Chamber and committees

I put the same question to Rob Dickson, and then I will come to Peter Clark.

Would Martin Johnson like to add anything?

What do businesses and visitors want from a well-run ferry service? How do we get the balance right for businesses and visitors?

It is a privilege to speak in the debate and to pay respect to and commemorate all those who have given so much to preserve the freedoms that we all enjoy today.

On Sunday, people will gather to remember. Some will remember family members who died in two world wars; others will remember those who have died in numerous conflicts since; and some will wish to reflect on their own service and those who served with them.

Importantly, however—and I agree with Poppyscotland on this—remembrance Sunday is also an opportunity to educate younger generations on the atrocities of the past to ensure that history is not repeated. Last year, as a Gordon’s bairn, I spent my time in the debate reflecting on my ain family’s connections to the Gordon Highlanders. This year, I want to pay tribute to our armed forces and to highlight organisations and folk across my constituency who are working to support our veterans community.

As a former councillor on Aberdeen City Council, I was proud to play my part in ensuring that the council signed up to the armed forces covenant, for which the council now has a gold award.

The armed forces covenant is based on the premise that those who serve or have served, and their families, deserve respect, support and fair treatment. It stipulates that the local authority will, among other commitments: offer up to 1 per cent of its 2,000 new council houses to those who leave the armed forces and adapt up to a further 0.5 per cent for those who are injured in service; support the employment of veterans and work with the Career Transition Partnership to establish a tailored employment pathway; and ensure that armed forces personnel are not disadvantaged when it comes to school places for their bairns.

The covenant has proven to be hugely important for Scotland’s veterans and the armed forces community. I pay tribute to all at Aberdeen City Council for supporting it, and I encourage all other local authorities to take part if they have not already done so. The mental health and wellbeing of our veterans community is paramount and I welcome that the Scottish Government has allocated over £2 million in funding to support veterans charities.

I pay tribute to Kate Dean of Aberdeen citizens advice bureau, who has led the armed services advice project in Aberdeen. The project provides targeted support on access to welfare, employment opportunities, debt and finances and housing. Between November 2021 and today, in Aberdeen alone, ASAP has helped 119 veterans, with yearly financial gains totalling £13,000 each year. That can really help. The case studies, which are available on the CAB’s website—I encourage members to take a look—speak for themselves. The project has been made possible partly through funding from the Scottish Government. I welcome the commitment that the cabinet secretary made earlier, and I hope that such support will continue into the future.

Throughout wars and crises, we have relied on the selflessness of our armed forces to protect our freedoms and keep us safe from harm. To do their duty, our servicemen and women have been deployed around the world, wherever and whenever they have been needed. In recent years, our troops have been deployed to Afghanistan and to support humanitarian efforts in countries around the globe. The global contribution of our servicemen and women must be acknowledged.

I look forward to laying a wreath in Aberdeen this Sunday on behalf of the good folk of Aberdeen Donside, and I encourage aabodie to get their poppies out, wear them wi pride and support our service personnel, past and present.

We know that air pollution in Scotland is often worse in deprived inner-city areas, which worsens existing inequalities, local environmental quality and human health. What impact is it anticipated that the low-emission zones will have on improving air quality in those highly affected areas?

The Tory motion is, quite frankly, a disservice to the social care sector here in Scotland. The establishment of a national care service will be the most ambitious reform of public services since the creation of the national health service. The aim is to ensure consistent, fair and high-quality care for everyone in Scotland, thereby reducing the current variations that many folk have raised over recent years.

The Tory motion is simply wrong. A national care service is not about nationalisation of services. The bill—maybe Tory members should actually read it—sets out that, at national level, the functions will be focused on consistency through national oversight. Services will continue to be designed and delivered locally. That is right in order to support delivery with and for our communities and the people whom those services serve.

I am sorry. I normally take interventions, but today I have only four minutes.

National oversight will allow for better sharing of good practice and innovation, which we know takes place right across our country. For example, for years Aberdeen City Council and Aberdeenshire Council have pooled resources to get best value, when possible. It can be done. The proposed changes will bring forward new power-sharing arrangements at national and local levels. They will deliver a mix of the clarity that people want on ultimate accountability and, crucially, they will deliver the flexibility to meet local needs, including the needs of our island and rural communities.

The Tory motion questions the Scottish Government’s financial estimates for the National Care Service (Scotland) Bill, as well as the rationale for it, but the bill follows the independent review of adult social care, which showed the need for change and recommended reform and strengthening of national accountability for social care. The review found that the current way of working has not fully delivered the improvements that it was intended would be achieved by integration of health and social care. It showed that the current approach to social care is simply not working, because the current system focuses on profit over people, and it said that that must change.[Interruption.]

The rising cost of living is having a substantial impact on families across Scotland and, so far, the UK Government has failed to provide any certainty to families on low incomes. Does the Deputy First Minister agree that the UK Government should give a clear commitment in its upcoming fiscal statement that social security benefits should be increased in line with inflation?

The Tory motion appears to support the findings of the Feeley review, but it would deprive Parliament of the tools to deliver the change that is needed. The Tories’ so-called local care service would fail to address the fundamental issues of consistency, quality and access. It would add to the postcode lottery of care that the current system provides. For example, it would allow differences between delivery of care in Aberdeen Donside and delivery in Glasgow city. Perhaps in their summing up, the Tories could clarify how their plan would deal with the current postcode lottery, which they constantly complain about.

Any spending decisions that are made on the national care service will be backed by rigorous evidence-based decisions. The costs in the financial memorandum largely represent investments in service improvements and terms and conditions for our vital front-line care staff. Any suggestion that the figures relate exclusively to admin costs are totally false and misleading. The bill will also remove unwarranted duplication of functions, thereby providing best value for public funds, which is to be welcomed.

The creation of a national care service reinforces the Government’s wider commitment to taking long-term action to change our society and make it a fairer and more equal place in which to live, work and play.

We need to grasp this opportunity to deliver public service improvement together. I encourage the Opposition to work constructively with the Scottish Government on the bill. Let’s get this right for a’bodie.

Absolutely. Thank you.