Seòmar agus comataidhean

I offer my thanks to the committee for all the important work that it carried out before publishing the report. On behalf of Scottish Labour, I welcome the report’s findings and, of course, the opportunity to speak today and contribute to the discussion on how the committee’s report can be used to build on the 2015 act and the national plan.

I welcome the 2015 act’s positive impacts on BSL users, including increased representation and visibility of BSL, as we have talked about. The 2015 act has clearly been a momentous step forward in empowering users, strengthening provision and supporting BSL users to speak up for their rights. I note the points made about the language of BSL, and I thank Karen Adam for her response on important points about language and culture.

Developments over the past decade should be welcomed as we take the next step in considering what further improvements can be made in the short and long term to support BSL users. As was made clear from the committee’s inquiry, despite examples of positive work, much more is required to improve user experience, and I welcome the fact that the Government has recognised that.

One of the main themes in the report is the concern about gaps in the implementation and enforceability of the 2015 act, which is an important issue that we should explore. Following the ALLIANCE’s analysis of the second round of BSL plans from all listed local authorities, it was disappointing to hear that only 72 per cent of authorities published plans, and only 62 per cent met their statutory duty that requires that the plans be published in BSL. That is a failing by the local authorities—the step that they should be taking is quite clear.

I understand that the Scottish Government does not have a regulatory function under the 2015 act, but we should have serious concerns about the fact that we have passed legislation that is not being complied with or properly monitored. We must have a discussion in the Parliament about how we can help with that important matter.

I hope that the Scottish Government can set out what further action it will take to ensure that any legislation, including the statutory duty placed on listed local authorities, is complied with and that consideration is given to how best to support authorities to fulfil legislative requirements. As a Parliament, we should think about how we can support local authorities. I am sure that the action plans that the Deputy First Minister set out will help with that.

People who live in rural areas face a particular disadvantage when it comes to accessing services, due to a shortage of interpreters. In those communities, getting an interpreter can often involve travel over really long distances as there might not be suitably qualified people in the local area. Pam Gosal made the point that, in certain circumstances, BSL users often want to have some relationship with the person they are speaking to.

I recognise the challenges that local authorities face, particularly in rural areas. However, living in remote and rural communities should never be a barrier to accessing the care and services that people need; everybody should have equal access to those services across Scotland. We need to do much more work to make sure that people are trained in providing them.

We know that living in a remote and rural area can also increase feelings of isolation and loneliness. Will the Government outline any work that is being done to support the key roles of groups and facilities such as deaf clubs, which aim to bring communities together, and to ensure that all people feel supported and included? I know that it can be difficult in my area to secure premises, to get people together—because of issues with transport—and to make sure that people know that such facilities are available.

I would like to address many areas of the committee’s report, including those on the challenges around early years provision and equal access to education. Others have mentioned—and constituents have spoken to me about—how difficult it is to enter early years provision and then move into primary and then secondary education.

I thank Martin Whitfield for that intervention. I was going to make that point.

I thank Daniel Johnson for bringing this important debate to the chamber. Working with other members across parties, Daniel Johnson has been a real champion in the Parliament for people with autism, ADHD and other neurodevelopmental conditions.

The report adds to the growing body of evidence that change is needed to our approach to assessment, diagnosis and support for neurodivergence in Scotland. Members might be aware that, earlier this year, the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee conducted an inquiry that gave people and families who have experienced neurodevelopmental services the opportunity to share those experiences and recommend changes to ensure that we can better serve our neurodiverse constituents. I look forward to the report being published. It was an important inquiry and many lessons were learned, so I hope that the report will reflect that and will be useful in adding to other on-going work in the area.

The royal college report rightly points out that, despite the dramatic rise in need, Scotland still lacks a dedicated and standardised pathway. It goes on to say that, in the absence of appropriate services, individuals are being referred into general adult mental health pathways, not because they have a mental illness but because there is no suitable alternative. The report points out that those services have never been designed to assess or support people with those conditions and they have just become a catch-all for those referrals.

That structural mismatch is now overwhelming the system. Waiting lists have grown to unmanageable levels. It is therefore important that issue is addressed.

I think that members will recognise what the report is saying, and I want to raise the voices of my constituents, because the frustration of people and families cannot be overstated.

Over the four years that I have been in Parliament—I have said this before—the most frequent requests that I have got in casework have often been very simple. Constituents ask, “Please can you help me understand?”, whether it is to do with waiting lists or service provision for people with autism, ADHD or neurodivergence. They ask, “Can you help me?” with primary school or secondary school, or as children move between primary, secondary and further education, when families often find themselves in conflict.

I thank the member for that important intervention; I have had that issue raised with me in casework.

I believe that colleagues in the chamber have heard very similar requests from constituents. More recently, I have heard about the use of the private sector for assessment, which can be incredibly stressful, as other members have mentioned. Many children—and, as we now know, adults—are seeking private assessment after having made many attempts to get an assessment through the national health service. The long NHS waiting lists and the lack of service mean that exhausted families are often using much of their own money and resources to get a diagnosis. That is very stressful, and even after they do that, there is no clear pathway for them.

Many of us in the chamber have heard about how poorly co-ordinated shared care is. That has been mentioned today, so I will not go over it again. However, I note that families are often rejected not just for medication, but by GPs and CAMH services. A constituent raised with me a similar situation in our education system. Parents seek a diagnosis, and then, within the education system, children are denied community services such as occupational therapy or speech and language therapy because their private diagnosis does not link in with the school’s way of recording and reporting, and supporting people.

Parents report to me that they feel that public services—health services, social care, education and criminal justice—lack a basic understanding on the front line. That is an important point, and I will finish on it. The resources are often there, at what has been described to me as quite a high level, but the question is how we enable the front-line teams to pick up on the issues.

I would have liked to say more, Deputy Presiding Officer, but I appreciate the time.

That is absolutely beyond belief, and I suppose that it does not come to us until we hear it in black and white. Was there any evidence on how Police Scotland or other organisations hope to combat the issue?

No, it was a very welcome intervention. Many families talk about supporting their loved ones, about them becoming settled in their preschool and then needing to move, and about having to go through the transition again, so it is so important that we address that issue. There is much more to say, as others have mentioned.

I hope that the Government places an emphasis on this issue and that it is committed to tackling the barriers for young BSL users and their wider families. This is a really important piece of work, so I look forward to a cross-party response to the committee’s work, which Kate Forbes spoke about.

Does the member agree that, although that obviously affects individual BSL users, parents and family members also find it stressful that their loved one does not have the ability to communicate in their own language outwith the home?

I thank the First Minister for his words on the matter. In Scotland, there is no framework, consistent referral pathway or single approach to the care of children with dementia. Sadly, 50 per cent of children with dementia die by the age of 10. Does the Scottish Government recognise that it is an urgent issue? Will it provide an official response to Alzheimer Scotland’s recently published report on childhood dementia?

In parts of my South Scotland region, a lack of overnight beds in neonatal wards could result in parents facing a 100-mile round trip to see their baby. I understand that the recently announced maternity and neonatal task force will review rural service provision. Will the minister ensure that consideration will be given to supporting families in rural areas who have babies in neonatal wards?

To ask the Scottish Government what measures it will take in its budget to support high street retailers in the South Scotland region that are at risk of closing. (S6O-05271)