Plenary, 14 Jun 2007

Meeting date: Thursday, June 14, 2007

Official Report 789KB pdf

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Question Time

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SCOTTISH EXECUTIVE

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General Questions

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Carers

To ask the Scottish Executive what plans it has to help address the needs of carers. (S3O-207)

I thank Bashir Ahmad for raising the issue during carers week.

We recognise the crucial role that Scotland's thousands of unpaid carers play and the importance of ensuring that they can access the support that they need. The Scottish Government is committed to intensifying efforts to take forward the conclusions of the care 21 report. Specific initiatives to improve support to carers will be considered in the forthcoming spending review.

However, as a signal of our intent, I announced earlier today an additional £400,000 over the next two years to help to address two of the care 21 recommendations: we will establish a young carer forum to help give young carers a greater voice in Scottish public life and we will work with the national carer organisations to extend their piloting of carer training, helping carers—particularly new carers—to gain the knowledge and skills that they need to cope more effectively with their caring role.

I welcome the Executive's commitment to carers throughout Scotland. For too long, ethnic origin and language have been unacceptable barriers to ethnic minority carers receiving much-needed support. Will the minister carefully consider more support for ethnic minority carers?

Public bodies, including local authorities and health boards, are responsible for ensuring that their services meet the needs of the ethnic minority carers. Indeed, they have a legal duty to do so. Guidelines on carer assessments highlight the need for assessments to be culturally sensitive and to offer interpreting support where needed. National health service carer information strategies, which are just coming into effect, are specifically required to address the identification and information needs of carers from ethnic minority groups. In addition, I will ensure that the additional piloting of carer training that I announced earlier today includes work on training for carers from ethnic minority communities.

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Integrated Care (Vale of Leven Hospital)

To ask the Scottish Executive what analysis of the 7,000 patients presenting at the Vale of Leven hospital integrated care project has been carried out by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde. (S3O-211)

That is a matter for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde but, as the member is aware, no decisions have been taken on proposals for service change at the Vale of Leven hospital. However, I have been clear that all future proposals for significant service change will be subject to rigorous independent scrutiny before public consultation. That will ensure that all information that health boards present is factual and evidence based and that the choice that is presented to the public is fair and genuine. I will make a further announcement soon about the form that such independent scrutiny will take.

If, following public consultation, national health service boards make proposals for significant service change, those proposals will come to me for a final decision. In considering them, I will operate a presumption against centralisation of services. That does not mean no change in any circumstances, but it means that any proposals will have to be robust, that all possible alternatives will have to be properly considered and that due weight must be given to public opinion.

I look forward to meeting the member in just over an hour's time to discuss the issue in more detail.

I thank the minister for her response and welcome the meeting that she has afforded me, which we will have in due course.

I understand from those involved in integrated care that little if any of the data underwent qualitative analysis by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde in advance of its proposal to remove integrated care from the Vale of Leven hospital. Will the minister reaffirm that decisions on health service changes must be evidence based? Does she agree that if we are to take "Delivering for Health" from theory to implementation, pilots such as the integrated care model are critical? Will she therefore instruct a full analysis of integrated care at the Vale of Leven hospital, which is a model that might have resonance for other general hospitals in Scotland?

I hope that Jackie Baillie is reassured when I say that my decision to insist on independent scrutiny is designed to address the kind of concerns that she raises. Of course, the purpose of independent scrutiny is to ensure that any proposals coming from any health board are based on sound evidence. In the case of the Vale of Leven hospital, that will entail considering anything that the board says about the sustainability or otherwise of current arrangements. The whole purpose of independent scrutiny is to ensure that when the public are consulted on proposals, they know that they are based on sound evidence and present a fair and reasonable choice. I look forward to discussing those issues with the member in more detail very shortly.

The Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing will know that Greater Glasgow and Clyde NHS Board is considering the removal of services from the Vale of Leven hospital. Given that those services are vital to the people served by the hospital, I encourage her to use her influence to ensure that no further services are lost to the vale.

No proposals have yet come forward from Greater Glasgow and Clyde NHS Board. When they do, I will insist—as I just said to Jackie Baillie—that they are subjected to rigorous independent scrutiny. They will then be subjected to full and meaningful public consultation. When final proposals are shaped thereafter, they will come to me for a final decision, which I have said that I will base on certain factors. I will shortly have a meeting with Jackie Baillie and other local representatives, including the new SNP leader of the council in that area, at which I look forward to discussing these issues in more depth.

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Footballing Organisations (Meetings)

To ask the Scottish Executive which footballing organisations and representatives ministers have met since May 2007. (S3O-233)

Since May 2007, ministers have not met formally any footballing organisations or their representatives. However, since May 2007 ministers have attended three football events at the invitation of footballing organisations, which has provided them with the opportunity to meet footballing organisations and representatives on an informal basis. In addition, I met informally representatives of Spartans.

I attend football matches regularly, but I have never seen them as an opportunity for an informal meeting—that is perhaps a significant difference. In the minister's informal discussions—which did not involve comment on the qualities of any of the players—did any of the organisations or representatives raise with him their wish for Scotland to make a Scotland-only bid for the European football championships in 2016? Will the minister commit to resisting the temptation—which, unsurprisingly and spectacularly, the First Minister did not resist in his unthinking and half-baked observations on a Scottish Olympic team and a Scotland-only bid for the European football championships—to use sport as a proxy debate for independence? Scottish sport and sportspeople and our young people deserve better.

I welcome the high ambition that Johann Lamont shows for our country. The First Minister showed that this Government has great ambitions not only for our country but for our sporting bodies and sporting stars.

In our manifesto we made the clear commitment to launch a feasibility study on the possibility of Scotland bidding for the 2016 European football championships. We intend to speak to the new chief executive officer of the Scottish Football Association, Gordon Smith, but we will give him a chance to get his feet under the table as he has only just been appointed. When we speak to Gordon and the rest of the SFA, we will consider their views on taking forward a bid.

The best thing for Scotland is for us to be at the top table in every sport and every area of our life. The lack of ambition from the Labour Party is really quite astonishing.

Martyn Hunter, the finance director of Elgin City Football Club, has raised the issue of increased expenditure incurred by clubs such as Elgin, which have risen from the Highland league to the national leagues. He highlighted the extra funding needed for health and safety measures for stadiums and the huge expense of travel for 125 youth players who are now attached to Elgin. Is the minister discussing such issues with smaller football clubs such as Elgin, which are expanding?

Over the next few weeks and, in particular, over the summer, I intend to meet as many of the smaller clubs, community-based organisations and junior clubs as I can. I appreciate the point that Jamie McGrigor makes about the increased expenditure that comes with success, but I do not think that we would want anything other than for the clubs to achieve such success. If there are particular problems with Elgin, I would welcome receiving a letter with the details, which I would consider in due course.

Does the minister agree that the role of Supporters Direct in Scotland and organisations such as the football trusts in clubs such as Kilmarnock Football Club and its local rival, Ayr United Football Club, is vital in taking forward work in the community? Will he give me a commitment that, when he has the opportunity to meet the various footballing organisations, he will meet Supporters Direct in Scotland and that he will look to ensure that it continues to enjoy the funding that was provided by the previous Executive?

All funding arrangements will be considered as part of the overall spending review, so I will make no commitment at this stage. I am more than happy to agree with the member's opinion of the good work that Supporters Direct in Scotland and the football trusts do. There is a fundamental and principled role for such organisations in the world of football, which is to ensure that ordinary supporters have their voices heard. If Supporters Direct in Scotland wishes to write to me, I am sure that I can find a slot in my diary to meet its representatives as soon as possible.

Did the minister discuss the question of the complaint of racism made by Spartans Football Club against another local player or did he discuss its footballing academy? I am just interested.

We did not discuss the issue of the alleged racist incident but we discussed the proposed community facilities and academy near Ferry Road in Edinburgh, which Spartans and I hope will get the go-ahead, because I certainly believe that it would be an excellent facility for the people of that area.

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National Waste Strategy

To ask the Scottish Executive how it intends to implement the national waste strategy. (S3O-213)

We are committed to moving towards a zero waste Scotland, which would include higher levels of recycling, greater emphasis on waste prevention and learning from other countries that have successfully moved in that direction.

I am sure that the minister appreciates the scale of the problem, with a typical household in Fife alone producing more than 1 tonne of waste every year. I am sure that he appreciates the need for clarity for local authorities on how they progress with their waste plans. Does the position set out to local authorities in March 2007 on the funding of waste treatment infrastructure still prevail or is it under review? If it is under review, what is the timescale for completion?

I am currently looking at the position. My thinking will of course be influenced by the forthcoming spending review, which will be very influential in this context. The local authorities in the member's region have an excellent record in household recycling. The national average is 25 per cent, but Fife Council has managed to recycle and compost 29.7 per cent of waste, Perth and Kinross Council has managed 33.3 per cent, Stirling Council has managed 32.5 per cent and Clackmannanshire Council has managed 40.2 per cent. I am sure that we all want to pay tribute to the member's local authorities, which are doing an extremely good job in the current circumstances.

The cabinet secretary will be aware that many councils do not collect the full range of recyclables from our homes and our rural communities. Does he agree that there could be further dramatic increases in recycling rates if all homes that are served by public roads had household collections for all recyclables?

I agree that reaching that position would greatly help our recycling rates. We are committed to undertaking trials in the collection of food waste from households. Many local authorities in Scotland do not collect plastics. We must examine all such issues to identify how we can intervene to help councils make progress in that area.

We move on to question 6, which is from Bob Doris. [Interruption.] I apologise. The next question is Bill Butler's question 5; I was getting a little ahead of myself.

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National Health Service

To ask the Scottish Executive what its vision is for the national health service in Scotland. (S3O-216)

I deprecate any attempts to overlook Bill Butler.

Our vision is of an NHS that supports and sustains healthy lifestyles, particularly in our most disadvantaged communities, and which delivers care that is faster, more flexible and closer to home. We supported the Kerr report at the time of its launch and we continue to support the principles that were set out in it. By the end of the year, we will publish an action plan that will demonstrate how we intend to take forward those principles and will provide a clear timetable for action over the next few years.

I welcome the cabinet secretary to her post and hope that the Executive's vision includes the democratisation of health boards.

However, I turn to another issue. In opposition, Ms Sturgeon said:

"The Scottish Executive is considering diverting cash from some of the more affluent parts of Scotland to help Glasgow back to health ... I am 100% behind that. It'll cause uproar in some other Scots towns and cities, for sure, but that's tough."

In opposition, her Cabinet colleague Richard Lochhead said:

"Grampian's pockets of deprivation … indicate just as great a need for NHS funds as Glasgow's deprivation levels."

Now that the Scottish National Party is in government, who is correct—Nicola Sturgeon or Richard Lochhead?

Bill Butler knows from our manifesto that we strongly favour elected health boards and I look forward to working constructively with him on that issue.

As the member might be aware, a review of resource allocation in the health service is continuing and I will consider carefully its outcome. It is a priority of this Scottish Government to tackle health inequalities. I pay tribute to the previous Administration for much of the work that it did in improving health across the population but, as health has improved across the population, health inequalities have grown. It is a priority of our Government to close that gap and I look forward to receiving support from all parties as we try to do so.

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Free Nutritious School Meals (Pilot)

To ask the Scottish Executive what progress has been made towards finalising plans for its £5 million pilot scheme to provide free nutritious school meals. (S3O-258)

We are currently considering various options to trial the extension of free nutritious school meals. We will set out details of our plans in due course. As the First Minister said last week, we hope that our plans will be supported by all members of the Parliament.

We want Scotland to be healthier and, by targeting our youngest pupils, we hope to make a big difference. That will bring benefits not only in terms of health and nutrition, but in terms of the social skills that come with sitting down to eat with friends.

I know that the cabinet secretary agrees that the pilot scheme should eventually be rolled out across Scotland, starting in the most deprived areas. With that in mind, I ask her to examine closely the deprivation figures for Glasgow in general and for north Glasgow in particular. In north Glasgow, only 8 per cent of people consume the recommended five portions of fruit and vegetables per day, whereas the figure for Glasgow as a whole is 34 per cent.

When we consider which areas to include in the pilot, we will of course take into account a number of factors, not least deprivation. Although I cannot speak for local authorities such as Glasgow City Council—I must seek their agreement to hold the pilot—the highly concerning deprivation indicators that Bob Doris mentioned make a strong case for the inclusion in the scheme of the area to which he refers. I cannot yet specify where the trials will be held, but we will listen with interest to representatives of the areas that want to take part in them.