Chamber and committees

Thank you, convener. If I seem to be here a lot of the time, it simply shows how important the committee is to my constituents. It makes a real difference to people’s lives, and I hope that this petition will also have that impact.

Since the committee last considered the petition, I have spoken to and met Mary Ramsay virtually on a number of occasions. Following some of those meetings with Mary, and with other stakeholders who have an interest, I wrote to Ralph Roberts, who is chair of the national specialist services committee.

He told me that the national services division is due to meet the clinical team in Dundee towards the end of this month to discuss how a formal application for designation and the relevant paperwork can be prepared for consideration by both the national patient, public and professional reference group and the national specialist services committee. He told me that the next meetings of those groups are scheduled for February and March, but that it is unlikely that they will discuss focused ultrasound at those meetings. The issue is more likely to be discussed at the May or June meetings, and there is no guarantee that a conclusion will be reached at that time.

It feels to me that there is still no real recognition of the issues that people with essential tremor face in having to travel to London for assessment and again if they are assessed as suitable for the procedure. There is also no acknowledgement of the waiting times that people face and the impact on their lives.? There are real fears that the decision will be further delayed beyond the spring or summer.

The committee knows how long the petition has been before it and the previous committee. I share Mary Ramsay’s frustration that we appear to be moving at a snail’s pace in bringing this much-needed treatment to patients in Scotland.? Patients have to consider joining a waiting list in London, where the treatment is available. However, that is a long waiting list; indeed, NHS England is looking to create another centre to deal with the demand.

It makes no sense whatever to me that we have the equipment and knowledge in Scotland but we are not using those for our patients, who are forced to travel to access the treatment.? That is not good for them, and it is certainly not good for the public purse. I am not sure whether the committee is aware that 80 patients were referred for assessment in Dundee last year from their health boards, and that around 25 per cent were considered to be appropriate for treatment.

I urge the committee to keep the petition open and to put pressure on the bodies that I mentioned to ensure that the treatment is approved as quickly as possible. I think that the committee already knows that Mary Ramsay and Ian Sharp, who has had the treatment, are happy to give evidence on their experience and show at first hand the difference that treatment can make to those with essential tremor. Perhaps the committee could also contact the NPPPRG and the NSSC to ask them to give priority to their consideration of the treatment and to do so at their earlier meetings. As you said, convener, because of Covid, those bodies have not met for a long time.

As you have said, convener, over the past 14 years, the Rest and Be Thankful has been closed on quite a number of occasions, and it has cost over £87 million in efforts to keep it open and keep traffic safe.

You referred to the large landslide in August 2020, in which 10,000 tonnes of debris fell on the A83 and the old military road. The old military road, which sits in the valley below, is used as a temporary route when the A83 is closed. In that situation, the traffic could not use the A83 or the old military road, and there was a 60-mile additional journey over the A82 because of the closure. Another landslide occurred in September, only six days after the A83 reopened. That led to the A83 being open for less than 50 per cent of the time in the four months at the end of 2020.

It has been estimated that £5.5 million was lost to the local economy between August 2020 and March 2021. That does not take account of potential economic development that has gone elsewhere because of the uncertainty over the route. Depopulation is also a big issue in the area, and it will get worse because of that uncertainty.

As you said, convener, options were consulted on, and there is a preferred solution that follows a similar route. However, that requires quite a lot of work to examine rerouting and building a viaduct or tunnel. A medium-term solution through Glen Croe is also being discussed. There is real frustration locally about the length of time that that is taking and the money that it is costing.

We know that 100,000 tonnes of unstable material is risking lives and livelihoods in Argyll. Given the impact that was caused by 10,000 tonnes, we can imagine what 100,000 tonnes would do. Despite all the time that has passed, there is no clear indication of when a solution will be in place. We need a clear timetable for emergency measures and for medium and long-term solutions, and we need to know whether finance will be available to carry out that work. Hence the petitioners’ call for a public inquiry.

What confidence can the cabinet secretary have in the assessment and implementation of the marine plan when the front-line workers involved in policing it are facing a real-terms pay cut? Marine Scotland’s seafarers are among the lowest paid in the public sector. That leads to a loss of experienced staff and, as a result, patrol vessels are often tied up because they cannot be fully crewed. Will she deliver a fair pay settlement that brings their pay into line with that of other public sector workers?

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to support ferry services in Scotland. (S6O-00602)

Communities that rely on the Scottish Government for lifeline ferry services have been failed. The minister must involve operators, unions and communities in strategic planning to ensure that services meet their needs. Currently, there is no strategic plan, only service cuts and eye-watering continued delays in building our new ferries. Capacity has been cut due to lack of funding and no alternative services are proposed from Harris for six months while the Uig harbour is upgraded.

I could go on. The list gets longer daily. How on earth does the minister propose to deliver lifeline ferry services in the face of additional budget cuts?

It is concerning that the First Minister has said that hospitality support will be allocated on the same basis as before. Businesses that do not pay business rates, such as floating hotels and restaurants, lost out previously, as did kennels and catteries, which depend on tourism but were categorised as storage and distribution businesses. Will the First Minister ensure that those businesses receive equal assistance, this time?

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that opportunities for retraining in green skills are available to workers currently employed in the oil and gas sector, to enable them to assist in reducing Scotland’s carbon emissions. (S6O-00584)

In the Highlands and Islands, we have the highest level of fuel poverty. Added to that, very few companies retrofit, because microbusinesses do not have the resources to register for approved status, which would enable them to carry out work that is grant funded. What is the cabinet secretary doing to attract oil and gas workers to retrain in the area and to enable them and other local contractors to register as approved contractors, in order to ensure a supply of local contractors who are available to retrofit in the areas in which they are most needed?

The Inverness Creative Academy Wasps Studios provide affordable studio accommodation for those in the creative industries. However, there are few such opportunities throughout the Highlands and Islands. In the light of rural depopulation and the fact that the creative sector has been hit particularly hard by the effects of Covid, how does the Scottish Government plan to encourage similar ventures to ensure that young people who are working in creative industries are not forced to leave the area to pursue their careers?

Apologies, Presiding Officer. To ask the Scottish Government what support it provides to creative industries in rural areas, including in relation to young people wishing to pursue a career in this sector. (S6O-00542)