Seòmar agus comataidhean

I pay tribute to Clare Haughey for bringing this important debate to the chamber. I endorse and support much of what she and other colleagues have said.

However, I want to speak about a particular issue that is related to liver disease and which a constituent asked me to talk about on their behalf. In recent years, my constituent, who is in their 50s, developed bile duct cancer. According to AMMF The Cholangiocarcinoma Charity, which is the relevant charity, it is a brutal diagnosis, because the five-year survival rate is between 2 and 9 per cent, depending on various factors. Unfortunately, less than 30 per cent of patients survive 12 months, mainly because the symptoms tend to present when it is already too late and because practitioners do not always consider cholangiocarcinoma—excuse me if I am not pronouncing that correctly; I am not a clinician—despite the fact that it is now almost as common as hepatocellular carcinoma, which is the most common form of liver cancer.

My constituent told me that surgery is the only potentially curative treatment but that less than 20 per cent of patients proceed to it. My constituent has had surgery at Edinburgh royal infirmary in recent years, and they continue to be monitored by the oncology team at the Western general hospital. Like many of my constituents, they are very grateful to NHS Lothian for its superb care and treatment.

My constituent wanted me to talk about this today, because they inform me that other life-extending treatments are emerging and that some have already been approved by the Scottish Medicines Consortium. These therapies, which target particular gene mutations, are proving to be highly effective. My constituent states that, for example, ivosidenib, which was approved by the SMC last month, has been shown to be more than effective by doubling life expectancy. However, there are some challenges. My constituent has stated that, unlike other places, NHS Scotland does not fund the genomic testing that is necessary to identify all the new treatment options, and that is why I am speaking today.

I appreciate that there is a lot of detail to this and that the minister might not be able to respond today, but I just wanted to highlight the issue of bile duct cancer, as well as the other issues around liver disease that have been aired by colleagues. On the basis of the experience of my constituent and, indeed, experiences of others that have helped in the past—there will, of course, be others across Scotland—it is clear that dealing with this particular type of cancer is an important part of the debate.

Perhaps the minister could write to me so that I can relay to my constituents what can be done to create cohesion between the Scottish Medicines Consortium approvals process and the necessary testing to ensure that NHS Scotland patients can benefit from advances in medical science in this area.

During recent weeks, a number of constituents have contacted me regarding concerning incidents that have taken place on Scottish Government-owned land in Granton. Most worryingly, a fire was started that damaged a substation and left local residents without an electricity supply for many hours. The land is designated for an exciting new development by the National Galleries of Scotland, which I hope will proceed soon. In the meantime, however, my constituents and I would be grateful if the First Minister and colleagues could quickly consider how the Scottish Government can take more action to secure the land to reduce risk, criminality and antisocial behaviour in the area.

Will Miles Briggs give way?

I strongly believe that the quantity, quality, cost and affordability of housing is the social issue of our time. The statistics that we have heard make that clear and, as the representative of the most urban and densely populated part of Scotland, I have housing issues in our communities as part of my and my team’s daily work.

The impact on other public policy areas is also clear. I welcome the minister’s engagement on the challenges that we face in Edinburgh since he has come into post and the actions that he has taken.

Of course, whether it is Edinburgh, which has the most acute housing crisis in Scotland, or the rural parts of the country, or other parts of the United Kingdom and beyond, it is important to remember that the housing crisis—it is a crisis—has been decades in the making and will be extremely complex to change. Because of the impact of international finance, the issue goes well beyond even the borders of the UK.

For some context to where we are, I will quote John Burn-Murdoch of the Financial Times, who wrote in January:

“Aside from the occasional blip, average house prices were roughly four times average earnings in the UK for 80 years between the 1910s and 1990s. This was a fixed characteristic of British society. Knuckle down, save for a few years and buy in your late twenties: simple. Then the ratio doubled”,

or increased by 100 per cent,

“in the space of a decade.”

That was in the 1990s. The last time the jump in prices was that high,

“cars had not yet been invented, Queen Victoria was on the throne and home ownership was the preserve of a wealthy minority.”

I quote that because all the issues that colleagues have rightly emphasised today stem from the challenge of how unaffordable it has become over the decades for people to purchase their own home.

We will all make our party-political points, but it has been disappointing to hear some of the remarks that have been made today. We need to share more of the responsibility. The Government is quite openly saying that it has done things that have made a positive contribution but it wants to do more, and here are the other things that it wants to do. For other parties to suggest that they have not been complicit in the crisis is just not correct. While some aspects of housing policy are devolved, the financial aspects are, of course, reserved.

The Truss impact is being felt in the cost. Brexit is a factor, as others have mentioned. The pandemic and the war in Ukraine are external factors, but they have made an impact on the ability to buy and the ability to build. There have been links to earnings and social security.

I regularly ask myself that important question, but there is also a context. As I was about to say, the issue is about more than just supply and demand in this whole scenario. I think that the question that Miles Briggs has raised is about how we increase the supply, particularly of build-to-rent properties. The Labour Party, which lodged the motion, was once upon a time enthusiastic about rent controls—in fact, it tried to compete with our Green colleagues to be the most enthusiastic about rent controls—and now it is arguing against them. [Interruption.] The problem with all of this is the party politics and the petty, sticking-plaster politics. Can we confront this really serious issue for our constituents with solutions and constructive dialogue? [Interruption.] The impact of the ability to buy on homelessness and on the cost of rents affects all our constituencies.

I have a briefing in front of me—others will mention it—about the things that Labour could have done. Labour has been in power in Edinburgh for 35 of my 40 years. I am sure that others will talk about the housing capacity that was sold off by the Labour and Liberal Democrat Scottish Executive. We could go into all of that, but what we need to do, more importantly, is think about the way forward.

I thought that the members who made points about solutions were the most helpful, and I am going to end with a few things that I want to emphasise as solutions to make a positive difference. First, in urban Scotland, we really need to think about the cost of land—others have mentioned it. The cost of land in urban Scotland is one of the primary factors behind why purchasing a home is so difficult.

As a Parliament, as we go into the next 25 years and enter this next chapter of devolution—perhaps we will not have 25 years of devolution because we might, of course, become an independent country in that time—

Will the minister give way?

—the ability to borrow will benefit any Scottish Government. We need more capital borrowing powers, particularly if we are going to see cuts to capital budgets for the Scottish Government.

Lastly, for my constituents—the Scottish Government is continuing to consider this—if the project in Granton, with its potential to provide affordable housing in Edinburgh, can be realised, that will make a massive difference. I urge ministers to please deliver the affordable houses that my constituents need in Granton.

In the spirit of collective responsibility, would Sue Webber agree that the right to buy created significant problems in Edinburgh and elsewhere and that it is good that it was ended in 2014?

I am aware that the recently published global financial centres index has recognised that Edinburgh continues to further its standing as one of the world’s leading financial centres. That is good news for all of Scotland, as is Glasgow’s success in climbing up through the rankings. Will the First Minister provide an update on how Scottish Government initiatives are supporting financial services in Scotland to thrive and develop, thereby creating new opportunities, well-paid jobs and sustainable growth?

I welcome the Scottish Government’s proactive work on that. Constituents have written to me and to other MSPs explaining that they are currently facing increases of upwards of 500 per cent in their district heating costs by their property factors. The lack of consumer protection in that area leaves customers vulnerable to market forces. My constituents are worried about their ability to pay their energy bills this winter. Sadly, as has been set out, the Parliament lacks the legislative power to change energy policy in that area. Considering that the Scottish Parliament is unable to take that action, will the Scottish Government continue to press the UK Government to take action as soon as possible? Can any pressure be applied to property factors to engage with parliamentarians so that, together, we can help our constituents who are affected?