Chamber and committees

On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I was unable to connect; I would have voted yes.

As the efficient and fair function of Scotland’s justice system is a priority for all in this chamber, does the cabinet secretary agree with me on the importance of the Scottish Sentencing Council and the courts working independently to ensure that objective?

I will touch on that. I mentioned the need for investment in the green jobs and infrastructure that grow our economy. Just last week, the Confederation of British Industry published a report that highlighted the green jobs opportunities that exist in East Lothian, which is the third-biggest contributor in Scotland to the green economy. Renewables are the future, both in Scotland and in East Lothian.

The broader debate is about ensuring that those who are successful pay their fair share towards the foundations that make success possible. Polling shows strong public support, including among higher earners, for taxing extreme wealth over cutting services. We can build on the property and land taxes that we already control to develop a targeted, nuanced taxation system—there are many international examples out there that we can learn from—that will minimise avoidance while delivering results. Relying solely on income tax hits working people harder. In Scotland, we have shown that we can use fiscal powers progressively without harming growth.

However, we must revisit the current fiscal framework with the UK Government, which does not suit Scotland. There is a total lack of flexibility.

In Scotland, our values are clear: they are about fairness, solidarity and opportunity for all. As an SNP MSP, I champion taking a progressive approach to funding the high-quality public services that define our nation.

Why do we need to do that? We are facing rising demands on our NHS, our education system and our local communities, therefore we must have the courage to tax wealth more so that we can invest in the people of Scotland. After 15 years of Westminster austerity, our public services are under pressure. We also have an ageing population, and growing demand means that we cannot stand still. Waiting times, recruitment challenges and sustainability issues persist despite there being growth in real terms. Schools and local government also face strains.

Efficiency reforms and prevention are vital but, on their own, they are not enough. We need to generate sustainable, progressive revenue to match our ambition for a fairer Scotland. That revenue should come from increased economic growth and fair wealth taxation.

Wealth inequality in Scotland remains stark. The wealthiest 10 per cent hold a hugely disproportionate share—the top 2 per cent hold more wealth than the bottom 50 per cent. Much of that wealth grows through assets that benefit from Scotland’s stability, infrastructure and skilled workforce, all of which are supported by public investment. It is only right that those with the broadest shoulders should contribute more, to sustain the social contract.

The SNP will always act progressively on taxation. We delivered the most progressive income tax system in the UK, which protects lower and middle-income earners while raising substantial revenue for services, and, as we have heard, we are proposing a mansion tax on properties worth more than £1 million and a tax on private jet use.

I was heartened to hear the cabinet secretary talk about the need for long-term reform of council tax and business rates. Council tax reform is needed in this session, and we must all work together to ensure that that happens. We have had too many debates on the subject for it not to happen. The need for council tax reform goes to the heart of not only progressive taxation but local accountability. Business rates also need to be reviewed if we are to support and grow our business base.

However, we must go further by seriously exploring and developing wealth taxation options. More funding needs to be found to support more nurses, teachers and care workers, to expand programmes for tackling child poverty and to invest in the green jobs and infrastructure that grow our economy. The broader debate is about ensuring that the successful pay their fair share—

Earlier, we heard Shirley-Anne Somerville make the point that welfare cuts would come from the Tories. However, their approach is not one that I would support.

I go back to my key point. Making tax cuts now would also cut our block grant now, which in turn would mean cuts to our public services now, while Labour’s rise in employer national insurance contributions is damaging growth.

I urge members to back carrying out a bold exploration of wealth taxation measures. Let us publish detailed options, engage with experts and unions, and deliver concrete proposals. We need to reform our public services and increase growth in our economy, but we also need to tax wealth fairly if we are to invest in our people and secure a better future for generations to come. Scotland deserves nothing less.

16:16

Yes.

I go back to my point that the broader debate is about ensuring that those who are successful pay their fair share towards the foundations that make that success possible. There is a balance to be struck here, which involves looking at fairer taxation, what we want to spend the money on and the fiscal framework within which we currently operate. I will touch on that later.

There is no disagreement on what we want to spend the money on. I have highlighted the need for investment in child services and other services to ensure that the values that I have mentioned are promoted.

We need to have a targeted and nuanced taxation system, because relying solely on income tax hits working people harder. We also need to revisit the current fiscal framework, which, as I said, does not suit Scotland.

Today’s debate is not only about taxation. There will be many debates about growth, as there should be. Just today, the First Minister said, following his address to the Prosper forum:

“A strong economy is key to everything I want to achieve as First Minister. We will make our planning system work better, expand apprenticeships and devolve powers to Regional Partnerships, helping to create more jobs.”

I say to Willie Rennie that the point about wealth creation brings an important balance to this debate. The Scottish Government proves that by giving more revenue to front-line services while most taxpayers pay less than they would in England.

The debate is also about Scotland’s future governance. With independence, we would have full control over our levers. We have heard today about corporation tax, inheritance tax and capital gains tax, We could also use comprehensive wealth taxation to build the fairer, more prosperous country that we know is possible.

In the meantime, we must use every devolved power that we have to push for more fiscal responsibility from Westminster and must lead by example, because this is about our values as a nation. We want a Scotland where opportunity is determined not by the wealth that people inherit but by the talent and effort that they bring; one where our schools, NHS and communities are properly funded so that every child has the best start and every family feels secure; and one in which we build a thriving, inclusive economy.

We continue to hear requests from other parties for more funding for public services but with no explanation of how they would pay for that. Reform and the Tories propose tax cuts now, but that would cut our block grant now when we are talking about creating future economic growth.

I am willing to take an intervention if Mr Hoy would like to come in on that point.

Scotland’s NHS is one of our greatest achievements. In East Lothian, the service looks after our families every single day. Whether through the outstanding care at the East Lothian community hospital in Haddington; our local GP practices in North Berwick, Dunbar or Prestonpans; or specialist treatment at the Edinburgh royal infirmary, the NHS is a safety net that we all rely on.

We all hold the national-level NHS close to our hearts. However, as we have heard, our experiences are driven by local delivery. East Lothian community hospital was fully opened in 2020, at a cost of £70 million, and it replaced the old Roodlands and Herdmanflat hospitals.

I want to speak about how the SNP is delivering for East Lothian through the three clear commitments that we have heard about: to invest in, protect and renew our NHS. I also want to talk about the challenges. We must admit that there are challenges out there—one of the challenges for East Lothian is the growing population.

On delivery investment, the NHS has been backed by the SNP Government with record funding of £22.5 billion. That includes £17.5 billion for front-line services, including more than £2.3 billion directly for NHS Lothian. There is an issue of funding for areas with rapid population growth, such as the south-east of Scotland. That issue has been raised with NHS Lothian in various forums, and I would like to discuss it with the cabinet secretary when she has got further into her role.

That investment is making a difference in East Lothian. Thanks to SNP investment, East Lothian community hospital opened in 2020, as I have said, bringing together services from the old Roodlands and Herdmanflat hospitals into a state-of-the-art facility with 60 per cent more in-patient bed capacity. It delivers better care, closer to home, for our growing communities.

I have discussed with the local NHS board the need to have accident and emergency services at East Lothian community hospital; that is another thing that I would like to take up with the cabinet secretary. We need to ease pressures on acute services by bringing more services from Edinburgh to East Lothian community hospital and maximising capacity.

Delayed discharges in East Lothian are impacted by the lack of care staff. Following the closure by the UK Government of the social care visa route, the Scottish Government has taken action. I have spoken to carers about the lack of staff, and I know that it is an issue in East Lothian, especially in the more remote areas. We must all concentrate on that issue.

On recruiting more staff, it is important to mention that Scotland has more GPs per head than elsewhere in the UK. We are expanding primary care with GP walk-in clinics and additional support for family doctors. Like many others, I support and will be campaigning for a walk-in centre in East Lothian. On GP surgeries, I mentioned the need for investment in growing communities. For example, we need new GP practices in North Berwick and the new community of Blindwells.

The Scottish Government has provided tens of millions of pounds extra to NHS Lothian, specifically to cut waiting times. In 11 months, we have already seen waiting times being cut. Other waiting lists have also fallen significantly: there have been notable reductions in those for orthopaedics, urology and general surgery.

The SNP will always protect the core principles of our NHS: it must remain comprehensive and universal, and it must be free at the point of need. Under the SNP, prescriptions, eye tests and personal care remain free. Those benefits matter enormously to families and older people across East Lothian—I heard about that when I was out campaigning. Unlike Reform and Nigel Farage, we reject any move towards privatisation or a two-tier system based on ability to pay. While others want to cut or privatise, the SNP stands firm: the NHS belongs to the people of Scotland. It is publicly owned, publicly delivered and protected for future generations.

Importantly, we must renew the NHS. Investment and protection are essential, but we must also renew and reform the NHS to meet the challenges of an ageing population, new technologies and rising demand. That is why we are shifting the balance of care. That is about treating more people closer to home through hospital at home and community diagnostics, and expanding services at our local community hospital in Haddington. As leader of East Lothian Council, I brought the hospital at home initiative to East Lothian in 2010, and it is still making a huge difference now.

We need to harness innovations such as digital booking systems and new ways to access physiotherapy and mental health support. In addition, we must put prevention at the heart of everything, which will keep people healthier for longer so that they need hospital care less often. Mental health services are being expanded, and we must continue to treat drug and alcohol harm as a public health issue.

In East Lothian, renewal means having stronger community services, better integration between health and social care and a health service that works for all our coastal towns, growing villages and rural areas. A key message that I heard from local communities was that they must be involved in deciding how we deliver and develop services.

Of course, challenges remain. Demand is high and the pressures are real, but, with record investment, falling waiting times in key areas and the incredible dedication of our NHS staff in East Lothian, we are making steady, serious progress, so let us continue to build an NHS that makes every person in East Lothian proud—one that cares for us from cradle to grave, and that our children and grandchildren can rely on.

Does the minister share my view that the Government has a responsibility to ease the burden on households during a cost of living crisis, including through targeted interventions when a broken Brexit economy places essential goods out of the reach of Scottish households that are struggling under decades of Westminster austerity?

One of the key things that I will touch on is co-production. That must be not only with the sector, but with parents and other groups. I will come on to that point later in my speech.

As I said, that includes working with the PVI sector. The cabinet secretary has highlighted other areas of discussion that will be part of the process going forward, and co-production is an incredibly important part of that.

I have seen the difference that the 1,140 hours provision makes. Indeed, I heard about it on the doorstep many times during the campaign—I am sure that we all did. I heard about parents returning to work or study with confidence, and mums and dads having a bit more breathing space.

One important point is that the provision allows children to thrive in a nurturing environment—they are learning through play, making friends and getting ready for school. That is despite the challenges that we faced during the global pandemic a number of years ago.

What does the expansion mean? The SNP will deliver the next big leap: a transformational expansion of childcare from the age of nine months right through to the end of primary school, available 52 weeks a year. That means wraparound care—before and after school, breakfast clubs, which have been mentioned, and holiday provision—and proper support for childminders and all types of providers.

To come back to Mr Kerr’s point, we are backing the expansion with—this is a ballpark figure—£500 million of investment.

For East Lothian Coast and Lammermuirs, the proposed expansion is huge. It is one of the fastest-growing areas in Scotland, with young families choosing to settle in East Lothian because of our schools, coasts, communities and quality of life.

However, many parents still face real pressures, such as commuting to work. We must ensure that the policy offers flexibility, given that some people are catching trains at seven o’clock in the morning and not returning until six o’clock in the evening. Other parents face pressures from working in local tourism, agriculture or small businesses, or simply from trying to make ends meet.

The expansion will be a game changer. A parent in Dunbar, in East Lothian, told me that they can go back to work knowing that their nine-month-old is receiving loving, high-quality care. Families in Prestonpans with primary-age children will no longer be scrambling for expensive after-school arrangements. Working mums and dads across Longniddry will be able to balance careers and family without losing out financially. There will also be better support for families with additional needs, and more flexibility for everyone.

Of course, this is not just about childcare. It is about tackling child poverty, closing the attainment gap, supporting women back into work or training and growing our local economy. For far too long, lack of childcare has been a block on economic growth. Increasing childcare will help growth in our local economy.

High-quality early learning helps every child, and especially those who need it most, to develop socially, emotionally and cognitively.

We know that delivery is key. That is fundamental in times of tight fiscal management. That is why there has already been a £1 billion-a-year investment in the current programme and the Government has worked in partnership with local authorities to pay staff the real living wage.

As a local MSP, I will continue to work closely with East Lothian Council, providers and parents to ensure that the next phase of the policy is delivered smoothly and sustainably in our communities.

The next phase must be delivered in partnership with parents. It must be a model of co-production. Changes that East Lothian Council made last year highlighted the need for closer co-operation. I have pledged to continue working with parents’ representatives moving forward.

I say to the parents and carers here today: I see the demanding work you do every day. The SNP is the party that has consistently put families first. We delivered the 1,140 hours provision, and now we are ready to go further. Flexibility and capacity will be key, as we have heard today.

To everyone else in the East Lothian Coast and Lammermuirs area, I say that the Government will deliver the big ambitious changes that will make life better. That means continuing the progress that is already transforming lives across our towns, villages and countryside.

Together, in this Parliament, let us make East Lothian—and Scotland—the best place on these islands in which to raise a family.