Chamber and committees

I thank my colleague Jackie Baillie for bringing this important issue to the chamber.

Long Covid is not simply a long recovery time from Covid-19, nor is it an occasional feeling of fatigue or sickness following a Covid-19 infection. That is a common misunderstanding. Long Covid is a complex, multisystem, neuroimmune illness that currently has no known cure. A recent ONS survey showed that an estimated 2.3 million people in the UK suffer from long Covid. A recent BBC “Panorama” documentary estimated that nearly 10,000 NHS workers are currently absent because of long Covid.

One of my constituents, Marie-Claire, is an NHS doctor in Edinburgh. Marie-Claire told me that the overwhelming response from colleagues was that they often had little understanding of the severity or specifics of the illness. Marie-Claire also suffers from long Covid. There is a growing stigma about long Covid within the medical community and wider society. She told me that patients are having to educate their medical professionals on this debilitating illness in order to get help.

Another of my constituents, Cass Macdonald, was a full-time NHS nurse who contracted Covid-19 while working in an out-of-office nursing role in Edinburgh. Despite having multiple underlying health conditions and being told to shield according to the Scottish Government’s advice, the same Government still advised that it was safe for NHS staff to come to work. Cass has been living with long Covid ever since and is unable to go back to full-time work.

Since Covid special leave has ended, Cass is now on standard sick pay, which has been halved this month and will be stopped altogether in September. Cass has also been told that, due to their financial circumstances, their only option is to declare themselves bankrupt or sell their home. A recent survey by key workers petition UK showed that Cass is part of the 20 per cent of key workers in the UK with long Covid who said that they were at risk of losing their home due to financial circumstances.

Like many others, Cass has experienced frustration within the health service due to lack of awareness surrounding the health impacts of long Covid. Tomorrow, Cass and other key workers will deliver a petition in London urging the UK Government to create a pension and compensation scheme for all key workers who have developed long Covid as a result of their front-line work during the pandemic. The petition already has more than 118,000 backers.

The Scottish Government must be part of the process to help stop the stigma around long Covid. It must do more to ensure adequate support for key workers who are desperately struggling due to long Covid. It must do more to increase public awareness of the danger of long Covid and to help people such as Cass and Marie-Claire and the thousands of others suffering from long Covid across Scotland.

I again thank my colleague Jackie Baillie for bringing the debate to the chamber.

I have been involved in third sector organisations, and I have always found that security concerns are the main issue for trustees. Thank you for that answer.

Does anybody else want to come in on that question?

Good morning. Before I ask my questions, I declare my interest as a co-chair of the Edinburgh and Lothians Regional Equality Council, which is a charitable organisation.

My first question is for Gavin McEwan and John Picton. Do you have any concerns that the requirements will disproportionately affect smaller charities, particularly ethnic minority charities that are already struggling to stay in business because of the cost of living crisis?

My next question is for all the witnesses. As you probably know, the majority of small third sector organisations have limited numbers of people, and the majority of their trustees are volunteers. There is loads of work involved, so what support might be provided to such organisations?

Good morning, panel. Before I ask my question, I declare an interest as the chair of a charitable organisation. I apologise, convener, because I should have done that previously.

My question is probably for Martin Tyson, but, if any of the other witnesses wants to get involved, that is fine. Do you have any concerns that the bill will disproportionately affect smaller charities, particularly ethnic minority charities, that are already struggling to stay in business, given the cost of living crisis?

Do you have any concerns about the provisions for charities to redact certain information from published accounts where there might be safety or security concerns? That is probably a question for Alan Eccles.

My last question is probably for John Maton. I have been involved in smaller organisations. The majority of the trustees are volunteers and work elsewhere. Is any support provided to smaller organisations if they are struggling? What kind of support could be provided?

My second question is for Nick Holroyd. Do you have any concern regarding the provision for charities to redact certain information from published accounts when there might be safety or security concerns?

I am really happy to speak in the debate, and I am honoured to be the first male member to do so on this very important day—international women’s day. I thank our First Minister for bringing the important issue of embracing equity to the chamber. She has been a role model for a lot of women in the world. I thank her for that.

International women’s day is a day to celebrate women’s achievements, to raise awareness of discrimination and to move towards gender equality. Gender equality is not just an issue for women; it is one for everyone to pay attention to, including men. I get told that every day. I grew up with five sisters and 21 cousin sisters, and I now have a daughter who reminds me of that every day.

We must all be present to listen to the experiences of women and girls and to join in the conversation. International women’s day was originally set up to help to draw attention to women’s right to vote, but its initiatives have changed in line with the issues that are most pressing in society. In response to the armed conflicts that were happening worldwide, international women’s day 2010 highlighted the struggle of displaced women.

Women and children make up almost 80 per cent of displaced people. We are again seeing the displacement of women and children with the war in Ukraine. Women are being displaced at a higher rate, and there have been reports of people trafficking, which disproportionately affects female refugees. I spoke about the need to protect refugee women in the Scottish Government’s debate to mark one year of war in Ukraine.

Today, I want to draw attention to the important theme of this year’s international women’s day: embracing equity. Ensuring that every woman and girl be provided with an equal opportunity to succeed, regardless of race, ethnicity, religion, sexual orientation or social or economic background, must be a priority for this Parliament. Equity is vital to making sure that international women’s day is inclusive for all women and girls across Scotland.

For that reason, on this international women’s day, I want to draw attention to ethnic and religious minority women. Many ethnic and religious minority women experience misogyny and sexism in different ways, and, if we want to tackle sexism and misogyny, we must recognise the multiplicity of experiences.

Yesterday, my colleagues spoke about the safety of women and girls on public transport. Many spoke about the worrying statistic that around half of women and girls feel uncomfortable using public transport after dark, and the fact that many women have no choice other than to take an expensive taxi, as they do not feel safe taking public transport or walking home alone. The Scottish Government must do better to ensure that women and girls are able to travel safely and without fear or harassment, no matter the situation or time of day.

The feeling of danger when walking alone at night or taking public transport alone is shared by women across Scotland, but ethnic and religious minority women have the added fear of discriminatory behaviour to factor into their safety.

Some Muslim women wear a hijab or niqab that represents a sign of modesty and faith in their religion. Because of that religious choice, they face violence, discrimination, and harassment. I have been told of cases of Muslim women avoiding train stations altogether out of fear that someone would push them on to the tracks.

Recent reports on Islamophobia in the UK have found that women are much more likely to be targeted than men, but violence against women and girls is not the only way that ethnic and religious minority women face further inequality. In employment, the gender pay gap for ethnic minority women is even wider. In sport, black, Asian and ethnic minority women and girls suffer from particularly low levels of involvement. In higher education, academic positions are dominated by white people, and senior roles are predominantly held by men.

Embracing equity means acknowledging the added discrimination and inequality that women and girls from ethnic and religious minority backgrounds face. Embracing equity means recognising that different resources and opportunities must be provided to strive for an equal outcome for all women and girls. Embracing equity means reaching full equality for all women.

Good morning. I have a small question. Do you believe that third sector organisations or ethnic minority organisations were involved during the consultation period? That is a general question for whoever wants to pick it up.

Convener, my colleagues have already asked the other question that I wanted to ask, and I have got the answer.