Official Report 745KB pdf
12:01
Justice System (Death of Keith Rollinson)
Sue Rollinson’s beloved husband of 33 years went out to work as a bus driver but never came home. Keith Rollinson was violently attacked by a teenage thug and died in hospital. As he lay dying, Sue and her daughters were told not to touch him. Sue told me:
“We weren’t even allowed to hold his hand because the police said that it might contaminate the evidence.”
The killer was sentenced to four years and four months. He was not sent to prison. Instead, he was sent to charity-run accommodation with a swimming pool and a courtyard garden. He has not spent a single night in prison. He killed an innocent man two years ago, but he could be freed and back home within weeks. Does John Swinney think that that is justice?
Before I come on to the important point that Mr Findlay has raised, I record my sadness at the death of Jeane Freeman, who was one of my Cabinet colleagues when she was the health secretary. She served the Parliament and the country with distinction through many difficult and challenging moments during the Covid pandemic. She also contributed to enhancing Scotland through the design of our social security system.
I express my sympathies and those of the Government to Jeane’s partner, Susan, and her friends and family on the loss of a magnificent woman, who was taken from us all too suddenly and all too early in her life.
I express to Russell Findlay my understanding and appreciation of the depth of concern about the issue that he has raised on behalf of Sue Rollinson. I know that Mr Findlay met the Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs and Richard Lochhead, who is Mrs Rollinson’s local MSP, earlier this week. I understand the concern that has been expressed.
What happened to Mr Rollinson was absolutely and completely unforgivable and unspeakable. The courts considered the issue and have taken the decisions that they have taken. A parole hearing on the case was held on 11 February, and a decision was postponed to a future oral hearing. The Parole Board for Scotland is responsible for considering the length of a sentence and how much time is spent where as part of that sentence.
John Swinney cannot say it, so I will say it for him: a violent killer not spending a single night in prison and potentially being back home after two years is not justice. It is sickening, and it is an affront to Sue Rollinson and her family.
The killer was given a shockingly short sentence because of guidelines that were introduced by a Scottish National Party quango. Judges are told not to jail criminals aged up to 25 and to impose lighter sentences. Those guidelines traumatise victims by treating murderers and rapists as though they are children. That is all based on the nonsense belief that they are not mature enough to be responsible for their crimes.
That is one of the many ways in which the SNP Government has spent years weakening Scotland’s justice system. For the sake of victims such as Keith Rollinson, will John Swinney do the right thing and finally scrap those disgraceful guidelines?
As Mr Findlay correctly says, the information and guidance on sentencing come from the independent Scottish Sentencing Council, which takes a considered view of all such questions and does so at arm’s length from ministers.
The young person sentencing guidelines make it clear that all sentencing options, including imprisonment, remain open to the court. It is important that I put that point on the record, because it is just not the case that the sentencing guidelines make the provisions that Mr Findlay has talked about. The guidelines make it clear that the option of imprisonment remains open to the court.
Decisions on sentences are taken by the independent judiciary. An important principle of our judicial system is that the judiciary is able to operate independently of the Government, with the ability to exercise, as I set out, the full range of options, including imprisonment, that are open to it in such cases.
My description of the SNP’s sentencing guidelines was 100 per cent accurate. Keith Rollinson’s killer previously attacked another bus driver, yet, after that, he was still allowed to keep his free bus pass. Our party has been campaigning for years to deny free travel for those who commit crimes and antisocial behaviour on the buses. John Swinney agreed to make that happen in May last year, but, nine months on, it has still not happened, because the SNP Government botched the legislation. Jim Fairlie is shaking his head, but he botched the legislation.
Sue Rollinson is, rightly, furious that her husband’s killer will still be entitled to a free bus pass when he gets out. Can John Swinney guarantee that that killer will have his bus pass removed, and will he say exactly when that will happen?
The draft code that will enable the decisions that Mr Findlay is talking about to be made was shared with the parliamentary committee that will scrutinise these issues on 28 January. The statutory instrument is due to be debated at the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee’s meeting next Tuesday, 17 February. The steps to take forward the programme for government commitment that I made to remove free bus travel from any person, of any age, who does not act responsibly will be put to the committee on 17 February. The committee is free to take its own decisions, but I encourage it to take the decision to put that into practice.
As I said in my first answer, the individual who was convicted of the crime in relation to Mr Rollinson will have his parole determined at a future hearing of the Parole Board. I therefore cannot give a definitive answer on the question about the timescale, because I do not know what decision the Parole Board will take.
In attempting to decipher all that, it sounds as though the killer may well still have his free bus pass, despite killing a bus driver.
Keith Rollinson’s tragic case highlights so much that is wrong with the SNP’s weak justice approach: laws that keeps some killers out of prison, guidelines that ensure that other serious criminals are not jailed and the early release of thousands of criminals. It is no wonder that Angela Constance has her back to me. There is so much more that I could say, and none of this is by accident; it is by design.
Now, John Swinney is going to free some prisoners after serving just 30 per cent of their sentences. The SNP: stronger for criminals.
The last word today goes to Sue Rollinson. I told Sue that Keith would be proud of her, and she said:
“Keith will be looking down and saying, ‘Oh my goodness, Sue—where did you get that strength from?’”
Well, Mr Swinney, she gets her strength from her love of Keith and from the suffering that she has endured at the hands of the SNP justice system. Does John Swinney have any understanding of the pain and anguish that his Government is inflicting on good and decent people across Scotland?
I have every sympathy for Mrs Rollinson and what she has endured. She and her husband should never have had to experience the awfulness of what they have experienced. I can express only my sympathy to her, but I can also set out what is happening in relation to criminal justice in Scotland today.
Under this Government, recorded crime is down by 38 per cent since 2006-07. At the same time, people are being sentenced for invariably longer periods in prison as a consequence of the success of the Government in taking forward—[Interruption.]
Let us hear one another.
At the same time, people are being sentenced for invariably longer periods in prison as a consequence of the success of the Government in taking forward, through the Crown, the prosecution of many crimes that were previously unaddressed. Individuals are now spending longer, on average, in prison as a consequence of the decisions that this Government has taken. For example, the average length of a custodial sentence for weapons possession increased by 52 per cent between 2007-08 and 2022-23.
I have every sympathy with Mrs Rollinson for what she has experienced, and I assure her that this Government is doing everything that it can to ensure that those who commit crimes are apprehended, prosecuted and, when the courts make this decision, imprisoned as well.
Queen Elizabeth University Hospital
I echo John Swinney’s comments about Jeane Freeman. We send our love and condolences to Susan and to all of her family, friends and colleagues.
As I said in the chamber yesterday, I will forever be thankful, as will the families and doctors at the Queen Elizabeth university hospital, because Jeane Freeman was willing to listen, to learn and to act. We thank her for her service to our country and to our national health service.
For weeks, John Swinney has denied that political pressure was applied to open the Queen Elizabeth university hospital before it was ready. However, on 29 March 2015, weeks before an election, John Swinney told the Scottish National Party conference, in relation to the Queen Elizabeth university hospital, that,
“with the SNP Government, ‘on time and on budget’ is the rule—not the exception.”
Weeks later, an independent report was received that stated that the children’s hospital was not safe and that there were high risks of infections and therefore high risks to life for immunocompromised patients. The report was ignored and the hospital opened anyway. Children died as a result. Will the First Minister now finally take responsibility and apologise to the families?
The issues that Mr Sarwar raises are part and parcel of the independent public inquiry that is being taken forward by Lord Brodie.
As Mr Sarwar knows full well, the Government first became aware of the issues in relation to the water contamination system in 2018. That information is all in front of the inquiry and it is for Lord Brodie to consider those issues as part of the independent inquiry.
The Government established that independent inquiry to undertake that process, and we shall leave Lord Brodie to do exactly that.
John Swinney is denying reality and continuing to mislead this Parliament. Let us look at the evidence. Despite his denials, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde said:
“Pressure was applied to open the hospital on time and on budget, and it is now clear that the hospital opened too early.”
The Scottish Government’s meeting note states explicitly:
“Political pressure was also being felt and no consideration was given to delay the opening of the hospital, despite the issues being faced with completion and operation.”
Weeks before the hospital was opened, John Swinney told his party conference, in relation to the hospital, that,
“with the SNP Government, ‘on time and on budget’ is the rule—not the exception.”
That is clear political pressure. Families are hurting enough, so why is John Swinney insulting their intelligence and exacerbating their pain?
A few weeks ago, Anas Sarwar came to the chamber and brandished a supposedly secret document about political pressure being applied to the opening of the hospital. The document was not in any way secret, because it had been submitted to the independent public inquiry by the Government. Now, Mr Sarwar comes to the chamber and his big reveal is the contents of a conference speech that I gave in front of thousands and thousands of people, which was broadcast on live television. [Interruption.]
Let us hear one another.
I do not quite understand what sensational point Mr Sarwar is trying to put forward. The argument that he is putting forward smacks of desperation. We have established an independent public inquiry, which we will leave to make its judgments about the issue so that the families who are involved can get the truth, which is what they deserve.
John Swinney forgets that the families are watching him and listening to his answers. Let us look at what the families are having to hear and endure: it is not just the pain of losing a loved one but that politics was put before patient safety and pressure was applied to open the hospital; that the hospital opened before it was safe and ready; that a report warned of the risk of infections, but it was ignored; that the Scottish Government received 14 alerts of infections, but it did not take the appropriate action; and that, even now, the hospital has not been validated. Just yesterday, the SNP tried to block information on current safety at the hospital. To add even more insult, a Scottish Government official attempted to bribe grieving families with cash and a trip to Disneyland rather than confront the truth.
What does John Swinney say to those families who are having to go through that hell because of his Government’s decisions?
I would say to the families that the Government has done two things of significance in this area. The first thing is that the Government has established an independent public inquiry, which we respect. We respect its independence and we will not tolerate political interference in the inquiry, which Mr Sarwar has tried to do. We will not play politics with the inquiry and we will not interfere with it; we will allow Lord Brodie to undertake his steps.
The second thing that the Government has done is that, when we become aware of issues of concern, we act. We did that in relation to the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People, where we acted and we intervened to stop it from opening, because we were aware of information. Mr Sarwar knows full well that the Government was not aware of the information that he puts to me.
The last point that I want to make is that Mr Sarwar has made many comments about the Queen Elizabeth university hospital. I think that it is important that I put on record important points about the safety of the hospital, because it is used by thousands and thousands of people every day. The independent inquiry heard from the independent expert, Andrew Poplett, that the water system management is now “extremely well-managed”, with “significant improvement” having been made. Mr Poplett noted that the facilities team is exceeding the standard guidance and is adopting a proactive and preventative approach that prioritises patient safety.
NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde recently commissioned and has now received two independent reports on the water and ventilation systems to provide further assurances. The findings of those independent reports were both positive, with a fully compliant ventilation assessment in December 2025, and a fully compliant water system assessment in January 2026. The reports will be considered by the safety and public confidence oversight group that the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care announced recently—
Please be brief.
—which was welcomed by the Labour Party in its motion yesterday.
My advice to Mr Sarwar, in his absolute desperation, is to stop playing politics with this issue, to respect the independent inquiry, as this Government will do, and to allow the families to get to the truth of what has happened. That is what we are committed to, not the desperate acts of Anas Sarwar.
Men’s Violence Against Women and Girls
I echo the First Minister’s tribute to Jeane Freeman and send my love and that of my party to our friend Susan.
Nothing that the Prime Minister or others can say now will change the fundamentals of the scandal that is rightly engulfing them. Peter Mandelson was lauded and given huge influence and, ultimately, one of the most important jobs in the British Government, despite it having been public knowledge for years that he had remained friends with Jeffrey Epstein after he had been convicted of child sex offences.
Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor clearly felt that he was above the law—[Interruption.]
Let us hear one another.
—and, so far, he has been proven correct. The late Queen and the current King put up millions of pounds to make his problems go away, but the problems were real people—real women and girls who had suffered abuse. The victims and survivors are in danger of being forgotten and of being erased by the political fallout. That cannot be allowed to happen.
Men’s violence against women and girls is not just an elite problem—it is endemic at every level of our society, and every man has a role to play in solving it. What is the First Minister’s message to women and girls in Scotland who have survived and who continue to endure men’s violence?
I agree that the suffering of women and girls in the case of Jeffrey Epstein is of the highest level of concern. I am struck by the fact that all those concerns were bypassed by the Prime Minister in his appointment of Peter Mandelson as the United Kingdom’s ambassador to the United States. It is jaw dropping that that decision was taken.
With regard to the responsibilities that I hold, I have made it clear from this podium on a number of occasions—and I take actions in Government, along with my Cabinet colleagues, to this end—that we make strenuous efforts to tackle the issue of violence against women and girls in our society through a range of measures, including those forming part of the equally safe strategy, and to ensure that we set out the fundamental point that the issue at the heart of such violence is the behaviour of men, and that men’s behaviour must change.
I agree absolutely with the First Minister that the issue here is men’s behaviour and men’s violence. Tackling violence against women and girls means changing underlying attitudes. The uncomfortable truth is that far too many men and boys do not see women and girls as equal or worthy of respect and dignity. Here in Scotland, many boys and young men leave school having been taught nothing about the importance of consent and respect in relationships.
Over the past few years, I have worked with the—[Interruption.]
Let us hear one another. I am very conscious that the galleries are full. People would like to be able to follow our proceedings.
I am surprised to hear the Conservatives interrupt on this of all topics.
Over the past few years, I have worked with the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills to update the statutory guidance on relationships education. Frankly, it is unbelievable that the current guidance, which dates only from 2014, has no section on consent. The new guidance that we developed, which was published last week, starts with a chapter on the importance of consent. If we are to break the generational cycle of misogyny and men’s violence against women and girls, that guidance needs to be put into use in every school.
Does the First Minister agree that every young person in Scotland, and especially every young man, should be taught about the importance of consent and respect in relationships before they leave school?
Whatever the parliamentary mood on this question, I want to make it clear that I attach the greatest importance to this issue and to the representations that Mr Greer has made to me on it over the years. I pay tribute to the way in which he has pursued the issue—in the face, I might add, of parliamentary resistance, which, as we have heard, has been the case today as well.
The relationships, sexual health and parenthood education programme aims to equip young people with knowledge and understanding of issues such as consent, appropriate relationships and boundaries, to help them make informed choices that promote and protect their own and others’ health and wellbeing. I thank Mr Greer for his contribution to enabling that to be the case. I believe that that programme should be in place across our education system. It is an essential part of equipping young people, and in particular young boys, with all the information that they require to undertake responsible lives and for us all together to take the action that is necessary to ensure that violence against women and girls is consigned to the dustbin of history in our country.
Scotch Whisky Industry (Tariffs)
To ask the First Minister how often he or the Scottish ministers engage with the Scottish Government’s Washington DC international office regarding the Scotch whisky industry and other economic interests in the United States. (S6F-04672)
The Scottish Government interacts closely and regularly with its Washington office on the important work to promote Scotland’s cultural, social and economic interests, including support for the whisky sector, which contributes £5.4 billion to our economy.
As Michelle Thomson will know, I have been active in trying to secure the removal of the tariffs on Scotch whisky. We continue to await progress from the United Kingdom Government on prioritising Scotch whisky in negotiations and securing the tariff exemptions that the sector deserves. Our Washington office will remain central to ensuring that that and our wider economic interests stay high on the agenda.
I thank the First Minister for setting out the value of representing Scotland on the global stage.
Given the current chaos at Westminster while the Labour Party tears itself apart, I am concerned about the price that Scottish industries are having to pay. UK Labour’s taxes on Scotch whisky and Scottish energy are destroying jobs and hammering our economy.
Does the First Minister agree that the Labour Party cannot be trusted to put Scottish economic interests first? Can he say more about how his Government is working to protect Scotland’s premier industries?
First Minister, please answer on devolved matters only.
To be honest, Michelle Thomson hits the nail on the head. Now that we know from Anas Sarwar that the Labour Government in the United Kingdom is absolutely useless and that the Prime Minister should leave office, little attention will be paid to the central issues that affect our economic wellbeing, principally the issue of tariffs on whisky.
Although this Government in Scotland will always act to champion and take forward the interests of our country, we are being undermined by a useless Labour Government in London that Anas Sarwar encouraged everybody to support. It shows quite clearly what poor judgment Anas Sarwar has.
Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (Service Delivery Review)
To ask the First Minister whether the Scottish Government will provide an update on the service delivery review of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service. (S6F-04675)
The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service will determine how its resources should best be deployed to adapt to changing risks, keep our communities safe, remain effective and efficient, and ensure that we have resources in the right place and at the right time.
Last summer, the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service carried out a public consultation on its strategic review, and the large number of responses are being independently analysed. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service board will then decide which of the options should go forward for implementation over the next five years.
I thank the First Minister for that answer, but, shamefully, the review has now been delayed until after the elections in May, which is unacceptable to my constituents in Hawick who deserve to know the future of their local station.
The SFRS warned that 500 firefighter posts could be cut over the next three years. That is stark, because it follows warnings that, in addition to the number of firefighters falling by nearly 1,200 over the past 12 years in Scotland, that review could lead to the removal of 166 firefighter posts.
If, God forbid, something catastrophic should occur in the areas where those cuts are happening, will the First Minister shoulder responsibility for the hollowing out of the fire service?
It is very important that, in all parts of the country, we have an effective and efficient fire and rescue service. However, as members will understand, there will be tremendous challenges in allocating resources that are appropriate for the conditions and circumstances that we face. One practical example is that the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service must wrestle with the fact that our climate is changing and so there are significant new demands relating to issues such as wildfire and flooding. Those are two very substantial issues that can affect all parts of the country. We must ensure that we have the right resources in the right place, which is the purpose of the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service strategic review.
The SFRS will engage on all those questions, and the Parliament will, of course, be able to interact on them, too. However, I give the assurance that I understand that we need to have in place an effective fire and rescue service in Scotland, and I believe that we do.
Is the First Minister aware of the concerns of local communities about the impact of the closure of Marionville fire station without a local replacement? Given the strong cross-party support to deliver a station that will meet the needs of our growing communities in the area, will he step in to support our call on the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service to save Marionville station?
I am familiar with the issues around Marionville, which members have raised a number of times, and I have sought information and advice on those questions.
The situation there is part of the dilemma that I talked about in my answer to Rachael Hamilton, whereby we must make careful judgments about the placement of resources. There will be changes to population spread. There is a substantial expansion of the population in the east of Scotland, and in particular in the east of the city of Edinburgh and into East Lothian. All those issues will be part of the detailed consideration that the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service will undertake, and I know that the issues that Sarah Boyack raises will also form part of that consideration.
Police Stations (Lanarkshire)
To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government’s response is to reports that police stations across Lanarkshire, including in Bellshill, will be closed permanently to the public or have their hours reduced from 1 April. (S6F-04667)
Decisions on the management and use of the police estate lie with the chief constable, but I recognise that people in the Lanarkshire area will have concerns about the plans that Mr Griffin has raised with me.
I can confirm that police officers will remain embedded in communities across Lanarkshire, and community policing continues to be a priority for Police Scotland in all those areas.
Bellshill police station, along with other stations across Lanarkshire, will close to members of the public on 1 April, in order, Police Scotland says, to free up officers from being behind a desk. However, they are behind a desk only because the Scottish National Party Government slashed Police Scotland’s budget and forced the redundancies of thousands of support staff, who did an excellent job at lower cost.
What does the First Minister say to the people of Bellshill who need physical access to a police station to safely report a crime, particularly women who are at risk of domestic abuse, who cannot afford to leave an electronic trail behind them?
One of the points that has been made to me about the situation at Bellshill police station is that the decision was arrived at by Police Scotland due to the lower level of footfall that was presenting there. There will be operational decisions that Police Scotland has to make in relation to facilities that are not being used as frequently as they might have been in the past.
On the question about the reporting of crimes, there are many different ways to report a crime. There are systems and initiatives in place to ensure that women who report crimes of violence are able to be protected. I encourage Police Scotland to ensure that there is wider awareness of all the issues and of the different routes to report a crime.
Draft Budget 2026-27 (Business Rates, Hospices and the Care Sector)
To ask the First Minister whether the Scottish Government will make further changes to the draft budget 2026-27 published in January in relation to business rates, hospices and the care sector. (S6F-04670)
The issues raised by Jamie Greene are ones that the finance secretary has been working on, and I thank Jamie Greene for his constructive engagement in the budget process.
I can confirm that an additional £2.9 million will be provided to ensure that hospices can maintain parity for their staff with national health service agenda for change. An additional £20 million will be provided to local government for social care, which can be used for matters such as funding the real living wage for adult and child care services. On business rates, the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government will later today outline that licensed premises and music venues that are liable for basic and intermediate property rates will see their relief increase to 40 per cent, subject to the £110,000 cap per business in Scotland.
I thank the First Minister for that. In the draft budget, I welcomed our calls for more funding for colleges, young entrepreneurs, autism assessments and our islands, but I have also made it clear that we need to see more for hospices, care providers, and hospitality and self-catering businesses, all of which are crying out for more support. Today it sounds as though we have made some progress for social care, for hospices and on business rates. My calculation puts the amount at just shy of £300 million for Liberal Democrat priorities. Why did we get that progress? Because we chose to negotiate properly and get things done. That is why we will support the budget this afternoon. I ask the First Minister to spell out the difference that the Liberal Democrats have made to this year’s budget.
First, I welcome Mr Greene’s commitment on behalf of the Liberal Democrats to support the Government’s budget—that is indeed welcome. The budget is a product of constructive engagement to serve the people who sent us here. That is what this is all about: Parliament engaging—[Interruption.] The Government does not have a majority, so we need to work with others to get the budget through. This year, we have experienced constructive collaboration with some political parties in order to advance on the issues. I am sure that the people of Scotland will notice that.
I welcome the support that the Liberal Democrats will give us this afternoon for the budget. Let me make it clear that a Government under my leadership will always work to serve the people of Scotland, addressing their priorities and meeting their needs.
I am sorry to encroach on the love-in between the Lib Dems and the nationalists, but as a result of the Scottish National Party’s brutal business rates regime, many of Scotland’s pubs are calling last orders for the final time and, as Innis & Gunn warned yesterday, those pubs that survive are being forced—reluctantly—to hike prices to eye-watering levels. Is John Swinney happy to be remembered as the First Minister who forced hard-working Scots to pay £10 a pint?
If Mr Hoy knew anything about the way in which taxation operates in the United Kingdom, he would know that alcohol taxation is a reserved tax that is determined by the United Kingdom Government, and that countless Labour and Tory Governments have made it more and more difficult for the spirits and beer industry in this country to survive because of their stupid decisions on alcohol taxation. [Interruption.]
Let me just say to Mr Hoy—[Interruption.]—
Let us hear one another.
—who has contributed the square root of absolutely nothing to the budget process, that the Scottish Government is managing to navigate its budget through Parliament without a majority and—thankfully—without contaminating ourselves with the destructive force of the Conservative Party.
Thank you. In the time that we have left, concise questions will give more members an opportunity to come in. We will now have constituency and general supplementary questions.
Titan Crane
The Titan crane is a beacon of the industrial heritage of Clydebank and shipbuilding on the Clyde. It survived two world wars, including the Clydebank blitz. In 2007, after maintenance work and the creation of a visitor centre, the crane was opened to the public. It is a memory of our industrial past—one that helped make Clydebank world renowned and the backbone of Scotland’s shipbuilding industry. Unfortunately, the Labour council failed to maintain the crane, and it now remains closed to the public and left to rust.
Will the First Minister join me on a visit to the Titan crane to see for himself its significance and potential, and will he commit to the Scottish Government doing everything possible, with others, to ensure that it reopens and makes a massive contribution to the tourism industry in Scotland?
I am very familiar with the Titan crane. I have been up it. It is an incredible landmark that recognises the industrial heritage of the Clydebank area, which is of such significance in Scotland’s story. It is a magnificent facility. The duty of care falls on the local authority, West Dunbartonshire Council, which I encourage to provide adequate care and maintenance of the site. The Government will engage constructively in every way we can to ensure that the crane can be accessed by members of the public. I thank Marie McNair for raising the issue and the significance of the Titan crane to Scotland’s industrial landscape.
Orbex
The First Minister may be aware that Orbex is set to enter administration, putting at risk more than 150 very high-skilled jobs in Forres. That will be a devastating blow to Moray and to the United Kingdom’s wider space ambitions. We all want to stop further rural depopulation. Will the Scottish Government seek to engage with Orbex? What support can be offered to the residents and staff, who will be deeply worried?
I am familiar with the news. I had the pleasure of visiting Orbex, which is an incredibly innovative, creative and inventive organisation. It faces uncertainty, given the decisions that have been announced. My colleague Richard Lochhead, the Minister for Business and Employment, will meet with the company and the administrators today. The Deputy First Minister has been closely engaged with the interim administrators, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and the United Kingdom Government to further understand the steps that can be taken to safeguard the opportunities at Orbex.
I am very clear that this is a significant issue, because the space sector has real potential, with significant economic benefits for Scotland. The Government will do all that it can to support a secure future for Orbex. Significant leading technology is being developed there, and we will do all that we can to help to protect it for the future.
Access to Pensions
The First Minister, like me, will have received correspondence from a number of constituents who are former Scottish public servants and who cannot access information about their pension or cannot access their pension at all once they are entitled to it. This morning, we saw that a lady from elsewhere in the United Kingdom who has cancer and has six months to live is having to borrow to pay her bills because she cannot get her pension. The issue arises from the outsourcing of pensions management to Capita, which had a terrible record in armed forces recruitment previously. Will the Scottish Government take the issue up with the UK Government to seek assurances that those who are immediately impacted will get their pensions, will be able to understand what pension they are entitled to and will be compensated for the financial detriment that they have experienced?
I am familiar with the issues that Mr Brown raises, and the Scottish Government has been in contact with the UK Government about them. There are many examples of disruption and hardship being caused to individuals. I assure Mr Brown and the Parliament that the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government is in active dialogue with the UK Government, which has the responsibility to resolve those issues.
Cladding
I have been contacted by residents in a development that is affected by cladding here in the capital. For more than five years, residents have been waiting while the developer and the Scottish Government continue discussions but no real progress has been made. Almost £100,000 of public money has been spent on two single building assessments, yet the residents have now been told that the developments are effectively worthless. They are facing a block building insurance cost of around £450,000 a year—more than double what it should be. Will the First Minister come with me to meet those residents so that he can understand the need for progress in order to protect them from those costs, and will he put in place a plan for Scotland to finally get the assessments done and find a long-term solution for those people?
The Government has put steps in place to address cladding issues, the seriousness of which I acknowledge. The measures that have been put in place by the Government involve very detailed, site-by-site work to resolve the particular issues that are involved. The Cabinet Secretary for Housing is dealing with all those questions. I assure Mr Briggs that the Government has propositions in place that can address those issues, and I will be happy to engage on individual questions.
Sullum Voe Oil Terminal (Expansion of Clair Field)
The First Minister will be aware of the recent research from the University of Strathclyde’s centre for energy policy, which indicates that jobs at the Sullom Voe oil terminal depend on BP’s decision on the Clair expansion. It is estimated that around 250 jobs could be impacted across the Shetland economy, which would be devastating for our island community. Can the First Minister indicate what action his Government will take following that new research?
As Beatrice Wishart will know, the Scottish Government has been actively pressing the United Kingdom Government—indeed, I have done so myself with the Prime Minister directly—about the importance of removing the energy profits levy because of the damage that is being done to the sector and the impact that it is having on the Scottish economy. There has not been sufficient upsurge in renewables activity to counterbalance the issues in relation to oil and gas.
I assure Beatrice Wishart that those issues are regularly pressed with the United Kingdom Government. I want to ensure that it understands the significance of the impact of its decisions on Scotland. To be blunt, I do not think that it does understand that at the present moment, in any way, shape or form. The hardship and the impact on the Scottish economy and on households will be significant if the energy profits levy is not removed. We will be pressing for that to be done.
Resident Doctors (Pay Deal)
The strike by resident doctors in England is a damning indictment on the Labour United Kingdom Government. Some 95,000 walked out in December 2025 alone. Noting the announcement this week on the situation in Scotland, will the First Minister join me in welcoming the pay deal for our doctors, and will he call on Anas Sarwar, and whichever of his colleagues still support him, to welcome that strong record of delivery for our dedicated national health service staff in Scotland?
On devolved responsibilities, please, First Minister.
I am delighted that, in exercising our devolved responsibilities, we have avoided a resident doctors strike in Scotland, unlike the rest of the United Kingdom. We now know that the United Kingdom Government is useless. We know that because Mr Sarwar has told us how useless the UK Prime Minister and the UK Government are.
I am so delighted that the negotiations by the Scottish Government and the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care and the commitment of the resident doctors have got us to a position where we have avoided industrial action, we have been able to open general practice walk-in clinics and we have falling waiting times—all because of the leadership of a Scottish National Party Government on health.
That concludes First Minister’s questions.
On a point of order, Presiding Officer. In his response to questioning from Russell Findlay, the First Minister made remarks in relation to a meeting of the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee on 27 January, when, apparently, the committee was presented with a code of conduct by the Minister for Agriculture and Connectivity, Jim Fairlie, in relation to bus passes.
However, the committee meeting in question was on 20 January. At that meeting, the minister took a unilateral decision to not share his code of conduct with the committee—nor did the minister press the motion on the Scottish statutory instrument before the committee. It was clear that the committee was not minded to support it.
It is the minister’s incompetence that has been at the very heart of the delay in introducing legislation to remove bus passes from those committing antisocial behaviour on buses.
On the point of order, Ms Webber.
Will the First Minister now take the opportunity to correct the record to reflect the reality of events?
Thank you, Ms Webber. That is not a point of order, as members’ contributions are not a matter for the chair.
On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I just want to make it clear that there is absolutely no reason whatsoever for me to change the Official Report of what I have said to Parliament today.
Those are not points of order. We will now conclude First Minister’s questions.
12:48
Meeting suspended.
12:50
On resuming—
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