Health, Wellbeing and Sport
Good afternoon. The first item of business this afternoon is portfolio questions on health, wellbeing and sport.
Mental Health Patients (Diagnosis and Support)
To ask the Scottish Government what is being done to ensure early diagnosis and appropriate on-going support for mental health patients. (S4O-04244)
National health service boards and their partners work together to ensure that all those who need access to mental health services can access them quickly and efficiently, in line with their statutory duties under Scottish Government policy. We are making progress in delivering the commitments in the national mental health, dementia and suicide prevention strategies, which support early diagnosis and fast access to treatment, for example by setting waiting time targets for psychological therapies in child and adolescent mental health services and improving post-diagnosis support for people with dementia.
Given that 30 per cent of general practitioner consultations are mental health related and that GPs have minimal, if any, training in mental health, how can patients be assured that they are getting the right diagnosis and appropriate referral to specialists? What is the Government doing to ensure that GPs are given the support and training to diagnose and advise 30 per cent of their patients?
Far be it from me to second guess the clinical judgment of our fully qualified medical professionals. We should recognise that GPs are provided with substantial training to support their expertise across the range of health services that they have to deliver. We will always be keen to do more to support them, particularly in relation to mental health services. There is a range of activities already happening, and I am always willing to hear new and innovative ideas.
Minority Sports
To ask the Scottish Government what funding is available for minority sports. (S4O-04245)
Sportscotland, the national agency for sport, invests Scottish Government and national lottery funding in recognised Scottish governing bodies of sport. In addition, sportscotland invests Scottish Government and lottery funds through a range of programmes that are available to charitable trusts, youth organisations and voluntary sports clubs covering a wide range of sports and sporting activities.
I would like to focus on kickboxing for a moment. Young Ewan Gliniecki won the under-12 championship in the KWON British open last September. Going to the international level takes a lot of support for expenses. What is sportscotland going to do to ensure that Scottish youngsters participating in this worldwide sport can get the support that they require?
Let me first congratulate Rob Gibson’s constituent on his achievements. I am always very keen that we do what we can for a wide range of sporting opportunities. I said in my initial answer that much of the funding is channelled through recognised Scottish governing bodies of sport. At the moment, kickboxing is not an activity that has a recognised governing body. There is a mechanism for such an organisation to become recognised by sportscotland, and details are available on the sportscotland website.
I mentioned the other funding mechanisms that could be used to better support kickboxing. If Mr Gibson wants to contact me further about the specific issue of kickboxing, I would be very happy to get back to him with further details.
The minister will be aware that sportscotland puts very exacting demands on sports pitches that are designated by it as such. He will be aware that shinty clubs are being asked to maintain their pitches at huge expense, which almost makes them unviable. Will he look at how sportscotland asks those clubs to maintain their pitches and also look at finance for clubs so that they can maintain those pitches and bring shinty out to the wider world?
My answer is very much the same as my answer to Mr Gibson. There are other areas of funding that individual clubs could apply for. I would be very happy to explore with sportscotland the specific point that Rhoda Grant has raised. I commit to doing that, and I can come back to her with an update. I would observe, though, that it is absolutely right that sportscotland asks for certain commitments from governing bodies and sports organisations that they invest in, because, after all, it is dealing with public funds. However, Rhoda Grant’s points are well made and I will undertake to look further into the matter.
Aberdeen Women’s Hospital and Cancer Care Centre
To ask the Scottish Government what progress is being made with the development of the new Aberdeen women’s hospital and cancer care centre. (S4O-04246)
Work on the £120 million new facilities—now the Baird family hospital and the Aberdeen and north centre for haematology, oncology and radiotherapy, or ANCHOR centre—at the Foresterhill site in Aberdeen is progressing well. A governance structure to oversee the project has been established, and NHS Grampian has committed resources to support the successful delivery of the project, with key posts now filled or in the process of being filled. Work is in progress to put in place the key advisers who are needed to support the project. The clinical brief is being developed and is nearly complete. The process has involved more than 200 staff and public representatives.
The investment in those facilities and the extra £49.1 million this year for NHS Grampian are welcome. Has NHS Grampian started on its workforce planning strategy to ensure that, when those new facilities open, they do so with the right complement of staff?
I am pleased that Kevin Stewart has welcomed the additional £49.1 million for NHS Grampian in this financial year.
Work to develop the clinical brief for the new facilities is nearing completion, and the emerging clinical brief will be discussed at the project board in May. Once the service brief has been agreed in principle, work to undertake the service redesign that is associated with preparing for the new facilities can begin, and that will include the production of comprehensive workforce models to meet the agreed treatment pathways, within the revenue budget that is available to NHS Grampian.
Podiatry (Older People in Glasgow)
To ask the Scottish Government what podiatry services are available for older people in Glasgow who cannot afford private treatment. (S4O-04247)
Clinical podiatry services are available, free at the point of need, to people of all ages who have a clinical or medical need for podiatry care. The services are provided by highly trained registered professionals in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde who assess, diagnose and treat abnormalities and diseases of the foot and lower limb.
In 2013, the Scottish Government submitted guidance to health boards advising them that personal footcare is not the responsibility of NHS Scotland. Can the minister advise me why that decision was taken and what my constituents should do if they cannot afford the private treatment that they have been referred to?
Personal care is available without charge to everyone in Scotland aged 65 and over who has been assessed as needing it. The legislation includes keeping fingernails and toenails trimmed as one of the personal hygiene aspects of personal care. Family members and/or carers can be taught to provide personal footcare as part of the personal care plan, or a personal independence payment can assist patients and clients with personal care costs. They can apply for financial assistance. Individuals need to go through the Department for Work and Pensions or their local council.
National Health Service Chief Executives (Performance-based Pay)
To ask the Scottish Government how many national health service chief executives were awarded performance-based pay progression of more than 1 per cent, based on performance in 2014-15. (S4O-04248)
Performance in 2014-15 determines pay for 2015-16. Awards have not yet been made, as the appraisal process has only just begun. In any case, details of individual pay awards are not held centrally.
Given that answer, it is quite disappointing and alarming that the pay awards for chief executives are not known to the public, as they reflect how well those chief executives are performing. I also believe that the front-line staff, who are entitled only to a 1 per cent increase, have a right to know.
First, Scotland is the only part of the United Kingdom where all NHS staff have received a 1 per cent rise, to cover cost-of-living rises in 2014-15 and 2015-16. In addition, staff are eligible for progression increases. In the case of chief executives, the percentage increase is determined by their performance, and ranges from 0 per cent to 3 per cent. In comparison, a band 5 nurse could expect progression from just under 3 per cent to more than 4 per cent. No member of staff receives progression when they reach the top of their scale.
General Practitioners (Dumfries and Galloway)
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with NHS Dumfries and Galloway regarding future general practitioner provision. (S4O-04249)
The Scottish Government is committed to developing a national general medical services contract in Scotland that will sustain and support general practice for the future. Scottish Government officials are undertaking a series of meetings with all health boards and a large number of the local area medical committees. Those meetings involve GPs and are conducted jointly with the British Medical Association Scotland to learn about and collate evidence that will inform the future direction. The meeting with Dumfries and Galloway NHS Board took place on Tuesday 3 February.
As the cabinet secretary will be aware, some 20 per cent of Scotland’s GP workforce is over 55 and likely to retire in five to 10 years’ time. In my constituency and health board area, that situation is much worse. On top of that, the Office for National Statistics recently estimated that the lowest amount of population growth for Scotland by 2020 would be 123,000, which would require a further 536 GPs, if the 2009 doctor patient ratio was to be maintained. We have an expanding population, a requirement for more GPs and an increasing number of GPs who are likely to retire in the near future, so what is the Scottish Government doing to ensure that we have the estimated 600 to 900 new GPs who will be needed by 2020?
GP numbers have increased. They are up by 7 per cent, which has meant an increase in GP services of around £70 million-worth under this Government. However, Alex Fergusson makes the not unreasonable point that we need to plan for the future.
As I said in my initial answer, we are in discussions with not only the BMA but the Royal College of General Practitioners and others about the future model of primary care, because it is fair to say that we need to consider the wider primary care team and the GP’s role in that. As I am sure Alex Fergusson will be aware, there is an opportunity to consider doing things a bit differently under the first-ever Scotland-only contract, which will begin in 2017. In the meantime, we have made adjustments to the existing contracts to reduce bureaucracy and help GPs to manage their workloads more effectively.
We look to support the recruitment of GPs. We have the option of salaried GPs when they are required because of difficulties with recruiting in certain areas. Of course, we will consider the workforce requirements closely as we get towards the autumn, when we will consider GP numbers going forward.
I am the first to acknowledge that there is more work to be done, but we must also acknowledge the work that has been carried out and the expansion in the number of GPs under this Government.
General Practitioners (Numbers)
In a similar vein, to ask the Scottish Government what action it takes to help national health service boards to maintain general practitioner numbers. (S4O-04250)
Under this Government, the number of GPs employed in Scotland has risen by 6.9 per cent to nearly 5,000—the highest-ever number on record. We have increased funding by 10 per cent, and there are more GPs per head of population in Scotland than in England.
The Government will go on supporting and sustaining Scottish general practice. For example, the recently agreed GP contract aims to give the profession stability over the next three years, reduce bureaucracy and allow doctors to spend more time with patients.
We will continue to work with the Royal College of General Practitioners, the British Medical Association and others to find innovative solutions to GP recruitment and retention challenges.
The cabinet secretary will be aware of the challenges at Grangemouth’s recently amalgamated Kersiebank medical practice, where there has been an exodus of five GPs in the space of four months. Thankfully, NHS Forth Valley has turned a short-term crisis into an opportunity, by taking over the management of the practice this week and creating a new community-based practice.
GP numbers are a problem throughout the United Kingdom, not only in Forth Valley or Scotland, and the GP workforce has fundamentally changed over recent years. I acknowledge the cabinet secretary’s response to Alex Fergusson’s question. What more can she and the Scottish Government do to address the recruitment problems that the GP service faces?
First, I will speak a bit more about workforce planning. Although that is the responsibility of NHS boards, support is provided to them in the form of periodic workforce surveys, which the Scottish Government conducts across general practice. The next one will be undertaken in autumn this year. Boards also conduct their own surveys from time to time. The surveys will give us a clearer and more comprehensive picture of the challenges in certain areas, such as those that Angus MacDonald mentioned in his patch.
We continue to develop a range of initiatives to recruit and support GPs in their work. We recognise that there is more to do to improve the situation, as I said to Alex Fergusson. That is why we are working with the BMA and the profession. I am happy to keep Angus MacDonald and Alex Fergusson updated on the outcome of the discussions.
Three GPs have recently left the Leith Links medical practice in my constituency and it has been unable to recruit replacements. As a result, 2,000 patients have been told that they must leave the practice, which is causing great concern in my constituency. I hear what the cabinet secretary says about the range of measures that are being taken, but does she realise the urgency of the situation? Has she discussed it with NHS Lothian?
I am certainly happy to have a discussion with NHS Lothian and get back to Malcolm Chisholm. When there is a difficulty with GP provision, the health board can sometimes assist by providing a salaried service or by helping the practice to recruit new GPs.
Changes have recently been made to pension arrangements and I think that, unfortunately, that might have speeded up the early retirement of some GPs, which is to be regretted.
I will be happy to speak to NHS Lothian and get back to Malcolm Chisholm with more information.
I appreciate that the number of GPs in Scotland has gone up, as the cabinet secretary said in her response to Alex Fergusson. In planning for the future, how much weight is being given to the fact that a large number of GPs, male and female, are now working part time?
Nanette Milne has hit on an important point. Many young doctors who are deciding on the area of medicine that they want to specialise in are put off general practice because they do not necessarily want to become involved with managing a practice, with all the accountancy and staff management that that entails. They simply want to operate in general practice. We have to think about that and how we can make general practice more flexible.
Those are all issues that we want to discuss and are discussing with the Royal College of General Practitioners, the BMA and others, so that the model of primary care that we develop, particularly with the opportunity offered by the new contract in 2017, takes account of all the issues and makes general practice a more attractive proposition. If we do not do that, young doctors will not choose to go into general practice in the numbers that we need.
Does the cabinet secretary share my concern about the prevalence of locum GPs, who come into a practice without knowing the patients’ histories, their family history or the community, which can impact on patients’ health? What is she doing to get more salaried GPs so that we do not have to rely on locums?
General practice and primary care are mainly still delivered by independent contractors. That has been the model since the NHS was established. However, an increasing number of salaried GPs have come into post, particularly to deliver services in areas of deprivation, for example. I met some excellent salaried GPs at the Wester Hailes healthy living centre, which is a fantastic centre that runs a number of services.
Salaried GPs have an important role to play, but we must create a mixed model. It would be difficult to go from a system that is based on independent contractors to a fully salaried model. That would indeed be challenging, so a mixed model is the way forward.
Locum GPs have been around for a long time. They often fill in for those on maternity or sick leave and they have a role to play. However, whether we are talking about locum GPs or locums in any other specialty in medicine, we absolutely must ensure that we recruit to permanent positions when possible. Health boards have been trying to do that, but it is not always easy, particularly in some specialties and locations. Locums are used because it is important that patients have someone who provides a service. If that can be provided only by a locum until recruitment takes place, that is better than having no service at all.
Community-based Sporting Groups
To ask the Scottish Government what initiatives it has to support community-based sporting groups over the coming year. (S4O-04251)
Sportscotland, the national agency for sport, recognises the contribution that community-based clubs make to the development of a world-class system for sport in Scotland. Sportscotland’s help for clubs website provides information on funding sources and a wide range of other guidance to support sports clubs.
The minister may be aware of the Musselburgh Monarchs, which is a BMX biking group in my constituency. Given the recent resurgence of BMX biking in the rest of the United Kingdom, although there are only two other clubs in Scotland, what is the Scottish Government doing to promote the sport and improve its popularity?
I am happy to set out the Government’s support for cycling generally. Sportscotland invested £1.6 million in the national governing body for cycling from 2013 to 2015. I am also happy to set out my support for BMX biking specifically, including my recent visit to Cumbernauld Centurions BMX race club in my constituency.
I am pleased to say that, with the support of the Scottish Government, sportscotland and Scottish Cycling, considerable activity has been under way to promote cycling and BMX biking in particular. For example, through the legacy 2014 active places fund, we were able to fund a new track at Broadwood stadium, which is in my constituency, and a new BMX track will be created in Glasgow in advance of the 2018 European sports championships. Furthermore, a number of community sport hubs offer BMX biking as an activity, providing opportunities for riders and raising the sport’s profile in local communities.
I wish the Musselburgh Monarchs well—unless, of course, the club is in direct competition with the Cumbernauld Centurions.
Does the Scottish Government consider that participants in sports involving air rifles, such as the tetrathlon, should not face administrative obstacles in training and competing?
The Scottish Government, through sportscotland, is a supporter of the sport of shooting. Shooting is, of course, a recognised Commonwealth sport. In 2013-14, we invested £150,700 in the sport, which indicates the great support that we give to shooting.
Accident and Emergency Data
To ask the Scottish Government what additional accident and emergency data it is considering publishing. (S4O-04252)
The Scottish Government statisticians started weekly publication of A and E official statistics on 3 March, when they reported on the week ending 22 Feb 2015.
Following user consultation on the quarterly publication of A and E statistics in autumn last year, the Information Services Division of the NHS in Scotland commenced monthly publication of key A and E statistics in February.
Following the consultation, ISD Scotland is reviewing its publication schedule and timescales with a view to publishing more detailed information about A and E attendances across Scotland. The frequency of release has yet to be determined, but a first release will be made in late summer. That is likely to include more information about the demographics of people who attend A and E, covering, for example, deprivation, gender and ethnicity. It is also likely to include information about why people might spend more than four hours in departments, as well as more visualisations, for example of geographical mapping of A and E attendances.
ISD Scotland is also reviewing what information can be published to demonstrate how patients move through unscheduled care services.
The Scottish Government has been forced to publish weekly accident and emergency data. When will the cabinet secretary start to publish the weekly returns from national health service boards on boarding out and delayed discharge?
As I have said in the chamber before, the statisticians have been looking at how much and what information can be put on the website. We want to make available as much information as possible, and the statisticians are working through the information to look at how quickly they can do that. Of course, it is important that the information is accurate and of good quality and that it takes into account the fact that delayed discharge is now the responsibility of the integrated joint boards, which came to life on 1 April. It is important that any statistical reporting reflects that.
Scottish Medicines Consortium (Multiple Sclerosis Drugs)
To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions it has had with the Scottish Medicines Consortium regarding the licensing of new drugs for the treatment of multiple sclerosis. (S4O-04253)
The Scottish Government has regular discussions with the Scottish Medicines Consortium. Most recently, this month, the Scottish Medicines Consortium approved another treatment for MS. As I know the member is aware from his interest in the issue, the SMC has accepted all treatments for MS when it has received a submission from the pharmaceutical industry. For the SMC to continue to be able to accept treatments, it needs to continue to receive good-quality submissions from the pharmaceutical industry, with a fair offering on price.
The cabinet secretary will be aware that this is MS awareness week. During last year’s MS awareness week, I wrote to one of the drug manufacturing companies regarding a drug called Fampyra, which can have a life-changing effect on mobility for many people with MS. After much discussion back and forwards with the company, as far as I am aware, it has not set a timeline for submitting the drug. Can the cabinet secretary provide me with an update on the licensing of that particular drug?
As George Adam did, I take this opportunity to recognise MS awareness week, which gives us a good chance to highlight the very good work that is going on, not least in the voluntary sector, to support people with MS. I welcome the attention that the cross-party group in the Scottish Parliament on MS has paid to the issue that George Adam raises and the steps that it has taken. The Scottish Government, too, has raised the issue of non-submission to the Scottish Medicines Consortium with the pharmaceutical company concerned. I understand that discussions with the SMC are now taking place. However, I reiterate that I encourage the manufacturer to set out a timeline for progressing the submission and to share that with the cross-party group. I am happy to do what I can to support that and to keep George Adam informed.
Health Spending
To ask the Scottish Government whether health spending in Scotland has risen less than in England since 2010. (S4O-04254)
The Government has met its commitment to increase NHS Scotland’s resource budget in real terms every year, and that has meant a 5 per cent real-terms increase in the five years to 2015-16. We have passed on resource consequentials in full since 2010-11 and, in 2015-16, we went further and invested £54 million above the consequentials from English health spend. Scotland’s front-line health service budget now stands at an all-time record of more than £12 billion a year, and funding is higher per head than in the rest of the UK. Including capital and non-profit distributing capital investment, the total health investment in Scotland has increased in cash terms by £1.5 billion from 2009-10 to 2015-16.
That was a long and convoluted answer to a question to which the honest answer is simply yes. The fact is that, since 2010, health spending in Scotland has increased by 1 per cent in real terms while in England it has increased by 6 per cent. Why has the cabinet secretary failed to protect the NHS, even to the degree that the Tories in England have done?
It is interesting that Labour says one thing in England, which is that the Tories underfund the NHS, but here it says how great the Tories are at funding our national health service. [Interruption.]
Order, please.
The truth is that the Scottish Government has passed on every penny of health resource consequentials, and more than that for 2015-16. The figures that Iain Gray has highlighted, which are from the Institute for Fiscal Studies, do not include NPD capital expenditure, which amounts to around £380 million for 2015-16. Indeed, in 2015-16, health resource spending in Scotland will increase by £409 million, which, as I said, will take total health spend to more than £12 billion for the first time.
Let us also be clear that in this election only the SNP is making a manifesto commitment to a real-terms increase in Scotland’s NHS funding, of £2 billion by 2020. That has not been matched by the Labour Party by any means whatsoever. In fact, Labour’s proposals are to chronically underfund the NHS, and voters are well and truly seeing through them.
Malnutrition
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to tackle malnutrition. (S4O-04255)
It is important to note that malnutrition can refer to people who are overnourished as well as those who are undernourished. From 2012 to 2015, the Scottish Government has spent £7.5 million to encourage healthy eating, especially in our most deprived communities, and we will continue to give the area a high priority. In addition, the Scottish Government has invested £300,000 in 2014-15 to enable boards to deliver further improvements in nutritional care.
On 20 May, I will host a summit on malnutrition in Edinburgh. Attendees will include medical professionals, Government and national health service officials, the third sector, community groups, academics and representatives of the National Nutritional Care Advisory Board and the food commission. The summit will look at the causes of malnutrition, the impact on the community and the action that can be taken to prevent it. There will be specific focus on older people, food access and community health and social care.
The minister may be aware of a report in The Courier earlier this month on the number of patients in Fife who are being treated for malnutrition. According to those figures, malnutrition affected 2,281 patients in 2014, which was an increase on the 2013 figure. Fife’s recorded figure is significantly higher than that of Tayside, which is the neighbouring board. What action is the Scottish Government willing to take to address malnutrition, specifically in Fife? Will the minister guarantee that she will work with NHS Fife to lower the number of patients who are being treated for malnutrition?
I do not know whether Claire Baker has contacted NHS Fife directly on the issue, but the figure in Fife is so high because the board uses a more diverse ICD-10—“International Statistical Classification of Diseases and Related Health Problems”, 10th revision—code list than other health boards and includes multiple admissions of patients with malnutrition.
I am sure that NHS Fife will engage with the health summit, and I am more than willing to engage directly on the subject with NHS Fife.
Data Protection (Health)
To ask the Scottish Government how many cases have been reported to ministers of private and confidential information held on patients being lost, left in public places or breached. (S4O-04256)
In August 2014, the Scottish Government introduced a new approach to categorising incidents and started to record figures on and details of significant information security incidents. One incident has been reported since the new approach was introduced.
I thank the cabinet secretary for that helpful response. It is, of course, totally unacceptable that private and confidential information that is held on patients is not 100 per cent secure. We have seen a number of data breaches over the years. What action has been taken to put the situation right?
With the national health service increasingly moving towards electronic records and information sharing, what provisions are being put in place to safeguard patients’ confidential data?
As Nanette Milne said, it is unacceptable when breaches occur. Thankfully, they have always been fairly minor in nature. I understand the worry that breaches generate, but it is important to distinguish between minor incidents that are of no serious concern for the patients involved and major incidents, of which there has been one, as I said.
A lot of work is under way to minimise the possibility of any loss of data, whether held on paper or electronically. That involves processes, procedures and training. I can write to Nanette Milne to update her, certainly on the electronic side, as we move towards having a more paperless system.
General Practices (Recruitment)
To ask the Scottish Government how many general practices have been unable to recruit one or more partners for more than six months. (S4O-04257)
Numbers of vacancies for GP posts are not held centrally, as that is a matter for individual GP contractors as employers. As part of a move towards better-quality, more regular and more consistent information, preparations to conduct a workforce survey later this year are under way. The aim is to obtain robust and accurate information on the numbers, gender, age profile, working patterns, contractual status and workload of GPs and other staff working in general practices. I encourage all practices in Scotland to assist us in ensuring that the information is as robust as possible by taking part in the survey.
In addition, we are seeking to profile the GP workforce in terms of how it is placed to deliver high-quality services for Scotland’s people in future, whether in hours or out of hours.
Given the closure of practices to new patients and the growing number of practices that are already having difficulty in recruiting and retaining GPs, and given the British Medical Association survey showing that many GPs are intending to retire and that as many as one in five are considering emigrating, how does the Government plan to recruit between 563 and 915 additional GPs by 2020?
As I said in my earlier answers on the subject, there has been an increase in the number of GPs. There has been an increase in investment over recent years, too. However, there is more to be done. There is a current issue of GPs retiring earlier than they would have done due to some changes around the pension contributions, but we absolutely have to consider the model of primary care to ensure that it is not just about GPs themselves but about the wider primary care team and the issues of flexibility, on which I responded in my answer to Nanette Milne.
The issue is also how we make general practice more attractive. At the moment, there are GP training posts that we are not able to fill, because we are not getting the interest from doctors who want to go into general practice in the way that we need. We could expand GP training numbers, but if we have difficulty in filling the posts that we have at the moment, there is a wider issue about how attractive general practice is. We must address that and we must make it a more flexible profession to enter. That will be done not just through independent contractor-based practices, but through the use of salaried GPs where appropriate. I am happy to keep Anne McTaggart up to date on some of those discussions as we take them forward.
“A Place to be Smoke Free”
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will review its “a place to be smoke free” campaign. (S4O-04258)
“A place to be smoke free” is an NHS Fife campaign to support the implementation of its smoke-free grounds policy. The campaign has been accompanied by new “smoke free” signage across the NHS Fife estate. NHS Fife is monitoring compliance with its smoke-free policy on an on-going basis. Initial observations are that there has been a reduction in smoking and tobacco-related litter across NHS Fife grounds.
Tobacco is the biggest cause of preventable ill health and early death in Scotland. The Government is committed to tackling that, and I welcome the efforts of all national health service boards, including NHS Fife and NHS Health Scotland, in implementing and supporting smoke-free policies. It may be difficult for some smokers, but the measure is a positive response to complaints about smoking on NHS grounds from staff, patients and visitors. I thank all patients, visitors and staff for their efforts to respect the policies.
The minister may be aware of a number of reports circulating in the press, including in The Courier on 20 April, suggesting that substantial numbers of people are flouting the ban. Is the Scottish Government considering introducing a ban under the new public health bill?
It is still early days for the new policy of smoke-free NHS grounds. The approach is not about enforcement; it is about raising awareness and changing the culture. However, I recognise that chief executives are concerned about compliance. We recently consulted on a range of legislative proposals relating to tobacco and e-cigarettes and on the question of what action, if any, the Scottish Government should take to support smoke-free NHS grounds. I will announce our response to that consultation shortly.
I can call question 16, from Richard Lyle, if the question and answers are very brief.
Football Club Funding (Broadcasting)
To ask the Scottish Government when it last discussed football club funding with BSkyB, ITV and the BBC. (S4O-04259)
The First Minister sent a letter to Tony Hall, the director general of the BBC, on 2 April asking about the disparity between the BBC’s investment in English football and its investment in Scottish football. We have not raised the issue with other broadcasters yet, but we intend to do so.
I have heard reports that many individual football clubs in England will receive an average yearly payment of over £100 million from television companies. Does the minister agree that United Kingdom sports channels should look to improve their payment allocation to the Scottish Football Association and Scottish football clubs in general?
Yes, indeed. The First Minister received a response from Tony Hall stating that the BBC does not control the sports rights market and must consider value for money for the licence fee payer. Although I accept the need for the BBC to consider value for money, I hope that it understands the concern about the disparity that exists between its investment in English football and its investment in Scottish football. I do not want to exaggerate the extent to which the Scottish Government can influence such matters, but we stand ready to assist the SFA and the Scottish Professional Football League on the matter if we can.