Chamber and committees

The Government is focused on exactly that point. That is why I indicated that there is an incident management team, with contingency planning under way, and that the various relevant organisations that need to be advised about these issues are currently being advised.

There is, of course, technical capability in our GP practices already, and the health secretary will be actively engaged to ensure that our officials are doing everything that they can to support continued provision of that activity.

However, I come back to my key point, which is that there is currently no impact on patient care or the availability of IT systems for GPs as a result of the announcement.

The Scottish Government wrote to the supplier of Contact Scotland BSL on 4 December notifying it that its contract would come to an end on 31 March 2025, in accordance with its terms. First, I want to be clear that there will be no break in service for users of Contact Scotland BSL while we retender for the free service. We will work closely with BSL users in Scotland and the current supplier of Contact Scotland BSL to design the service to ensure that it best meets the needs of those who use it and that it raises awareness of the availability of the service and, therefore, also increases the number of users.

I give Mr Griffin that assurance. I am sorry if there has been an impression that there was to be no retendering of the service. I will make sure that that is properly explored.

I know the long-standing interest that Mr Griffin takes on these issues. He has given a very distinguished contribution to Parliament on these topics, and I want to make sure that the legitimate issues that he raises are properly explored. I give the assurance that there will be engagement with the BSL community.

If, to seek further assurance, Mr Griffin wishes to raise any more material with me, he knows that I will happily engage with him about that, as will ministers, to make sure that the service is available for all the legitimate reasons that he has put to me today.

I understand the sentiments that underpin Roz McCall’s question, but I am not familiar with the case that she puts to me, about the Lilias Graham Trust. I am sure that the trust has made a significant contribution to supporting the wellbeing of children and young people. However, as is always the case in some of these areas, changes to service provision are driven by changes in the way in which we support families.

For example, at the heart of the Promise is a determination to try to keep families together and to avoid separating them. There may be a shift to putting more resources into supporting families in order to keep them together, which would be consistent with the direction of policy in the Promise, because that is fundamentally the core point in the Promise.

There may be changes in service provision. In Glasgow, for example, there have been significant changes in the way that the city deploys its expenditure for care-experienced young people, because it has now shifted its balance away from services that it provides and towards putting much more support into supporting families to stay together.

I will look at the issues that Roz McCall raises with me today, I will take counsel from the Minister for Children, Young People and The Promise, and I will reply in writing to Roz McCall about the issues involved.

We should treat retail workers with kindness 365 days a year. At the root of the issue that Mr Johnson raises is criminal conduct and the fact that people are not behaving appropriately. Whether that is about criminal conduct or disrespect to retail workers, it is part of the same pattern. I agree with the sentiments that Mr Johnson expresses.

The Government has put £3 million into the budget as a specific intervention to tackle retail crime, which will be taken forward as a partnership between the retail sector and the police. That will be in addition to an investment of a record £1.62 billion next year for policing, which is an increase of £70 million on 2024-25 and which I think provides the resources for effective community policing. I am advised on that point by the chief constable of Police Scotland.

All that we need to do is pass the budget. I leave Mr Johnson that message and clarion call to support the Government so that we can get on with tackling the legitimate issue that he puts to me by ensuring that the Government’s budget is passed in February.

I know, admire and respect Christine Grahame’s long interest in those issues and commend all the wise advice that she has put on the record for members of the public. All the steps that she has set out are valuable in ensuring that individuals purchase pets in a responsible and sustained climate in which the welfare of the animal has been assured and protected. My colleague’s advice is very important at this time.

Mr Whittle raises an important point. The Government works closely with officials in the Northern Ireland Executive and with key agencies, through the paws for thought puppy trafficking group, to disrupt and target those who are involved in that trade. Many collaborative actions are taken by us and the Northern Ireland Executive, and the multi-agency pet trade task force shares intelligence and targets those who are involved in the illegal breeding and smuggling of puppies. I hope that that assures Mr Whittle that there is active engagement between the Scottish Government and that of Northern Ireland, as well as with other United Kingdom Administrations, to ensure that the issue is properly and fully addressed, to the best of our ability.

First, I express my sympathy to Mrs Rollinson for the loss of her husband. The attack that Mr Findlay talks about was unspeakable, and the criminal justice process has taken its course. I extend my sympathies to Mrs Rollinson on her loss. I cannot comprehend how she will be feeling.

Mr Findlay raises an important issue, but it gets us into territory that he knows that I have to keep well out of, which is decisions that are made about independent prosecutions that are taken forward by the Crown. As a society, we pride ourselves on the fact that the constitution of our Parliament and our criminal justice system is founded on the independence of the judiciary and the independence of the Crown in determining approaches to prosecution. Those have been fundamental building blocks of our society.

It is important that Parliament expresses its view when it considers that issues need to be addressed to ensure that concerns about sentencing policy and prosecutorial policy are reflected by Parliament, when it is appropriate for Parliament to do so. Ultimately, however, those decisions are taken independently by the prosecution service and the judiciary.

First, I express my thanks to the committed workforce at the FCDO in East Kilbride. There is a long history and tradition of contributing to international development activity from East Kilbride. It has been a source of great pride in that community and across Scotland.

I am not aware of any direct contact with the Scottish Government on that issue, nor of any updated economic assessment However, if any update to Collette Stevenson on that point is required, I will make sure that it is forthcoming to her, because we value that employment and recognise its importance to the East Kilbride economy.

I will have to look into the specifics of CCTV shift patterns, because it is not something for which I carry responsibility, so I will have to explore that point.

On the substantive issue that Pauline McNeill put to me, I want to make it clear that the overwhelming majority of the fans who attended the football match behaved perfectly well. We are talking about a minority, and their behaviour has to be addressed. It is just not acceptable for Christmas shoppers to have to go through what they went through on Saturday. Whether it is Christmas shopping or shopping on any other day, it is just not on.

The clubs and the police have a role to play. Police Scotland had the situation in the city centre—unpleasant as it was—entirely under control, and they adapted their operational planning to deal with the situation as it emerged. I therefore have every commendation for the police and the way in which they deployed their resources.

Fundamentally, it is unacceptable for football fans—even a minority—to behave in the fashion that they behaved on Sunday. There cannot be a repeat of that. The police will be planning to deal with it, but the clubs have to take action and those who are responsible have to be apprehended.