Chamber and committees

To ask the Scottish Government how many systemic reaction specialists there are who can support people who have had an allergic reaction to their first Covid-19 vaccine. (S6O-00202)

On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I seek your guidance. Yesterday, during the debate on ambulances, Fulton MacGregor stated the following:

“the local authority in North Lanarkshire is made up of a Labour and Conservative coalition.”—[Official Report, 22 September 2021; c 72.]

I am a serving councillor in North Lanarkshire. There is no coalition, unlike here, where there is a formal agreement between the Scottish National Party and the Green Party. The Conservatives in North Lanarkshire Council will work with any party for the benefit of the people in North Lanarkshire. Mr MacGregor knows well all that I have just said. He must be aware that he is guilty of misrepresenting the facts.

Members of the public expect elected members to be factual when making their contributions inside and outside the chamber. I would therefore be grateful for your guidance on how the Official Report can be corrected at the earliest opportunity.

I commend Siobhian Brown for bringing this important issue to the chamber.

As we have heard, fetal alcohol spectrum disorders can cause children to have a range of issues as a direct result of alcohol consumption during pregnancy. We must continue to raise awareness of the condition to ensure that mothers understand the dangers of drinking while pregnant and the impact that it can have on their unborn child.

I was not aware of FASD until my mid 20s and, as far as I am concerned, education is one of the best ways for people to learn about having a happy, healthy pregnancy. Given that three in every 100 babies in the United Kingdom are affected by FASD and that roughly 45 per cent of pregnancies are unplanned, educating young people might be one way of reducing the number of children born with this condition.

I know that we do not have enough time to discuss the subject in more depth today, but another way of approaching this is to continue to tackle the binge-drinking issue that we have in Scotland. As we know, binge drinking has been exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic, causing real concern for health boards, experts and organisations that offer advice on FASD.

Although FASD is completely preventable, Alcohol Focus Scotland and other organisations have suggested that it is a cause for concern, because no amount of alcohol is safe for pregnant women or women who are planning a pregnancy.

I agree with Siobhian Brown and other members that we must do more to support children and adults with FASD. Although there is a wide range of benefits and support networks to help families with the condition, because FASD goes undetected for quite some time, many try to cope without talking to organisations that could assist them. Again, turning to my earlier point about education, if teachers and childcare professionals were trained to spot symptoms of FASD, families might be helped to understand what support is available to them.

During Ms Brown’s opening contribution, she spoke passionately about the area that she represents, the excellent work that is being carried out by the Ayr-based Oshay’s FASD organisation, and told the wonderful story about Taylor and Oshay the octopus, which gave us an insight into people who live with FASD. That is why it is so important that we continue to talk about the condition.

I will continue the narrative by talking about the work that NHS Lanarkshire carried out in the run-up to FASD awareness day, which took place on 9 September. As part of its campaign, NHS Lanarkshire released figures from Alcohol Focus Scotland, which revealed that around 29 per cent of adults were drinking more than before Covid-19 restrictions were introduced. In addition, younger adults were more likely to report an increase in the frequency and quantity of alcohol consumed.

NHS Lanarkshire took to social media to raise awareness, but also to target those who were more likely to become pregnant or who were trying to conceive, and provided details of who to contact for support. Although that campaign was positively received, more work needs to be done to make the neurodevelopmental condition better known.

Various groups, including Alcohol Focus Scotland, have called on the Scottish Government to introduce mandatory alcohol labelling, to increase awareness of the risks that are associated with drinking. Most of the warning labels on bottles are not satisfactory at present, with many having only a small picture with no information or explanation of why people should not drink while pregnant.

Alcohol Focus Scotland argues that providing helpful messaging on labels will provide information and advice at the point of purchase, which will help women make a choice that is healthy for their unborn child.

Once again, I thank Siobhian Brown for bringing the issue to the chamber and I hope that, by raising awareness, more can be done to support pregnant women, and families who live with FASD.

The SNP-Green coalition deal was struck after the decision to honour the Green manifesto pledge to double the number of wind farms in Scotland by 2030. Statistics released by Forestry and Land Scotland in February last year showed that, since 2000, 13.9 million trees have been axed to make way for 21 wind farm projects. That not only disturbs the natural habitats of many endangered animals but could impact climate change targets. How many mature trees will be lost because of that manifesto pledge?

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making in meeting its target of planting 30 million trees by the end of 2021, and whether it achieved the 22 million target last year. (S6O-00177)

Yesterday, the First Minister finally admitted that our NHS is in crisis, but only after growing pressure from NHS boards, healthcare professionals, unions and MSPs, who warned the Government that if it did not act, it would push our NHS beyond breaking point.

The Scottish Conservatives repeatedly warned the Government that our NHS was at breaking point long before the First Minister’s admission. A and E waiting times, ambulance waiting times, the cervical cancer screening scandal, waiting lists for vital diagnostic tests and waiting lists for child and adolescent mental health services are just some of the issues that have been raised in the chamber. It is clear that, after 13 years in government, the SNP does not have the willingness or the ability to fix the problems that it has created.

It is also clear that the crisis was entirely preventable, but because of the length of time that it took the SNP to act, those long-standing pre-Covid issues have now been exacerbated by the impact of the pandemic.

Further to yesterday’s announcement by the cabinet secretary, more than 100 military personnel will be drafted in to provide much-needed assistance to our hard-working NHS staff. This morning, we heard that taxi drivers will be recruited to help to transport patients to hospital for appointments. Those are the same taxi drivers who were hung out to dry during lockdown by the SNP Government.

In my region, NHS Lanarkshire will benefit from the services that will be provided by the staff who are deployed by the British Army, the fire brigade and taxi services. That assistance will provide welcome relief to my constituents and NHS Lanarkshire’s front-line staff. However, we should never have ended up in this position in the first place.

Over the past few weeks, we have heard devastating news of people dying as a result of the length of time that they had to wait to receive urgent care. We have heard of elderly people who lay on the floor in agony, hoping that someone would come and help them. People have waited for hours on end at A and E, while others have turned up at hospitals because they could not see their GP face to face, as GPs are so overworked and overwhelmed. All those situations arose on the cabinet secretary’s watch, and it can never be allowed to happen again.

The Scottish Government had every opportunity to intervene to fix those issues but, instead, the health secretary told people to think twice before calling an ambulance. Will he finally apologise for that, or will he continue to dismiss the notion that what he said was reckless and irresponsible?

The SNP’s amendment does not even begin to address the immense issues that our heroic NHS staff have had to endure. Frankly, the SNP should be ashamed. The Scottish Conservatives will vote against the SNP’s amendment. Instead, we will vote for a position that will force the SNP Government to declare major incident status in our Ambulance Service, halt its planned efficiency savings, maintain the four-hour A and E treatment target and publish ambulance response time data on a weekly basis so that progress can be measured in every region.

I agree with the points that are raised in the Labour motion, especially the recognition that is given to the wonderful Scottish Ambulance Service paramedics, technicians, call handlers and other front-line workers who have been failed by the Government. It is only right that we continue to support our NHS heroes who are always on hand to respond to an emergency. I urge Labour to vote for our amendment to its motion, to recognise our hard-working NHS staff but also to ensure that the Scottish Government is held to account for the NHS crisis that it has created.

Currently, there is not a streamlined approach to adoption support for Scottish families, despite the SNP’s pledge to implement its promise on that. Can the cabinet secretary provide an update on the grants for care-experienced 16 to 26-year-olds?

Does the member agree, however, with BMA Scotland’s comments in relation to not having enough GPs before the pandemic? Does she agree with that statement?

To ask the Scottish Government when it last met the National Autistic Society, in light of its reported concerns regarding support for families during the Covid-19 pandemic. (S6O-00102)

The director of the National Autistic Society Scotland has warned that the pandemic has removed critical support for families, which has left carers and young people struggling. Home schooling was difficult for children with autism to adjust to, with statistics showing that 63 per cent of autistic young people missed attending school. In addition, figures from the Autism Centre for Education and Research revealed uncertainty around education, which caused high levels of stress and anxiety.

What progress has been made on the proposed learning disability, autism and neurodiversity bill? When will families and people with autism receive the help and support that they deserve?