Plenary, 13 Dec 2001

Meeting date: Thursday, December 13, 2001

Official Report 729KB pdf

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First Minister's Question Time

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SCOTTISH EXECUTIVE

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Secretary of State for Scotland (Meetings)

To ask the First Minister when he plans to meet the Secretary of State for Scotland next and what issues he intends to raise. (S1F-1483)

I will meet the Secretary of State for Scotland on Monday night. We talk regularly about current issues of mutual interest.

I thank the First Minister for his answer.

Last week, I asked the First Minister about the case of a child who could not receive treatment on the national health service because a waiting list was closed. Yesterday, the Minister for Health and Community Care told the Parliament—and this was supported today in a letter to me from the First Minister—that that was the only waiting list in Scotland that was closed. I ask the First Minister whether that is true.

To the best of our knowledge, it is true. We checked with every board and trust this week. A claim was made in the debate yesterday afternoon that a waiting list was also closed in Inverness. That claim was not true. I checked this morning and I have an absolute assurance that it was not true. I hope that the assurances that I have received are the case.

I am sorry to tell the First Minister that the assurances that he has received are not the case. I draw to his attention a letter that one of my constituents received. It is from a consultant child psychiatrist in Tayside and relates to her seven-year-old son. In that letter, my constituent is told that a paediatric clinic is

"not in a position to accept referrals because of the length of their waiting list … ie 12 months."

If the referral cannot be accepted, the waiting list is closed—that is another waiting list closed, which contradicts what both the Minister for Health and Community Care and the First Minister have said. How on earth can the First Minister expect to improve the national health service if he does not tell the Parliament the truth about it?

I have to say that although these weekly exchanges are an essential part of the duties and responsibilities of Parliament, we also have duties and responsibilities to our constituents. If the leader of the Scottish National Party has a letter with such a claim in his possession, he should have passed it more speedily to the Minister for Health and Community Care and ensured an answer to the question. If another waiting list in Scotland is not taking referrals, we will act to deal with the fact that we did not get accurate information. If, in fact, the claim is not true, Mr Swinney would have been better served passing his letters to ministers for immediate action, instead of trying to score political points on a Thursday afternoon.

I think that the Minister for Health and Community Care will confirm that he receives a barrel-load of letters from me about my constituents' interests in health issues. [Members: "How many?"] Labour members ask how many letters the Minister for Health and Community Care receives from me. He will tell them how many letters I send him.

The First Minister should be aware that the constituent whom I mentioned made the situation plain to me on Tuesday. The reason why I raise it is that that lady is at her wits' end with a system that has failed to deliver for her child and her family. They are sick to the back teeth of listening to excuse after excuse from the First Minister, who denies the reality of the situation. Is not it the case that last week and this week we have unearthed one of Labour's shameful secrets—the scandal of closed waiting lists? We know that Labour's strategy for the national health service is, if we cannot get waiting lists down, keep people off waiting lists in the first place.

We know that that is not the case. Mr Swinney made that assertion based on one letter last Thursday. He was wrong in making that assertion last week and he is wrong again to use a specific letter to make the same assertion today. There are not closed waiting lists all over Scotland. That is not the case and Mr Swinney should not frighten the people of Scotland with such claims.

If Mr Swinney received a letter on Tuesday this week saying that one of his constituents was in such a position, he should have passed it immediately to the Minister for Health and Community Care so that the matter could have been acted upon. That is what constituency members in the Labour party and the Liberal Democrats would have done and that is what Mr Swinney should have done too.

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Prime Minister (Meetings)

To ask the First Minister when he will next meet the Prime Minister and what issues he intends to raise. (S1F-1471)

I have no immediate plans to meet the Prime Minister, although I, with Mr McLetchie, enjoyed watching the Prime Minister in the House of Commons yesterday afternoon. I hope that Mr McLetchie was not too disappointed by the performance of the Leader of the Opposition.

I was delighted by the performance of the Leader of the Opposition, who managed, I thought, to demonstrate convincingly that throwing more money at a problem does not necessarily get results.

When the First Minister and the Prime Minister meet, will they compare notes about the attempts that are being made to improve health services? Her Majesty's Government now uses the independent sector in England as a matter of routine and as part of central planning. In England, there has been a national concordat and contracts are being placed by health authorities, patients are being treated and operations are being performed. In Scotland, there has been a grudging, reluctant response, lukewarm words and, now, a committee of civil servants. Which approach to partnership does the First Minister think the 80,000 patients who are languishing on Labour's waiting lists in Scotland would prefer?

I will, with pleasure, tell Mr McLetchie which approach they prefer: they prefer sane, sensible decisions about the health service, which take into account the public nature of the service, but which make use of available facilities where they exist. They certainly prefer an approach based on those sane and sensible decisions to the Scottish National Party's approach, which involves a different policy on Sunday, a different policy on Monday, a different policy on Tuesday, a different policy on Wednesday and, no doubt, a different policy again today on the use of private hospitals by the national health service. They prefer it also to the Conservatives' approach, which would be to privatise the health service, regardless of the impact on our state hospitals.

The Administration's policy is to put patients first. It is not privatisation and it is not posturing.

I wish that the First Minister would avoid such calumnies. Our party's position is that we need a national health service in this country, not a nationalised one. Every single resource should be devoted to achieving a national health service for all patients, which works, where appropriate, in partnership, so as to use facilities to maximum advantage.

The building of one of those facilities, the Health Care International hospital in Clydebank, was vehemently opposed by Labour members at the time. According to the Sunday newspapers, the NHS in England is champing at the bit to use HCI's facilities to treat thousands of patients who require cardiac surgery and who are waiting on health authority waiting lists in England. From what we heard—belatedly—yesterday, it seems that the First Minister and his Executive have woken up to the danger that Scottish patients in the same situation may miss out, because the contracts in question will be placed for patients down south.

Will the First Minister assure us that steps are being taken to avoid that and to give patients in Scotland access to facilities on their doorstep for operations that they urgently require?

The SNP and the Conservatives are both so disappointed. We take action in the health service to co-ordinate the use of spare capacity and all that does, rather than please the Opposition parties and win praise, is disappoint them, because they cannot posture any more. I have never seen a politician look so sad on television as Mrs Scanlon did last night, when she had to admit the fact that we had taken the right decision yesterday.

We are not in favour of privatising the health service and we are not in favour of using the private sector if that has an effect on the public hospitals of Scotland. There is a rational approach to be taken, which will co-ordinate the use of spare capacity. It is the right approach.

I will certainly not take any lectures on hospital building programmes from the Conservative party, whose Government did not build any hospitals, as opposed to this Administration, which is putting new hospitals in place.

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Renewable Energy

To ask the First Minister how the Scottish Executive intends to maximise benefit to the economy from Scotland's renewable energy resources. (S1F-1463)

The report "Scotland's Renewable Resource 2001", which Ross Finnie published on Monday, highlights the sheer scale of the opportunities that renewable energy can bring to the Scottish economy. We will turn those opportunities into jobs through our proposed renewables obligation (Scotland). The response from the private sector, led by three of Scotland's largest companies, has been to announce new investment in renewable energy totalling £1.5 billion. That investment is already creating jobs.

The First Minister will be aware of the great economic benefits that Tom Johnston brought to the Highlands when the North of Scotland Hydro-Electric Board tapped power from the glens. Does he accept that our generation of politicians has a duty to ensure that Scotland gains as great a benefit when we tap power from the hills and the seas? Does he also accept that, to unlock that potential, Scotland needs a greatly improved electricity distribution grid and that, working with Westminster ministers, Scottish ministers have a vital role to play?

It is important that we work with Westminster ministers on this issue. I recall debates in the chamber in recent months in which it has been argued that we should not do that, but now we see the great benefit of this Administration and Westminster working closely together.

There is a real future for Scotland in the renewables sector. This is an exciting development and a challenge that we intend to take up, in conjunction with our colleagues at Westminster. I remember the impact that hydro developments had on Arran when I was a young boy growing up there in the 1960s. I hope that over the next 20 years we can make the same impact on Scotland, by building up our renewable energy resources and making a real difference to our environment.

Does the First Minister agree that the publication on Monday of the report, which describes Scotland's massive potential for renewable energy, should finally bury the lie that Scotland is nuclear dependent? In view of that report, will the First Minister unequivocally reject the building of any new nuclear power stations in Scotland?

We have a solid and sensible policy on that issue, which is that it should not be considered until we have received a proper report on dealing with nuclear waste. It is right and proper that we take that approach. It is also right and proper that there should be a balanced outcome to the UK energy review. We have made our input to that review and that input has been powerful and influential. We in Scotland can be proud of that.

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Drink Driving

To ask the First Minister what steps the Scottish Executive is taking to tackle drink driving over the festive season. (S1F-1465)

Drinking and driving is illegal, dangerous and unacceptable. Even though there has been a sea change in Scotland, we cannot be complacent. I give my full support to the festive safety campaign and hope that everyone will heed the message and not risk drink driving.

Does the First Minister share my concern about the near certainty that over the next few weeks a number of Scots will be killed or maimed by drunk drivers? I welcome the campaign that the Executive and the police have launched to tackle the menace of drink driving, but will the First Minister give further consideration to the case for giving the police powers to stop drivers at random for breath tests, as a deterrent to irresponsible idiots who still think that they can get away with drink driving?

The introduction of random testing would be a matter for the UK Government, but it is not supported by police forces, which prefer a targeted approach. That is a sensible approach and we support it. I make absolutely clear that the need for random or targeted testing would be significantly reduced if people would heed the message and stop drink driving.

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Trunk Roads (Winter Maintenance)

To ask the First Minister whether Amey Highways Ltd and BEAR Scotland Ltd are adequately prepared to meet all winter requirements of the trunk roads maintenance contracts. (S1F-1488)

We expect all requirements of those contracts to be met. We have put in place monitoring arrangements to ensure that the contract requirements are met. If any difficulties are reported, they will be investigated and appropriate action will be taken.

I draw the First Minister's attention to information that I received this morning from a trade union representative, who indicated that, in the south-west contract area, 29 gritting machines are currently available, whereas under the previous regime there were 45. That represents a drop of one third in the number of gritting machines in that area. Does that give the First Minister cause for concern? Do not those figures support the view of the man sitting next to him—Andy Kerr—that the contract strategy is flawed and 10 years out of date? Does Andy Kerr's view still hold, or have matters changed since his elevation to a senior Cabinet position?

The task that faces us this winter is to ensure that the contracts are carried through properly and that winter maintenance is properly facilitated on Scotland's trunk roads. I am told that the appropriate arrangements are in place. We will insist on monitoring those arrangements and we will act—as we have acted already with a number of default notices—where there are deficiencies.

There are always problems at the beginning of any contract period with any agency, whether public or private. What is important is that we ensure that the contracts are carried through and that we act if there is any diversion whatever from them.

Is the First Minister aware of the concerns of Fife Council about the BEAR Scotland Ltd contract? Last week, the council issued a press release, which stated:

"Unfortunately our experience of the company's performance over the past four months has left us with no choice but to walk away.

The council is concerned that the service that BEAR is currently providing is poor and that their arrangements for winter emergencies fall way below council standards."

What assurances can the First Minister give the people of Fife that BEAR Scotland Ltd has both the capacity and the capability to provide safe roads this winter?

The situation in Fife may be slightly more complicated than that. I am aware that authorities throughout Scotland have expressed concern about current performance. It is vital that anyone who has evidence of problems with current performance passes that evidence into the hands of those who are responsible for monitoring performance. I urge authorities that have such evidence to do that with some speed. I know that the Deputy Minister for Enterprise, Transport and Lifelong Learning, Lewis Macdonald, has offered to meet authorities from the north and the south of Scotland in January to discuss their concerns.

Is the First Minister aware of the serious problems that have already arisen with the contract in Glasgow, particularly in respect of the M8? Will he give a commitment today that if those problems increase throughout Scotland with the arrival of winter, he will take immediate action to take back the contracts from the private sector and put them back in the public sector, where they are safer and where they belong?

We cannot wait around for Mr Sheridan's political posturing. We must act to ensure that the contract is properly carried through. That is our duty to road users and taxpayers in Scotland and we will carry it through by making sure that the contracts are properly fulfilled. We have been checking them regularly and we will continue to do so. We will take action against the contractors if they fail to meet their obligations.

Is the First Minister aware of the concerns in my constituency about the inability of Amey Highways Ltd to clear up the grass verges of the motorways? Communities fear that that will encourage fly tipping and cause another scar on those communities. What advice can the First Minister give my constituents and others who are having grave difficulties in getting a response from the company on how it is responding to that problem and dealing with it quickly?

I believe that there were early difficulties with grass verges, which is one reason why the monitoring arrangements have been tested. The arrangements are starting to work, because they are being used to monitor the areas in which such issues have been raised. Progress has been made, but I encourage all MSPs to raise specific local problems. It is vital that we monitor the contracts properly and MSPs have a key role to play in helping that to happen by raising local difficulties and by ensuring that we can act upon them.

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Universities (Economic Development)

To ask the First Minister what role is planned for the university sector in respect of developing the economy. (S1F-1489)

We intend to build on the hugely important economic role already played by Scottish universities, which produce people with the high-level skills that we need if we are to build a knowledge economy, and which are world-class innovators in many areas of research. Indeed, statistics released today show that the number of graduates who successfully complete higher education courses in Scotland is up by 7.4 per cent on the 1998-99 figures.

I thank the First Minister for his reply. Does he agree that, in addition to universities in Scotland, we have cutting edge research institutes, such as the Moredun Research Institute and the Roslin Institute, which are based in my constituency? Will he undertake to visit the important bioscience cluster in Midlothian, to see examples of commercialisation in the important science sector?

Diaries permitting—an obvious caveat—I would be delighted to make that visit. In Scotland, it is vital that we prepare ourselves for the economic challenges that lie ahead.

As a result of many of the events of the past 12 months, we face a downturn in the global economy and we face economic challenges in Scotland. It is critical that Scotland has the science base and the skills level to allow us to ensure the continued growth and success of the Scottish economy in the years ahead.

It is now past 15.30, so that concludes First Minister's questions.