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There are just four days to go until COP26 kicks off in Glasgow and, on behalf of Scottish Labour, I am pleased to speak in today’s debate on the global ambitions for that momentous climate summit.

We need to be honest about the challenges that lie ahead. We should take heart that there are solutions and keep a sharp focus on the bold actions that we must take to limit global warming and keep 1.5°C alive. As the cabinet secretary said, COP26 is regarded as the last, best chance to avert climate catastrophe; that is how important this summit is. Although COP26 is focused on securing international agreement, Friends of the Earth Scotland is right to say that the real action to tackle the climate crisis takes place at national and local levels. Therefore, although we welcome and support the Scottish Government motion, we should be using this time in the chamber—as I am sure that the Government will welcome—to scrutinise and challenge the Scottish Government and its partners across Scotland to do more and work with the entire Scottish Parliament to collaborate with local authorities, businesses and citizens in order to achieve more.

In the debate, we will hear some of the precise actions that need to be given priority by the Scottish Government, but I will take a moment to comment on the unique opportunity that we have in Scotland during the 12 days of the summit. The great city of Glasgow is providing the stage for COP26, and that should fill us with pride. We should embrace the unique opportunity to show the best of Scotland and provide leadership at home and internationally. However, it is also important that we get our own house in order and that is why the on-going organisation of workers, through their trade unions, is a strength that we should welcome, because climate justice and social justice or justice for workers are two sides of the same coin. Empowering and valuing workers is key to securing a just transition so, today, the Labour members send a message of solidarity to workers who are taking industrial action and to all those who are fighting for fair work and climate justice.

In its briefing, Close the Gap says,

“We cannot have a ‘just transition’ without enabling women and men to equally benefit from”

the shift in the labour market towards green jobs and a new future. That is something that we must reflect on today.

We will hear a lot about ambition. I see Scotland as an ambitious nation, and the Scottish Government has rightly been working towards ambitious climate targets. However, we should all take stock and listen to Greta Thunberg, who said that Scotland is not a world leader on climate change. I say to Greta, perhaps we are not yet, but we can be. I hope that many of us will be out on the streets of Glasgow with Greta Thunberg, the workers and the people of Scotland who want to see urgent change.

For our part, Scottish Labour has consistently called on the Scottish Government to be bolder and take quicker action to tackle climate change. We believe that Scotland has the potential to lead Europe’s green energy revolution by putting green jobs at the heart of new employment, training and manufacturing opportunities across Scotland.

The people of Scotland were promised 100,000 green jobs and a renewables revolution, but only a fraction of the jobs have been delivered. Therefore, we understand why people across Scotland, particularly in the north-east, feel a little bit cynical about the prospect of a just transition. We must get on and deliver it.

Liam Kerr touched on a couple of the statistics that came out today. We learned that the Scottish Government target of 11 per cent of non-electrical heat demand coming from renewable sources by 2020 was missed—only 6.4 per cent was achieved, which is a decrease on 2019. We are not quite getting there with some of the targets.

In the interests of time, I will speed up my speech. I come back to the ambition for a public energy company, which we do not want to be kicked down the road. It is a real opportunity to be a game changer. The market-led energy model continues to fail customers and workers, and our transition will simply be too slow if we leave that work in the hands of the market.

I am sure that Maurice Golden will cover the issue of the circular economy in his speech, but I was disappointed with the Scottish Government’s recent announcement on waste incineration. Friends of the Earth Scotland called it “a burners’ charter”, and I hope that the cabinet secretary will reflect on that.

Decarbonising transport must be the urgent priority. ScotRail proposes to cut 300 rail services a day. Today, we learned that the daytripper concessionary travel scheme is being axed, just as COP26 delegates are getting free transport. Bus routes in my region, such as the X1, have disappeared. We are getting a bit muddled here.

I will briefly mention Cambo. More than 60 charities, unions and community groups have urged Nicola Sturgeon to explicitly condemn the Cambo oil field proposal. There is an article in The National today, so perhaps my colleagues on the SNP benches can read it.

We need to speak up. The children of Scotland are saying that this is the moment. We need to take that moment and put our ambitions into action.

I move amendment S6M-01769.1 to insert at end:

“; notes that the Scottish Government has not met the annual target for emissions in 2017, 2018 and 2019; agrees that it is important for Scotland to provide leadership through action and delivery; understands that having better, regular, interconnected and affordable public transport run in the interest of passengers will be essential to achieving the modal shift from cars that will be necessary to meet Scotland’s climate ambitions, and calls on the Scottish Government to use all the powers available to it to realise Scotland’s full potential in the renewable energy sector, create local green jobs in communities across Scotland, implement a bold industrial strategy to invest in and grow domestic supply chains, and take all necessary steps to secure a just transition to net zero in Scotland, ensuring that no individual, family or community is left behind.”

Will the minister join me in congratulating all the schools that are taking part in the moment, which is an initiative in conjunction with the Children’s Parliament and the Scottish Youth Parliament? Will she say what support is in place for children across Scotland who want to attend events, whether in Glasgow or elsewhere, that might fall on school days? Will they be encouraged and supported to be there?

Will the minister also say something about the cost of school transport for trips, because schools are saying that they cannot afford to get out and about with their young people?

To return briefly to East Kilbride, the dualling of the East Kilbride railway has been axed. Does the member agree that that is the wrong decision? Will she ask the ministers to get back around the table to ensure that we get that project back on track?

I thank the entire NHS Lanarkshire workforce for its exceptional efforts.

Today, Cancer Research UK in Scotland described the situation in NHS Lanarkshire as deeply concerning, and it has warned us that, for people with cancer, every day counts. Can the cabinet secretary confirm how many cancer procedures in Lanarkshire have been cancelled so far and whether he expects more cancer procedures to be cancelled or delayed in the weeks ahead?

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports of NHS Lanarkshire moving to the highest risk level, black, and cancelling elective care, including some cancer procedures. (S6T-00225)

I am pleased to hear that other theatres and boards have some capacity to assist NHS Lanarkshire. Is the cabinet secretary aware of any other health board that has had to cancel cancer procedures? Is any other health board in Scotland warning that it, too, could declare a code black or, to give it its correct term, the highest risk level, which is black?

I thank the cabinet secretary for advance sight of his statement. It is regrettable that, on the eve of COP26, we have the UK and Scottish Governments at loggerheads when we need constructive dialogue to tackle the climate emergency.

The cabinet secretary acknowledged in his statement that there are concerns about the performance of carbon capture technologies and their consistency with climate targets. Friends of the Earth Scotland has questioned whether CCS is falsely positioned as a climate solution when the technology is largely unproven and untested. What is the Scottish Government doing to unpick those concerns and allay those fears? Can the cabinet secretary give an assurance that the technologies are not being seen as a silver bullet and that other measures that can help in the short term, including improved access to public transport and improved energy efficiency, will be continued at pace?

I believe that this is Paul McLennan’s first members’ business debate, so I congratulate him on choosing such an important topic and thank him for his commitment to being a mental health champion, which is a call to action to all of us to be champions of mental wellbeing. That brings me to the minister, who I welcome to his new role as the Minister for Mental Wellbeing and Social Care, which is an important job. I am sure that the minister is telling colleagues across the Government that they all have to be part of the solution.

Thinking about the pandemic and its impact on the workforce across social care and the NHS, I am concerned about levels of post-traumatic stress disorder among front-line staff and I worry about those on low pay and those unpaid carers, particularly women, who take on the greatest burden of the caring work. However, the minister is well placed to look at what has happened to older people and disabled people during the pandemic and to ensure that we address the isolation that many colleagues have acknowledged today. That is why Anne’s law is so important and relevant to mental health.

Colleagues have talked about the fact that we all have mental health issues and all have to be champions of mental health in this place. I continue to be concerned about what sometimes appear to be endless waiting times, the worrying statistics around rejected referrals and people speaking out and saying that they are not okay but are not sure where to turn. At the weekend, I was fortunate to meet local heroes from across Scotland who are doing their bit in their communities to show that kindness and provide that cup of tea and an open door to people.

However, we have to recognise that, despite all the good work and good effort from ministers and many across the public and private sectors, the system is still not quite right. We need to see system change, which is why I am passionate about supporting a constituent from my Central Scotland region, Karen McKeown, who has an excellent petition in front of the Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee. Members, including Tess White from the Conservatives, spoke strongly in support of the petition. We therefore have an opportunity to listen to people with lived experience who know the change that needs to happen.

I was pleased to hear many colleagues mention the construction industry in the mental health context, because as the continuing convener of the cross-party group on construction, I want us to look at that area. Paul McLennan and I will take away what members have said about it. I hope that the minister can come along to a future meeting of the group, as I know from his previous work in local government and building standards that he has a keen interest in that area.

I have a lot of empathy for people affected by alcohol and drug misuse, and I know how that intersects with mental health and wellbeing. When I was in my teens and early 20s, I had to reach out for help and had counselling. I worry about young people who have had to be at home during the pandemic and were not in school, but particularly when there was substance misuse in the home. I am keen to hear from the minister what more can be done to support those young people and their families.

Many stakeholders have sent briefings for the debate that have all made important points. In particular, Scotland’s Mental Health Partnership is looking for a radical refresh of the mental health strategy, which is why Karen McKeown’s petition is important.

I invite colleagues and anyone listening to join me, Clare Adamson MSP and others at Strathclyde country park on Sunday, where FAMS is hosting its “Let’s Walk and Talk About Mental Health” event, at which the minister would be welcome. That is a public way for us all to show that we are all human and all have mental health issues, and that if we continue to talk about that openly, we can address stigma and get the system changed.

I thank the Lord Advocate for the detail in her response and I welcome her to her new role.

I do not have time to respond to all of that answer, but I note that this has been a deeply upsetting period for many families, because before the pandemic bereaved families experienced long and agonising waits for final post-mortem reports. Instead of being told that it could take around 12 weeks to receive a report, many were told that it could take 12 months and some were told that it could take two years.

I am pleased that there have been improvements, but under the new service level agreement between the Scottish Police Authority’s forensic services and the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service, what robust measures will be put in place, and are families being consulted? Will the Lord Advocate meet me and affected families to make sure that we never get the issue wrong again?

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports of a backlog in toxicology analyses, how many final post-mortem reports following a sudden or unexplained death were not issued within the 12-week target in 2020 and 2021. (S6O-00237)