”.

However, the original wording also said that

“States Parties shall render appropriate assistance to parents and legal guardians in the performance of their child-rearing responsibilities and shall ensure the development of institutions, facilities and services for the care of children”

and young people. It is so much broader than

“the right to be brought up by both parents if possible”.

That in no way undermines the fundamental fact that, for most of society, it is important that a young person grow up with both parents. However, that is not available for all parents and it is not the experience of all children. That is not to lessen the experience of children who, because of their circumstances, do not grow up in an environment with both parents. It is to those children, as well, that we must look, which is why I have drawn attention to the article’s original wording and to the responsibility that rests, to be frank, on all of us to make sure that in every young person’s life, every experience and every opportunity can be provided. That does not happen for every child, but adequate holistic support offers immeasurable help to the countless families to whom it can be provided.

We look to The Promise that we made in the recent past, which speaks so optimistically of what our young people should experience. I pose this question, and not as a criticism: are we committed to keeping the promise to children and families that all children in Scotland will grow up “loved, safe and respected”? If we are, we have to acknowledge that the work that is under way so far is not sufficient. The work that has begun is good, but it is not enough.

I express my thanks to the Coalition of Care and Support Providers in Scotland and the various groups that support it. I particularly thank Children 1st, Action for Children, Aberlour Child Care Trust and Barnardo’s Scotland. I thank them for what their volunteers and staff do, and for what they have done, with young people and families to make their lives better.

Family support looks different for every family, and that is important. What works for the family at number 6 will not work for a different family at number 7. The people in the CCSP understand that tailored support that is right and fit for the individual families and young people who sit before them is essential. The problem could be something massive: there could be financial problems through poverty, which lies at the heart of so many troubles, or there might be physical or mental health problems.

The support might be just to sit down with a cup of tea, have a chat and let the person—a parent or carer—vent about a few of the stresses of the day so that, when they turn to their children to offer the empathy and care that children need in order to develop properly, they can give that.

Carol Mochan (Labour, South Scotland)

I thank Martin Whitfield for bringing the issue to the chamber. I want to mention briefly the work of the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee, which took really strong evidence from the groups that Martin has spoken about.

There is one issue that I would like the member to respond to. A professional occupational therapist has raised the fact that, for some children, access to physical and leisure activities is too expensive or too far away, and that such activity might help in the family’s recovery. Will Martin Whitfield and the minister respond to that?

Martin Whitfield (Labour, South Scotland)

I am very grateful for that intervention. As Carol Mochan has rightly pointed out, what would work for one child might not be suitable for another but should be facilitated. That might be the free swimming that local authorities sometimes organise during the holidays. I think of all the volunteers who run sporting clubs and who sometimes, when a child is standing there unable to pay the weekly contribution, just smile and let the child through anyway. There is humanity, empathy and understanding not just here in Scotland but throughout the human race. However, we must go further and do better for our young people.

The people who provide family support seek to intervene, to help and to advise at early stages of concern. They provide advice to parents; they provide mental health support, finance and debt help; they provide support for families who experience homelessness, addiction and loss; and they provide assistance with a great number of other issues that families face.

That is preventative work. If it happens at the start of a crisis, the cost is less, which is how one might see it as an economist or accountant. If one wants to be a human being, one sees the work as making a crisis much easier to put right and much less likely to cause long-term damage. It will perhaps allow a child to escape a horrendous experience that might otherwise stay with them for the rest of their life. Not only does early intervention lead to better outcomes for our children and young people, but it makes sense economically, as I said.

The problem existed before the pandemic. Many families were struggling long before Covid-19, so we must ensure that our interventions and work help children as soon as possible.

I welcome the commitment by the Scottish Government to deliver a whole family wellbeing fund of £500 million over the course of this parliamentary session, but I call again for an urgent action plan to outline how the fund will be invested and implemented. That is necessary in order to make the right to whole family holistic support a practical and accessible reality for families that is consistently available across the country, including in South Scotland, which is my region. I ask for confirmation on how much of the £500 million is new money and how much is pre-existing and pre-announced pots of money that have been brought together. I also ask for a commitment—this is a request from organisations that have sent out information on the issues—to multiyear funding, so that those organisations can plan ahead and move forward.

Families and individuals should sit at the heart of our decisions and the solutions that are provided for them. They should sit at the table when decisions are made. We claim, in this Parliament and this country, to champion the rights of the child, so we must champion holistic family support.

Rona Mackay (Scottish National Party, Strathkelvin and Bearsden)

I thank Martin Whitfield for bringing this important debate to the chamber. I am pleased to contribute to it.

Martin Whitfield is right. The wording of his motion championing the right to holistic family support is important—in particular, where it says

“that article 18 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child establishes the right of families to help and support”.

Support for families that are struggling or going through difficulties has always been needed, but it is especially needed now, in the midst of a horrible global pandemic, the impact of which affects vulnerable children, young people and families most. That is why holistic family support is so important and necessary.

I am thankful that there are excellent organisations that are skilled at providing that, including Action for Children, Home-Start Scotland, Barnardo’s Scotland, Aberlour Child Care Trust, Children 1st and many more that provide care and nurture to families across Scotland.

Action for Children protects and supports children and young people and provides practical and emotional care, thereby bringing lasting improvements to their lives. It runs 87 services across Scotland, and its 800 staff support, care for, and love more than 20,000 children and families across 31 of our 32 local authorities.

Home-Start Scotland is a local community network of trained volunteers and expert support that helps families with young children through challenging times in their own homes. In the previous parliamentary session, I attended a Home-Start parliamentary reception that was inspirational, to say the least, and at which I learned much more about what it does. Barnardo’s supports thousands of individuals, and Children 1st is an exemplary pioneer of caring for children and families throughout Scotland.

Those are just some of the fantastic support organisations that help families who are in need. The difference in their holistic approach is that they do not tell parents what to do or lecture them; rather, they empower them to take control in an entirely non-judgmental and non-stigmatising way.

Families can need temporary support because of an unexpected crisis, a health issue, a dependency issue or financial trouble. Such life events could happen to any one of us at any time. If they are addressed early, those problems can be resolved or mitigated to allow the family to heal. Children are always given a voice so that they can help to play a part in creating a happier family environment.

As I said earlier, the Covid crisis has also seen the need for family support soar, with many families reaching out for help for the first time. Action for Children experienced a 415 per cent surge in demand for parenting advice in the first three months of lockdown, compared with the same time the year before. That is why the Scottish Government’s commitment to deliver a whole family wellbeing fund of £500 million in the current parliamentary session is so welcome and important. The groundbreaking baby box and best start grants are testimony to our commitment to giving children the best start in life, as is our transformational early years programme.

However, we must continue to build on that—I agree with Martin Whitfield about consistency—so that families who are under pressure know that help and holistic support are there for them when they are going through the roughest of times.

Pam Duncan-Glancy (Labour, Glasgow)

Does Rona Mackay recognise that 76 per cent of applications to the Scottish welfare fund and 66 per cent of awards from the Scottish welfare fund are repeat applications for crisis support? That suggests that financial support is not really being given to the families that need it.

Rona Mackay (Scottish National Party, Strathkelvin and Bearsden)

I agree that more must be done in that sense, but establishing a fund—as we have done—is a start. As I said, that has to be built on so that the problem that Pam Duncan-Glancy has brought up is alleviated; I say that it has to be done soon.

Supporting families who are in need is at the core of creating a better society in Scotland. I thank all organisations and volunteers. To all struggling families out there, I stress that there is unconditional help for them, if they reach out.

Oliver Mundell (Conservative, Dumfriesshire)

I thank Martin Whitfield for bringing the debate to the chamber, and for his thoughtful contribution—such contributions have already become a hallmark of his time in Parliament. I doubt that I will meet that standard or test myself, but I am pleased to speak in the debate and to voice the Conservatives’ support for his motion.

We have already touched on some important points, but I want to say up front that all families struggle. Being a parent is not easy. Being a carer is not easy. Of course there are those who face profound and difficult challenges, but it is important to remember that all families deserve our support and the support of the Government, its agencies and the many charities that do tremendous work.

During the pandemic, we saw how dependent we are on those third sector organisations, and we all owe them a debt of gratitude. The same applies to those in underfunded departments in our local authorities who struggle and who, when many have been working from home, have continued to go out and work with vulnerable families to make sure that they can eat and heat their homes and, most important of all, that someone is there to listen.

Rona Mackay’s point in that regard was excellent. That listening ear must be non-judgmental and helpful, and support must be provided. Most important of all, the support must be consistent. We cannot put services in place and then pull them away. Pam Duncan-Glancy was right to say that, if people bounce in and out of crisis situations, we will not find a long-term fix. We all need to find the political will to address that.

Often, good support is provided during pregnancy or when people are about to have children. National health service classes are offered, although the fact that some of those have been provided online in the past few years has presented challenges for many new mothers, who have struggled to make connections and to find the support networks that they need.

The support that is provided at that stage often starts to drop off. Although support is provided by health visitors, that can often be sporadic and might be provided only at set points to meet arbitrary cut-off dates. That is where consistency is important. People need support and advice right the way through the development of the children who they care for.

I am running out of time, but I would like to take a moment to reflect on some of the work that I have seen being done in my Dumfriesshire constituency by Aberlour, in particular, which provides many services to help and support people, from homework clubs through to drop-ins. It is clear that the staff who are involved in those projects care passionately about the people whom they work with.

It is important that we ensure that provision is consistent across the country. Every member of the Parliament will be able to point to good projects and good practice in their constituency or region, but it is equally the case that many young people and families fall through the net. Until there is consistency of provision, we cannot consider it job done, no matter how much money—new or otherwise—is announced.

Pam Duncan-Glancy (Labour, Glasgow)

I congratulate my colleague Martin Whitfield on securing the debate.

No two families are the same, but under the UNCRC, every child has the same right to tailored family support. Disabled children are entitled to the exact same rights and fundamental freedoms as non-disabled children. That right is enshrined in the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, too.

However, for families with disabled children to enjoy their human rights on an equal basis to that on which others enjoy them, they sometimes need things to be done differently. Disabled people being able to live independently and to have full enjoyment of our human rights does not mean that we want to live on our own or to fend for ourselves. Full enjoyment of our human rights means having the same freedom, choice, dignity and control as everyone else, and having rights to practical assistance and support in order to be able to do that.

It is that approach that allowed me and my family to be able to live with the same choices and freedoms as others. I am incredibly grateful for that and for the support that I have, which allows me to live the life that I want to live, and without which being here today in this chamber would not be possible.

I know the difficulties that my family faced in fighting to ensure that I was able to enjoy my rights to leave home, to get a job and to go to university, and that they could enjoy their right to live their lives. I will never forget the day that we finally secured my support, when my mum said to me, “At last, I can be your mum—not your carer or your social worker, but just your mum.”

My transition experience forced my family to become project managers in our own lives, and too many young disabled people still face that reality today. That is exactly why I am working to give all young disabled people a fighting chance through my proposed disabled children and young people (transitions to adulthood) (Scotland) bill.

Disabled children across Scotland are still being denied the opportunity to realise their full potential. They go without the support that they need. That is why there is a stubborn disability employment gap of 32 per cent. It is why disabled people have poorer mental wellbeing than non-disabled people and it is why young disabled people are twice as likely not to be in education, training or employment after they leave school. It is why they believe that nothing that they will do will change their future. The support that young disabled people get is too often a postcode lottery: some get what they need, others in different areas have no access to anything at all.

The disability movement is testament to what can be achieved when people are given a fighting chance. Not to do so is a loss for us all. Children who go hungry in homes that families cannot afford to heat do not have a fighting chance either. They face barriers to their needs. A Parliament that prides itself on being progressive must recognise that meeting basic human rights is a low bar. It should be unquestionable. Without meeting those rights, how do we expect to enable people to fully enjoy and realise all their rights? We must urgently address child poverty and get on track to meet our child poverty targets, not because they are targets but because they are for children.

We all support doubling the Scottish child payment now, but we must go further. It must be doubled again by April next year to increase the chance for more children to live up to their potential. At the moment, only one in four children gets the rate of payment that the Government agrees that they need. Until the Scottish Government fully rolls out that payment, children who are older than six will miss out on that lifeline, and 125,000 children will continue to receive no payment at all. The Scottish Government must work with the Department for Work and Pensions to ensure a full roll-out as soon as possible.

With energy bills rising, the Government must also listen to our calls for a targeted winter fuel payment for families on low incomes. I know from engagement with the third sector that many organisations saw extraordinary increases in applications for support, as another member has mentioned. The reward for the sector has been a £1 million cut to its budget. The third sector cannot afford to plug every gap left by the Government. People are in real long-term crisis. We see that in the large number of repeat applications to the Scottish welfare fund. We need bold and sustainable solutions, not stopgaps.

A commitment to the full incorporation of human rights treaties plays a key part in that. Three months on from the Supreme Court’s ruling that UNCRC incorporation fell outwith devolved competence, the Scottish Government has failed to bring the bill back. Children and young people are not interested in the constitutional debate that has held back the bill. They want to see their rights enshrined in Scots law. That includes a right to family support. They fought long and hard for that incorporation. The UNCRC incorporation bill must be brought back to Parliament at the earliest opportunity. I call on the Government to set out a clear timescale for when it will do that, so that we can get the bill on the statute book and build a Scotland where children really do flourish.

Paul McLennan (Scottish National Party, East Lothian)

I thank Martin Whitfield for bringing the debate to Parliament. I also thank Aberlour, Barnardo’s, Children 1st and the CCPS for their briefings.

Just before Christmas, I met with First Step, an organisation that is based in Musselburgh and offers services in other parts of East Lothian. I also met with Home-Start East Lothian, an organisation that was mentioned by Rona Mackay. First Step is a community project for families with young children and is based in the Musselburgh East housing estate. It is an independent voluntary organisation funded by East Lothian Council and other funding bodies.

First Step was set up in 1990, more than 30 years ago, by a group of local parents who wanted somewhere safe and comfortable where they could meet and their children could play. The continued involvement of families and the local community in all aspects of First Step has been key to its success. That is a key idea that we should take from this debate: we need local solutions. The project has developed its services to meet local needs while continuing to be managed by a community-led management committee and employing a staff team to support local families.

First Step aims to provide opportunities for local families with young children to make positive choices in their lives by providing supportive centre-based and outreach activities that encourage parents and children to develop their self-esteem, confidence and skills. It offers parenting support, individually and in groups. It has nursery provision for children aged one to four and for funded eligible two-year-olds. There are groups and courses for parents, outreach and family support, and counselling and dedicated support for young parents. It is truly a one-stop shop for families.

In its briefing for the debate, Barnardo’s said:

“Family support is an approach that centres on relationships, by providing a range of practical and emotional support to help strengthen and nurture family connections—getting alongside children, young people, parents, and carers in their communities and providing compassionate, consistent, and practical support and operating a ‘no wrong door’ approach.”

The previous session of the Scottish Parliament saw publication of the Independent Care Review’s final report, “The Promise”. One of its core recommendations was that public spending be shifted away from dealing with the consequences of failure and inequality to invest in prevention and enable children and families to thrive, and it highlights the key role that family support can play in achieving that. The Scottish Government has convened the family support delivery group in recognition of the fundamental importance of keeping the promise and as a critical component in realising the rights of children as enshrined in the UNCRC.

The doubling of the Scottish child payment is, of course, a major step forward and it is very welcome as a first step. The Scottish Government’s announcement of the creation of a £500 million whole family wellbeing fund as part of its Covid recovery strategy is also very welcome. There is a high-level strategy that sets out the aims, which include financial security for low-income households and enhanced wellbeing for children and young people. Children 1st states in its briefing that the commitment to create the whole family wellbeing fund and invest 5 per cent of community-based health and social care spend on such support is welcome.

I return to the point that we need to build on local solutions. First Step and Home-Start in my constituency are examples of how well that can work. However, detail is needed on how the investment will help to ensure that the Government delivers on the commitments that it made when it accepted the report “The Promise”.

Holistic family support has been recognised by all parties in the Parliament as being a key element in tackling poverty, supporting attainment and preventing mental health issues. I look forward to working with the Scottish Government, First Step, Home-Start and East Lothian Council to expand family support services in East Lothian.

Stephen Kerr (Conservative, Central Scotland)

I thank my friend Martin Whitfield for bringing his important motion to the chamber for debate today, because my belief in the family is central to my political beliefs. It fills me with sadness to see the increased rate of family breakdown, and the sadness is not derived from some romantic, utopian view of family; it arises because the breakdown of families has a devastating impact on those who are involved.

When I talk about the breakdown of families, I am not just talking about divorce and separation. I am also talking about the breakdown of safe, stable and nurturing relationships in families where parents stay together. A recent study from Canada concludes that 44.3 per cent of parents with children under the age of 18 who are living at home had experienced deteriorated mental health during the pandemic. As Professor Hazel Borland of NHS Ayrshire and Arran told the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee, there has been a significant impact on mental health which, tragically, is also resulting in an increase in suicides across the country. With the pandemic affecting the mental health of both parents and children, it is important that every family that is in need has access to the appropriate family support.

However, our approach to providing family support must change. Family support must emphasise the importance of relationships. Rather than looking at child and parent support in isolation, we must see them as being interrelated. We must look at the whole family. Pam Duncan-Glancy spoke well on that aspect. Central to that thinking is the understanding that children want loving relationships. As “The Promise” states,

“When children talk about wanting to be safe, they talk about having relationships that are real, loving and consistent.”

For us to truly understand that, there must be a fundamental shift in our thinking. We must recognise the long-term pain that removing a child causes for children, families and communities.

Long-term, loving relationships are key to the nurturing of children and to their happiness and wellbeing. That is recognised in “The Promise”, as several speakers have said. “Change Programme ONE” is a great way to deliver that, and I note that the third and charitable sectors add the love and nurturing that are often missing from Government programmes. Family support must be about exactly that. Children do not exist in a vacuum. They are raised by families and a broader community of people who love them. We are all responsible.

It is incumbent on the state to let family life flourish and to ensure that everything that it does enhances, rather than detracts from, the family. Teachers in schools, social workers, youth leaders and others must always work with families to support them and help them. Cutting across that is to be avoided.

However, support from Government is always to be welcomed. In the recent programme for government, as previous speakers have said, there was an announcement that £500 million will be provided over the current session of Parliament for a whole family wellbeing fund. That funding has been welcomed by members throughout the chamber. I have asked for a breakdown of how it will be allocated, but I have not yet received any answers that I deem to be sufficient.

To conclude, I would like to ask two questions, which I hope the minister will address in her remarks. How much of the £500 million for the whole family wellbeing fund that was announced in the programme for government will be allocated to each local authority in each year of this parliamentary session? Given the commitment to dedicate at least 5 per cent of community health and social care spend to family support services by 2030, can the minister inform us what the current percentage is? Those are pretty clear questions.

Decisions on family support must focus on the needs of children and families. That requires funding to be spent at local level and a fundamental shift in our thinking. Families are idiosyncratic and diverse. I have never met two families that were the same. In Scotland, we must be resolved to support that diversity in all its glory and to work alongside members of families to nurture, support and love the next generation.

Clare Haughey (Scottish National Party, Rutherglen)

I am grateful to Mr Whitfield for bringing the debate to the chamber and I welcome the opportunity to discuss this issue. I want to thank members for their contributions on this important topic. I often reflect on the fact that the Parliament works well when we all work together, and this seems to be an area where we are all wanting to pull in the same direction.

Family support is not a new concept. Experienced practitioners and professionals across Scotland have long highlighted the benefits of a holistic and whole family approach to supporting families. An early offer of support that is sustained for as long as the family needs it is fundamental to our getting it right for every child approach.

As recognised in “The Promise” and Martin Whitfield’s motion, and as mentioned in a few contributions across the chamber today, children have the right, which is enshrined in the UNCRC, to be raised safely in their own families. For all but the very few, that is absolutely what is best.

Access to effective family support can be the critical factor in ensuring that that is achieved. That is even more important now, given what we know about the negative impact of the pandemic on child poverty, inequalities and the wellbeing of children, young people and families, especially those on the edges of care, or looked-after children.

The Scottish Government is already taking significant action across a range of areas to support families. Our baby box programme has distributed more than 200,000 baby boxes across Scotland to provide much-needed support to families at the very start of their child’s life. We are the only country in the United Kingdom to offer the equivalent of 1,140 early learning and childcare hours to all three and four-years-olds and around a quarter of two-years-olds, putting children first regardless of their parents’ working status. We have expanded universal free school lunches to all children up to and including those in primary 5.

We continue to invest heavily in child and adolescent mental health services. Our mental health transition and recovery plan is supported by a £120 million recovery and renewal fund, which will transform services, with a renewed focus on prevention and early intervention in response to the challenges of the pandemic.

We want to do more in recognition of the additional financial challenges that many families are struggling with. We have declared a national mission to tackle child poverty, calling on all of society to work with us to make the changes that are needed. However, while we are doing everything that we can within our devolved powers to support families, the UK Government is doing the reverse.

Pam Duncan-Glancy (Labour, Glasgow)

We have significant devolved powers on social security to reduce child poverty, but at present only one in four children living in poverty in Scotland accesses the £20 Scottish child payment. How does the Government plan to address that to ensure that the other hundreds of thousands of eligible children across Scotland get access to the money that they need?

Clare Haughey (Scottish National Party, Rutherglen)

We need to ensure that people are aware of what their entitlements are. I am sure that there are families who are not aware of that, and it is incumbent on the Government to ensure that families get access to the benefits that they are entitled to.

Recent research from the Joseph Rowntree Foundation shows that families that do not have an adult in work, and lone parents who are in or out of work, are significantly worse off than they were 10 years ago. That is before we take into account rising food and fuel costs, which will hit the poorest families most.

We have repeatedly called on the UK Government to make fundamental changes to universal credit to make it a proper safety net for all. We echo the calls made last week by charities ranging from Save the Children to Age UK for the UK Government to reinstate the £20 uplift to universal credit that was made during the pandemic and prevent more families from spiralling into destitution.

In contrast, the Scottish Government’s budget sets out our choices to back families through the cost of living crisis. We are making £197 million available in the year ahead to support the doubling of the Scottish child payment to £20 per week per child from April. That will immediately benefit 111,000 children under the age of six. Ahead of the full roll-out of the payment to all eligible children under the age of 16, we continue to deliver bridging payments worth £520 this year for as many school-age children as possible.

Stephen Kerr (Conservative, Central Scotland)

The minister started off by saying something profound and true, which is that, when we work together across the parties, we can get things done. It was rather gratuitous and unnecessary and a deflection for her to move on to talk about the UK Government. As a Scottish Government minister responsible for this important policy area, will she tell me when the Government will bring back its legislation on the UNCRC?

Clare Haughey (Scottish National Party, Rutherglen)

The Scottish Government is committed to bringing back that legislation as quickly as we can. We are working at pace through the judgment that was made by the Supreme Court. However, my constituents would certainly think that a Scottish Tory defending the cut of £20 a week in universal credit in their pockets could be construed as gratuitous and unnecessary.

We are taking a range of action to tackle the cost of the school day for children and help them to reach their full potential. We have committed £11.8 million to deliver the increased minimum school clothing grant of £120 for every eligible pupil in primary school and £150 for every eligible pupil in secondary school. We have also committed £21.75 million to continue alternative free school meal provision for around 150,000 children and young people during school holidays.

Importantly, we do not want families just to survive; we want them to thrive. As the Promise change plan for 2021 to 2024 highlighted, we need our services to feel seamless for the people who experience them.

Although there are many pockets of good practice—we have heard of them in various speeches from members—we need to support whole-system change so that the principles of good holistic family support are delivered consistently and sustainably across all areas. That does not mean a single model of family support. Instead, it means a service that wraps around families so that, when they need help, their needs are met in a seamless, joined-up and sustainable way that is unique to their own circumstances.

We also want families to be able to access support regardless of where that need is identified—a general practitioner, an early learning and childcare setting or wherever it may be. Those services need to work collectively in a multi-agency and multidisciplinary way to provide the spectrum of support that will best enable the whole family to thrive. That means working together across boundaries to support children’s services planning partnerships and our workforces to pool resources and maximise their potential to deliver transformational change.

Over the two years since the independent care review concluded, we have worked positively with The Promise Scotland and other key stakeholders to establish how we ensure that the lives of our children and families who are care experienced are improved. By the end of this parliamentary year at the latest, we will publish a single implementation plan that will set out the actions and commitments that we will deliver to ensure that we keep the promise by 2030.

We have shown our commitment to driving transformation and fundamental service redesign. As part of this year’s programme for government, we announced £500 million of whole-family wellbeing funding over this parliamentary session, with £50 million in 2022-23 and the expectation that it will ramp up significantly in subsequent years once capacity and capability build in the sector.

Martin Whitfield (Labour, South Scotland)

Is there a commitment to a multiyear settlement for our third sector so that it can do forward planning, which is essential?

The Deputy Presiding Officer

Minister, please begin to wind up your speech.

Clare Haughey (Scottish National Party, Rutherglen)

We are working very closely with the third sector in our planning for the funding, so it will be very closely involved in that.

I had quite a bit more to say, but I have taken some interventions, and the Presiding Officer has asked me to wind up.

I commit to write to Stephen Kerr on his specific points and give him all the detail that I can at the moment, with the caveat that we are, obviously, still working collaboratively with stakeholders and, most importantly, listening to the voices of children and families in the development of services and supports going forward.

Ultimately, we want Scotland’s children to grow up healthy, happy, safe and loved, and we recognise that, in most cases, their families are the best people to make that a reality. We need to challenge ourselves to do things differently but, above all, keep the voice of families at the heart of everything that we do.

The Deputy Presiding Officer

Thank you, minister; that concludes the debate.

13:30 Meeting suspended.

14:00 On resuming—

Rural Affairs and Islands

Annabelle Ewing (Scottish National Party, Cowdenbeath)

Good afternoon. I remind members of the Covid-related measures that are in place, and that face coverings should be worn when moving around the chamber and the Holyrood campus.

The next item of business is portfolio questions on rural affairs and islands. Questions 1 and 5 are grouped together. I will take supplementary questions on those questions after both have been answered. If a member wishes to ask a supplementary question, they should indicate so during the relevant question by pressing their request-to-speak button or entering the letter R in the chat function.

Rural Economy (Arran)

Katy (Labour, West Scotland)

1. To ask the Scottish Government what recent actions it has taken to support the rural economy on Arran. (S6O-00608)

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

The Scottish Government is committed to supporting our rural economies, including that of Arran. Last June, I launched the islands communities fund, of which the Community of Arran Seabed Trust is already a beneficiary, receiving £130,000. The Arran Pioneer Project has received £14,508 through the healthy islands fund. Through the islands infrastructure fund, North Ayrshire Council will receive £259,000 to spend on infrastructure on Arran and Cumbrae.

Katy (Labour, West Scotland)

The cabinet secretary will be aware of the problems associated with the ferry cancellations that affected Arran this month. I understand that the islands connectivity plan is overdue. How does that plan link with ferry service levels and contingency plans for the islands when problems associated with ferry cancellations occur? Would the cabinet secretary be willing to meet passenger groups to discuss the challenges?

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

I am sure that the member will be aware that a lot of those matters, particularly in relation to ferries, are the responsibility of the Minister for Transport. However, I try to engage as much as I can, given my overall responsibilities for the islands.

We are aware of the impacts of the pandemic and Brexit on Arran and other island communities, and how frustrating it is when, at short notice, ferry services are affected. We cannot lose sight of why those are lifeline services. Children need them to get to school, residents need them to access services on the mainland, and public services and local businesses need them to get their workers back and forth.

I use this opportunity to emphasise that we need everyone to consider carefully both the current advice, which is to stay at home as much as possible, and whether their ferry trip is essential. Every time someone takes the virus on board a ferry it puts the health of the crew at risk, which puts the service at risk, which has significant wider impacts, some of which we have seen recently. We all need to work together in the short term to minimise the impact of the variant and try to sustain those lifeline services for island communities.

I would be happy to get back to the member with further detail on the islands connectivity plan, which is due to commence and be published this year.

Island Economies (Support)

Carol Mochan (Labour, South Scotland)

5. To ask the Scottish Government what preparations it has made to support the rural economies of Scotland’s islands, in light of the anticipated impact of the omicron variant. (S6O-00612)

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

The Scottish Government continues to support our island economies and communities. We recognise the difficulties presented by our updated Covid-19 guidance, which has been put in place to protect public health. That is why, before Christmas, we announced our £375 million support package for businesses. That is in addition to our £30 million islands programme investment to support delivery of the national islands plan over the next five years.

This Government is also investing up to £50 million through the islands growth deal over the next 10 years.

Carol Mochan (Labour, South Scotland)

Island economies are facing serious challenges as a result of Covid and its variants, and they have lost almost £20 million of funding following Brexit. That is reflected across all Scotland’s islands, where many residents feel abandoned and unable to afford housing and transport. Can the cabinet secretary outline whether the currently outdated assessment of the needs of islanders and the industries connected to island tourism will be reviewed in light of the now worsening impact of Covid?

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

I completely understand the issues that the member has identified, whether that is in relation to the impact of Covid-19 or that of Brexit, which she also highlighted. Housing was also touched on. We recognise the issues with that; it is a critical issue that I hear about repeatedly when I am engaging with different stakeholders and communities. We have the remote, rural and island housing action plan, which will be developed and which, hopefully, will alleviate some of the issues that are being experienced.

However, of course, we cannot just look at each of those issues in a silo; there are a number of different issues that we are looking to address. For those that relate to connectivity, there is the £580 million investment for ferry services over the next five years, and there is the investment through the islands programme. We hope that, together, those will have a positive impact for our island communities.

The Deputy Presiding Officer

I will take some supplementary questions. The first is from Alasdair Allan, who joins us remotely.

Alasdair Allan (Scottish National Party, Na h-Eileanan an Iar)

Clearly, supporting business has a key role to play in supporting island economies and communities. What is the Scottish Government doing to ensure that the planned funding is being delivered timeously?

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

We are working with local authorities. We also work closely with our enterprise agencies and other key partners to try to ensure that the additional funding that is coming forward reaches businesses as soon as possible. Work began before Christmas with a view to getting those payments issued at the earliest opportunity. All partners are clear that providing that funding to businesses that need it is an absolute priority.

Jamie Greene (Conservative, West Scotland)

Businesses on Arran are absolutely scunnered by the endless disruptions to services that are not caused by the weather, Covid or Brexit but are everything to do with mechanical failure and the fact that their new ferry has not yet arrived. Will any of those businesses be compensated for loss of revenue or income as a result of mechanical failure or unreliable vessels?

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

As I have said in previous responses today, ferry services are key to supporting the economic, social and cultural development of our island communities, and operators will ensure that, where possible and when it is safe to do so, lifeline services are provided to connect remote island and mainland communities, when opportunities arise. As I previously touched on, the Scottish Government announced on 4 February last year a £580 million five-year investment plan, as part of our infrastructure investment. That substantial funding will improve Scotland’s ferry services over the next five years, as part of our wider infrastructure investment.

Kenneth Gibson (Scottish National Party, Cunninghame North)

Ferries are of crucial importance to Arran’s economy. So, too, are workers. The average house price of more than £272,000 puts houses beyond the reach of young families, and only 11 per cent of Arran’s housing is social rented housing. The Scottish Government allocated £2.38 million to North Ayrshire Council to build 34 council houses—£70,000 for each home. Given that 86 Arran homes—3 per cent—are lying empty, what further steps will the minister take to bring those properties back into use and to enable the construction of more affordable homes across Arran’s rapidly ageing communities?

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

As a Government, we have committed to delivering 110,000 affordable homes by 2032, with 70 per cent of those for social rent and at least 10 per cent in remote, rural and island locations. Planned investment in North Ayrshire Council over this parliamentary session is more than £81 million, which is an increase of £14 million on the previous session.

The member has talked about empty homes. Tackling that remains a key priority. The actions in “Housing to 2040” will help to ensure that those wasted resources are brought back into residential use. As I have touched on, we are also developing a remote, rural and island housing action plan to ensure that we meet the needs of those areas.

The Deputy Presiding Officer

Before I call question 2, I alert members, including the questioner, Mark Ruskell, to the fact that the Minister for Environment, Biodiversity and Land Reform, Màiri McAllan, was primed to answer it but is participating remotely and is having technical difficulties. Hence, the question will be answered by the Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and Islands. I call Mark Ruskell, who also joins us remotely.

Scotland’s Marine Assessment 2020

Mark Ruskell (Green, Mid Scotland and Fife)

2. Thank you, Presiding Officer. I, too, have had some technical difficulties.

To ask the Scottish Government when the Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs and Islands last met Marine Scotland to discuss Scotland’s marine assessment 2020. (S6O-00609)

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

The previous Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform last met Marine Scotland on 10 December 2020, specifically to discuss Scotland’s Marine Assessment 2020 before its publication on 21 December of that year.

I regularly meet Marine Scotland officials to discuss a range of marine issues, which are captured in Scotland’s marine assessment. The Scottish Government is committed to protecting our natural environment and to ensuring that human activity in and around our seas is environmentally, socially and economically sustainable. The measures in support of marine environmental protection that are enshrined in the Bute house agreement clearly demonstrate that commitment.

Mark Ruskell (Green, Mid Scotland and Fife)

I thank the cabinet secretary for that reassurance. The Bute house agreement includes a whole suite of commitments to strengthen protections for the marine environment by supporting sustainable management of our fisheries. I am encouraged by the news today that the protection for cod spawning in the Firth of Clyde will be reintroduced this year—critically, with no exemptions. Will the cabinet secretary comment on the action’s objectives and the benefits that it aims to deliver?

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

In line with the Bute house agreement, we want to restore marine habitats in Scotland’s inshore waters, which is why we have decided to continue the February to April seasonal Clyde cod spawning closure for 2022-23 without exemptions. Unfortunately, despite the seasonal closure having been in place since 2002, the stock has shown very little sign of recovery. It therefore seems sensible to maximise any potential benefit from the closure to assist that stock recovery. We acknowledge that that will have a short-term impact on local fishers, because the closure will be for a period of 11 weeks. However, we believe that it will provide a higher chance of stock recovery and contribute to a more sustainable fishery in the west of Scotland.

The Deputy Presiding Officer

I will take some supplementary questions. Rhoda Grant joins us remotely.

Rhoda Grant (Labour, Highlands and Islands)

What confidence can the cabinet secretary have in the assessment and implementation of the marine plan when the front-line workers involved in policing it are facing a real-terms pay cut? Marine Scotland’s seafarers are among the lowest paid in the public sector. That leads to a loss of experienced staff and, as a result, patrol vessels are often tied up because they cannot be fully crewed. Will she deliver a fair pay settlement that brings their pay into line with that of other public sector workers?

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

I will be happy to look into the issues that the member raises and get back to her with a full response.

The Deputy Presiding Officer

Jenni Minto is also joining us remotely.

Jenni Minto (Scottish National Party, Argyll and Bute)

What is the Scottish Government doing to tackle the persistent problem of marine litter, which has such an impact on water and environmental quality and, crucially, can cause real harm to marine wildlife?

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

The member is right about the harms that are caused by marine litter resulting from improper waste disposal on land and at sea. The Scottish Government has developed legislation and policies under its marine litter strategy and the national litter and fly-tipping strategy in order to reduce that form of pollution. That includes bans on many single-use plastic products that are commonly found in beach litter, such as cotton buds, as well as encouraging recycling with a planned deposit return scheme for drinks containers.

Both of those strategies have been reviewed recently, and refreshed versions with new actions are currently open to public consultation. Those consultations are open until 22 March 2022 and 31 March 2022, respectively. I urge and encourage people to take part in a consultation and ensure that their views are known.

Willie Rennie (Liberal Democrat, North East Fife)

The fishing fleet at Pittenweem and other harbours in Fife feel that they are being squeezed out by the increasing number of offshore wind farms in the Forth. Can the cabinet secretary guarantee that further applications for such wind farms will consider the cumulative impact on an important industry?

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

I thank the member for raising that important point. Having met some of the fishers who are impacted by the issue and having met the member to discuss the matter, I completely appreciate the concerns that fishers have. As a result of the meeting that I had with the member, we are taking away several actions for consideration. As the fisheries minister, it is my responsibility to engage and ensure that concerns that are raised by our fishers are taken into account when such decisions are taken.

Fishing Quotas (Sustainability)

Colin Smyth (Labour, South Scotland)

3. To ask the Scottish Government how the fishing quotas secured during the trilateral negotiations will be distributed to fishing businesses to incentivise more sustainable practices. (S6O-00610)

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

I am pleased that we have concluded the trilateral negotiations between the United Kingdom, the European Union and Norway for 2022, securing an estimated benefit to Scotland of £97 million.

The Scottish Government has made efforts to allocate quotas to incentivise more sustainable practices. For example, in recent years, we have allocated a greater share of the available mackerel quota to our inshore vessels, to be caught by hand line. In 2021 alone, the mackerel fishing opportunity was utilised by more than 300 inshore vessels. We estimate that those vessels landed more than 1,300 tonnes, worth around £1.6 million. In 2022, we will continue to allocate quota to our inshore vessels to allow for increased diversification opportunities and fishing methods associated with a lower environmental impact.

Colin Smyth (Labour, South Scotland)

The negotiations showed that we are still way off the mark when it comes to sustainability. For example, the Government’s own agreed records of the negotiations showed that 47 per cent of plaice and 30 per cent of haddock that were caught in 2021 were discarded.

Section 25 of the Fisheries Act 2020 specifically requires ministers

“to incentivise ... the use of selective fishing gear, and ... fishing techniques that have a reduced impact on the environment”

when distributing quota. However, as the cabinet secretary has set out, that still does not go far enough as far as the Government’s own measures are concerned. Will the cabinet secretary ensure that changes are made to the way in which quota is distributed when the Government sets out its new future catching policy, to ensure that sustainability is given a far higher priority?

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

I can clarify that the Scottish Government allocates fishing quota in line with the United Kingdom Fisheries Act 2020 and that, when it came to the allocation of quota this year and in 2021, we sought to widen the socioeconomic benefit and reduce the environmental impact by allocating that quota to methods of fishing that are associated with a reduced environmental impact, as I outlined in my initial answer.

The way that we allocate additional quota—that is, the changes to the UK’s quota share as a result of Brexit—is to be the subject of a Scottish Government consultation this year, and it will take effect in subsequent years.

Karen Adam (Scottish National Party, Banffshire and Buchan Coast)

How is the Scottish Government supporting new entrants into fishing and ensuring that development in aquaculture is sustainable?

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

The Scottish Government is supporting new entrants into the fishing industry through the marine fund Scotland and the future fisheries management strategy. The marine fund Scotland can assist young fishers to purchase their first fishing boat or to have a share in a fishing boat, and it promotes greater diversity in the industry and training through the industry body, Seafish. It also supports aquaculture with projects to ensure a sustainable future as well as the economic benefits that come from that.

Having announced awards from the fund, we have already heard back from recipients about the profound and positive impact that it has had on them. That is a really good example of how the Scottish Government is working to support our rural communities.

We are also committed to the sustainable development of aquaculture. We will set out how we will do that through our vision for sustainable aquaculture.

Farming Charities (Support)

Jeremy Balfour (Conservative, Lothian)

4. To ask the Scottish Government what support it provides to farming charities. (S6O-00611)

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

In the past financial year—2021-22—the Scottish Government has provided £1,263,800 in funding from the rural budget to a range of farming charities in Scotland. That includes the provision of funding to the Royal Highland and Agricultural Society of Scotland and the Royal Highland Education Trust, including for food education; to GrowBiz to support learning and training; and to the national rural mental health forum and Support in Mind Scotland to support mental health and wellbeing. We also provide funding to the Royal Scottish Agricultural Benevolent Institution to help it to operate a helpline for seasonal agricultural workers, as well as support for young people and women in agriculture.

Over the past year, all those organisations have undertaken invaluable work that has supported people in agricultural and rural communities across Scotland. I thank them for the tremendous difference that they have made.

Jeremy Balfour (Conservative, Lothian)

Farmers and those who work in the agricultural and rural sectors have experienced great difficulty with mental health and loneliness throughout the pandemic. Lockdowns and self-isolation have added to those difficulties. The Royal Agricultural Benevolent Institution’s “The Big Farming Survey” has revealed that 35 per cent of the entire farming community have described themselves as “probably” or “possibly” depressed. The figure for women in agriculture is higher, at 43 per cent. What will the cabinet secretary do to support farmers and farming charities to deal with the mental health crisis in our rural communities?

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

The figures that Jeremy Balfour has outlined are really concerning. That is why we have offered the levels of funding that we have over the past year. We all know that this has been a really difficult time, but it has been particularly isolating and difficult for those who work in our agricultural sector, as Jeremy Balfour has outlined. That is why we are committed to maintaining support and supporting those charities and organisations.

As I said in my initial response, we have supported Support in Mind Scotland with £150,000 of funding to support work in our rural communities. We have provided the national rural mental health forum with £200,000 worth of funding since 2017-18, and we are continuing to fund the RSABI, because it undertakes such critical and important work.

We continue to engage with the charities to see whether there is more that we can do to try to alleviate the pressure that a lot of people are experiencing. That is why the work that they do is so important and why we are determined to continue to support them.

The Deputy Presiding Officer

Emma Harper, who joins us remotely, has a supplementary question.

Emma Harper (Scottish National Party, South Scotland)

The cabinet secretary will be aware that isolation can be a key issue for the mental health and wellbeing of people living and working in remote rural areas. Will she join me in congratulating Sheena Horner on her success with her #Run1000 initiative, which is now in its second year?

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

Absolutely. I am delighted to congratulate Sheena and the other members of team Scotland on their success in taking part in #Run1000 last year, as well as all the participants this year. I see constant tweets about it on my Twitter feed. I tried to sign up to it myself, but I have been unable to connect my Strava to it as yet. It is such an important initiative, and Sheena Horner has done fantastic work.

For those who are not aware of the initiative, participants walk or run during the month of January, and they are doing that this year. Every step that they take counts towards their country’s collective miles—the activity is also taking place in other countries across the United Kingdom. It was such a tremendous achievement to raise so much money for RSABI.

Sheena has rightly been nominated for, and won, awards for what started as an idea to support her own wellbeing in lockdown. As the member will be aware, and as I have stated, #Run1000 is back for a second year this year, with participants taking part in the mental health fundraiser again. The initiative will return for a battle of the nations across the UK—and, for the first time, New Zealand is joining in, too. I again take the opportunity to highlight the amazing work that Sheena Horner has done and to congratulate her for it.

The Deputy Presiding Officer

I make a plea for succinct questions and answers. If that happens, we will be able to get everybody else in.

Carbon-neutral Islands

Emma Roddick (Scottish National Party, Highlands and Islands)

6. To ask the Scottish Government how it is progressing plans for carbon-neutral islands. (S6O-00613)

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

We recently announced our intention to support six, rather than three, Scottish islands through the carbon-neutral islands project, and work is under way to consider the selection process for that. Our intention is to start work with the selected islands and their communities this year, as is outlined in the programme for government.

Emma Roddick (Scottish National Party, Highlands and Islands)

In September 2021, a report by the Scottish Affairs Committee concluded:

“Locational transmission charges weigh more heavily on developers in Scotland when projects in other areas of the UK, like Wales, are paid to connect to the grid.”

Does the cabinet secretary share my concern that that unjust situation will hamper the progress of renewable energy development in Scotland’s island communities?

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

I share the member’s concerns. Scotland’s islands have been leaders in renewable energy development and innovation, and that is why we are determined to harness that potential and build on that success to meet Scotland’s 2045 net zero ambitions.

The higher transmission network use of system charges remain a key barrier to net zero in Scotland. The analysis by the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets—Ofgem—shows that, by 2040, Scottish renewable and low-carbon generators will be the only ones paying a wider transmission network charge, with all others, including gas generators elsewhere in Great Britain, being paid credits. In our response to Ofgem’s recent call for evidence on the transmission network use of system charges, we have made it clear that a new approach is needed—rather than small modifications to the existing methodologies of Ofgem’s charging reviews and decision making—that fully takes into account the effects on renewables project costs and ensures that they do not present barriers to investment and progress in Scotland.

Rachael Hamilton (Conservative, Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire)

The Scottish National Party Government is failing to deliver carbon-neutral islands, with a £20 million cut to the agricultural transformation fund for crofters, peatland restoration targets not achieved and a falling proportion of low-emission ferries—they have not been delivered.

With net zero targets to meet, why is the Government failing to deliver carbon neutral for islanders and for crofters?

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

I completely disagree with the assertions that have been made by the member. The initiative cannot have failed, because it is yet to begin, and the work to deliver it is on-going.

The Deputy Presiding Officer

Question 7 is from Gillian Martin, who joins us remotely. [Interruption.]

Excuse me for a second, colleagues. [Interruption.] We will seek to come back to Ms Martin later; we will now go to question 8, from Pam Duncan-Glancy.

Dog Breeding (Legal Requirements)

Pam Duncan-Glancy (Labour, Glasgow)

8. To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to strengthen the legal requirements for dog breeding. (S6O-00615)

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

Last year, we introduced new animal licensing regulations, which significantly updated and strengthened the legal requirements in Scotland for anyone breeding three or more litters of puppies in any 12-month period. Those new requirements came into force on 1 September.

We recognise, however, that more needs to be done to tackle the scourge of low-welfare breeders who operate outwith Scotland but illegally import puppies for sale here. Earlier this week, the Parliament gave its consent for certain provisions of the Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill to apply in Scotland. The bill provides Scottish ministers with regulation-making powers to prohibit the importation of dogs under six months old and late-stage pregnant dams.

The introduction of those measures has the potential to impact significantly on the activities of those who import illegally bred puppies, and we will seek to introduce new legislation that uses the powers that are set out in the bill at the earliest opportunity.

Pam Duncan-Glancy (Labour, Glasgow)

The animal welfare regulations that were introduced last year updated the licensing system for dog breeders and brought the threshold for breeding registration from five down to three litters a year. The Kennel Club anticipated that that would require an additional 98 breeders to register with it. The Dogs Trust has said that the threshold must be reduced even further to include anyone breeding a litter.

Additional regulations, such as the mandatory inclusion of breeder registration and licensing numbers, must be introduced to ensure that we can effectively tackle the issue of unscrupulous breeders and dealers, especially as more families work from home and take on puppies, and as prices soar.

Does the Scottish Government intend to publish any evaluation or analysis of the impact of the 2020-21 animal welfare regulations, and does it have any plans to revisit their provisions?

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

I assure the member that we are in regular contact with all our key stakeholders. She mentioned the Kennel Club and the Dogs Trust, with which I met towards the end of last year to hear their thoughts on the new regulations. Those regulations have just been introduced, of course, so we will continue to monitor the situation closely.

We are serious about tackling that massive problem, which has only got worse during the pandemic. To do so, we are committed to taking action where that is necessary.

The Deputy Presiding Officer

I can get a few supplementaries in if we have succinct questions and answers.

Maurice Golden joins us remotely.

Maurice Golden (Conservative, North East Scotland)

Unfortunately, thieves often target particular breeds, with breeders and sellers having to take extra precautions. Does the cabinet secretary recognise the need to strengthen both deterrents and protections for breeders to help to stamp out that practice?

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

Absolutely. Again, we continue to engage with all our relevant stakeholders to consider what more we can do to tackle some of the problems that we see.

Some of the powers that we will receive through the Animal Welfare (Kept Animals) Bill, through the legislative consent motion that was agreed to this week, as well as the regulations that we introduced last year will go a long way towards tackling some of those issues.

We continue to monitor the situation to see what else we can do to tackle some of those issues.

Collette Stevenson (Scottish National Party, East Kilbride)

I am aware that the cabinet secretary was involved in the Buy A Puppy Safely campaign, which sought to provide the public with information on how to identify puppies that were bred from puppy farms and what to do in such circumstances. Can the cabinet secretary outline what to look for when buying a puppy and how to avoid buying from puppy farms?

The Deputy Presiding Officer

Briefly, cabinet secretary.

Mairi Gougeon (Scottish National Party, Angus North and Mearns)

Many key safeguards exist, and people can do many things to guard against buying from puppy farms. I advise anyone who is looking to buy a puppy ideally to avoid buying them through online ad sites, and instead to look at established reputable breeders. People should be prepared to wait to receive a puppy, because reputable breeders have waiting lists for a reason.

I also advise people never to buy from a breeder who does not let them see the pup with its mother, and to always try to get the puppy’s paperwork, which should include the vaccination and microchip records, when they collect the puppy. If there is no paperwork, it is likely that people are buying an illegally bred puppy.

If buyers have any concerns, I advise them to walk away and get in touch with the Scottish Society for Prevention of Cruelty to Animals to look into any concerns.

The Deputy Presiding Officer

That concludes portfolio questions.

Car Travel

Annabelle Ewing (Scottish National Party, Cowdenbeath)

The next item of business is a statement by Graeme Dey on reducing Scotland’s car travel by 20 per cent by 2030. The minister will take questions at the end of his statement, so there should be no interventions or interruptions.

Graeme Dey (Scottish National Party, Angus South)

Today, I am pleased to publish a draft route map setting out how we will reduce car use to help create a fairer and greener Scotland. I am not aware of any other country in the world that is committing to such an ambitious objective. It sits within and alongside our world-leading commitment to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 75 per cent by 2030 and to make Scotland a net zero nation by 2045.

The commitment is informed by the research on decarbonising transport that was published last September. The modelling in the research makes it clear that to decarbonise travel at the scale and pace needed to meet our statutory emissions targets we must not only switch to cleaner cars but reduce their overall use. In short, we need to drive down our car use. To achieve a 20 per cent reduction in car kilometres by 2030, we must look across a range of trip types, including short urban-based trips as well as longer leisure-related trips. Just 3 per cent of car trips are more than 35 kilometres, yet they are responsible for 30 per cent of the total kilometres travelled and thus make a disproportionate contribution to total emissions.

Understanding how people currently use their cars, alongside strong evidence that people want to see more Government action taken to address climate change, allows us to start a national conversation to support people to do what they tell us they want to do—to cut the distance that they travel by car. We have known that for some time, but today we shift up a gear with a much clearer destination in sight, and we begin the work of engaging people to understand the role that they can play as individuals and how that can translate into wider benefits in health and wellbeing for themselves, their families and their communities.

The route map is underpinned by three guiding principles. The first is that it is collaborative. It has been developed jointly with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, and officials have also engaged widely with local authority and regional partners. That partnership matters, because change cannot be achieved solely at national level; it needs local solutions to be identified and delivered.

Secondly, the route map makes it clear that there is not a one-size-fits-all approach. Although 20 per cent is a national target, that does not mean that car use in rural and remote areas is expected to drop at the same rate as in towns and cities. We know that access to transport options varies across Scotland, so we will work with and support local partners to identify solutions that are most appropriate to Scotland’s urban, rural and island communities.

Thirdly, the principle of a just transition is at the heart of the route map, which will support our work to tackle inequality and child poverty. The route map recognises that there will be some people for whom reducing car use, especially in the short term, will be more challenging, including disabled people and their families. However, we also need to recognise the unfairness of the status quo where the car is king and car use is made too easy at the expense of other fairer options.

For people on the lowest incomes, 60 per cent have no access to a car. Of those with a long-term health problem or disability, the figure is 46 per cent. Younger and old people, women and certain minority ethnic groups are also less likely to have access to a car, including in rural areas. Also, we know that the worst effects of car use—air and noise pollution, road danger, community severance and congestion—fall disproportionately on the most marginalised in our society. Children in Scotland’s poorest communities are at three times higher risk of death or injury while out walking or cycling than those in other areas.

Reducing car dominance is about climate justice, but it also gets to the heart of social justice. That is why the route map identifies four key behaviours that will frame and underpin our national conversation. We want people to make use of sustainable online options to reduce their need to travel; to choose local destinations to reduce the distance that they travel; to switch to walking, wheeling, cycling and public transport where possible; and, although the past two years have discouraged this for very good reason, over time we want people to combine a trip or share a journey to reduce the number of individual car trips that they make, if a car remains the only feasible option.

Supporting and encouraging people to achieve those changes forms the basis of the 30-plus interventions that are identified in the route map. Some of them are already under way, including providing free bus travel for people aged under 22, which from the end of this month will enable more children, young people and their families to choose to travel by local bus, and our reaching 100 per cent broadband commitment to provide superfast broadband access for every home and business in Scotland to help to reduce the need to travel.

Other actions will take longer, but our commitment is backed up by significant long-term investment such as ensuring that at least 10 per cent of the total transport budget will go to active travel by 2024-25, to help more people to walk, wheel or cycle instead of drive. However, we cannot escape the scale of the challenge and must acknowledge that changing decades of belief and behaviour requires a mix of infrastructure, incentivisation and regulatory actions, some of which we still need to explore, test and apply.

In 2019, we provided local authorities with a new discretionary power to set up workplace parking licensing schemes, which can reduce congestion, improve air quality and reduce emissions. The regulations that enable local authorities to use those powers were laid before Parliament yesterday.

No one person or agency carries all the responsibility to make change happen. Transport demand derives from other factors; where people live, work, learn and access goods and services are all key to their need to travel. We need to use national and local government powers and responsibilities to reduce people’s need to travel by providing better local access to goods, services, leisure opportunities and social connections, as well as providing flexible and remote working approaches and more sustainable travel options for those who need to travel longer distances.

Scotland’s Climate Assembly identified, as one of its top five goals, the implementation of an integrated, accessible and affordable public transport system and improved local infrastructure throughout Scotland. The route map sets out the actions that we are taking, including the fair fares review, which will consider options for change against a background where the costs of car travel are declining and public transport costs are increasing. In short, we are already committed to finding ways to make alternative travel modes more attractive and supporting people to use the car less.

We want that work to be as inclusive as possible. We want to empower everyone to do what they can to reduce their car use and help tackle climate change, and we want to ensure that as many people as possible benefit from the individual and community-level impacts of their actions. However, we do not have control of all the levers that are needed to achieve that. Fuel duty and vehicle excise duty remain reserved to the United Kingdom Government, which has at least acknowledged that, as we transition away from fossil fuels, changes to our tax system will be required.

We will continue to press the UK Government for constructive dialogue on what it plans to replace those with. The best solution, of course, would be for the UK Government to scrap those duties and wholly devolve the powers to Scotland, so that we can design and deliver fiscal solutions that best meet Scotland’s needs and interests. In no part of the UK is the transport fiscal set-up credible.

That is why, alongside those efforts, we will commission research to explore equitable options for demand management to discourage car use, while encouraging fewer journeys to be taken by car and more journeys to be taken by public and active transport options. That includes pricing and the cost of motoring; at this stage, we cannot and should not rule anything out. Transport remains our biggest emitting sector, with cars responsible for most transport emissions. Reducing those emissions requires bold and radical action. The route map enables us to meet that challenge with a clear end point in sight.

Although there are simple changes that we can make, achieving such a significant shift for so many of us will not be easy. However, we know from previous successes such as the indoor smoking ban that it can be done. The prize is worth having: safer roads, reduced pollution, more space in neighbourhoods for other users and better physical and mental health. Getting this right is win-win-win-win.

We will consult publicly on the route map, kick-starting the critical wider national conversation that we need to have about car use. That conversation must become a crucial shared national endeavour through which everyone feels empowered to change their habits, comfortable that they have affordable and sustainable alternative options to use to get around, and confident that they know that their actions are benefiting their health and wellbeing as well as that of their family and community. In doing so, we will all play our part in helping Scotland to contribute to cutting emissions, limiting global warming to 1.5°C and tackling climate change.

The Deputy Presiding Officer

The minister will now take questions on the issues raised in his statement. I intend to allow 20 minutes for questions, after which we will move to the next item of business. It would be helpful if members who wish to ask a question pressed their request-to-speak buttons or typed an R in the chat function now.

Graham Simpson (Conservative, Central Scotland)

I would describe the statement as a starting point. There is stuff in there that is worth discussing and I look forward to doing that when I next meet the minister. However, like many Government documents, it is full of warm words but little in the way of meaningful action.

The first question that I have is this: what is the 20 per cent reduction in car miles—I say “miles” because that is what we deal with in this country, not kilometres—based on? For many people in Scotland, and I think that the minister knows this because he lives in a rural part of the country, the car is a necessity, so where will that 20 per cent come from? If we are going to target urban areas more than rural areas, what will be the difference between them?

If we want to get people out of cars, we need to give them an alternative. That alternative could be active travel—I very much support spending on that—or it could be public transport. We have seen announcements of an increase in rail fares and service cuts, and we have seen no meaningful reform to the bus system. What does the minister say about that? How does that encourage people on to public transport?

We have also had vague promises for years of a national smart card for public transport. There is no sign of that yet, yet delegates to the 26th United Nations climate change conference of the parties—COP26—were able to have one. If it was good enough for them, why is it not good enough for the rest of the country? When will we get that national smart card?

Finally, near the end of the minister’s statement, he got in a mention of fuel duty. We have had an 11-year freeze on fuel duty; now the minister says that he wants to take control of it. Is he suggesting that we end the freeze? What is he suggesting? What does he want to replace it with? Perhaps he can tell us.

Graeme Dey (Scottish National Party, Angus South)

I accept that this is a starting point—that is exactly what it is. It kicks off the discussion. However, there is a lot more to it than Mr Simpson acknowledges. Plenty of actions are under way and plenty are highlighted in the document.

The 20 per cent cut in car kilometres is what is determined to represent a meaningful and necessary contribution to tackling wider transport emissions. I acknowledged in my statement that there is a discrepancy between what it is realistic to expect from rural dwellers as opposed to urban dwellers. Mr Simpson is right that I represent a rural area, although there are rural areas that are more remote than mine.

How we take this forward will be shaped by partnership. Mr Simpson asks what the alternatives will be. We are looking to work in partnership with local transport partnerships and local councils to determine what the best solution is for their areas. We believe that they can make that contribution. I think that we have made a good start to that already in terms of COSLA’s direct involvement.

On bus system reform, I am delighted to hear that Mr Simpson is such a proponent of radical change to the bus system.

Graham Simpson (Conservative, Central Scotland)

I have been for some time.

Graeme Dey (Scottish National Party, Angus South)

He has been for some time—let me acknowledge and welcome that, and I do the same for Mr Smyth over there. I, too, am in that space. I look forward, in the coming year and beyond, to using the powers in the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019 to see what we can do to change and improve the bus system.

As for a national smart card, that work continues to be progressed. It will be progressed throughout this year. We have made some progress, but we have much more to do.

Mr Simpson also touched on the subject of fuel duty. His own United Kingdom Government has acknowledged that maintaining the current approach really is not an option. What we want to do is work with that Government—although we would rather have the powers here—to design something that is fairer all round but which recognises the pressing need to drive down car usage.

The Deputy Presiding Officer

I call Neil Bibby, who joins us remotely.

Neil Bibby (Labour, West Scotland)

I thank the minister for advance sight of his statement.

This is not a route map to reduce car use; it is an excuse to hit people in Scotland with a workplace parking tax when they are already suffering from a cost of living crisis. As I have said before, we will not reduce car use unless we have affordable, reliable and accessible public transport, but public transport in Scotland is a joke and, under this transport minister, it is getting worse.

If the minister is serious about tackling the climate crisis and helping people to leave the car at home, will he reverse his cuts to ScotRail services? If he is serious, will he reverse his own rip-off rail fares that are due to go into effect later this month? If he is serious, will he stop ScotRail shutting ticket desks? If he is serious, will he properly fund local councils to take control of bus services? The transport minister does not seem to be very serious about improving public transport.

Finally, will the minister answer the question that he was asked before: when will people start to see the national smart-ticketing card that was promised by the First Minister 10 years ago?

Graeme Dey (Scottish National Party, Angus South)

This is big-vision stuff. It is about significant and fundamental behavioural change. It would be regrettable if we simply rehearsed the arguments that we have in the chamber week in, week out, with Mr Bibby being very much fixated on rail and the idea that the solution to everything is to spend more money, regardless of usage, patronage and the challenges that we have. It is about much more than that.

The rail context is a little bit like the situation with car sharing—we need to encourage car sharing but it is very challenging to do that right now because of the pandemic. We see rail playing a significant part in the rest of this decade and beyond, but we face significant financial challenges that we must address right now.

On the subject of the timetable, for example, what we have is a baseline and starting point for rebuilding as we look at what future travel patterns will be. We have to deliver services that meet people’s expectations and needs and when they will travel, and that might well change as a result of Covid.

On smart cards, as I said to Mr Simpson, we are making progress in general with smart ticketing, and I expect significant progress to be made in the next year to 18 months.

John Mason (Scottish National Party, Glasgow Shettleston)

Glasgow has an incredibly good public transport system but, during Covid, people were encouraged to use their cars and I think that some are now fearful of going back to public transport. How will the Government encourage people back to public transport from their cars?

Graeme Dey (Scottish National Party, Angus South)

Public transport is critical to this agenda. We all have to acknowledge the impact that Covid-19 has had on passenger numbers and confidence. As we emerge from the pandemic, there will be a period when we have to encourage and rebuild people’s confidence. There is no single magic solution to that challenge; it will take a combination of actions and it will take time.

The fair fares review will support a safe and confident return to public transport as we recover from the pandemic, and it will ensure that there is a viable and sustainable public transport system for the future. The review will look at a range of discounts and concessionary schemes that are currently available for transport modes and it will consider options to extend or amend those. That is especially important with the backdrop of car travel costs declining and public transport costs increasing.

We will obviously support more bus and rail usage. In the context of bus travel, that is through free travel for the over-60s and disabled people, and the extension of that to the under-22s. We are investing significantly in bus priority infrastructure, and in maintaining and enhancing Scotland’s railway in the current control period, including rail station investment and future decarbonisation.

Liam Kerr (Conservative, North East Scotland)

The minister suggests reducing the need to travel by pushing people to online options. However, the reaching 100 per cent—R100—programme has continually slipped, with the northern part delayed until 2027 and £50 million slashed from the digital budget. What impact does the minister project pushing people online will have on high street businesses and local bus services? Given the R100 delays, is he conceding that, once again, the north-east will be left behind as the Scottish National Party implements projects in the central belt?

Graeme Dey (Scottish National Party, Angus South)

That was a rather brave line for a Conservative to take on the subject of broadband. With the greatest respect to Mr Kerr, broadband is a United Kingdom Government responsibility—no ifs, buts or maybes. The Scottish Government has had to step in with R100 and the previous project to provide rural Scotland with appropriate online access.

I will pick up on Liam Kerr’s serious point, shall we say, about encouraging online usage. There will be situations when going online and using those options will have a positive impact on our climate footprint. However, as I outlined in my statement and other documents, we are trying to strike a balance, because we are also trying to encourage, for example, greater usage of rural high streets. What we are saying, among other things, is that, if someone lives in a rural area, they should try to put their journeys together so that they are not making two, three or four journeys a week into town. They should try to reduce their car usage but, by all means, they should get out on the high street and support it, because it is important that we maintain our local high streets for the future.

Gillian Martin (Scottish National Party, Aberdeenshire East)

One of the issues in my Aberdeenshire constituency is that public transport, particularly buses, that can take people between the towns in the area for work without having to go through Aberdeen first can be very poor. That is why so many of my constituents rely on a car to get to work on time. As the minister said in his statement, not all the actions needed to make alternative transport options efficient, affordable and available rest with the Scottish Government. What role does the minister think that local authorities and other partners need to play to improve public transport and increase routes and services that might not, on the surface, seem to be profitable but that are essential if we are to provide an alternative to rural car use?

Graeme Dey (Scottish National Party, Angus South)

I am conscious that I need to choose my words carefully here, because I do not want to give the impression that we are somehow lumping responsibility on to local authorities—far from it. We are talking about genuine partnership working. The member is right to identify that collaborative working will be key to achieving the target. I also commend the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities for its input to the document.

Local authorities and regional transport partners will be key to reducing car usage, not least through spatial planning and land use decisions. Local authorities have a key role in demand management schemes and in continuing to deliver low-emission zones, in deciding whether to create local workplace parking licensing schemes and in deciding how they might draw down investment from bus partnership funding and active travel and the other funding schemes that exist. We have recently awarded £12 million from our bus partnership fund to help the north-east of Scotland bus alliance with some of its proposals.

I also point Ms Martin to a project in Elgin, in her neighbouring constituency. It is a mass mobility-as-a-service project. I visited it and was hugely impressed with the potential of the pilot project to be rolled out across Scotland. Such services could really play a part in what we all need to achieve here.

Colin Smyth (Labour, South Scotland)

We will not get people out of their cars unless we put in place public transport alternatives. The minister said that regulations for the workplace parking tax were laid before Parliament yesterday, but more than two years after I secured amendments to the Transport (Scotland) Bill to give councils the power to set up publicly owned bus services, there is no sign of the regulations to deliver those. When will those powers be given to councils? How much additional funding will be given to councils to set up those bus companies, so that we can reverse the massive decline in bus usage that we have seen under this Government?

Graeme Dey (Scottish National Party, Angus South)

As, I hope, Mr Smyth will acknowledge, the pandemic has played a part in derailing a number of things that we wanted to implement. I have said this to him before, and I will say it again: he and I are not on opposite sides of this. We share the desire to implement these proposals and to encourage councils, and whoever else, to take advantage of such powers to deliver the kind of bus services that both he and I want to see. The regulations will be introduced this year.

On how the proposals will be funded, we have committed to establishing the community bus fund, and there is £1 million in the budget for forthcoming years as a starting point. I look forward to working with Mr Smyth to bring all of that to fruition.

Kenneth Gibson (Scottish National Party, Cunninghame North)

Car drivers, of which I am one, use that mode of transport because of its ready convenience in all weathers and 24 hours a day. Road and fuel taxes are reserved, and increasing the cost of driving will only disadvantage low-income households. What improvements to public transport will be made, particularly in rural and island Scotland, to persuade drivers to make the necessary modal shift, given that it has been estimated that a 50 per cent increase in public transport is required to cut car usage by 1 per cent?

Graeme Dey (Scottish National Party, Angus South)

Reducing private car usage will be more challenging for people who live in rural and island areas. However, we can all do more, and Kenny Gibson highlights one of the challenges here. People do find it more convenient to jump in their car. We all do it for all sorts of journeys, whether or not alternatives are readily available. That needs to change. Part of it is about ensuring that people have good access to employment, goods and services locally through initiatives such as remote working, community hubs and 20-minute neighbourhoods, all of which we are working on.

We also need to tackle some of the myths. I disagree with something that Kenny Gibson said. It is not people who are on lower incomes or who live in poor areas who are going to be disadvantaged by making public transport more affordable and accessible. They already rely on it and they are much less likely to be using a car. There is also an equalities argument about reducing car usage.

I will pick up on an example from Kenny Gibson’s own constituency. The ferry from Brodick comes into Ardrossan, and there is a rail station adjacent to the ferry terminal. We need to exploit such opportunities more so that people have more ready access to rail when they come on to the mainland and when they are leaving the mainland to go to the islands. There are lots of such opportunities that we can develop, and I look forward to working with Mr Gibson, other island representatives and local authorities to see what more we can do to ensure that the opportunity is there for island residents to play their part.

The Deputy Presiding Officer

Beatrice Wishart joins us remotely.

Beatrice Wishart (Liberal Democrat, Shetland Islands)

In his statement, the minister acknowledged that rural, remote and island communities are not expected to reduce car use at the same rate as their urban counterparts. As other members have suggested, car users in such areas would consider cars to be essential, not luxury, items.

Will the minister outline how the 10 per cent of the transport budget that it is proposed will be spent on active travel before 2024-25 will be apportioned across the diverse regions of Scotland?

Graeme Dey (Scottish National Party, Angus South)

I would not presume to encroach on my colleague Patrick Harvie’s territory by going into any great detail on that.

Graham Simpson (Conservative, Central Scotland)

Surely you would.

Graeme Dey (Scottish National Party, Angus South)

Mr Simpson is being very uncharitable.

However, I think that Beatrice Wishart makes a very fair point. We must ensure that all the budget opportunities can be accessed by local authorities and regional transport partnerships, wherever in the country they may be.

I encourage Beatrice Wishart to work with her council, Shetland Islands Council, but I also point to some of the good work that is being done by the neighbouring authority, Orkney Islands Council. I encourage Beatrice Wishart and Shetland Islands Council to put together a package of measures that they think would ensure that her constituency played its part. If such proposals are brought forward, they will be looked at.

The Deputy Presiding Officer

Jenni Minto joins us remotely.

Jenni Minto (Scottish National Party, Argyll and Bute)

I thank the minister for his statement, and I am pleased that the route map takes into account people’s differing needs regarding vehicle travel and the availability of public transport in rural and island settings. Could the minister please provide further details of how that element of the route map will develop?

Graeme Dey (Scottish National Party, Angus South)

In the route map, we very much recognise that rural areas tend to rely more heavily on private car use and have less access to public and shared transport options. We know that, for rural and island areas, the challenge is greater. It is important to emphasise that we are talking about a national ambition, but that does not mean that car use in rural and remote areas is expected to drop at the same rate as it is expected to drop in towns and cities.

As a nation, we need to change our relationship with the car in order to drive down our emissions. That is why the four themes are not just about switching transport mode. For people in remote areas, digital solutions offer a key opportunity to reduce car usage. That is why we have invested so heavily in extending broadband to more than 950,000 premises across Scotland, including in Argyll and Bute.

Brian Whittle (Conservative, South Scotland)

I will jump on the back of Kenny Gibson’s question and the minister’s reply to it. Would the minister consider developing a train station at Cairnryan and improving the rail link north to the central belt? That could reduce car travel considerably. Let us face it—investment in the infrastructure of the south-west is long overdue.

Graeme Dey (Scottish National Party, Angus South)

That was a shameless plug for one of the member’s projects.

The point here is that the issue is not so much about infrastructure, which sits in other parts of the Government’s agenda. However, if the argument can be made that a project fits with the agenda of reducing car travel, local authorities should, by all means, come forward with costed proposals for such projects and outline how they think they could make the difference that we need to make.

In a spirit of co-operation, I would not shoot down any project of that nature, but let us see what such a project would look like in detail.

The Deputy Presiding Officer

Mark Ruskell joins us remotely.

Mark Ruskell (Green, Mid Scotland and Fife)

I welcome the route map, which represents a really big step towards bringing about a green transport revolution. I also welcome the fact that the minister has recognised the role of demand management measures such as workplace parking levies. Does he agree that, where appropriate—I emphasise the phrase “where appropriate”—workplace parking levies or even congestion charging schemes can also raise substantial finance to invest in affordable, reliable and attractive alternatives to the private car that will end up benefiting the most disadvantaged?