Chamber and committees

Mental health is one of the major public health challenges in Scotland, and I put on record my thanks to NHS staff and the Scottish Government for ensuring that that has remained a priority throughout the response to Covid-19. Will the minister provide an update on the increase in mental health staff since the Scottish National Party came into office? Will he set out the action that the Government is taking to increase the number of mental health staff, to allow our patients to access support in their communities?

I want to say how welcome the bill is. I was first elected as a councillor in South Ayrshire in 2017. The misuse of fireworks has been a constant concern for all my constituents. That was reflected in the response to the 2019 consultation, in which more than 16,000 people participated. A substantial majority of 94 per cent of respondents thought that there should be more control over the sale of fireworks. Jamie Greene said that the public want progress. Although I do not sit on the Criminal Justice Committee, a lot of questions have been raised today that I hope will be answered at stage 2, so that we can progress the bill, given the appetite for reform.

I grew up in Sydney, Australia, where 26 January is Australia day. We celebrate the day with family, barbecues and, of course, plenty of fireworks. However, in Australia, things are done very differently. For the majority of the country, public possession and use of fireworks are banned in order to reduce the number of accidents, burns, injuries and destruction to property. Only licensed, organised displays are permitted, and plenty of warning is given to allow people to properly prepare themselves.

The bill that is before Parliament takes important steps to make the use of fireworks safer and more enjoyable for everyone across Scotland. It takes a cautious approach, as has been done in other countries throughout the world, to create a cultural shift in how fireworks are used in Scotland. I welcome that the proposal clearly outlines at what times of the year fireworks can be supplied and used by members of the public. That was widely welcomed in the bill’s digital engagement study, which commented that that would allow members of the public who might be impacted by fireworks to mitigate disruption by having a better idea of on what dates to expect firework use.

I do not think that Holyrood has the legislative ability to ban fireworks.

Sorry?

Thank you. I will address Mr Greene’s point further on.

As I have mentioned, since coming into office, I have received many emails from constituents about excessive firework use in the area, and—let us face it—Guy Fawkes night usually turns into Guy Fawkes month.

Over the past couple of years, the pandemic has hit hard on people’s mental health. The COVID-19 Recovery Committee has been taking evidence from experts on that. In no way do I doubt that the excessive use of fireworks will exacerbate that for certain individuals, especially our troops. We all know that post-traumatic stress disorder is a real issue for those who return from the horrors of war. That is why Combat Stress urges the public to buy only silent fireworks—although a loud bang might mark a fun night for some people, it could transport others back to scenes that they would rather forget.

Last October, there was a horrifying explosion in a house in Kincaidston in my constituency of Ayr. Six months on, the Kincaidston community still feels the horrors of that night. Only weeks afterwards, some people decided to let off fireworks locally for Guy Fawkes night. That thoughtless act caused deep distress to the local community, which was still coming to terms with the events of that awful night.

As we have heard, it is not just people who are affected by fireworks; our animals are, too. We are a nation of animal lovers, and that is why some people have an issue with fireworks. We have seen how fireworks can impact on animals, especially dogs, and many of my constituents choose to sedate their dogs around November.

Back in 2018, I remember that fireworks were being let off around Christmas time, and a local rescue dog was so terrified that it managed to escape and run to a very large local park called Belleisle. I and other volunteers spent a few very cold days in our cars, guarding the entrances to the park, in case the dog emerged. Thankfully, after three days, the dog was found safe and sound, but it was still shaking from the experience.

The Blue Cross notes that the current system of easy public access to fireworks and poor enforcement of existing legislation is having a detrimental impact on animal welfare. It further believes that, if administered and enforced strictly, the bill will bring about a greater appreciation of animal welfare and will reduce the numbers of pets and wildlife that are injured or even killed by fireworks in Scotland.

The Dogs Trust, along with many other groups and individuals, believes that firework use in Scotland should be limited to licensed, organised public displays at certain times of year, and events such as weddings. I agree with that principle. However, the issue is largely reserved, and the Scottish Government does not possess the powers to implement a full ban on the sale of fireworks to the public. I therefore hope that the Scottish Government will work closely with our counterparts at Westminster to come to a solution on that. In the meantime, I believe that the licensing system that the bill proposes will stop careless individuals from obtaining fireworks and causing distress to our communities.

I am sorry, Presiding Officer—I know that I am running out of time.

Importantly, the Labour amendment takes note of paragraph 386 of the Criminal Justice Committee’s report, which expresses concerns about the fast-tracked nature of the bill, which may allow for less time for scrutiny and amendments. However, the bill has been a long time in coming, and it is important that we progress it.

My colleague Rona Mackay has said that the people of Scotland want us just to get on with it, and I agree 100 per cent, given the strong feeling in my constituency. That is why I fully support the bill and agree that it will be an important step towards creating a cultural shift in how fireworks in Scotland are used.

The committee will publish a report to Parliament in due course, setting out its decision on the statutory instrument.

That concludes our consideration of the agenda item and our time with the Deputy First Minister. I thank him and his officials for their attendance. That concludes the public part of the meeting.

That is great. Thank you very much.

I am sorry; we do not have time for any more questions. That concludes our consideration of this agenda item. I thank the Deputy First Minister and his officials for their evidence.

As we move away from having ministerial statements on Covid-19, I especially thank the Deputy First Minister, Professor Jason Leitch, Elizabeth Blair and all the officials who have attended the committee in the past 11 months. We really appreciated you making yourselves so available to respond to our questions.

Agenda item 4 is consideration of the Health Protection (Coronavirus) (Requirements) (Scotland) Amendment (No 6) Regulations 2022. Deputy First Minister, would you like to make any further remarks about the instrument before we take the motion?

Thank you—that is helpful.

An issue that I have brought up previously is that of how we can raise awareness of the distance aware scheme. I will share my experience. After raising the issue in the committee, I went to Asda in my constituency and was told that it no longer does the scheme. When I went to Morrisons, the staff did not know what I was talking about. I then went to one of the local libraries. The staff found a box, said, “I think this is what you’re talking about,” and gave me a lanyard. When I asked whether there was a pass or a badge to go with it, they said, “No—you just get the lanyard.” Therefore, I think that there is still a lot of work to be done, especially for those people who want other people to keep their distance and still have concerns about going out among the general public. We need to raise the general public’s awareness of the need to respect the space of such people.

How can the Scottish Government raise the profile of the distance aware scheme?

That is great—thank you. I appreciate that.

What is the Scottish Government’s assessment of current and forthcoming pressures on public services such as the health, police, fire and education services as a result of Covid-related absences?