The final item of business is a members’ business debate on motion S4M-13261, in the name of Rhoda Grant, on carers week 2015. The debate will be concluded without any question being put.
Motion debated,
That the Parliament welcomes Carers Week 2015, which runs from 8 to 14 June and is supported by Carers Scotland, Carers Trust Scotland, Independent Age, Macmillan Cancer Support and the MS Society; notes that the week aims to raise awareness of carers at national, regional and local levels in order to improve their lives and the lives of the people that they care for; further notes that this year’s focus is on building carer-friendly communities that aim to support carers in looking after their loved ones while at the same time recognising that they are individuals with needs of their own; understands that around 759,000 people in Scotland, one in eight of the population, are caring for a loved one, and that many face challenges, including financial hardship and ill health; recognises what it sees as the contribution that they make to families and communities in the Highlands and Islands and throughout Scotland, including saving the NHS a reported £10.3 billion annually; hopes that the week will be a success in promoting both carer and young carer awareness, and considers and values carers as esteemed members of society.
17:04
It was a privilege to secure this debate. Carers week is one of the most important weeks that we celebrate in the year. For too long, the work of Scotland’s unpaid carers has gone unrecognised and unsupported, and this week gives us the opportunity to highlight and pay tribute to our carers and the tremendous jobs that they do.
Caring is something that most of us will have to do. It is estimated that three in five people will have a caring responsibility at some point in their lifetime. There are more than 759,000 unpaid adult carers and more than 29,000 young carers in Scotland, and they save the Scottish economy more than £10 billion a year. In my region, the Highlands and Islands, there are an estimated 40,518 carers.
Carers can often feel isolated, especially when they are at a distance from services. Many carers have had multiple episodes of caring and are often caring for more than one person at a time, for example caring for a child with disabilities and an elderly parent. It is done with love, but the stress that it causes can sometimes be unbearable. That is why we need to support our carers.
I welcome the Carers (Scotland) Bill. I hope that it will improve the lot of carers and give them entitlements in their own right. I think that we all acknowledge that it is a step in the right direction, but we also recognise that we will need to take many more steps before we get it right.
Carers are concerned that if the criteria for assistance are set locally, they will miss out because of limited local government resources. Councils are likewise concerned that if the criteria are set nationally without being funded, other services will suffer. Carers must have support services, or they may be unable to continue caring.
We will attempt to amend the bill in a number of ways—far too many to go into here tonight—to improve the lot of carers. One example will be to try to give the Care Inspectorate responsibility for inspecting the standards and provision of carer services across Scotland. That will mean that support groups and information and advice centres for carers will all need to meet national standards. Regardless of who sets the criteria, services will be subject to inspection to ensure that the promises that are made in the bill become a reality.
The theme of carers week is carer-friendly communities. A carer-friendly community is one in which all aspects of the community are geared to meeting the needs of carers, from health services to the workplace, from primary schools to university. Employers can sign up to being carer positive. Schools can allow young carers flexibility and support, for example, by removing the need to do homework while providing additional support at school. Colleges and universities can employ similar policies to enhance learning while they support young carers in their caring role.
We in the Labour Party support the Scottish Youth Parliament’s care fair share campaign, which highlights the needs of young people in education. It calls for changes to education maintenance allowance guidance so that carers are guaranteed not to lose their EMA due to attendance issues; extending Student Awards Agency for Scotland dependants grants so that carers get an extra £2,640 a year when they are in higher education; and extending Young Scot concessionary travel to young adult carers until they are 25 years old.
In their briefings for the debate, national carers organisations also remind us that, as MSPs, we are uniquely placed to help carers. They ask us to scrutinise legislation and amend it to make it carer friendly—not just the Carers (Scotland) Bill but all legislation that impacts on carers and their loved ones.
Where they are available, carer information services are a godsend. Carers groups welcome the duty in the Carers (Scotland) Bill to provide advice and information. However, they are concerned that the good practice that is available in some areas will be replaced rather than replicated all over.
Carers are often financially disadvantaged. Many have to give up work, costing both themselves and the economy. That is why having carer-friendly employers is so important. Work is important not just for a person’s financial security; it is also often the only respite from caring responsibilities.
Carers need to be able to decide how much time they commit to caring, so that they can also have a life of their own, working and socialising. Where that does not happen, we see carers break under the strain, which means that the state ends up caring for two people instead of one.
For the most part, carers want to care. They do not see themselves as carers first—they are mothers, fathers, sons, daughters, sisters and brothers, and they are often much more distantly related than that. In many cases, they are friends who want to care and protect. We need to help them to do that.
The briefing by Marie Curie for tonight’s debate tells us about the needs of carers in palliative care situations. Those can be short term, such as when someone suddenly becomes terminally ill, and can put pressure on work commitments and financial responsibilities.
Gaining power of attorney can often take many months, leading to bills going unpaid, which can put untold pressures on the carer. Carers may also have no knowledge at all about the condition of the person whom they are looking after or how best to look after a person with a terminal illness. They must have support and guidance to help them to do that. There are also many carers whose loved ones have life-shortening conditions, and they may have cared for them for many years. As the condition progresses, their caring becomes more intense and the needs of the cared-for person change. It is important that services adapt their support to meet the needs of both the carer and their loved one.
For those carers, bereavement support is extremely important. In many cases, they have forfeited many aspects of what we could call normal life to dedicate theirs to caring. Therefore, in bereavement they not only lose a loved one; they often also lose their reason for being. The period of time that is given to them to adapt is not long enough for a normal grieving process, far less for someone who has put their life on hold to care. We need to be more compassionate and supporting towards those people.
I pay tribute to the work of unpaid carers—people such as Clare Lally, our carers champion, who is a carer herself but is absolutely dedicated to promoting carers’ rights and who, believe me, is a force to be reckoned with. If we all resolve to be carer friendly and create carer-friendly communities, we can make a real difference to their lives.
17:11
I congratulate Rhoda Grant on securing this timely debate on carers, in which I am delighted to speak, as I am a co-convener of the cross-party group on carers, although in this contribution I will be speaking for myself.
I begin by acknowledging the Government’s important work on behalf of Scotland’s 759,000 carers. The investment in carers since 2007 has now reached £114 million, which includes £14 million for voluntary sector short breaks and an extra 10,000 weeks’ respite, delivered by the concordat between Government and local authorities. There is also £28.9 million for health boards to deliver direct support, including the establishment of carer services and carer centres offering advocacy. The Scottish Government also funds the young carers festival each year, and every MSP who has attended the festival knows that it is a transformative experience for those who take part.
In 2011, the Scottish National Party manifesto promised a carers parliament to ensure that this group had a powerful, direct voice. There have now been three such parliaments, and it is the work of those parliaments that has resulted in the Carers (Scotland) Bill. I think that that reflects well on how democracy works in Scotland.
Constitutional change also affects carers. For example, the Smith commission promised that the Scottish Parliament would
“have complete autonomy in determining the structure and value”
of certain benefits, including carers allowances. However, in its current form, the Scotland Bill that is going through Westminster defines carers as being over 16 and not in full-time education or employment. That is completely unacceptable and I am sure that many carers organisations, particularly the ones that represent young people, will find it unacceptable too.
The SNP has said that we could use the new powers to raise carers allowance to the level of jobseekers allowance. However, as the Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice, Communities and Pensioners’ Rights, Alex Neil, told the Welfare Reform Committee this week, any additional money that we give to carers will be treated as income under the Department for Work and Pensions system for universal credit, which could be clawed back. That is unfair to carers, disrespectful to this Parliament and contradictory to both the letter and the spirit of the Smith commission.
Finally, I turn to the Carers (Scotland) Bill, which has been warmly welcomed by the sector. It enshrines carers’ rights in law for the first time. I have read written submissions to the Health and Sport Committee on the bill and I would like to highlight two of them. Marie Curie Cancer Care suggests that specific measures are required for carers supporting the terminally ill, as Rhoda Grant mentioned. I would particularly like to point out one issue that Marie Curie Cancer Care has raised, which is that some carers may wish to take respite only for a few hours rather than for a few days. That strikes me as a constructive suggestion, as it is easily achievable.
I also highlight the submission from Enable, which raises the issue of emergency planning and future planning for lifelong carers. Those are often the elderly parents of a disabled adult child, and they have considerable worry and concern about their child’s future should an emergency arise or should they need to go into hospital in the short term—carers, especially elderly ones, often have additional health needs. Although some local authorities plan well for such circumstances, others do not.
The previous minister with responsibility for carers, Michael Matheson, funded a piece of work on the topic that was carried out by Enable, entitled “Picking up the pieces: Supporting Carers with Emergency Planning”. It recommended that emergency planning for carers should be considered within all health and social care policies. However, emergency and future planning does not appear in the Carers (Scotland) Bill. Enable is strongly of the view that it should and believes that provision should be made for emergency planning in the adult carer support plan and the young carer statement, which the bill will establish. The bill will also introduce a duty to provide information and advice, which Enable argues should include the provision of information and advice about emergency and future planning.
I am delighted by the Government’s track record on support for carers but concerned that the progress could be undermined by UK Government welfare reform. I also warmly welcome the Carers (Scotland) Bill, which is currently before the Parliament, and would like to see it further improved by the introduction of the different and distinct measures that are advocated by both Marie Curie and Enable.
17:16
I, too, congratulate Rhoda Grant on securing the debate and recognise the importance of the opportunity that is provided by carers week to acknowledge the work that is done by the people who care and the challenges that they face. It is an opportunity to celebrate what people do out of love for those for whom they care, and to celebrate amazing people like Clare Lally and others from across the parties who have spoken out in the interests of carers. They have demanded that we listen and have ensured not just that their needs are met, but that the needs of those for whom they care are met.
The issue is not one for any particular party, so I am very proud of all the work that has been done on it since the beginning of the Parliament—especially the establishment of carers centres. I am especially proud of the south-west Glasgow carers centre, which does amazing work not just in advocacy, but by being a place where people who are under pressure can go for support, and in developing ideas about how we can better support carers and the people for whom they care.
It is a mark of the Parliament that, from the earliest days, carers have insisted that their voices be heard. In the early days, when the Parliament was opening itself up and people already had a clear idea of what needed to be done, that created progress and opportunities. I hope that we can continue that work on a cross-party basis.
It is important that we hear about people’s direct experiences instead of allowing ourselves to be drawn—as we too often are—into a competition about how much we care. There is also a challenge for us in not allowing ourselves to patronise carers with warm words but to do nothing more. For instance, I wrote a piece about how people who care for their loved ones are driven by love, and I was chastised by a woman who told me that it was not a choice—that she was caring because she had to and that she felt guilty because she felt trapped. Her situation is as valid as any other, so we should not romanticise care, although we know how much it is driven by love. We should recognise that some people are trapped by their circumstances and need support to do what they feel they need to do without their feeling guilty about it being a burden on them.
Overwhelmingly, however, carers do what they do because they want to, and it is society’s challenge to support them in doing that. We should not take advantage of their sense of responsibility and believe that support for a family can be reduced because they will never walk away. There should not be a system of brinkmanship that relies on people’s love for those they care for being such that they will accept diminished support; we need to know that the caring process is happening in our communities and we must do all that we can to ensure that such a system does not develop.
It is equally important to understand that, even when there is support and respite, if people are not confident about leaving their loved one in the care of someone else they will not accept that support. That is why it is important to value properly paid carers, because unpaid carers will not trust them unless they see that the quality is there. They will not take time off from the rest of their family if they are not confident that the respite that is being offered is safe and secure. Therefore, it is important that we include that issue in the broader debate about what care should be.
Care is about high-quality respite provision; it is also about flexibility. Indeed, it is the little bits of flexibility that make a difference, which allow people to go to church or to the library, or give them time to shop. Respite also allows families with a disabled child to spend time focusing on their other children. Those little bits of flexibility must be built into the system, too, in order for carers to be able to their jobs.
We must recognise that young people are having to provide inappropriate care. The system is not supporting people who have addictions or drug and alcohol problems, and children are being left to care for people in those circumstances. We must redouble our efforts to ensure that support is put in place for them.
We must recognise the consequence on the educational attainment of young carers. It is important to have provision in schools. We need supports in place that allow a child to come into school, but those are reducing as we speak. We must ensure that such provision is there.
Ultimately, we can prove that, in all the time that we have had power, the Parliament has done great things for carers. My plea is that we look now at what is happening with budgets and the consequences of changes for our communities. There is silent suffering, and an intolerable burden is being brought to bear on carers. We should all be aware of that.
All of us can say that it is someone else’s responsibility. We all condemn the cuts at United Kingdom level and the welfare choices that are being made, but we also have a more serious responsibility in this Parliament to look at what we are spending our money on. Are we denying cash to local government and, as a consequence, causing a diminution of the services that people require?
Across the chamber, we respect and admire those who care. Across the chamber, we should take joint responsibility in ensuring that carers do not continue unsupported to do the job that we want them to do. It would be a mark of celebration in carers week were we to unite in ensuring that we talk about what we can do to make a difference rather than talk about the matters that perhaps divide us.
17:22
I, too, add my thanks to Rhoda Grant for lodging the motion. It is a timely debate, given that the Carers (Scotland) Bill is going through Parliament and will shortly complete stage 1.
For nearly 50 years, Carers UK has been at the forefront of campaigns to secure a fair and equitable deal for carers, who contribute so much to society. Through successful lobbying, we saw in 1967 the introduction of the dependent relative tax allowance, which was the first time that legal rights for carers had been established in law. That was followed in 1976 by the introduction of the invalid care allowance. Following that, and throughout the past 30 years, changes have been made to recognise carers’ needs in their own right, including their pension rights and, in 2013, a safeguard to protect carers’ allowances when other benefits faced cuts in tough economic times.
I was interested to learn that the genesis of what may be termed the carers movement was a lady called Mary Webster. In 1954, she gave up her job as a congregational minister to care for her parents. Over the next decade, she made the public aware of the isolation and financial hardship that carers often face. That successfully led to legislative changes, which resulted in much-needed financial support. Despite dying tragically young in 1969 at only 46 years of age, her legacy as a champion for carers’ rights continues.
In that respect, we have seen the recent establishment of carers’ champions, for example, in Edinburgh and Glasgow, acting as an independent voice listening to carers and working closely with social services.
In my home city of Aberdeen, support, advice and information for carers are provided by VSA, so there seems to be a growing culture of recognition that those who care for a loved one need help in juggling many responsibilities, including continuing in employment.
Many carers still go unrecognised. It is important that carers are identified and made aware of the support to which they are entitled. A particular group of carers who do a fantastic job for their families without statutory support are informal kinship carers, many of whom rescue their grandchildren as babies from chaotic home circumstances, and are then left literally holding the baby, but without the support that is given to carers of children who are identified as looked-after children. I am pleased that efforts are under way to help that group of carers.
Many young people have family caring responsibilities that can take away their childhood if they are not given proper support, so it is important that they are recognised as young carers, shown the understanding that they deserve and helped to lead as normal a young life as possible.
This year’s carers week, which Carers Scotland and Carers Trust Scotland have made possible, involves the other charities that are noted in the motion. One charity that plays a huge part in making carers week a success is Marie Curie, which focuses primarily on people who look after loved ones who have terminal illnesses. Marie Curie makes the very good point that those individuals often do not realise or recognise that they are carers; they would rather see themselves as people who are looking after someone they love at the end of life.
The vast majority of people would prefer to die at home or in a homely setting, but more than 50 per cent of people die in hospital. Research has found that having a carer is the single most important factor that makes it possible for a person to die at home, whereas living alone or being unmarried increases the likelihood of a person dying in hospital.
Caring for someone at the end of life can be physically and emotionally demanding, and carers often struggle to come to terms with the loss of a loved one. The health of carers can often be affected, and they might have very specific needs and requirements that must be considered in the care and support that are made available to them. Therefore, Marie Curie has launched the Marie Curie helper service, the Marie Curie support line and bereavement support services to help people to access practical, emotional and financial resources, and to get the right information and support at the right time.
In its briefing, Marie Curie makes a few points about amendments that it would seek to make to the Carers (Scotland) Bill, and I will examine those in discussions with colleagues when we reach stage 2.
As has been mentioned, thousands of events will take place across the country as part of carers week. I wish all who are involved every success in their efforts to raise awareness of the vital contribution that carers make in communities right across Scotland. We must remember that those events can be great fun.
I again thank Rhoda Grant for securing the debate.
17:27
I congratulate Rhoda Grant on securing a debate on carers week in carers week. I lodged a motion on carers week, although I did not mark mine for members’ business.
I thought about what I was going to say, because Johann Lamont made a very good point—when we speak in debates, people outside who listen in often hear what they consider to be warm words and platitudes. Therefore, I thought that I would say a little about what is involved in being a carer.
I am a carer for my son. I am probably his secondary carer; my wife would be considered his primary carer. On reading some of the comments on social media, I was struck by the impact that caring has on other people and how much of it I recognise. I realise that there is a strong likelihood that my son will require care and support from us for the rest of his life, and many other people are in the situation of having a child they know will be dependent on their care and the care of the state for their whole life. They know that they will not experience some of the things that many parents experience with their children. There is hope that there will be other experiences, but many of the things that people take for granted as parental experiences are not always experienced.
Other issues arise. One thing that is often said is that my situation as a carer is different, because I am an MSP and I have a comfortable income. That certainly helps in a number of areas, and it helps others who are in a similar position. When my mother was caring for my grandparents, she was fortunate that my father was earning an income, which meant that financial support was available. Many people are in that situation, but many people are not.
Income will help only in some areas. Life for me and my wife is one of constantly broken sleep. Indeed, until my son was prescribed melatonin, one of us would have to stay in his room until around midnight or 1 o’clock in the morning so that he went to sleep. If we had not done that, he would have been through waking up his then toddler sister, whose sleep, too, would have been broken. Given that he would then be up again at 4 or 5 in the morning, three to four-hour sleeps were becoming a regular occurrence. That is the same for many people, who have to get up through the night to administer medication to loved ones; indeed, they often have to sleep in the same room, which creates difficult conditions for them.
That is why, although I welcome the Carers (Scotland) Bill, I think that we have to look beyond the young carer’s statement and the adult carer support plan and ask: what if support that is identified as being necessary is not available locally? What provisions can be put in place to ensure that that is part of the thinking of local authorities and health boards? Sleep counselling is one such example. Although it is not always available at a local level, it can be absolutely vital in many instances. If the sleep patterns of parents and siblings are being impacted on, sleep counselling can offer important assistance, but what if no trained sleep counsellors are available locally? Listing sleep counselling as something that is required to support an individual is fine on paper, but how do we put it into practice?
We all need to think about that issue as we move forward with the legislation. It is fine to put in place the funding for support measures as well as support plans for carers, but we have to ensure that, when the support plan is in place, the things that are identified as being required by carers can be delivered. What carers expect from the bill is for the support plan to be not only provided but acted upon.
I will draw my remarks to a close by saying that, although I welcome the opportunity to have this debate during carers week, we should not forget that for Scotland’s carers every week is carers week.
17:31
I, too, thank Rhoda Grant for welcoming carers week into the Parliament through this debate. Every year, I am impressed by the effort that is put in to promote carers’ rights and to raise awareness of the fantastic work that carers do. As other members have pointed out, the scope of this year’s events across Scotland is brilliant.
As an ex-young carer, I am committed to standing up for carers; indeed, I am, with Joan McAlpine, convener of the cross-party group on carers. The unexpected responsibility that comes with caring for someone can have a detrimental impact on a person’s health, education, employment, relationships and every other aspect of life. Carers make a huge contribution not just to the people they look after but to the country, saving the national health service an estimated £10.3 billion a year. As they care for others, so we must care for them.
The theme of this year’s carers week—building carer-friendly communities—is fantastic. After all, a compassionate community with a clear understanding of the demands placed on unpaid carers could make the world of difference. According to Scottish Youth Parliament figures, only 45.5 per cent of those in work felt able to tell their employer about their young adult carer status and 56.4 per cent said that they had less time to be with friends and so could feel isolated.
A carer-friendly community would help carers feel comfortable in identifying themselves as carers, and we should all use this week to raise awareness among employers, general practitioners and local services and systems to ensure that they are accommodating and can alleviate some of the daily pressures that carers face.
In my South Scotland region alone, this week is filled with fundraisers like bag packing with Dumfries and Galloway Carers Centre, activities and workshops with Borders Voluntary Care Voice or a cup of tea with Support in Mind Scotland at its pop-up cafe.
Of course, those organisations operate all year round. I recently visited the South Lanarkshire Carers Network’s new facilities to meet its board and some young carers—I believe that the minister, too, has visited those facilities in Hamilton—and I know that, in addition to offering a range of support services for carers, this and other networks have provided the forward thinking that has driven forward some of the national policy.
For example, Borders Voluntary Care Voice holds an annual forum that I have been pleased to attend ever since I became an MSP. It is an excellent place for carers in rural and remote areas to inform MSPs of their issues. One of the issues that came up there was sleep counselling, which Mark McDonald raised. In rural areas, it is often very difficult to find the right support for carers.
Carers have been effective in driving forward change for better recognition and support alongside other organisations. A great example of their successes is the Scottish Youth Parliament’s care fair share campaign last year. Thanks to the hard work of Scottish Youth Parliament members, young adult carers in education have more flexible options in funding assistance.
I understand—perhaps the minister will correct me if I am wrong about this—that the education maintenance allowance now recognises young carers as vulnerable and therefore entitled to a more flexible learning agreement. Furthermore, the Student Awards Agency for Scotland now includes carers in eligibility for the dependants and lone parents grants.
Before I make some brief remarks on the Carers (Scotland) Bill, I associate myself with the wise analysis and comments of my friend and colleague Johann Lamont, who is an ex-convener of the cross-party group on carers.
This is indeed a seismic time for Scotland’s unpaid carers. The Carers (Scotland) Bill promises to make a significant difference, but carers and their representative organisations have highlighted a number of issues. Last week, I was delighted to welcome the Minister for Sport, Health Improvement and Mental Health to the cross-party group on carers to share some of those concerns.
What seems to be a minor change can be vital to someone who is responsible for a loved one’s care. To be consulted in the planning of discharge from hospital would minimise surprise and confusion. A specific duty to enable carers to take short breaks has been shown to make a huge difference to mental wellbeing. That is vital, and support in the creation of an emergency future plan, which has already been mentioned, would defuse the what-ifs that can keep a carer awake at night. Furthermore, carers are calling for consideration of national eligibility criteria to stop the postcode lottery for basic levels of support.
I very much hope that the minister will listen to those points and consider lodging Scottish Government amendments to the Carers (Scotland) Bill. I am sure that organisations and members of the cross-party group on carers would be happy to work on those with the Scottish Government if that was appropriate.
I again thank Rhoda Grant for bringing this members’ business debate to the chamber as part of carers week.
17:37
I join other members in thanking Rhoda Grant for initiating this debate and welcoming carers week and the contribution of carers to society.
All members who have spoken have done so with genuine respect for Scotland’s carers and young carers, but I hope that members will forgive me for highlighting in particular the contribution of my friend Mark McDonald, whose personal testimony in talking about his own continuing experience greatly enriched the debate. I thank all members, but I thank him in particular for his contribution.
Carers week is an important juncture. It is a reminder of our need to focus on the outstanding work that carers do. I was very happy to take part in an event earlier this year with Carers Scotland to publicise carers week. That was atop Calton Hill. At first glance, that may seem a strange place to have done that, but Carers UK celebrates its 50th anniversary this year, and its chief executive, Heléna Herklots, is climbing 50 hills this year—one for each year of the organisation’s existence. I pointed out to her that day that Edinburgh, like Rome, has seven hills and that she could get a few done in one day, but I do not think that she took up my suggestion.
It is right that we recognise that carers and young carers are integral to our society. They provide vital care and support to their families, friends and neighbours often in very challenging circumstances. That is the very reason why we introduced to Parliament the Carers (Scotland) Bill, which I know has been the focus of much of the debate. I will speak a little more about it.
We introduced the Carers (Scotland) Bill because we want to accelerate the pace of change and build on what has already been achieved. Its implementation will help to ensure that carers are given the opportunity to balance their caring responsibilities with their life goals to result in better health and wellbeing and to have a life alongside caring. Johann Lamont in particular spoke very eloquently about the human necessity of trying to achieve that aim.
Through the bill, we will introduce the adult carer support plan, which will be available to all adult carers and will focus on the achievement of each carer’s personal outcomes. The young carer statement will do likewise for young carers and will take account of the fact that they have very specific and different needs from those of adult carers.
The adult carers and young carers who are identified as having needs will then be able to access support through the information and advice services that local authorities will be under a duty to provide, and to access general services in the community. If any remaining needs are eligible for bespoke support, services such as short breaks, advocacy and training would be offered to carers whose needs meet the identified criteria.
The bill includes specific provisions to ensure that local authorities must include carers and young carers in discussions about support for themselves and services for the people they care for. Their expertise is invaluable in making sure that adequate and appropriate services are put in place.
Rhoda Grant suggested possible amendments to the bill and Nanette Milne spoke about suggestions by Marie Curie about the bill. Claudia Beamish rightly referred to the fact that Marie Curie came along to the cross-party group just last week, and we had a discussion about changes that people would like to see. Joan McAlpine, who is the co-convener of the cross-party group—I thank both her and Claudia Beamish for their work on it—made a suggestion about emergency planning. I recognise that that is an issue of concern to carers, and I am sympathetic to the arguments by Enable and the national carers organisations.
Scottish Government officials are working with Enable to understand the proposals in more detail and how they would work, and we will consider them in due course. I should point out that I have already committed to making provision for emergency planning in regulations, but we would be very happy to hear what Enable has to say. We are not yet past stage 1 of the bill, but I look forward to seeing what suggestions come forward about the bill and to working with the members of the Health and Sport Committee to take it forward.
Claudia Beamish asked earlier about the education maintenance allowance. To make clear the particular challenges that young carers face, Michael Matheson, in his previous role as the Minister for Public Health, and Angela Constance wrote to all directors of education and college principals highlighting the need for full consideration of flexibility for young carers, so we have already set that out.
The Government’s vision is for a flourishing, optimistic and innovative Scotland, and tackling inequalities and promoting equality of opportunity remain our major challenges. We want a Scotland where people have control of their lives and are empowered to make choices. Whatever their circumstances, carers should enjoy the same opportunities in life as people without caring responsibilities and should be able to achieve their full potential as citizens.
I wonder whether the minister accepts that there is an issue about carers who want to work. For example, if they are caring for a child but there is no support in school appropriate to the child’s needs, the schooling often fails and as a consequence the parent is unable to work. What discussions has he had with the education secretary about such matters? Moreover, what level of support is being offered in schools to children with special needs?
I commit to taking up that matter with education colleagues, and I will get back to Johann Lamont and let her know where we get to with that contact.
Building carer-friendly communities is the theme of this year’s carers week, as Rhoda Grant pointed out, and it is very much in line with the Scottish Government vision that I spoke of earlier. Scotland has a growing population of older people who are living longer but often with a range of complex physical and mental healthcare needs, and there are more children with complex health needs or disabilities. We therefore need to support Scotland’s carers so that they, in turn, can support the many people they care for.
We have spent over £114 million since 2007 on supporting carers, 47 per cent of whom live in the most deprived areas and care for 35 hours or more a week, which is almost double the level in the least deprived areas. Carers experiencing considerable disadvantage need to be supported. Equally, our work to tackle health inequalities in the wider context of tackling economic disadvantage is paramount.
That brings me to the concerns that Joan McAlpine raised about the impact of the UK Government’s welfare reform agenda. I call on the UK Government to devolve the powers needed to support Scotland’s carers. As Joan McAlpine pointed out, the Smith commission report stated:
“The Scottish Parliament will have complete autonomy in determining the structure and value of the benefits at paragraph 49 or any new benefits or services which might replace them.”
That includes carers allowance, but in its current form the Scotland Bill appears to restrict how the Scottish Government can support carers by defining those eligible for support as being over 16 and not in full-time education or employment.
In addition, the roll-out of personal independence payments will impact on carers currently receiving carers allowance and disability living allowance, with some expected not to be eligible for any support under the new system. The Scottish Government has called on the UK Government to delay the roll-out of PIP, and the consequences for carers is a good example of why we have done that.
The agenda of supporting carers will always be important to me and to the Scottish Government. Again, I thank all those individuals and organisations involved in carers week and all those who make great efforts to care for people across the country. This week of activity is hugely valuable for highlighting to everyone in Scotland the invaluable role that carers and young carers play in supporting the people they care for. I thank Rhoda Grant again for securing the debate this evening.
Meeting closed at 17:45.Previous
Decision Time