Chamber and committees

It is two years since we lost our friend and colleague David Hill while he was playing for the Parliament rugby team in Dublin. His parents, Sharon and Roger, have been an inspiration. David’s father, Roger, is currently on an epic cycling journey to deliver the match ball for the annual match between the Scottish and Irish Parliament teams, and to raise funds for and awareness of cardiac risk in the young. Roger has been joined by friends and family for parts of the journey, and he was even joined by you, Presiding Officer, as he left Edinburgh. Will the First Minister join me in giving everyone involved the very best of wishes, and will he pledge to consider any ways in which his Government can introduce screening to improve outcomes for people living with an undetected cardiac condition? [Applause.]

The minister’s response of “At some time” gives no comfort to all our farmers.

At the National Farmers Union Scotland conference, the First Minister could not say when the £46 million would be returned to the agriculture budget. Since then, the Scottish Government has had an extra £295 million in Barnett consequentials from Westminster. Can the minister tell us how much of that extra money will go to repay the £46 million taken from our farmers?

What about the ring-fenced money?

To ask the Scottish Government when the remaining £46 million of deferred funding from the agriculture budget will be returned. (S6O-03182)

I, too, thank Sandesh Gulhane for securing tonight’s debate. Like Beatrice Wishart, I hope that, one day, we might have a Government-led debate on this subject, which would show that the Government is taking it seriously.

Although the World Health Organization declared the Covid-19 public health emergency to be over in May 2023, Covid has never gone away. Covid-19 has now moved to its endemic phase. Although the Scottish Government lifted its measures to deal with the pandemic in August 2021, years later, for the estimated 187,000 people in Scotland who are living with long Covid, the pandemic has still not ended.

Long Covid can be life changing for those who are affected by it. It causes fatigue and breathlessness, among other symptoms. It can completely change the lives of people who had previously been perfectly healthy. We saw that at the drop-in session that we had earlier today.

Long Covid can affect anyone, and it can affect them after any exposure that they have had to Covid. It is estimated that one in 10 cases of Covid develops into long Covid, as happened to the daughter of one of my constituents, Helen Goss, who has had to take legal action against NHS Grampian because of the poor—or non-existent—long Covid treatment that her daughter has received. Regrettably, Helen has been forced to go down the route of legal action, as it seemed to be the only viable option for her to secure and progress the healthcare that her daughter, Anna, urgently requires and rightfully deserves.

As a parent, I cannot imagine what Helen is going through. She desperately wants to get help for her daughter, and she must feel frustrated about the lack of help that she is receiving. What has it come to when parents are having to go to court to get medical assistance? The NHS and the Government are letting such people down.

However, Helen is not the only one. Today, I have talked to other parents and grandparents who are having to fight to get the treatment that their children and grandchildren deserve. How can that be right? Ten thousand kids are being let down. We cannot leave them behind.

To protect people from the detrimental impact of long Covid, prevention is key. I draw the Scottish Government’s attention to the petition that Sally Witcher lodged in December 2023, which called on the Scottish Government to do more to help to prevent the spread of Covid and, by extension, the likelihood of people developing long Covid. We all know that one of the best ways of preventing the spread of Covid is by increasing ventilation. In NHS England, the UK Government is encouraging the use of high-efficiency particulate absorbing filters in public buildings. NHS England recognises the important role that HEPA filters can play in reducing the transmission of Covid-19.

Despite the fact that HEPA filters have an efficiency level of more than 99 per cent, their use is not being replicated in NHS Scotland. As I remember, the only ventilation method that was proposed by the devolved Government was sawing the bottom off classroom doors. The Scottish Government must ensure that a joined-up approach is taken, which brings to the forefront mitigation measures such as greater ventilation in new buildings and upgrades to ventilation in existing buildings.

Long Covid has a debilitating impact on those who have contracted it. The socioeconomic impact is obvious: it stops people working, which has a long-term effect on local economies, as Brian Whittle said earlier. Prevention is key to ensuring that people avoid contracting long Covid.

As we have heard, this is the third debate that the Parliament has had on the subject. It is time that the Scottish Government listened to campaigners and finally acted, for those who are suffering cannot wait any longer.

That would be helpful.

Were any specific actions recommended in that report? You have mentioned the grid and the greater need for electricity as we move away from oil and gas, but did that report highlight any specific actions with regard to how the Governments might work together?

Politics often gets in the way and the four nations are often seen to be at loggerheads, but, underneath that, is there quite a good level of working together?

Sorry, convener—

You mentioned transparency earlier. If the Government is not going to hit the targets, the sooner it is more open with everyone, the better, I would imagine.