Chamber and committees

Ross, I should just advise that Isabel Vaughan-Spruce and Dr Pickering would like to come in, too.

We are right out of time. I really appreciate that the witnesses have stayed longer. It was a worthwhile exercise. If there is any additional information that you would like to share with us in relation to our scrutiny of the bill, please write to us.

I suspend the meeting briefly to allow for a changeover of witnesses.

I believe that Isabel Vaughan-Spruce, Alina Dulgheriu and Dr Pickering wish to respond.

Eilidh Dickson has an additional point to make.

I thank the witnesses for their contributions to the committee’s work.

Thanks for those points of clarification. Unless any other member wishes to make a further point, I am happy to rest there. Thank you all very much for your attendance today. We appreciate your contribution to the committee’s work.

Our next item of business is consideration of subordinate legislation. The committee has four negative instruments before it today. The first is the National Health Service (Optical Charges and Payments and General Ophthalmic Services) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2024. The purpose of the instrument is to increase, by 1.68 per cent overall, the value of NHS optical vouchers accepted or used by a supplier in Scotland on or after 1 April 2024. It also brings into effect various administrative changes relating to the provision of general ophthalmic services—otherwise known as GOS—on and after 1 April 2024.

The policy note states:

“NHS optical vouchers provide financial help towards the purchase of new glasses or contact lenses for eligible persons, including children aged under 16, those aged 16 to 18 and in qualifying full-time education, those on a low income and those who require complex lenses. Some people are also eligible for an NHS optical voucher for help with the cost of repairing or replacing glasses or contact lenses.”

The Delegated Powers and Law Reform Committee considered the instrument at its meeting on 27 February and made no recommendations in relation to the instrument. No motion to annul has been received in relation to it. As no members have comments to make in relation to this negative statutory instrument, I propose that the committee does not make any recommendations in relation to it. Do all members agree?

Members indicated agreement.

The third instrument that we are considering is the Personal Injuries (NHS Charges) (Amounts) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2024. The purpose of the instrument is to amend the Personal Injuries (NHS Charges) (Amounts) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2006. The instrument will increase the charges, otherwise known as NHS charges, that are recovered from persons who pay compensation—the compensators—in cases in which an injured person makes use of national health service hospital treatment or ambulance services.

The increase in charges relates to an uplift for hospital and community health services—HCHS—annual inflation. The policy note states that the instrument will allow for

“new NHS charges to apply in cases where compensation has been made in respect of incidents that occur on or after 1^st April 2024”,

with NHS charges being

“revised annually ... to take account of the Hospital and Community Health Services ... pay and price inflation ... The Scheme is administered on behalf of Scottish Ministers by the Compensation Recovery Unit ... of the Department of Work and Pensions ... in accordance with an agency arrangement under section 93 of the Scotland Act 1998.”

The Delegated Powers and Law Reform Committee considered the instrument at its meeting on 27 February 2024 and made no recommendations in relation to the instrument. No motion to annul it has been received.

No member has indicated that they wish to comment on the instrument. I invite the committee to agree that it does not wish to make any recommendations in relation to the instrument. Do members agree to that?

Members indicated agreement.

Are there any other matters that members of the committee have not raised so far that the witnesses feel a need to mention?

I call the meeting to order. We will continue our first agenda item with a second evidence session on the Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) (Scotland) Bill. In this session, we will explore the impact of the bill for those who will be responsible for the enforcement and management of safe access zones.

I welcome our witnesses to the meeting. Simon Brown is vice-president of the Scottish Solicitors Bar Association; Superintendent Gerry Corrigan is from specialist operations in G division of Police Scotland; Eddie Follan is chief officer in health and social care at the the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities; Lesley Sharkey is director of midwifery at NHS Tayside; and Sarah Wallage is lead clinician for abortion at NHS Grampian.

We will move to questions from members of the committee.