Chamber and committees

Sorry, convener—my apologies.

Again thinking of the impacts of Covid, we have all realised how isolation arises and how important connections to our families are for us to stay mentally healthy. However, not everybody has that support.

Earlier you spoke about the promise of how the relationships and trust that people build with other people—not just with families, but with organisations that provide support—help them to sustain progress. My question is about how we can sustain that progress. People who are coming through addiction and starting to move on with their lives will have struggles at times. How do we ensure that they are able to connect back in and get the support that they need as they move forward?

I thank Karen Adam and all the other members who have spoken.

Scottish Disability Sport and its partners across sport governance, local authorities, health, education and beyond continue to make great strides in supporting inclusion in physical activity and sport. I commend them for their work.

My speech is based around the personal experience and recollections of one woman from the Uddingston and Bellshill constituency. This incredible woman is a valued national health service worker, with almost 30 years of service, and her experience of supporting our Scottish triathlon para athletes during the Tokyo Olympics really touched me. It demonstrates that success should not be measured only in gold, silver or bronze medals, which is a point that my friend Karen Adam also made.

From my constituent’s point of view, many things stood out, from the Japanese hosts and local organisers, who all did an incredible job, to the build for the para triathlon site, which incorporated platforms over sand and water, with ramps and bridges more than 1.5km long—it was truly awesome from an engineering perspective.

The warmth of the hosts and volunteers and their wish to make sure that everyone was comfortable was heartwarming, with every one of them extending invites to the whole team urging them to return once Covid has passed to fully experience their wonderful country and culture in all its richness. I certainly hope that that is possible soon.

The technical teams were made up of international colleagues from across the world, with many having met at previous games. However, Tokyo was their first meeting in two years, and my resident rates them as some of the warmest, most life affirming people we could ever want to meet. They often describe themselves as technical family. She also talked to me about the daily health surveillance app that played its part in protecting against Covid-19, and the challenges around restrictions, training disruption, and adjusting to the heat and humidity, which is not something that we Scottish people are used to.

Travel was a particular challenge. The baggage handlers carefully managed the specialist kit—handcyles, racing chairs and specialist bikes—being very aware that those items would not be easily replaced if damaged. Despite all those pressures, I am told that our athletes were outstanding at every point.

Sadly, the grandstand was empty of the usual spectators, with family and friends sorely missed by all. However, the support personnel and other athletes cheered as loudly as they could at every event, making as much noise as humanly possible to show their backing for one another.

I am that sure that everyone will agree that our para athletes deserve huge respect and admiration. It is great that they are entering the mainstream and being recognised as elite in their own right, which is long overdue. I am told that they are grateful to Channel 4 for helping to raise their profile. For me, that is yet another reason to hope that attempts to sell off Channel 4 fail.

Para athletes have faced bigger challenges than most of us could ever imagine. As they cheered each other over the line to an emotional finish, officials, photographers and medics discreetly wiped tears away from their eyes—an unforgettable experience and a real show of solidarity.

Let us hope that elite pathway opportunities for para athletes continue to grow, that opportunities to participate in disability sport continue to grow, and that the reach and power of sport continue to grow .

Interestingly, Brexit was a hot topic among European Union, Commonwealth and Irish officials, with many keen to welcome an independent Scotland back into the EU. It is good to hear that our friends are leaving a light on for Scotland, and I hope that the next Paralympics will host a full indy Scotland team. I am sure that that does not surprise anybody, whether they agree with me or not.

I thank the incredible local woman who shared her story with me, and applaud the inspiring Tokyo para athletes. May they go from strength to strength as the Paris games approach.

Yes.

I am interested in the alignment of business links, links into universities and colleges, and collaborative work with them. Will you expand on that, please?

I am really interested in the links to colleges and universities and what they are looking for. Will you expand on that?

What work do we need to do with schools and universities to support young people to get the skills that colleges and universities want them to have?

With new Covid cases in Lanarkshire still the highest in Europe, and with levels of A and E attendance and hospital admissions proportionally higher in Lanarkshire than in other Scottish NHS areas, what additional support can the Scottish Government provide to NHS Lanarkshire to enable it to respond locally to that immediate and worrying situation?

With new Covid cases in Lanarkshire—[Interruption.]

Emma Harper mentioned cancer. Has there been any exploration of the idea of lung cancer screening? It is the most common cancer, and people experiencing deprivation are three times more likely to suffer from it. Has any work been done on that, or is there any intention to carry out any work on that?

Pre-pandemic, adverse childhood experiences were possibly the biggest public health issue facing Scotland, with poverty being a strong reinforcing factor. Evidence suggests that the resulting toxic stress leads to health problems in adulthood, including heart attacks, strokes and addiction. Indeed, it can even lead to increased cancer rates. Given that there being increased ACEs could have a huge impact on the NHS, how will you look to knit together health and social care partnerships, local authorities and public health agencies in order to develop policies that can provide support and prevention and, down the line, save people from going to the NHS with such problems?