Chamber and committees

I am sure that all members will welcome the news that HIS and the MWC will undertake a range of visits to all three adolescent in-patient units in Scotland. Will the minister advise whether they are to become regular occurrences? What role does she expect HIS and the MWC to play in holding service providers to account in the future?

Presiding Officer,

“The untapped resources of the North Sea are as nothing compared to the untapped resources of our people.”

Fifty-three years after Jimmy Reid uttered that line as part of a speech entitled “Alienation”, those words still hold true, as does so much else of that speech. Today, folk are feeling alienated. Many feel themselves to be victims of economic forces beyond their control. They are feeling frustration, hopelessness and despair. Eight months ago, many of those people voted for change. They voted for their energy bills to be £300 lower. They voted for Scotland to be the powerhouse of a clean energy mission. They voted for a GB Energy based in Scotland that would see 1,000 new jobs created.

So, where are we now? My constituents’ bills are not £300 lower—they are £279 higher. Some are double that amount out of pocket after Labour took away their winter fuel payment. Funding for the Acorn project, which would move a just transition on leaps and bounds, has been put on pause. When the Labour UK Government announced £22 billion for carbon capture, Scotland did not even get a mention. At Grangemouth, where Labour pledged to save the refinery and jobs, the workers have been betrayed by the UK Government, while Scottish Labour has been shamefully silent.

Meanwhile, in my Donside constituency, we finally got the news that GB Energy was going to be based in Aberdeen, which was always the obvious choice. I welcomed it, but then the news got taken back because, of course, Labour conference was just around the corner, so any investment got put on pause until it could be reannounced. A month later, a chair was announced for Aberdeen-based GB Energy, and he was going to be based in Manchester. Those 1,000 jobs that we were promised are apparently still coming. We just need to wait for 20 years.

It is no wonder that folk feel betrayed and alienated. Do not get me wrong. I welcome any investment in a just transition. I welcome any investment in clean and green energy. I welcome any new jobs coming to Aberdeen. I welcome and support those things, because they will benefit the folk who I represent. I will support the motion, but I really wish that I was welcoming more.

North Sea oil has given Scotland, and the north-east in particular, a lot of advantages, the biggest of which is that the north-east now has a workforce that is world leading in many ways. Some of those folk were born and raised in Aberdeen and have spent their whole careers there. Some learned their skills there, travelled the world, gained experience and came back. Some moved to Aberdeen because of the industry and have put down roots there. Wherever they are from, they are some of the best in the world, and we are lucky to have them in Aberdeen. However, if we want to keep those workers there—if we want their help in delivering a just transition, guaranteeing our energy security and making our energy supply cleaner, greener and cheaper—we need to invest properly in the north-east and give them a reason to build their futures in Scotland, while they build Scotland’s future. If the UK Government will not go far enough and fast enough, let Scotland deliver it herself. We have the energy; we just need the power.

Good morning. Thank you for your opening statement, which seems to have been a wee while ago now.

I was pleased to hear that you have had a frank and honest discussion with SATH. I believe that SATH has called for a major review of higher history. What is your view on the matter? Was that part of your discussion?

Are you confident that what needs to take place between SATH and the SQA will take place?

I know that you cannot say, “Yes, everything’s going to be positive.” I meant on the whole.

It is vital that every child has the best possible start in life and that any developmental concerns are identified early. Will the minister outline what steps the Scottish Government is taking to support families and young people to ensure that assessment times are reduced?

Could the minister say any more about how children’s services planning partnerships are supporting families alongside third sector organisations? How is the Scottish Government supporting them to carry out that important work?

We all know the important role that the Acorn carbon capture and storage project could play in the future of Grangemouth. However, as the First Minister has indicated, to date the UK Government has prioritised investment in carbon capture and storage elsewhere in the UK. People across Scotland—rightly—will not understand why the Labour Government can back carbon capture in Teesside but not in Scotland. Does the First Minister agree that it is long overdue that the UK Government gives its full backing to fast-tracking Scottish carbon capture in order to support a future for workers at Grangemouth?

I welcome that the Scottish Government has brought forward this important debate. After all, many people in the Parliament or watching at home will have experienced the loss of a baby.

In Scotland, we pride ourselves on being a contemporary and open-minded society, but, for many, discussing the topic of loss can still feel somewhat off limits. We can still feel inhibited in being open about how we feel and the true impact of a miscarriage.

For those trying to comfort the bereaved, the words for expressing sympathy often do not come easy. If we are being honest, the fact is that, at the end of the day, no words can help. However, the sentiment can make all the difference, so we must reach out. If we cannot find the words, we can just hold their hand—or them. Just letting folk know that we care and are thinking about them can help a little.

This is a bittersweet debate because, although the data tells us that miscarriage is a relatively common occurrence, the loss of a baby, at no matter what stage of pregnancy, is traumatic and can have a profound impact on parents and families. There is a lot for parents to process as they grieve the often unexplained and unexpected loss of their precious baby. At the same time, they are honouring their baby, seeking and providing support, and setting out on what might well be a long journey of healing.

There is absolutely no doubt that there have been significant improvements in miscarriage care in Scotland, and I welcome the Scottish Government’s commitment to ensuring that everyone affected by pregnancy loss before 24 weeks gets the high-quality care and support that they need. I also welcome that the Scottish Government has mandated the national bereavement care pathway, which has meant that all health boards are currently working on implementing the standards and pathways associated with it. The positive impact is beginning to show for both bereaved parents and healthcare staff, with 82 per cent of healthcare professionals agreeing that it has helped raise the profile of effective bereavement care. Although that is positive, there is work still to be done.

I thank Sands and everyone else who has taken the trouble to get in touch with us before the debate. In its briefing, Sands said that it has heard of significant delays of up to three days between women being seen in A and E for a suspected miscarriage and being referred to early pregnancy assessment services. Health boards must consider what work they can do to reduce such delays and to offer more direct access to early pregnancy assessment services. I would be interested to hear from the minister in her closing speech whether an assessment has been made of the adequacy of access to early pregnancy assessment services for all those who need it, and what improvements can be made.

I take the opportunity to thank the Scottish Government for launching a memorial book and certificate in 2023, for all those who experience pregnancy or baby loss prior to 24 weeks. To those who have not suffered a loss, it probably does not have a significant meaning; to those who have, it means the world. The loss of their loved one, no matter how young, matters and is not forgotten.

I finish by expressing my sympathies to all those who have gone through such a tragic loss.

I now pass over to the patient John Mason.