Repeat Prescription Charges
There are no charges for repeat prescriptions. Prescriptions are free to all national health service patients in Scotland. In the 12 months up to the abolition of prescription charges, just under 432,000 prescription prepayment certificates were bought by patients. The certificates covered periods of four or 12 months and were aimed at patients with repeat medicine needs. All those patients are now benefiting from the removal of a tax on ill health.
Last year, the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Wellbeing said that substantial potential savings could be made from reducing the number of repeat prescriptions that are not bona fide. Will the minister update me on the Scottish Government’s plans to improve the system for managing repeat prescriptions?
The prescribing workstream in NHS Scotland’s efficiency and productivity programme aims to develop an information technology tool and a best-practice document to help general practices to improve the quality of their repeat medicine review processes. We are giving careful consideration to the management of repeat prescription lists to reduce the potential for overordering of medicines that are not required by patients—Chic Brodie referred to the issue.
I thank the minister for his comprehensive replies on tackling medicine waste. Will he say how the registration of patients with pharmacists for the chronic medication service is progressing?
I am not entirely sure whether Richard Simpson is advocating the reintroduction of prescription charges. If that is the case, it is to be regretted. The free prescription policy that we have introduced in Scotland helps to support the most vulnerable people in our society, who often had to choose between paying for their medication and putting food on the table. We made the decision to end such a tax on ill health, and we will continue to pursue the policy, in the interests of the people of Scotland.
Prisoners (Throughcare and Support)
The Scottish Government is currently undertaking a review of voluntary throughcare, as part of phase 2 of its reducing reoffending programme. The review will explore options for improving support for prisoners, in custody and on their release into the community.
I recently met ex-offenders and was alarmed to hear of a fragmented system of support and throughcare that does little to support offenders and their families. Given the current level of reoffending in Scotland and the difficulties that many prisoners face in integrating back into society on release, does the cabinet secretary agree that throughcare should start from the first day that the offender spends in prison?
In an ideal world that would be the situation. That is what the Scottish Prison Service does. On the first day, there is usually an analysis of the prisoner’s needs and wants. That can vary from just checking them in to dealing with the accommodation that they have left and dealing with problems that they might face in terms of families and pets—the whole gamut—never mind assessing their needs around drugs, alcohol, mental health, dyslexia and a variety of other matters.
I thank the cabinet secretary for his answers, particularly what he said about the roll-out of more programmes on mentoring. Will the mentoring programme include both prison staff and other offenders or ex-offenders helping with mentoring? How will it work as it is rolled out into the community?
The member raises an important issue. We know that mentoring is effective in helping offenders to make more positive choices. It is important that a variety of organisations and individuals be involved. Sometimes that will involve a professional prison officer but, equally, sometimes mentoring and support can be provided by ex-offenders. I met Tom Halpin, the chief executive of Sacro, which is developing and dealing with a mentoring service in the community that relates specifically to female offenders. It involves those who have been through the challenges—who have not just talked the talk but walked the walk—which we know is important. Mentoring comes in a variety of shapes and forms. As a Government, we are committed to it and we are investing in it. It is important that all parties be supported, whether through professional or peer support.
Independence Referendum (Campaign Funding)
Government officials have regular discussions with the Electoral Commission about the commission’s role in the referendum, including campaign regulation. The commission published a report on, among other things, campaign spending limits on 29 January 2013. The Scottish Government accepted all the commission’s recommendations and that was of course reflected in the terms of the Scottish Independence Referendum Bill.
In The Daily Telegraph of 26 September 2012, the Labour MP John Mann described Mr Ian Taylor’s donations to the Conservative Party as “dirty money” and was reported as demanding that the Tories hand the money back. The minister will be aware of the public concern about the donation and might have seen the petition by national collective about it.
Can we get the question, Mr Dornan?
I have signed the petition and urge others to do so.
I am aware of the concerns that have been raised in the past couple of weeks and of the seriousness of the questions that have been asked. I am also very aware that there are those in the Labour Party who previously criticised donations from the same source when they were made to the Conservative Party. It is obviously not for me to run the no campaign, but I agree that it might well be a wise course of action for it to hand back the money pending an internal investigation of the type suggested by the member. I am also aware that a petition is being pursued, although that is of course a matter for the Public Petitions Committee. For our part, we are absolutely determined that this referendum will be run to the highest standards of probity.
Youth Unemployment
The latest employment figures, which were published earlier this month, indicate that we are seeing positive results from our efforts to date. Youth unemployment in Scotland has fallen by 29,000 in the past year, to 65,000. That is a 6.8 per cent fall, to 16.1 per cent, and the lowest rate since December to February 2010. For the second year running, we have surpassed our target to provide 25,000 modern apprenticeships. That shows that our efforts to support young people into work are making a difference. Of course, more needs to be done. I can assure Mr Eadie and Parliament that we will continue to use every lever of power available to us to tackle youth unemployment.
I welcome the reduction in youth unemployment. What further measures will the minister take to build on that success to ensure that every 16 to 19-year-old has the offer of a place in education or training so that all young people in Scotland have every opportunity to fulfil their true potential?
I put on record my thanks to employers large and small throughout Scotland, and employers throughout the public, private and third sectors, who are making every effort to provide young people with an opportunity to enter the world of work. We have some distinctive policies in Scotland, such as free tuition and opportunities for all. The modern apprenticeship programme is very different in Scotland. We have community jobs Scotland and the employability fund and, of course, this year we have the most ambitious employer recruitment incentive as we move forward with the make young people your business campaign.
I, too, welcome the recent fall in the number of young unemployed people in Scotland and any addition or improvement to the apprenticeship programme that the minister can offer.
Mr Macintosh’s question is in the right vein and I share his concern. The latest figures show that the number of young people claiming benefits for more than 12 months is increasing. For me, that begs serious questions about the impact of the work programme. Mr Macintosh will be well aware that we have no influence or control over the work programme, which I very much regret.
If we could have brief questions and answers, we might make some progress.
Cod Recovery Plan
The Scottish Government met the European Commission as recently as 15 April to press our case for changes to the cod recovery plan and, in particular, for Scottish vessels that catch very little cod to be made exempt from limits on their days at sea. My officials will continue to discuss that issue with the Commission at every opportunity. I hope to discuss it with the commissioner when I attend the next Council of Ministers meeting in May.
Is the minister aware that, once again, we are likely to see the unnecessary and early closure of a number of valuable fisheries, which will threaten livelihoods in communities across Scotland? Can the minister tell the chamber what action might stem from the European Commission, in particular in delivering greater control that we might exercise over our fisheries stocks?
The Scottish Government’s intention is to ensure that our fisheries remain open for as long as possible throughout the next year—indeed, we achieved that in 2012. However, the cod recovery plan is dysfunctional; it is made in Brussels and it is inappropriate for Scottish circumstances and Scottish waters. That is why more of these decisions have to be taken closer to home. In the meantime, we are arguing for the cod recovery plan to be much more appropriate for our circumstances and for it to be flexible. At the moment, it encourages vessels to target cod, not to avoid cod, which is counterproductive to the aims of the plan.
The cabinet secretary will be aware that the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea scientific figures for 2012 show that the spawning stock biomass of cod in the North Sea is two and a half times larger now than it was in 2006. In the light of that, is he prepared to say that the cod recovery plan has come to the end of its useful life and that it should be abolished? Also, when will regional management take over in the North Sea?
I have just said that the cod recovery plan is not fit for purpose; the huge sacrifices that have been made by the Scottish fleet over the past decade or so are paying dividends, as illustrated by the statistics that Tavish Scott just read out. We have to have conservation policies in place, but the cod recovery plan is not fit for purpose. The sooner we have regionalisation, which I hope will happen as soon as possible, the sooner we will be able to have appropriate policies in place in Scottish waters.
NHS Lothian (Readmission Rates)
The Scottish Government considers and shares a range of healthcare quality statistics with NHS boards to support improvement and benchmarking. Those statistics include hospital standardised mortality ratios, readmission rates, lengths of stay, accident and emergency waits and hospital-associated infection rates. We encourage health boards to monitor their performance across all those areas and other relevant indicators to drive continuous performance improvement.
NHS Lothian is facing well-documented capacity issues and the fact that more than 11 per cent of medical patients are being readmitted will add to that pressure. A recent audit of the Edinburgh royal infirmary found that the hospital was at 110 per cent capacity, with more than one in five patients hit by delayed discharge. What additional funds is the Scottish Government providing to enable local authorities to deliver on the four-week target that the minister set from this month, given that the six-week targets were still not being met in 15 out of the past 20 quarters?
It is important that we allow NHS Lothian to undertake the review to get to the bottom of why there are variations in its readmission rates, particularly in the medical and surgical units. That review has to be undertaken on a site-by-site basis, so that NHS Lothian can interrogate that data as thoroughly as possible in order to look at what the implications are from the acute end as well as from a primary care and a community care angle.
Cattle and Sheep Farmers
No one could fail to be moved by the pictures of the devastation that was caused to farming communities by the recent extreme winter weather, particularly in the south-west of Scotland. We provided £500,000 to the Fallen Stock Company to reduce the costs that were incurred by farmers for the disposing of lost animals, and dialogue continues with the industry as to what further assistance can be given. I hope to make a further announcement about that next week.
The cabinet secretary will have seen recent media reports that claim that Scottish farming is facing its biggest crisis since foot-and-mouth disease, due to the exceptional weather in various parts of the country. Given the lack of grass, many livestock producers are facing the high price of feed and the unseasonably high fallen stock figures. What more can the Scottish Government do to assist livestock farmers at this difficult time?
The member is quite right about the severity of the impact on Scottish agriculture. During the recent severe weather, we opened a hotline, hired seven tracked vehicles for use across the country and arranged with SSE to use its helicopter to drop feed in inaccessible areas at the request of farmers. As I indicated, we also made resource available for picking up fallen stock. I am willing to make further support available—as I said, we will make an announcement next week. We will stand by Scottish agriculture in its hour of need.