Official Report 370KB pdf
Back-bench Members
14:30
We now move to First Minister’s questions for back-bench members. Today, and uniquely so far in this session, questions will be answered by the Deputy First Minister rather than the First Minister.
Public Sector Jobs
I welcome the Deputy First Minister to her dress rehearsal. Is she aware of a revelation in The Sunday Times this weekend that 800 ghost public sector workers—people whose jobs have gone but who are still turning up for work—are costing her Government £30 million per year? That includes one NHS Highland employee who is still clocking in 17 years after their role was made redundant. When the First Minister returns, will she take him aside, tell him to grow a spine, stand up to the public sector unions and finally drop the ridiculous policy of no compulsory redundancies in Scotland’s public sector?
I am aware of the article in The Sunday Times that Mr Hoy alludes to. It is really important to put on the record that the jobs that he is referring to are under way at the current time and that, across the public sector, our public bodies are expected to deliver value for money.
The figures that Mr Hoy cited include staff who have been redeployed and who are currently engaged in meaningful employment that is appropriate to their pay grade. Of course, the Scottish public finance manual sets out the requirements for each public body to achieve value for money, which is something that I thought Mr Hoy was supportive of in terms of the public purse. It is important that, as we drive forward our programme on public service reform, we engage with the Opposition. I look forward to continued engagement with Mr Hoy and his colleagues on these important points.
Storm Damage and Flooding (Largs and Saltcoats)
Largs and Saltcoats experienced significant damage due to the flooding over the weekend, and the towns face greater flooding risk as extreme weather events become more common. Can the Deputy First Minister outline whether financial support will be available to the businesses and individuals who are affected, whether Largs and Saltcoats will receive any of the new £5 million community flood resilience fund, and what further support can be given to reduce future risk?
Katy Clark raises a number of important points. In terms of the issues at Largs and Saltcoats, colleagues will have seen the footage of some really challenging weather over the course of the weekend. Mr Flynn was down in Largs only yesterday, meeting business owners and hearing about some of the challenges. The extensive damage that has happened was also discussed this morning at Cabinet.
Ms Clark asked about the support that will be available for the community. As I understand it, at the current time, that has not yet been forthcoming from North Ayrshire Council. Indeed, that point was put to the council at yesterday’s meeting of the Scottish Government resilience room. There will be another SGoRR meeting at 4 o’clock today, so I will be more than happy to follow up with the member on those points after that. Of course, we will listen to any calls for help in that regard and respond accordingly, given the extensive damage that has happened, particularly in relation to flooding.
Storm Damage (Moray)
Storm Boelo caused a great deal of disruption in my Moray constituency, and communities in other parts of Scotland have also seen significant damage, as referred to by Katy Clark. Tragically, two men lost their lives during the storm and, of course, our thoughts are with their loved ones.
After three consecutive days of weather warnings, can the Deputy First Minister provide an update on the Scottish Government’s response to the storm and the anticipated further adverse weather conditions this week?
I extend my condolences and those of the Scottish Government to the families and loved ones of the two men who lost their lives in the storms this weekend.
The Scottish Government resilience room was activated on Friday, as I mentioned in my response to Katy Clark, and ministers and officials have been engaged with front-line agencies over the course of the weekend, to tackle the impacts that Laura Mitchell and Katy Clark have mentioned.
As members know, communities up and down the country have experienced power cuts, flooding, school closures and transport disruption. I pay tribute to staff who have led the response to the storm, particularly those braving the worst of the weather. This morning, just under 7,000 customers remained off supply. That remains of significant concern to the Scottish Government, which is exactly why SGoRR will reconvene following First Minister’s questions this afternoon.
Flood Defences (Renfrew)
Renfrewshire Council chose not to deploy physical flood defence barriers in Renfrew—part of a £10 million scheme—during an amber weather warning, because of an apparent failure in forecasting. Businesses such as McGregor’s Bar and Ferry Nice Food have been left devastated with uninsured losses after the weekend’s floods. What is the Deputy First Minister’s response to that operational failure by the council? What financial support will be provided by the Government to affected businesses and individuals in Renfrew? What urgent action will the Scottish Government take to ensure that local authorities actually use the physical flood defences that they have spent taxpayers’ money on?
Mr Bibby refers to a local decision about flooding and the infrastructure that exists in Renfrewshire, and that would, of course, be a matter for the local authority. However, we will engage with the local authority directly. As I understand it, it has also been engaged in the SGoRR meetings that have been taking place. As I intimated, there will be a meeting later today, at 4 o’clock. It is not for the Government to instruct local authorities to use their flooding resources—I see the member nodding. We would expect them to deploy those resources, given the circumstances.
I should put on record that there were challenges around the weather and the forecasting, which at times caused a level of challenge across the country. However, I am more than happy to pick up the member’s point with officials in relation to the local authority that he mentioned, and I will make sure that it is engaged in the SGoRR call that will take place at 4 o’clock this afternoon.
Oil and Gas Revenue
Last week, the Labour chancellor admitted what we have said for decades: that our energy resources have been squandered and Scotland’s £1 trillion future was stolen from us. We now know that Labour’s new energy wealth fund will use oil and gas reserves from our waters to pay for projects in England. History is repeating itself. Given that the United Kingdom budget statement will be made tomorrow, does the Deputy First Minister agree that every single penny of Scottish oil and gas revenue must be invested right back into Scottish renewables, because we can never let Westminster steal our future from us again?
I absolutely agree with the sentiment behind Clare Haughey’s question. Of course, the Scottish National Party has been calling for the establishment of a wealth fund for decades, so it is welcome that Scottish Labour has now joined those calls. The call for reinvestment in renewables, particularly in the north-east of Scotland, is certainly welcome. Over the years, £400 billion of revenues have flowed to the Treasury, so it is high time that those revenues came back to Scotland to be reinvested in communities in the area where they came from and to help drive the economic growth that we need to support our constituents.
Jackdaw and Rosebank Oil and Gas Fields
Can the Deputy First Minister confirm to the people of Aberdeen whether she is happy with the approval of Jackdaw and say whether she would like Rosebank to be approved for the benefit of the entire north-east?
The approval of Jackdaw was a decision for the United Kingdom Government. In our view, it has taken too long to come to that decision, which has created uncertainty—[Interruption.]
Excuse me. Let us hear the Deputy First Minister, please.
However, with that certainty, we very much hope that we will be able to move forward and that the jobs that will be created as a result will benefit the local economy.
Hoax Bomb Threats (Disinformation)
The Deputy First Minister will be aware of the significant disruption to schools in Glasgow as a result of hoax bomb threats that were called in and that affected many parts of the country, but particularly Glasgow. Hoax threats of that kind are clearly deeply irresponsible, but these ones were quickly identified as hoaxes. It was when people were subject to disinformation through social media that the most significant impacts happened, particularly in the most deprived areas, where the number of children being held back from school significantly increased.
How does the Government support local authorities to respond to such situations? Does the Deputy First Minister agree that the situation underscores the need for the Government to develop a disinformation strategy to protect people when that kind of information is misrepresented?
I thank Mr Harvie for raising that important point. I know, for example, that there were issues in Edinburgh, with teachers being sent home who were undertaking their in-service training day on returning from the October break. There have been challenges across the country. As I understand it, Mr Gray has engaged with Police Scotland on the resilience work that is being undertaken on that.
The substantive point of Mr Harvie’s question about absence in poorer communities in particular is important. We have a number of programmes running, including the pupil equity fund, which helps to support the work on attendance.
On his broader point about disinformation, there are significant challenges in that regard. He will be aware of the work with the Time for Inclusive Education campaign through the digital discourse initiative, which the Government has supported through the programme for government. I am sure that the Cabinet Secretary for Education, Culture and Gaelic would be happy to engage with Mr Harvie more generally on the points about the education support that is available.
Palantir Technologies
Palantir Technologies has reportedly secured contracts worth almost £1 billion in the United Kingdom, including in the public sector, through NHS England and the Ministry of Defence. That is despite serious concerns over the company’s record relating to reported human rights abuses and surveillance and data privacy issues. Can the Deputy First Minister reassure those in Scotland who fear that we could follow the same path and commit to keeping Palantir out of the public sector?
I confirm to Iris Duane that we are not currently aware of any contracts in the national health service in Scotland in relation to Palantir. I hope that that will reassure the member on those points, given the considerable and understandable concern that has been raised in recent months about the operations of the company, particularly in our healthcare system.
Smoking Reduction (Child Poverty)
Official figures reveal that, last year, more than £112 million was spent on legally purchased cigarettes in Ayrshire, which is almost four times the £30 million that was spent on the Scottish child payment for Ayrshire children. Given that studies conclusively prove that poverty and cigarette consumption are directly related, does the Deputy First Minister agree that redoubling efforts to reduce smoking in socioeconomically challenged communities will not only improve people’s health but have a positive impact on reducing child poverty?
I agree with Patricia Gibson’s points on tobacco in relation to health impacts, health outcomes, household income and supporting our wider efforts to tackle poverty. That is why we are committed to achieving a tobacco-free Scotland by 2034. The Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026 will create a smoke-free generation by ensuring that anyone who was born after 1 January 2009 can never legally be sold tobacco. The act will also strengthen restrictions on advertising and promotion and introduce further controls on the sale of nicotine products, helping to prevent addiction in the first place. Those who smoke can access wider support through Scotland’s quit your way services.
Hyperscale Data Centres (Planning Applications)
On 16 September, the Parliament, with the Government’s support, voted in favour of a motion requiring new national planning guidance on applications for hyperscale data centres. That motion stated that no decisions on planning or consenting should be made until the Scottish Government publishes the guidance, by the end of this calendar year. However, the Larbert data centre application is still due to be determined by Falkirk Council on 13 November. Is the Deputy First Minister aware that some councils are progressing regardless of that vote? Will her Government step in to ensure that no decision is taken until the guidance is available?
Jenny Young will be aware that I cannot comment on specific applications. However, she will also be aware—and she was right to set out to the Parliament—that, back in August, the Minister for Public Finance made it clear to the Parliament, through a Government-initiated question, that planning guidance will be published before Christmas. The mandating of environmental impact assessments for all data centres that exceed 50MW of power capacity applies to new and existing applications.
To respond to Jenny Young’s substantive point, I note that ministers have call-in powers. Although I will not comment on specific applications, we can also recall any planning appeal rather than have the decision made by the Scottish Government reporter. I want to give some reassurance on those points without commenting on the specific nature of the application that the member has highlighted, given the restrictions that apply to ministers in that regard.
Coul Links Golf Course
Last week, the Scottish Government ignored local public opinion and rejected the application for Coul Links golf course in my constituency. Ministers said no to 400 full-time equivalent jobs, no to £12 million per year for the local economy, no to £1 million for habitat restoration and no to a community share that would have been worth hundreds of thousands of pounds per year. Given that Sutherland faces severe population decline, many of my constituents simply despair at that decision. Does the Deputy First Minister understand why that is? Will she explain to my constituents how she intends to replace the opportunities that the Government has rejected?
Mr Green is right to say that ministers have refused planning permission for the Coul Links golf course. The case has been ongoing for several years. The rationale behind the decision relates to adverse impacts on nationally and internationally important natural heritage interests. I recognise the significant public interest in the case. It should be said that strong views have been expressed on both sides—by supporters of the proposal, as Mr Green has set out, but also by opponents.
The Government is committed to supporting sustainable economic growth across the Highlands. Our decision letter accepts that the proposal would deliver local and regional tourism, as Mr Green set out. However, it concluded that those benefits would not outweigh the identified impacts on nationally and internationally important natural heritage interests—that is, the Loch Fleet site of special scientific interest, the Dornoch Firth and the Loch Fleet Ramsar site.
The full reasoning for the ministers’ decision is set out in the decision letter and the accompanying reporters’ report, which is published on the planning and environmental appeals website. I cannot comment beyond what was set out in those documents, as Mr Green will understand.
Ferguson Marine (Tugboat Order)
Will the Deputy First Minister provide an update on the recently announced tugboat order that has been considered for Ferguson Marine in Port Glasgow?
As the Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Tourism and Transport set out recently, the Government is working closely with Ferguson Marine to progress the commercial, financial and governance arrangements that are required to enable the yard to commence manufacture of the proposed tug boats as quickly as possible. The work is very much intended to support the retention of valuable shipbuilding skills and to sustain productive activity at the yard while longer-term opportunities continue.
As discussions are ongoing, a number of the details remain commercially sensitive at the current time, but the Government will update Parliament at the appropriate time when those arrangements have been finalised.
Secondary Breast Cancer
What progress has the Scottish Government made to improve data collection and access to treatment for patients who are diagnosed with secondary breast cancer?
I thank Mr Carson for his question in relation to secondary breast cancer. I think that it would be appropriate for me to ask the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Care to write to him about the specifics and to provide an update on the data that he asked for.
Reinforced Autoclaved Aerated Concrete
The Deputy First Minister knows that Dundee is the city that is most exposed to RAAC, with council tenants and home owners being significantly affected. Last night, Dundee City Council agreed to a remediation programme, but that does not remove RAAC from affected properties or address the key concerns of home owners, who fear that no amount of remediation will prevent significant financial loss to them.
Will the Scottish Government commit to working with Dundee City Council, the Dundee RAAC campaign group, including home owners, and the United Kingdom Government to develop a plan that will deal with all the concerns that remain unanswered?
I have seen the reports today and I know that the Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice and Housing has been engaged with officials and Dundee City Council on the matter over a number of years. The issues in relation to RAAC predate devolution, so, when we talk about some of the spending that is involved, we need to talk about a partnership approach in relation to the role of the United Kingdom Government.
We have been very clear that we would consider requests from local authorities for flexibility to look at solutions that are bespoke to local circumstances. However, the UK Government has greater financial flexibility to step up a dedicated RAAC remediation fund—so far, it has failed to do so. We will continue to work with local government and encourage home owners to engage with it locally. I am sure that the housing secretary will be more than happy to engage with the member on the substantive point that she raised.
Police Numbers
Given that sexual offences and rapes have seen an upward trend over a 10-year period in Glasgow—with around 486 reported rapes and attempted rapes recorded annually, which averages out to roughly one every 18 hours—and given the Scottish Police Authority’s recent report on the financial crisis that is engulfing Police Scotland, does the Deputy First Minister accept that Scotland needs to have more police officers on our streets, and not fewer? What action will she take to reverse the decline in police numbers?
I thank the member for his question and particularly for his interest in sexual crimes and domestic abuse cases. Recorded crime is down by almost half from its peak, back in 1991, but we are concerned by the increases in recorded crimes that we have seen in recent years, and particularly in sexual crimes and domestic abuse. Part of that is about reporting and people having confidence in coming forward, and part of it relates to the Lord Advocate’s changes, which the First Minister has set out to Parliament.
On the member’s point about police numbers, I will be meeting the chief constable about that in the coming weeks, ahead of the budget. However, we have more officers per 10,000 people in Scotland than in England and Wales, and our officers receive the best pay in the United Kingdom at the minimum and the maximum of each rank. As of 31 March this year, there were around 30 full-time officers per 10,000 people in Scotland, compared with around 24 per 10,000 in England and Wales.
Mental Health Services
The allocation of funding last week to reduce waiting times in the national health service is welcome. However, psychiatry has not been included among the specialist services that are receiving funding, despite record levels of demand and significant vacancies across the workforce. Can the Deputy First Minister explain why psychiatry was not included? Does she agree that reaching parity of esteem between physical and mental health support will require greater prioritisation of clinical mental health services?
I am pleased that Joe Long welcomes the additional investment that the Government has been able to confirm in recent weeks, particularly in relation to driving down waiting times. Waiting times, and long waits in particular, continue to fall.
Joe Long made a specific point in relation to psychiatric care. I did not quite catch the last part of his question on mental health provision, but we have also been able to provide significant additionality for services in relation to mental health. I will take the member’s specific point away and come back to him via officials in relation to the offer around how that £90 million could be diverted. I do not have the specific information in front of me today, so, if the member will allow me to, I will come back to him in writing.
Rest and Be Thankful
The Deputy First Minister will know of the demonstration at the Rest and Be Thankful, involving many local hauliers and farmers coming together to highlight the route’s vital importance. I am pleased that the Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Tourism and Transport is meeting the community later this week. Everyone in Argyll and Bute knows that a long-term solution to the threat of landslides is needed. However, the current proposal to introduce a single-lane convoy system for four years would be catastrophic for business while also creating serious risks for emergency services. Given the strong local feelings that have been highlighted by a petition that already has more than 8,000 signatories, will the Scottish Government reconsider the single-lane convoy plan?
I am sure that I met and engaged with a number of the protesters in a previous life, when I was the Minister for Transport. I understand the local strength of feeling about the Rest and Be Thankful. The Government and the transport secretary are focused on coming to a solution and delivering it. Transport Scotland has undertaken further design and appraisal work in consultation with the A83 campaign group about an alternative, two-way, medium-term option. As the member said, the transport secretary will meet Ms Minto and members of the campaign group on Thursday to hear their views, and he will take a decision in due course.
Fire Service (Hawick)
Last night, at a packed meeting at Hawick town hall, residents called for a review of the recent decision to hollow out the fire service in Hawick to a daytime service only. Trauma survivors shared powerful stories and accounts of how firefighters had saved their lives with minutes to spare, yet Scottish National Party cuts have hollowed out services and there has been a reduction in response times. Will the Deputy First Minister commit to ensuring that her justice secretary meets residents to hear their stories, and will she consider an independent review of the decision?
The review that the member alluded to is based on service demands. The member has raised a local issue, and I am sure that the justice secretary has heard Ms Hamilton’s point and will engage with her on it. This year’s budget provides, in totality, an additional £23.8 million. That shows our continued commitment to supporting the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service to deliver the high standard of service that is required to keep Scotland safe.
GlenWyvis Distillery
When the GlenWyvis distillery, in my constituency, received a £0.5 million Government-funded loan, ministers rushed to welcome the investment as a means of safeguarding jobs and supporting growth, yet the business had already ceased production and was embroiled in long-standing financial and legal difficulties. Will the Deputy First Minister explain what assessment ministers made of those risks before publicly endorsing the investment? Was the Government advised that the distillery’s future was already in doubt?
I do not have the details of the GlenWyvis distillery, but I am more than happy to engage with officials and to come back with substantive points. It would be remiss of me to suggest otherwise, and it is important to provide a detailed response, so I will ask the relevant minister and officials to engage with him.
Care Experienced Week
As someone who is care experienced, I know how important it is for care-experienced people to have a voice in the decisions that affect them. As we mark care experienced week, can the Deputy First Minister tell me what more the Scottish Government can do to ensure that care-experienced people shape the services that they use?
I share Zen Ghani’s acknowledgement of care experience week. I recognise that care-experienced young people must not simply be consulted but must be part of shaping the decisions and policies that affect their lives. That is at the very heart of the Promise. We continue to support organisations, including The Promise Scotland, Who Cares? Scotland, and Each and Every Child, which create opportunities for people with lived experience to influence change. As we implement legislation and reforms, we will continue to ensure that care-experienced children, young people and adults are directly involved in shaping how changes are delivered in practice, and we will ensure that we speak to care-experienced young people directly. The Promise will be kept by 2030. The Government is doing all it can to make that progress happen.
Renewables Development (Barriers)
Following last week’s decision on Jackdaw, which was welcomed by trade unions, Scottish Renewables has called for further action to support clean energy investment. SSE has also announced hundreds of skilled offshore wind jobs, including 400 in Scotland. What action is the Deputy First Minister taking to press the United Kingdom Government to remove the barriers to further renewables development, particularly transmission charging, so that we can deliver more skilled jobs for communities across Scotland?
Karen Adam is right. Those jobs demonstrate the economic opportunities that the transition is already delivering for the north-east of Scotland. However, Scotland could support more jobs and attract further investment if our renewables generators were not held back by a transmission charging system that is unfit for purpose. That system unfairly penalises projects in Scotland, despite the immense contribution that they make to the UK’s clean energy ambitions. We have raised the issue with the UK Government many times, over an extended period, and we have been clear that it cannot go on. The UK Government must now bring forward a long-term plan and interim measures to address the impact on Scottish generators. Unlocking our renewables potential is essential to delivering the economic growth that Karen Adam rightly speaks of.
Care Homes (Back-up Power Generators)
Does the Deputy First Minister agree that care home residents should not be left relying on borrowed generators every time a storm downs the network? During storm Eowyn, care homes in Inverclyde had to be supplied with generators from Scottish Power. Will the Deputy First Minister tell Parliament how many Scottish care homes have any back-up power? I know from asking that an Edinburgh care home has no back-up power and relies on the energy companies. If she cannot come up with that number, will she commit to an audit to see what the situation is and whether something should be done before January, which the National Energy System Operator says is the tightest month?
The situation that Helen McDade has set out is not acceptable in any way, shape or form—I want to make that very clear.
The Government has a system in place for the management of incidents, through which it works closely with resilience leads in our local authorities, health boards and integration joint boards in the event of a storm.
My understanding is that all care home residents—she has documented one case today, but there has been more than one—are safe and accounted for, and no evacuation was necessary. Officials are monitoring the situation and the wider impacts of the storm more generally. There will be a SGORR—Scottish Government resilience room—call at 4 o’clock today, and we may be able to share further information with the member following that call.
Violent Behaviour in Schools
The City of Edinburgh Council has paid more than £250,000 in compensation to support staff who were injured through pupil violence. Staff are being assaulted, councils are paying compensation, and unions have warned repeatedly that discipline is breaking down in too many schools. Given that the evidence is already in front of the Deputy First Minister, it is not acceptable to still be reviewing the issue. Instead, will the Deputy First Minister explain to us what action she will be taking to resolve it?
As Angela Ross may know, I took a range of different actions on that exact issue as education secretary over the past three years, not least in relation to the national action plan and to the budget agreement that was reached last year, which provided an uplift in funding related to additional support needs and to the number of teachers in our schools. Those are both fundamental elements in responding to some of the challenges that the member has rightly set out.
I would be more than happy to engage with the member ahead of the budget if she wants to talk about some of the issues that she has raised. However, more broadly, it is important to recognise that Ms McAllan is now leading on the action plan on behaviour in schools and that the improvements that we are seeing across the board are being supported by a range of different partners.
Accident and Emergency (Winter Pressures)
In August, almost 51,000 people had to wait more than four hours at accident and emergency, which is the worst figure ever recorded for this time of year. Nine out of 10 accident and emergency doctors say that emergency departments are simply not ready for winter. We are seeing increasing use of corridor care, which is not safe. The Royal College of Emergency Medicine is pushing for a clear definition of corridor care and for the collection and reporting of data. Does the Deputy First Minister agree with that, and will she commit the Government to ending the unsafe practice of corridor care?
Jackie Baillie raises a very important and timely point, given that we are approaching the winter period. I am assured by the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Care that that is in hand, and I think that she gave an update to Parliament in recent weeks on that exact point.
If we look at some of the Scottish Ambulance Service data for the week ending 18 October, we can see that the median response time was 7 minutes and 40 seconds. The SAS is making progress more broadly in ensuring that only those patients who need to be prioritised and taken to A and E are transported. Last week, for example, more than half—54.1 per cent—of Scottish Ambulance Service emergency incidents were managed without any need for transfer to hospital. That is important in the context of Jackie Baillie’s question on the approach to winter pressures. That approach is centred on ensuring that people receive timely, safe and effective care throughout periods of increased demand.
Jackie Baillie’s point about data has been addressed by the health secretary in the chamber. I am sure that the cabinet secretary would be happy to engage with Ms Baillie on the substantive points as we approach winter. We will, of course, be engaging with Parliament, too.
A801 Avon Gorge Crossing
The Deputy First Minister will be aware that improvement of the A801 Avon Gorge crossing in my constituency has been in the pipeline for decades. Given the strategic importance of that route, and given that the latest outline business case was submitted to Transport Scotland last March, when can my constituents expect to see progress on that long-awaited and vital project?
I recognise the long-standing interest in the A801 Avon Gorge project in the member’s local constituency.
I am advised that the business case that was submitted to Transport Scotland is currently under assessment. As with all major infrastructure proposals, any decision will be informed by the strength of the evidence.
Although I am not in a position to provide a timetable today, I assure the member that officials are actively engaged in relation to that further update, which will be provided to the Cabinet Secretary for Economy, Tourism and Transport.
The Government very much recognises the importance of effective transport connections in supporting communities, including those in Falkirk and West Lothian and beyond.
I thank the Deputy First Minister and the 25 colleagues who asked questions. I apologise to the many whose questions I was unable to take due to time constraints.
Keeping the Promise (Progress and Delivery to 2030)
The next item of business is a statement by Siobhian Brown on keeping the Promise, progress and delivery to 2030. Questions will be taken at the end of the statement, so there should be no interventions or interruptions.
I will allow a minute or so for the minister to get into place. I ask members of the public leaving the gallery to please do so quietly. We are about to recommence business.
15:02
Six years ago, Scotland made a promise that all children would grow up loved, safe and respected. Since then, we have taken important steps. However, as the Promise Oversight Board’s latest report makes clear, we must take faster action.
In welcoming the publication, I thank the board for the important role that it continues to play in providing independent scrutiny and challenge. It is essential that we listen and be honest about the scale of the task ahead.
As we mark care experience week, let me begin by speaking directly to the children and young people whom I am privileged to represent in this ministerial role. The Promise will be kept by 2030, and I am doing all that I can to make that happen. Over the summer, I have made visits and seen many positive examples of really good work that is under way, including meeting kinship carers in Kilmarnock and attending the Who Cares? Scotland summer festival in August. I am also sure that, like me, many members were touched by the “One Hundred Voices” exhibit in Parliament, which reminded us poignantly that every experience of care in Scotland is unique. I have had the privilege to meet incredible young people across our country who have reminded me why our commitment must be delivered. It is an honour to be in this position, and I am laser-focused on accelerating delivery.
The board’s report rightly recognises the progress that we have made so far. In justice, we have invested more than £30 million in the gold standard bairns’ hoose model, creating a child-centred approach for children who have experienced or witnessed harm. We are committed to multiyear funding as we expand that model across the whole of Scotland. We have delivered a landmark commitment by ending the placement of children in young offenders institutions and we are delivering significant change through the redesign of the children’s hearings system.
In education, we are breaking down barriers and creating opportunities through the Scottish attainment challenge. Since 2018-19, we have invested more than £80 million in funding through the care-experienced children and young people fund to help drive improvements in attainment and wellbeing. Through that funding, we are supporting mentoring, outdoor and play-based learning, wider targeted support and funded specialist staff, including educational psychologists, teachers, tutors, learning mentors and pupil support officers. Across 19 local authorities, we continue to back virtual headteachers, providing strategic leadership to improve attendance, attainment, positive destinations, wellbeing and exclusion rates. In North Lanarkshire, for example, exclusions have fallen from 205 in 2018-19 to just 15 in 2024-25.
That support continues beyond school. Scotland’s higher education institutions guarantee an undergraduate offer to care-experienced applicants who meet the minimum entrance qualification. Both the percentage and the number of care-experienced entrants have increased every year since 2016-17. That education is supported through a non-means-tested bursary of £9,000 and is supplemented further by specialist support loans, summer accommodation grants and priority access to discretionary funding, providing financial assistance totalling £21.5 million to nearly 2,500 people in full-time higher education in 2025-26.
We also continue to strengthen support for those who care for our children. We have introduced, and subsequently increased, a national minimum allowance for eligible foster and kinship carers through the Scottish recommended allowance. That support has benefited more than 9,000 children, and consideration of its annual uprating is now required by statute.
For young people making the transition from care into adulthood, we have introduced the £2,000 care leaver payment, supporting 1,300 young people each year, and we continue to deliver a substantial package of aftercare and continuing care.
The Government recognises that support around the child and the family is what makes the difference. It is about prevention, ahead of reaction. That means embedding whole-family support and targeting whole-family wellbeing funding to enable local partnerships to improve support for families and deliver without stigma or judgment, making greater use of families’ feedback to improve services. In Renfrewshire, for example, the request-for-assistance pathway has streamlined access to family support, enabling earlier help for families and creating a more co-ordinated and efficient local support system.
Taken together, those are significant changes. They demonstrate that the work to keep the Promise reaches across Government and across the lives of children and families. However, we have also enabled further change for the future. In March this year, the Parliament unanimously passed the Children (Care, Care Experience and Services Planning) (Scotland) Act 2026. That significant legislation was developed through cross-party working and a shared sense of responsibility, which I am committed to maintaining over the next four years.
The legislation will strengthen the voice of care-experienced people through a right of access to advocacy. It will advance support for foster and kinship carers and take steps to address profit in residential childcare. It provides for action in areas including restraint, seclusion and housing, alongside substantial changes to the children’s hearings system. It commits us to reviewing the impact of delays in decision making, to help to ensure that more children experience the security, stability and sense of belonging that a permanent home can provide. In recognising that listening to children, young people and their families and drawing on their understanding of their lives can secure the best outcomes, it strengthens the role of family group decision making.
Fundamentally, the reforms are about making sure that our care and support system works for children and young people, with their rights, relationships and voices at the heart of all decisions. The act’s first provisions came into force on 30 September, and implementation of the reforms is under way.
However, to be clear, keeping the Promise requires action not only from the Government but across all public services and by local government. It requires us to think differently about how we offer support, take decisions and ensure that we are pulling together in the same direction rather than working in silos.
Our workforce is fundamental to that. Every day, foster and kinship carers, social workers, residential care staff, health professionals, teachers and third sector workers provide vital support to children and families across Scotland. I thank them all for their exceptional dedication and I recognise the pressures that they face. Through the National Social Work Agency, established by this Government this year, we will provide national leadership and strengthened support to the profession.
Keeping the Promise is public service reform in action. Through early prevention and intervention, we must move away from services that wait until families reach crisis. Our approach is one where services work together around the needs of children and families instead of expecting families to navigate complicated systems themselves.
When something works, we need to understand why and help it to spread. Where progress is too slow or where a child’s experience of support depends on where in Scotland they live, we need to understand why and we need to act.
Through the Promise progress framework, we have better data and insight into where progress is being made and where improvement is needed, but, as the oversight board report makes clear, there is no point in collecting data if we do not use it to improve performance.
I see a real opportunity with our public service reform to do this better, and I implore colleagues across the chamber to work with me and the Government on sharing and encouraging good practice, and identifying where we can make improvements.
Of course, through the continued, ongoing work of Scotland’s independent strategic adviser and The Promise Scotland, we will build our understanding of what works well, and promote and provoke action as required.
The gap in consistency of service and delivery must close, and I look to partners across Scotland to continue to work together and support each other in that delivery.
There is more to do, and I do not underestimate the scale of the task ahead, but nor should we understate the progress that Scotland has made or the foundations that are currently in place. Across the country, partners are strengthening family support and ensuring that children, young people and care-experienced adults have a greater voice in decisions that affect their lives.
I announce today that, in November, we will launch a new delivery coalition—chaired by me and the Cabinet Secretary for Education, Culture and Gaelic—to bring together partners from national Government, local government, public services and the third sector, and people with lived experience. The coalition will provide a dedicated forum to strengthen collaboration, drive collective action and accelerate progress towards keeping the Promise by 2030.
The Promise can be kept, but it demands co-ordinated action. This Government remains determined to lead, to work with our partners, to challenge, and to continue to listen to children, families and care-experienced people.
By 2030, the ultimate test will be whether change is felt by the children and young people at the heart of the Promise. To get there, this Government will implement the Children (Care, Care Experience and Services Planning) (Scotland) Act 2026; be crystal clear on the actions that we will take by 2030; and connect and drive forward the pace of change through coalition and joint working.
That is the task ahead. Together, we will accomplish it and, together, we will keep the Promise.
I will allow around 20 minutes for the minister to answer questions on the issues raised. Members who wish to ask a question should press their request-to-speak button now.
I thank the minister for advance sight of the statement. The Promise Oversight Board is clear that
“The next 6 to 18 months will determine whether the promise being kept remains possible.”
In her statement, the minister said that the Government will be crystal clear on the actions that it will take by 2030, but, if the Promise is to be kept, we need action now. What action will the minister take within the next six to 18 months to ensure that the Promise is kept?
The delivery coalition that I have just announced will be a very strong part of that. With four years to go until 2030, it is essential that we drive forward the change that is required at pace and with clear direction. The coalition that the cabinet secretary and I will chair will work alongside the independent strategic adviser for the Promise to bridge the gaps between individual organisations and geographical success, to inform a collective approach to change in policy and practice.
The coalition will also provide an informed route to cross-portfolio engagement on issues. Respective cabinet secretaries and ministers may be invited to attend the coalition in relation to specific issues and actions to be identified.
The final membership of the group is yet to be determined and invitations will be sent out shortly. The purpose of the delivery coalition is to achieve delivery of the Promise by 2030 and watch progress as we go along.
I thank the minister for prior sight of the statement. In 2023-24, the school attendance rate for care-experienced children fell to 83 per cent while the rate for all pupils rose slightly to 90 per cent. In 2022-23, care-experienced children were six times more likely than the general pupil population to be excluded from school, and the exclusion rate rose for the first time in 12 years. Will the Scottish Government commit to scaling up the use of evidence-based interventions, such as one-to-one tuition and peer tutoring, which have been shown to be the most effective ways to close the gap in literacy and numeracy, and will it make an urgent commitment to establish a dedicated transitions fund to support care-experienced school leavers during the cliff-edge move into further or higher education?
The £80 million Scottish attainment fund, which I mentioned in my opening statement, does exactly what Amanda Lindsay asks for.
Although progress has been made on the gap between exclusion rates for looked-after pupils and those for all pupils, which has fallen significantly in the past 15 years, care-experienced children and young people remain disproportionately affected by exclusion. That is not acceptable. Reducing that disparity is a key priority.
Can the minister speak further on what work is under way to address the challenges around the sufficiency of foster care placements, and on how the Scottish Government is listening to the voices of those in the profession and those with lived experience to inform its approach?
We recognise the challenges around foster care sufficiency and the importance of children accessing the right home in the right place at the right time. We funded Scotland’s first national foster care campaign and expanded fosterline support. Recently, I co-chaired a national round table, at which the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and partners agreed actions on recruitment, retention and placement availability. The National Social Work Agency has tested Thriving Futures training to strengthen carers’ support. Our new foster carers strategic advisory group will help to shape reform, building on consultation with foster carers and care-experienced children and young people.
I thank the minister for advance sight of her statement and echo her words about the moving nature of the one hundred voices exhibition.
The Education and Gaelic Committee has heard that, although there remains a strong commitment to keeping the Promise, care-experienced children and young people do not always see that commitment reflected in their day-to-day lives. Evidence has also highlighted continuing concerns about social work recruitment and retention, inconsistency between local areas, and the pace of change. Can the minister outline the measurable improvements that care-experienced children should expect to see over the next year? How will the Government demonstrate that those improvements are being felt by the children themselves and their families, rather than simply being recorded through policy activity?
That is the vital bit: we need the children to feel the change in their experiences on the ground. Even though a lot of work has been taken up so far, there is still a lot of work to do before 2030. The experiences as they are felt on the ground will be vital.
Ms Moodie mentioned the social care workforce. Having a sustainable, supported workforce will be fundamental to keeping the Promise. The National Social Work Agency, which was established this year, is leading national workforce planning to create a stronger picture of workforce demand, recruitment challenges and future supply. Through the Scottish social work partnership, the National Social Work Agency is working with COSLA and Social Work Scotland to develop a strategic plan, which will set out a shared commitment to strengthening the social work workforce. That delivery plan is on track for publication in spring 2027.
In July, it was reported that a 13-year-old girl requested to be moved out of a Scottish secure unit in which teenage male offenders were housed. Her plea was rejected, with her right to a single-sex space and safety ignored. This year, The Promise Scotland said:
“The way secure care is currently provided in Scotland is not sustainable.”
Does the minister agree? How many more vulnerable young people need to be placed in unsuitable accommodation?
We are laying the foundations for a more resilient and sustainable secure care system for the future. In the reimagining secure care consultation, which took place this year, stakeholders’ views were sought on a range of issues, including the nationalisation of secure care services, to see how we could improve things. Future decisions will be guided by evidence and analysis of the consultation responses. No decision has yet been made on nationalisation.
Secure care in Scotland is currently provided by four independent charity organisations, and we will continue to work closely with providers, local authorities and other partners as part of our wider programme of reimagining secure care.
I thank the minister for advance sight of her statement.
On 15 October 2016, I led care-experienced people into the Scottish National Party conference to hear Nicola Sturgeon commit to ripping up the care system. She said that we would not have to wait for change, but a child who was aged five then is now 15. The minister talked of commitments to action to drive change and implement legislation, but those children have been hearing these empty promises for years. The statement contains ad hoc actions that the Government has patched together as positive signs of progress, but they do not amount to ripping up the system.
Before the Promise, the SNP Government created the looked-after children strategic implementation group, but it was quietly discontinued as it achieved little impact. Does the new delivery coalition mark the quiet discontinuation of the strategic adviser—the Promise Oversight Board—or is it an example of more public relations that will add to public sector clutter, which Audit Scotland cautioned against only last year?
I am proud of what Scotland is doing in trying to deliver the Promise, which we will do by 2030. That commitment has been made, and we have four years to go.
There has been progress. We have passed landmark legislation that provides significant packages of reform to support the Promise. We have committed £154 million to transform family support, and that figure will go up to £200 million by March next year. I could provide a list of things that we have already done. The delivery coalition will look at the pace of progress and at the challenges to ensure that we deliver the Promise by 2030.
I call Patricia Gibson.
Thank you, First Minister—sorry, Presiding Officer.
You would think that she would know. [Laughter.]
A range of organisations are involved in helping to deliver the Promise and, inevitably, each has its own separate and discrete data. That can sometimes act as a barrier to care-experienced young people accessing the support that they need as they grow up, develop and move from one local authority area to another. What consideration has the minister given to having a more streamlined and effective shared data collection system—bearing in mind data protection requirements—to ensure that care-experienced young people can more easily access the support that they need, regardless of where they move to in Scotland or how their circumstances change?
Care-experienced young people should not have to repeat their stories or navigate disconnected services to enable them to access support. Having better national data could help to identify unmet need and gaps in provision, but that must be accompanied by effective information sharing between services, particularly when young people move between services and need further support. Children’s services planning and the wider public sector reform agenda provide opportunities to strengthen co-ordination. Our focus must be on ensuring that having such information helps young people to get the right support at the right time, while protecting their privacy and rights.
The Scottish Government’s own figures show that pupils in care are seven times more likely to leave school with no qualifications at Scottish credit and qualifications framework level 3 or above. That statistic relates to academic year 2024-25, which was a full 10 years after the Scottish attainment challenge was launched. Will the minister specify how a delivery coalition—or anything else that the Government is about to do—will help such kids to get a qualification in maths or English?
That is why we are already investing £80 million. We want to keep those children in school so that they can have better outcomes.
The delivery coalition has four years to go and has a widespread portfolio, with a lot of work happening in national and local government and in the third sector. There is a lot of work for the delivery coalition to look at, and that is what we intend it to do. Keeping the Promise is all about achieving better outcomes for our care-experienced children.
During the Education and Gaelic Committee’s recent pre-budget scrutiny work, I asked our witnesses, including those trying to deliver the Promise, whether they saw public service reform as an opportunity to deliver it. Support for care-experienced young people across the nation has been bitty for too long. Does the minister agree that PSR offers an opportunity to deliver services in the places where they are needed, and when they are needed, to support families?
Keeping the Promise is public sector reform in action. Our focus is on reducing complexity, improving collaboration across services and shifting the focus towards prevention and early intervention. Those are central aims of our public service reform programme, and—through whole family support, strengthened planning in children’s services and the wider reform agenda—we are building more joined-up services around the needs of children and families, helping them to access support earlier and reducing reliance on crisis intervention. The forthcoming implementation strategy for the Promise will set out the actions that the Scottish Government will take to keep the Promise by 2030.
The minister repeatedly refers to meeting young people, listening to their experiences and placing their voices at the heart of decisions. The oversight board accepts that participation activity is taking place but says that Scotland still cannot sufficiently demonstrate that lived experience is genuinely influencing decisions. How does the minister propose that we actually measure how experience translates into action?
I think that I have answered that question. We know what children are experiencing and feeling on the ground. We have made progress in the past four or five years, but we have more to make and we will measure that.
Since coming into this post six months ago, I have had much engagement with young people and have listened to their voices. I know that that happened prior to my coming into this role, and it will continue.
If we are to deliver the Promise by 2030, there must be a resolute focus on delivery. Will the minister outline in more detail how the Scottish Government’s public service reform programme, which was mentioned in her statement, could support efforts to streamline services and shift the focus further towards prevention and, crucially, partnership working?
As I said in a previous answer, keeping the Promise is public sector reform in action. The Scottish Government will continue to provide whole family support and will strengthen children’s services planning. The forthcoming implementation strategy will set out the actions that the Scottish Government will take to deliver the Promise by 2030.
Many young people who are in kinship care are themselves providing unpaid care for a family member who cannot cope without their support. Those young carers face multiple and complex barriers to accessing the relevant support. Young carers are often hidden and their struggles can be overlooked. Will the minister outline what actions the Scottish Government is taking to ensure that young people with multiple needs are not missed and that they can benefit from the full implementation of the Promise?
During the summer, I met many kinship carers and children and had many discussions with them, some of which were quite harrowing. I must be honest about their experience, which has enabled me to understand why we must do better and must deliver the Promise.
We know that kinship carers provide vital care and stability for children, often at short notice and in really challenging circumstances. We recognise that families’ experience of accessing support can vary, depending on individual circumstances and legal arrangements. The Scottish Government has set out our vision for kinship care, which includes a broader approach to improving support for kinship families, while recognising that financial assistance is only one aspect of the support that carers may need.
We have also established a kinship care strategic advisory group to work with partners and kinship families to prioritise practical improvements, including more access to information, better co-ordination of services and more support for carers to evidence their caring role. That work continues.
I am dealing with constituents who have fostered three children over the past five years. The relevant social work department is now said to be considering moving the children to a permanent home. That is causing an undue level of distress to the family—particularly to the children, who consider their permanent home to be their foster placement, where they are well integrated into the local community. No final decision has been made in the case, and I have written to the relevant local authority about it, but will the minister say what work can be done through the Promise to ensure that children’s voices and rights are paramount when considering such permanency arrangements, especially when the children concerned have already been in a placement for such a long time and are integrated into the family there?
I recognise the distress that uncertainty about a child’s future home can cause, particularly when they have developed a really strong, loving relationship over many years.
I cannot comment on individual cases, but there is clear evidence that children thrive when they have a safe, nurturing and permanent home. The best interests of the child must always be at the heart of permanence decisions, with their views, relationships and sense of belonging being fully considered.
Our good practice in permanence guides reinforce that children’s rights should be central to decision making. As part of keeping the Promise, we are reviewing delays in permanence decisions and strengthening advocacy rights for care-experienced children and young children.
Three years ago, Natalie Don told the Education, Children and Young People committee that there was a workforce plan. Two years ago, the SNP Government promised that it would publish the plan in autumn 2024. However, last month, David Anderson told the Education and Gaelic Committee that a workforce plan had not yet been delivered, even though the oversight board for the Promise had called for it two years prior to that.
Workforce is a critical factor in this. What responsibility does the minister accept for the delay? When will the plan finally be delivered?
As I mentioned previously, in March we launched the national social work agency to strengthen and support social work across Scotland. Through the Scottish social work partnership, the national social work agency is working together with COSLA and Social Work Scotland. The partnership is currently developing a strategic plan that will set out our shared commitment to strengthening the social work workforce.
As I have said, the accompanying delivery plan will highlight the agreed actions and will be published in spring 2027.
That concludes the ministerial statement and questions on keeping the Promise: progress and delivery to 2030. The fact that Stephen Kerr got to ask a question proves that, even if members are not on a list of speakers, if they take the chance to press the request-to-speak button and there is time in hand, they will be taken.
Hear, hear.
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