Chamber and committees

Figures that were released by the Scottish Government show that child poverty levels have not reduced, despite the Scottish Government saying that that is a top priority. What other work is the Scottish Government doing to ensure that support is targeted at the poorest children?

I welcome this debate. It is clear that a huge amount of work is being carried out in some higher education institutions, such as the University of the West of Scotland, to widen access to students from non-traditional backgrounds. There is no doubt that there has been a significant widening of access to higher education over recent decades across the UK, with large increases in the number of people who are able to attend university. However, there is also a significant class divide in education, with large numbers of working-class young people attending further education institutions. Of course, we hope that many of them will progress into higher education, so some of the points that have been made in relation to further education are very relevant to this debate.

We have to be honest about the position that we are in. The higher education sector in Scotland is facing significant challenges, with higher education providers receiving 23 per cent less funding per student than institutions in England, and higher education funding having fallen by 19 per cent in real terms per student over the past decade. It is set to be cut again in the coming year.

As I said, although this debate is about higher education, the funding of the further education sector, which has historically been underfunded and has not had parity of esteem or indeed funding, is also a significant issue. Audit Scotland says that funding for colleges fell by 8.5 per cent in real terms between 2021-22 and 2023-24. We repeatedly hear that the further education sector in Scotland is in crisis, that industrial relations are very poor and, as other members have said, that there is a maintenance backlog of £321 million. Those cuts to both further and higher education have taken place while the attainment gaps between primary school pupils from the most and least deprived areas of Scotland have remained stubbornly high, with gaps of 20.5 per cent in literacy and 17 per cent in numeracy. We have to consider all of that when we look at the issues of widening access.

The commission on widening access reported in 2016 on steps to achieve equality in access to university for those from Scotland’s most and least deprived backgrounds. The most recent target, which was 16 per cent, was achieved. However, there is concern that progress towards the next target, which is 18 per cent by 2026, has stalled. I understand that, last year, the share of entrants from the most deprived quintile fell from 16.7 per cent to 16.5 per cent. That was a small difference, but in the wrong direction.

As the minister said, however, the current commissioner for fair access has said that there is no evidence that the fair access agenda has prevented young people from affluent areas from going to university, suggesting that access has been a problem only in relation to certain courses. That is an important point and one that needs to be made in the chamber, given the attacks on that policy.

The Cabinet Secretary for Finance confirmed recently that at least 1,200 funded university places are to be cut. In this debate, it is appropriate that we think about how all those wider issues are going to impact on the number of young people from non-traditional backgrounds who go into our education system. I am pleased that there is a cross-party consensus that fair access is something that we wish to deliver.

Appointees and other formal representatives would be liable for overpayments only if they misused the funds; they would not be liable for honest mistakes. There is also an existing requirement to have regard to financial circumstances before seeking to recover overpayments. Do the witnesses agree with making formal representatives liable in those circumstances?

That is very helpful.

The person who is being cared for can already be liable for noticeable overpayments caused by their representatives, and the bill extends that to include overpayments that a person might not necessarily have noticed were the result of an honest mistake by their representative. Do you agree with that?

Thank you very much. I am very grateful to the committee.

I appear on behalf of both petitioners. Roseanna Clarkin, whom you have already spoken about, convener, continues to suffer from mesh-related complications and is attempting to obtain support through NHS and Social Security Scotland. There are a number of issues in relation to that. She hopes that the mesh will eventually be removed, although there are some complications with that.

I also appear on behalf of Lauren McDougall, whose mother unfortunately died shortly after a hernia mesh procedure. The petitioners work with a number of campaigners who have been negatively impacted specifically by the use of mesh in hernia processes. They believe that a number of outstanding issues remain and that mesh is still used in hernia procedures in many situations where alternatives could be used.

I will focus on the second part of the petition, which relates to guidelines for the surgical use of mesh. It would be helpful if we could get more evidence of current practice, and I would ask the committee to consider whether it would be willing to look at examples of individuals who are currently receiving mesh in situations where they believe that alternatives should have been considered and would be more appropriate, with a view to looking at the type of guidelines that perhaps could be created in Scotland.

Domestic abuse courts have operated in some sheriff courts. What work has the Scottish Government done to analyse and evaluate the success of those courts? Will the minister share any of that work with the Parliament?

Can the cabinet secretary explain why the trade union Community has been de-recognised at Kilmarnock prison? Is she concerned that Community advises that the Scottish Prison Service is refusing to meet it and, as a result, the union is now issuing an indicative ballot for industrial action? Will the cabinet secretary intervene to ensure that that dispute is resolved?

I do not know whether any of the other witnesses want to speak.

Should lapsed appeals be allowed, even if what is offered to an individual is not the best possible award that could be achieved at tribunal? I ask SAMH to come in first.

Last week, Erica Young from Citizens Advice Scotland argued that clients ought to be able to go straight to appeal without having to go to a redetermination first. On the other hand, another witness, Diane Connock from Stirling Council, thought that that might be too daunting for some people. What are your views on that? I ask Claire Andrews to respond first.