Seòmar agus comataidhean

Yes, but in terms of viability and profitability, going back to 2011-12, Western Ferries has made more than £17 million in profit after tax and has paid out more than £5 million in dividends to shareholders. Is that correct?

Thank you for raising that. Our theme is the sustainability of services, so we must think about funding and what the situation will look like not just in the short term but in the longer term.

It really has been an enjoyable debate. Some difficult topics have been covered, but everyone who has spoken has brought a lot of insight and lived experience, and a bit of humour as well. I have given notice that I have to leave before the end of the debate and thank you, Presiding Officer, for allowing that. I apologise that I cannot stay for the minister’s closing remarks, which it would be good to hear.

We have made a good start with the women’s health plan—the first in the UK. There is a lot in there that is positive, as we heard recently at the cross-party group on women’s health, which I chair. We need to keep going on that, and I know that there is commitment to that across the chamber. That is why it is so important to know when we will have a women’s health champion. I am sure that there are plenty of able people who could fill that role.

I congratulate Siobhian Brown on securing the debate. It is important that we do not just let these awareness months and days pass us by. We are having much more open conversations about the menopause and, indeed, the perimenopause. However, just having that talk is not enough.

We know that there is a lot to do, and we have heard about the importance of good-quality time with GPs and in primary care. When I get the chance to speak to the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care, we talk about medical misogyny. He really gets that phrase now and I think that we all have to work on that. Menopause is a bit like mental health, in that, when we ask people to come forward to get help early, we have to make sure that the resource is there to meet that expectation. That is about supporting the workforce, as well.

As we have heard today, menopause is a workplace issue. We have heard that from a number of colleagues including Carol Mochan, and Mercedes Villalba with her intervention. It is timely that we meet today, because I know that the minister has been at the STUC women’s committee conference, which is important. We are so blessed in Scotland in having fantastic trade union women who are champions in the workplace and who bring us the information so that we can speak in these debates and in our CPGs and committees.

I also give a nod to the all-party parliamentary group on menopause in Westminster. It undertook an inquiry and produced a very good report. It is quite long, so I will not go into it too much, but it makes an important point that I know that colleagues here will agree with, which is that the way in which menopause can affect minority groups including people in the LGBTQ+ community is important. We might have our political differences, but Pam Gosal is an important role model on these issues, by sharing her experience, because we know that many people will be afraid of the menopause. Some people have an easy experience and some do not, and it is important that we break down those barriers.

I thank all colleagues who have shared their experience and, of course, I wish Stephanie Callaghan a good recovery. I think that we have to remind our sisters to take a day off. Life will carry on, so, again, when we talk about good menopause policy in the workplace, it is also about us showing that, actually, it is okay not to be at your work.

Colleagues have been really inclusive in the debate, but in the few seconds that remain I just want to talk about early menopause for those women and people who menstruate whose periods stop before the age of 45. That can also be for reasons that relate to other health conditions. It could be cancer, linked to treatment, or endometriosis. Let’s face it: people are diagnosed with endometriosis far too late on average. That is an issue that I know the minister probably has sleepless nights about, but there is an important commitment to bring that time down from eight and a half years to 12 months by the end of this session of Parliament. That is another issue that we all need to work together on.

I thank Siobhian Brown again for the debate, and I thank all colleagues for their humour and insight.

I will press you with a supplementary. Would there be any resource implications? You have talked about some of the practicalities. It sounds like more of an operational issue. Would it require additional resource?

My next question is aimed at SEPA and NatureScot, so I will return to John Kerr and Jo Green. Will you advise the committee whether the current system of environmental assessment is fit for purpose? To get a further steer on that, I will go to Jo Green first.

Yes. I was asking for SEPA’s view on whether the current environmental assessment system remains fit for purpose.

I turn to the issue of waste. What are the key challenges to and priorities for ensuring policy coherence in delivering waste targets and policies in the context of a wider shift to a circular economy and achieving net zero emissions? I will let Jo Green catch her breath, so maybe Mark Roberts wants to answer. The ESS strategic plan has proposals on illegal disposal and management of waste, progress against waste and recycling targets and developing a circular economy.

That was before I was born, convener—but maybe I should not have said that.

Sticking with you for a second, Jo, I know that you will be aware that the amount of Scottish household waste that was landfilled in 2021 increased from the previous year and that it was the first time in 10 years that there had been no decrease. Are you able to give some explanation for that?

Thank you.