Chamber and committees

I am often lectured in the Parliament about the importance of good intergovernmental relations. The Secretary of State for Scotland has made no mention of the proposal to the Scottish Government. That is utterly and completely incompatible with good intergovernmental working and is illustrative of the damaging and menacing behaviour of the Secretary of State for Scotland.

The Scottish Government will not support new nuclear power stations in Scotland. I was in Ardersier on Monday and the Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero and Energy was in Nigg on Tuesday to support the announcements of formidable investments in Scotland’s renewable energy potential. Those are massive investments that will bring jobs and opportunities to the Highlands and Islands and deliver green, clean energy for the people of Scotland. That is the Government’s policy agenda, and we will have nothing to do with nuclear power.

I will never evade responsibility for my actions as a minister; it is not in my character to do so. However, I will be straight with the Parliament and the public in Scotland.

If anyone wants to look at all the things that I have said on the parliamentary record over the past 17 years, they will find me being straight with people about the financial challenges that we face. I also happen to be a former finance minister who balanced the budget on 10 occasions over the past 17 years. That involved taking difficult decisions to protect our public services, and it resulted in the national health service being the best-funded service among our public services.

We have also had to take some pretty tough decisions, for which I take responsibility, such as increasing tax on higher earners. Mr Sarwar has deserted that territory. Mr Sarwar and Mr Marra no longer believe in that territory. They voted for it once, and they now condemn it.

How does Mr Sarwar believe that we can invest as much as we do in the health service today if we are not prepared to ask people to contribute more in taxation? That gives us £1.5 billion more in revenue at our disposal, because of decisions for which I am absolutely happy to take responsibility. As a consequence of that, we can fund the national health service better than if we had relied simply on the financial settlement from the United Kingdom.

Keeping children and young people safe from sexual abuse and exploitation, including sextortion, is a priority for the Scottish Government.

We welcome the efforts of the National Crime Agency to raise awareness of that serious harm. We, too, are raising awareness of the risk of sextortion and have provided information to parents and carers on the Parent Club website, which is currently being promoted via social media. Police Scotland is also updating sextortion resources on its website to reflect the new National Crime Agency guidance.

We will continue to work closely with national and UK partners, including the Internet Watch Foundation, Police Scotland, the National Cyber Security Centre and the Cyber and Fraud Centre Scotland, to tackle cybercrime, including sextortion scams.

I reiterate to Mr Ross that the recommendations were implemented but were found to be unsustainable. They were implemented for a three-year period; I have accepted that that is not good enough and that the issue must be addressed, which is exactly what the health secretary is doing.

It is important that I put on record the emergency care that is available in Skye. There is an advanced nurse practitioner-led, non-emergency, appointments-based out-of-hours service in Portree hospital, which is available by appointment on Saturdays, Sundays and bank holidays from 8.30 in the morning to 7.30 pm.

There is an accident and emergency at Broadford hospital, which is 30 minutes south of Portree. In addition to that provision, the Scottish Ambulance Service has four double-crewed ambulances that cover Skye, which are based in Broadford, Portree, Dunvegan and Kyle.

There is, however, a necessity for Sir Lewis Ritchie’s recommendations to be implemented. That is exactly what the health secretary has insisted will be undertaken with NHS Highland, and that is what will happen. We will update Parliament about the improvements that are delivered.

It is very important that we have a substantial discussion about the public finances and the context in which we are operating. In Scotland, we are operating after 14 years of austerity that have put insufferable pressure on our public services. Within that, the national health service has been the best financially supported of any service in Scotland.

Anas Sarwar could have come here today to ask me about financial pressures on local government—he would have been right to do so, because there are financial pressures on local government—but he is raising with me financial pressures on the national health service, which is the public service that has been best funded by the Government.

I have set the context for Anas Sarwar’s question, because he and his colleagues have to understand that Scotland is now paying an intolerable price for 14 years of Westminster austerity.

I recognise the importance of good-quality affordable housing in rural and island communities to address some of the public service delivery challenges that exist.

Dr Allan and I have discussed that issue on many occasions in taking forward issues in relation to the islands. We are working to increase the supply of affordable housing in rural and island areas. An investment of £3.7 million has been made in the Scottish empty homes partnership, which is making a real difference, with more than 9,000 homes having been brought into use since 2010. I want to see all local authorities and partners working together to consider all available options. The Government will be very much part of that discussion. The Minister for Housing, Paul McLennan, who is listening to these exchanges, will take forward the issue as a priority in order to ensure that we address the challenges that exist in many of the communities that Dr Allan represents.

The Scottish Government’s priority is to ensure provision of a high-quality service to communities on the Clyde and Hebrides routes. As stated in Parliament on 16 November, the Cabinet has agreed that, subject to the completion of a satisfactory due diligence exercise, the next generation of the Clyde and Hebrides ferry service provision could be awarded via a Teckal exemption to the incumbent, CalMac Ferries Ltd. If an award via a Teckal exemption is confirmed to be the procurement route for the next service provision, a tender process will not be required. Should the due diligence work have an unsatisfactory outcome, we would revert to a competitive tendering process. An update on the preferred procurement route will be provided before the summer recess.

I have previously heard Edward Mountain commending the contribution of my colleague Fiona Hyslop, the Cabinet Secretary for Transport, to the report of the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee—indeed, I seem to recall him speaking so warmly about it that he wondered whether he had damaged Ms Hyslop’s political career and prospects. That was appropriate commendation, which shows why Fiona Hyslop is the Cabinet Secretary for Transport and is undertaking her responsibilities extremely well.

We listen carefully to the views of island communities, and we will continue to do so. I give that assurance to Mr Mountain. As someone who is a regular user of the Clyde and Hebrides ferry services and to whom those services are very precious, I will listen carefully to the views not just of my transport secretary but of islanders, so that I understand the need for them to have access to a high-quality service that will meet their needs as residents and as businesses, and that will enable them to accommodate visitors who access our islands.

I completely understand the concern that Mr Doris brings to Parliament. Immunisation is the most reliable way to protect babies in the early weeks of life. The chief midwifery officer is writing to maternity services to encourage and promote pertussis vaccination for pregnant women—doing exactly what Mr Doris has asked me to commit to. I will encourage the chief midwifery officer to support the awareness-raising efforts that are essential to ensuring that maternity services deliver that message to pregnant mothers and that vaccination uptake increases. We all know the importance of vaccination efforts and I give Mr Doris a commitment that the health service will follow exactly the approach that he has suggested to Parliament today.

Let us look at the data. I am all for helpfully bringing data to the Parliament to inform parliamentary proceedings—it is part of my commitment to open government. Since 2007, 40 per cent more affordable homes have been delivered per head of population in Scotland than in England, and 70 per cent more than in Wales. [Interruption.]

I will repeat that so that everyone can hear it: 40 per cent more affordable homes have been delivered per head of population in Scotland than in England, and 70 per cent more than in Wales. Scotland’s overall new house build completion rate in 2022-23 increased to 43 homes per 10,000 people. That was higher than the number in Wales, which was 18, and higher than the number in England, which was 38.

The Government is determined to ensure that we put the resources in place and activate private investment so that we can deliver the houses for people, because the Government has a formidable record on housing construction, which we are proud to proclaim to the people of Scotland.