Chamber and committees

Thank you, Megan. Received.

I know that there will be more questions on that area later and that you will be able to go into more detail. Have you got anything else to ask on the original thread, Stephen?

It is helpful to hear about the youth courts, because the witnesses on the earlier panel were not quite able to put their finger on that area. It is helpful to have more specificity about that.

We will move to questions from Willie Rennie.

In 2021, 1,245 people lost their lives due to alcohol and 1,330 died due to drug misuse. With suspected drug deaths increasing by 26 per cent over the previous quarter, progress on this vital issue is heading in the wrong direction.

The minister’s statement perfectly encapsulates the Scottish National Party’s current strategy. We have the Drug Deaths TaskForce’s “Changing Lives” report, the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland’s ending the exclusion report, the MAT standards—which should have been implemented in April 2022—and now we have new gold standards and protocols. I have no confidence that the statement today will change anything on the ground.

The minister just said:

“As important as the nuts and bolts of delivery are, we know that a protocol is not enough; it must lead to change on the ground.”

Services are not meeting the needs of people who have mental ill health or problems with substance use, or both. The minister promised to fully implement the MAT standards by April 2022. MAT standard 9 states:

“All people with co-occurring drug use and mental health difficulties can receive mental health care at the point of MAT delivery.”

Delivery has now been pushed back to April 2025 at the latest.

Faces and Voices of Recovery UK’s slogan is:

“You keep talking, we keep dying.”

April 2025 is two years away. I ask the minister this: how can we stand here once again discussing another report and another set of protocols on person-centred care, when people cannot access the services that they need for their mental health or substance misuse right now?

The Education, Children and Young People Committee’s college regionalisation inquiry report that was published today makes reference to the lack of flexibility in funding, and asks for more flexibility in funding for our college sector.

Our committee recognises the importance of colleges, students and employers being able to respond effectively to the needs of the local economy. The committee believes that it is the responsibility of business and key sectoral bodies to proactively engage with colleges and universities, as that will allow colleges and universities to respond more effectively to help develop the work force. However, the committee acknowledges the challenges that small and medium-sized enterprises can face if they do not have a sectoral body to help set out their skills needs. The committee recommends that colleges must further develop their engagement with local SMEs to take account of their needs, which are dynamic and change across various sectors.

Scottish apprenticeship week aims to shine a light on the role that apprenticeships play in Scotland and how they affect people, businesses and the economy. As part of Scottish apprenticeship week last year, I visited Glenmorangie in West Lothian, and this year I visited Livingston Mechanical Services. Those are fantastic businesses with great opportunities for those who want to do an apprenticeship.

Glenmorangie offers a tailored apprenticeship qualification, which demonstrates its commitment to the programme and the value that it brings to its business, as well as the opportunities that it presents to young people. It offers a balance between learning and hands-on experience in a team environment that nurtures and coaches apprentices through the 14-month programme.

The apprentices came from various backgrounds. Some had come from school and others—if I recall rightly—had graduated from university, with degrees in subjects ranging from English literature to forensic chemistry. Apprenticeships are for everyone. Speaking to those apprentices gave me a real insight into the invaluable opportunity that those positions present to them. Earning while they learn and gaining formal qualifications will accelerate their development, create a real springboard for their careers, and support our economy.

The morning that I spent at Livingston Mechanical Services was particularly relevant regarding the messages that we continue to hear from businesses and young people. Livingston Mechanical Services offers apprenticeships in the electrical engineering sector. The apprentices told me of the invaluable insight and experience that they gained from installing electric vehicle charging bays at Royal Bank of Scotland at Gogarburn and the construction and installation of air-conditioning units from flat sheet metal. That was quite inspiring. What struck me was how much value the young people place on their opportunity and how committed the business’s senior leaders are to supporting, training and retaining those young people in their business.

However, the route that those young people took to get their apprenticeships was of grave concern to me. I caveat that by stating that they were from across many geographical areas—West Lothian, Glasgow and Lanarkshire. Without exception, those young people found out about those invaluable apprenticeships from their own family or social networks. The school careers guidance teachers had no role at all. I would be hard put to find anything positive from that part of the conversation with the apprentices to share in the chamber today.

There is no doubting the vital role that further education plays in Scotland, but more must be done. The Scottish Conservatives will restore excellence in Scottish schools, and we want more investment in vocational and technical qualifications so that every child has the chance to succeed, no matter what their background is.

Vocational and technical qualifications are vital to the success of the Scottish economy and the levelling up of every part of Scotland, but the number of college students has fallen by more than 140,000 since the SNP came to power. Under the SNP, funding per college student is more than £2,500 lower than funding per university student. The First Minister said that she wanted to be judged on her education record, and on that basis, she has failed, particularly due to the lack of investment in vocational and technical qualifications.

There is no doubting the vital role that further education plays in supplying Scotland with a steady flow of the skilled people that are essential for a thriving economy. Those people are not just school leavers, but include thousands of older people seeking to re-enter the workplace or retrain—something that many of us will face in a digital era in which there are no guarantees of a career for life, never mind a job.

A full post-pandemic recovery will be impossible without the training that is offered by Scotland’s 26 colleges, but at a time when we need more qualified workers than ever, student numbers are decreasing.

No one underestimates the scale of the economic challenges that we face as food and energy costs soar, but it is not enough to simply expect Governments to write ever-bigger cheques. In the Scottish college sector, the clear message from the experts is that empowering institutions to work more closely with private enterprise could produce better results—and limit the pressure on the public purse—than their being solely reliant on taxpayers’ money.

Flexibility and industry collaboration are crucial, because that is the best way to keep pace with employer demand, especially in digitally driven workplaces where the rate of change is breakneck.

I am sure that the cabinet secretary will agree that providing support for young people who are affected by drugs remains a key component of the Scottish drugs mission. In January, the Scottish Government provided £5.5 million for new programmes for children and families, including the expansion of Routes, which is a young person’s support group that is run by Scottish Families Affected by Alcohol and Drugs. Routes is currently available only in East and West Dunbartonshire. Can the cabinet secretary give any detail about when that programme will be expanded and in which areas the services will be offered?

The national treatment centre that is scheduled to be built at St John’s hospital in Livingston has doubled in price to £184 million, while the cost for the replacement for the Edinburgh eye pavilion has increased from £112.5 million to £123 million. That additional capacity is essential to tackle the waiting lists for treatment across the Lothian region. Both sites have a projected operational date of 2027. What reassurance can the cabinet secretary offer to those who are suffering while waiting for treatment that they are a priority of his? Is he waiting until 2027, too?

We might come back to that in our response as well.

I thank members for that brief discussion—

Good morning, and welcome to the eighth meeting in 2023 of the Education, Children and Young People Committee. Agenda item 1 is evidence from the Minister for Children and Young People, Clare Haughey, and her officials on the draft Provision of Early Learning and Childcare (Specified Children) (Scotland) Amendment Order 2023. I welcome the minister along with her officials from the Scottish Government: Peter Grant, who is the head of zero to five early learning and childcare and support; and Kirstie McKerron, who is a solicitor in the legal directorate.

I invite Ms Haughey to speak to the draft instrument. You have up to three minutes.