Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government has received specific Barnett consequentials this financial year for things such as the UK Government’s housing support fund. However, the Scottish Government has not always been transparent on how that money has been spent. Will the Deputy First Minister commit to publishing information on how the Scottish Government has spent all consequential funding that it has received throughout this financial year?

You do not have a lot of staff sitting around waiting for the co-design and engagement process to happen. What will have to be cut for that process to take place?

Do you expect additional budget to come your way so that you can take part in the co-design and engagement process?

I imagine that the piece of work that is coming the NHS’s way will not be insignificant.

I have a question for Mark Taylor. Even at this early stage, do you feel that all the risks have been accurately identified and quantified? I am thinking of things such as VAT, over which we still have large question marks. Do you feel that enough work has been done on that, so that we can understand its impact?

To pick up on that point, might health boards, too, have to change radically as the national care service comes into being? Would there be a reduction in the number of boards?

I know that the bill process is at an early stage but, given that the NHS would be a key partner in delivering a national care service, surely there have been some discussions to enable the Government to get to the point that it is at now. Has that not been the case?

From the written submissions and what you have said, there seem to be a number of risks. We have heard about transition costs, the number of boards and a doubling of the running costs, as well as uncertainty on VAT, pensions, staff numbers, scope, impact on the third sector, IT systems, records and training. We have already covered a huge number of unknowns. How do we keep track of them and know what the costs will be to mitigate some of those risks? Can you think of any other unknowns that should be added to my list?

So there is not yet one place where all the risks have been written down so that we can all see them.

I thank the Social Justice and Social Security Committee and its clerks for producing its important report. The Parliament is rightly spending a great deal of time on discussing the cost of living crisis and its impact on our most vulnerable communities, and I welcome today’s focus on those with low incomes who are in danger of falling into debt.

We have many great organisations in Scotland that are working on the matter. In particular, I mention the work of Christians Against Poverty and its service to help people who are struggling with debt. Emma Jackson, its chief executive officer, provided concerning figures when she gave evidence to the committee. She told us:

“A third of our clients at CAP say that they regularly miss meals because they do not have enough income, while a quarter are reporting that they are skipping putting the heating on.”

She went on to say:

“about 65 per cent of our clients say that they have had to borrow from family or friends to afford food or fuel”.—[Official Report, Social Justice and Social Security Committee, 12 May 2022; c 4.]

The situation is forecast to get worse over the winter.

In last week’s debate, I highlighted the work that the UK Government is doing to assist the most vulnerable in our communities with their heating costs and I talked about the measures to get more money into such people’s pockets. I ran out of time in that debate, Presiding Officer, so I will not go over all those measures again; you will be glad to hear that I intend to finish on time.

The committee made many observations about promises of action that the Scottish Government has not yet fulfilled. We welcome the Government’s commitment to a full and independent review of the Scottish welfare fund and ask for the review to be concluded and a report published as soon as possible. I understand that the review is under way and I ask the minister, when he sums up the debate, to clarify to the Parliament the review’s timetable. When can we expect to see its report and recommendations? Will the recommendations be acted on in time to help people during the crisis over the winter? The committee has called for the review to be completed before the end of the year. Can the minister confirm that the report will be published this year?

The committee also called for the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities and the Scottish Government to work together to develop national standards for council tax collection. In her evidence to the committee, Emma Jackson made the same, important point. However, in its response to the committee, the Scottish Government again passed the buck, suggesting that it is not minded to legislate on a local government issue. The whole purpose of a national standard is that it is developed and agreed nationally, so that someone in Dumfries and Galloway who has council tax arrears has the same experience as someone in Aberdeenshire. It is not rocket science, and a national approach is long overdue.

The committee also recommended that the Government move ahead with free school meal expansion as soon as possible. The Government said in its response that it is committed to doing so within this parliamentary session but, again, there is no timetable; there are just empty promises from the SNP-Green devolved Government.

Let me turn to early intervention and prevention. Councils are on the front line of social care provision and are best placed to make early interventions, but the real-terms cut of £700 million since 2014 has affected councils’ ability to provide services. Advisers and helpline staff who assist people in dealing with debt are cut to the bone, with phone lines often jammed and people unable to get through to someone who can help.

Audit Scotland has urged the Scottish Government to develop a long-term planning approach to address child poverty and has warned that policies are focused on lifting children out of poverty rather than on preventing it in the first place, which should surely be the single most important focus for any Government.