Meeting of the Parliament

Meeting date: Thursday, March 23, 2023

Official Report 1103KB pdf

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General Question Time

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Sexual Misconduct Allegations (Councillors)

To ask the Scottish Government whether it produces guidance for local government on how allegations of sexual misconduct against councillors should be handled. (S6O-02053)

The guidance on handling such complaints is produced by the independent Ethical Standards Commissioner for Scotland. Allegations of sexual misconduct against a councillor while they are performing their duties should be dealt with by the Ethical Standards Commissioner as a breach of the councillors’ code of conduct. Moreover, if a criminal offence may have taken place, that should be dealt with by Police Scotland.

Sexual misconduct is an issue that all parties should, and do, take very seriously. That is why the Scottish Government is currently taking forward measures to prevent individuals who are on the sex offenders register from being councillors.

Last week, a Scottish National Party councillor who claims to have been sexually assaulted by a former North Lanarkshire Council leader demanded reform of how the SNP handles sex complaints. It is the third claim of sexually inappropriate behaviour that has been made against that individual. Instead of supporting victims, however, North Lanarkshire SNP closed ranks. One councillor even claimed that Mr Linden had done nothing wrong and that “the only thing” that he was “guilty of” was “being ... young”.

Does the minister agree that victims should be protected by political parties, and does he think that councils should have in place additional measures for councillors should political parties fail to support them?

I call the minister to respond on matters for which the Scottish Government has general ministerial responsibility.

Thank you, Presiding Officer. As you allude to, I cannot comment on political parties. I refer the member to my first answer.

In considering how we move forward, it is unacceptable that people who are potential predators could be councillors. That is why we are undertaking measures to improve matters, including taking forward a review of section 31 of the Local Government (Scotland) Act 1973 in order to bar individuals who are on the sex offenders register from being councillors, and we are continuing to consider matters relating to the councillors’ code of conduct.

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Windsor Framework

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what its initial assessment is of the potential impact of the Windsor framework on Scotland’s economy. (S6O-02054)

We welcome the Windsor framework, which offers an opportunity for the United Kingdom to reset its relationship with the European Union. However, the Prime Minister, by setting out his view that the framework puts Northern Ireland in an “unbelievably special position”, has accepted that Scotland is now at a major competitive disadvantage, and has made crystal clear the immense damage that the UK Government’s hard Brexit deal is causing to Scotland.

Despite voting overwhelmingly to remain, Scotland has been forced out of the EU, the single market and the customs union, and we have lost freedom-of-movement rights, which were so important to the Scottish economy.

Last week, the Office for Budget Responsibility confirmed that as a result of Brexit, long-run UK productivity will fall by 4 per cent, which is equivalent to a loss in annual national income of around £100 billion in comparison with continued EU membership.

Given that that hard Brexit is supported by not only the UK Government but the Labour Party, it is clearer than ever that it is only by becoming an independent country that Scotland can regain the huge economic benefits of EU membership.

I thank the minister for his answer, and I concur with his concerns over the Office for Budget Responsibility’s report. Can he give any comfort right now to Scottish businesses, which continue to suffer as a result of a damaging Tory hard Brexit? What comfort can he give them as they look across to Northern Ireland and see the advantages that Northern Ireland will have over Scottish businesses, given its access to the single market?

As I said in my earlier answer, we recognise the damage that that can do to the prospects of Scottish business. Of course, the Scottish Government continues to work with businesses in Scotland to support them as best we can, given the damage that the UK Government is doing through those steps.

The people in Scotland have given a clear mandate for a referendum on Scotland’s future. [Interruption.]

Thank you, members.

Scotland has huge economic potential, but the UK economy, particularly post-Brexit, is now lagging behind many EU and international comparators. Should the people of Scotland, when given a choice, vote for independence, Scotland would get the full range of powers and the ability to rejoin the EU and build a country that is wealthier, more successful and fairer than the UK.

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NHS Scotland Infrastructure Investment Plan

To ask the Scottish Government when it will begin to set out its proposals for the NHS Scotland infrastructure investment plan, post-2026, in relation to new-build hospitals. (S6O-02055)

An exact timeline has not been agreed for when the Scottish Government’s infrastructure investment plan for 2026 and the following five years will be published, but, in line with previous iterations of the plan, I expect it to be published in late 2025.

I thank the cabinet secretary for that answer. Last week, I wrote to him and to all other Scottish National Party leadership candidates to ask whether they would support a new acute general hospital for the Highlands and Islands, to replace Raigmore hospital. I know that the cabinet secretary has been very busy and has been unable to give me an answer, but now he has the opportunity. Does the cabinet secretary support my call?

Replying to Conservative MSPs should have been my priority, so I ask Edward Mountain to forgive me for not having got around to him. [Interruption.]

Conservative members might want to listen to the answer. I am very proud of Scottish Government investment in our Highlands and Islands. With regard to Scottish Government support, I announced £5 million of capital investment in upgrading maternity services at Raigmore hospital, and our Highland national treatment centre is getting an investment of £48.5 million. As Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care, I have had the pleasure of opening two new community hospitals: one in Aviemore in September 2021, and one on Skye in March 2022.

There is no doubt that Raigmore hospital will require significant investment—through either a full refurbishment or, indeed, replacement—and, of course, we will work closely with NHS Highland to identify the best way forward.

Can the cabinet secretary advise as to when we are likely to see construction of a new Crosshouse hospital in Ayrshire? The United Kingdom Government promised 40 new hospitals in England, the construction of which has been hampered by a lack of cash, is years behind schedule and is

“moving at a glacial pace”,

to quote Saffron Cordery, the interim chief executive of NHS Providers. We do not want to follow the Tories’ appalling example.

Indeed, we do not wish to follow that example. Of course, investment in our infrastructure and in health and social care is challenging, because of the Conservatives’ economic vandalism, which means that, at peak inflation, the health and social care budget alone is worth £1.2 billion less, and the Scottish Government budget is worth £1.7 billion less.

NHS Ayrshire and Arran is working on its caring for Ayrshire programme, which is an exciting and ambitious programme that will transform health and care services across Ayrshire and Arran. The board’s vision is that care should be delivered as close to home as possible and supported by a network of community services, with safe, effective and timely access to specialist services. As part of that programme, NHS Ayrshire and Arran is considering its acute healthcare estate, which includes Crosshouse hospital and what that will look like in the future. The Government will be fully supportive of that approach and we look forward to discussing those plans with the board when it is ready to do so.

Earlier this week, the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee heard evidence from health boards regarding external pressures on their service delivery, including the impact of inflation and increased utility costs. Can the cabinet secretary confirm whether the Government has considered how to reduce revenue energy cost as part of the infrastructure investment plan proposals, for example, through capital investments in systems such as district heat networks, which could increase the sustainability of the hospital estates and support surrounding communities?

We have considered that, and there are excellent examples of places where we are introducing such efficient systems. Of course, we have an ambition to decarbonise our entire health and social care estate, and I am happy to make sure that that strategy is forwarded to Paul Sweeney. I also point to the fact that, in next year’s budget, we will increase investment in the health service to a record £19 billion.

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National Health Service Dentistry

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to tackle the reported exodus of dentists from NHS dentistry. (S6O-02056)

On 7 February, the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care wrote to all NHS dental teams confirming the continuation of the bridging payment to 31 October 2023 while we prepare for the implementation of payment reform. Payment reform will comprise a new and modernised system that will provide NHS dental teams with greater clinical discretion and will provide transparency for NHS patients. It is our intention that payment reform will maintain the confidence of NHS dental teams by ensuring the future viability of NHS dentistry in Scotland.

The minister referred to confidence, but she will know from the crisis in Dumfries and Galloway that the reality is that no one can currently register with an NHS dentist. Practices in Dumfries, Annan, Castle Douglas and Thornhill have deregistered 20,000 patients. Crucially, half of those who are registered have not seen an NHS dentist for more than two years.

Given that the research from the British Dental Association, which warned about this exodus, shows that well over half of dentists have reduced their NHS work, what assessment has the Government made of the changes to the whole-time equivalent NHS dentist workforce since lockdown, and what guarantee will the minister give that my constituents will actually get to see an NHS dentist?

There is no doubt that there are strong existential forces working on the dental workforce in Scotland at the moment. We are working through the backdrop of a pandemic that prevented work in dentistry for nearly a year and impacted on it for quite a period after that. We had a whole year of dental students not qualifying, and Brexit happened. In the area that the member mentioned, Dumfries and Galloway, one in two dentists was European.

The Scottish Government has put in place a framework of support to encourage more dentists to work in remote and rural areas, including in areas of the south of Scotland. That includes the Scottish dental access initiative, which provides capital funding of up to £100,000 for the first surgery and £25,000 per additional surgery to dental providers who are setting up a new practice. We also have an enhanced recruitment and retention allowance of up to £37,500 for newly qualified training. We put that framework in place to mitigate the worst effects of Brexit on the reducing supply of dentists to Scotland.

Since Brexit, the rate of European Union and European Free Trade Association dentists joining the register has halved, although the Opposition would deny that. Therefore, will the minister provide an update on the steps that the Scottish Government is taking to improve access to NHS dental services and the areas that are particularly affected by those challenges?

The member is absolutely correct in saying that the consequences of Brexit are invariably having a disproportionate impact on NHS dental services in many areas, including Dumfries and Galloway—as I hear a member on the Conservative benches shouting from a sedentary position.

We have already seen improvements from the framework that we have put in place—we have seen a positive impact. I have heard that Dumfries and Galloway has already received expressions of interest for potential grant funding to open new dental practices, which the Scottish Government will absolutely be in a position to fund if applications are successful.

In addition, it is our intention to make formal representation to the United Kingdom Government that dentistry be included in the shortage occupation list. We also have the chief dental officer in active discussions with the General Dental Council to support it in speeding up the application process to clear the General Dental Council backlog.

Question 5 has been withdrawn.

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General Practitioner Services (Rural Areas)

To ask the Scottish Government when it last assessed access to GP services in rural areas. (S6O-02058)

Last year, the Scottish Government published the “Health and Care Experience Survey 2021/22” in relation to people’s experiences of GP services.

Health boards and health and social care partnerships are responsible for planning and delivering primary medical services, and the Scottish Government would expect them to make use of that survey to identify any particular issues with access, including in rural areas.

Twechar, in my constituency, has been without a GP surgery since 2019. The ever-growing village is in a semi-rural area on the border between East Dunbartonshire and North Lanarkshire. The only option for residents is to register in the one practice in Kilsyth or in one of the two practices in Kirkintilloch, which are both some miles away.

Does the cabinet secretary agree that residents deserve a better service than that and that the HSCPs and health boards in the two local authority areas should work together to find an acceptable solution?

I agree that they should work together. There are options available to the health and social care partnership and the health board there. If discussions are needed with my primary care team and officials, I will ensure that they make themselves available to the health and social care partnerships, the local authorities and the health board involved.

The cabinet secretary’s failure to deliver the new GP contract is the real reason why the The British Medical Journal says that there is a decline in the reported quality of some aspects of care in Scotland, with rural areas hit hardest. It is the fault not of overworked practices but of the cabinet secretary, who has compounded the error by cutting £65 million from the primary care budget. Will he commit to reinstating that crucial £65 million for primary care?

What a brass neck! The reason why we had to reprofile our money—[Interruption.]—was the economic vandalism—

Thank you, members!

—of the Conservative Party, which meant that our Government budget was worth less by the amount of £1.7 billion—[Interruption.]

Thank you!

That is what crashed our economy. That is a brass neck and a half.

What are we doing, Presiding Officer? There are more GPs per head in Scotland than in any other part of the United Kingdom, and some 3,220 multidisciplinary team staff members have been recruited in Scotland. The Scottish National Party Government will continue its record investment in health and social care, and I will leave it to the Conservatives to moan from the sidelines.

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NHS Forth Valley

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the status of NHS Forth Valley since its escalation to stage 4 of NHS Scotland’s national performance framework. (S6O-02059)

Yes, I am happy to provide an update. There are some signs of improvement in performance in NHS Forth Valley. An example is in children and adolescent mental health services, where we have seen some improvement in waiting lists. It is not where we want it to be, but there certainly have been some improvements.

That and other work is being taken forward by an assurance board and an external support team chaired by Christine McLaughlin. In that role, she has engaged with a wide range of stakeholders, including local authority chief executives and the area partnership forum, which comprises local trade union representatives.

The Royal College of Nursing and Unison have reported “very serious concerns” over

“unsafe practices and a culture of intimidation”.

An independent review found that there was a “culture of fear”. The BBC “Disclosure” programme on the national health service in Scotland was grim viewing. In it, a trade union representative at NHS Forth Valley said that staff were watching patients die and did not feel that they had been able to provide decent, high-quality care. Clinical teams have spoken out about wards that are short of staff and unsupported, about patient safety being at risk, and about staff on duty being pushed to breaking point. In November, vacancies were over 10 per cent for registered nurses and nearly 14 per cent for doctors. Can the cabinet secretary honestly say that he believes that the culture at NHS Forth Valley has changed? What are today’s vacancy rates at NHS Forth Valley for doctors and nurses?

Stephen Kerr raises some really important points. They are precisely the reason why I took the decision to escalate NHS Forth Valley to the second-highest level possible. One reason for that escalation was culture, so he is absolutely right to raise those issues.

NHS Forth Valley has issued an improvement plan, and there have been some improvements. I have also met with the whistleblowing champion at NHS Forth Valley to reiterate this Government’s commitment to whistleblowing and to ensure that staff’s concerns and anxieties are raised through the appropriate channels. If it is helpful to Mr Kerr, I am happy to arrange a discussion between him and Christine McLaughlin, who is leading the oversight board.

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Sewage Spillages

To ask the Scottish Government what plans are in place to eliminate any spillages of sewage from the sewer network into rivers and lochs. (S6O-02060)

As I have reported previously to Parliament, the river basin management plans set out our long-term aims for improving our water environment. The plans are supported by Scottish Water’s “Improving urban waters” route map, which commits to £500 million of investment to improve waste water treatment works, address unsatisfactory discharges and increase monitoring. Scottish Water published its first annual report on progress against the route map in December 2022, and that is on its website.

I understand that Scottish Water has committed to installing a further 1,000 spill monitors by the end of 2024. Can the minister advise what support the Scottish Government is providing Scottish Water to achieve that?

In line with its improving urban waters route map, Scottish Water has identified the priority locations for 1,000 new CSO monitors, and installation will be completed by the end of 2024. Scottish Water’s investment programme is supported by up to £1.3 billion of lending from the Scottish Government across the 2021-27 period.

This week, we mark world water day and Scotland’s role as a hydro nation, and I put on record my thanks to everybody who works in Scotland’s water industry. It has seen our overall water quality at 66 per cent, compared with the equivalent figure of just 16 per cent in England; we have 99 per cent of bathing waters now classified as “sufficient” or better; and £147 million is to be invested in further waste water improvements by 2027.

That concludes general question time.