Chamber and committees

The Government remains committed to the dualling of the A9 and the A96—[Interruption.]—

—and is taking practical steps to advance those projects.

On the question of road speed, a consultation is under way. The reason why we are having a consultation is that there are different opinions about how best to tackle the issue. I am regularly pressed, as is the Cabinet Secretary for Transport, on the number of fatalities and accidents on our roads. We would be neglecting our duty if we did not examine what options are possible to address that situation.

I hear the comments that Mr Fraser puts on the record from an individual whom I know well and who contributes significantly on the subject. However, if members of Parliament want us to address the issue of fatalities on our roads, we have to explore what the options are for doing that. That is what the Government is doing.

It is important for me to stress that, for people who are seriously unwell or whose condition is life threatening, initial triage will have been started by paramedics before they arrive at hospital, with accident and emergency staff put on standby for the patient’s arrival for an immediate further assessment.

Nonetheless, any unnecessary delay is not acceptable, and we are working with national health service boards, through our improvement programme, to reduce delays at every part in the patient journey, in order to minimise risk and improve patient outcomes.

I have engaged with Mr Findlay on the case of Claire Inglis, and we have made the request of Stirling Council to provide the satisfactory investigation that is required. However, in light of the exchanges that we have had today, I will look again at that issue, to determine whether there is further pressure that we need to apply for Stirling Council to do exactly that.

Denise Clair has pursued her case through a civil action, and the court has come to its judgment on that question. I am aware that she has made an application for legal aid assistance to take forward—forgive me. She has approached ministers to take the steps that are necessary to ensure that her case can be pursued as a private prosecution, and the issue is being considered by the Government.

However, I say to Mr Findlay that the Government has taken too long to consider the request that Ms Clair has made of us. When I saw the news reports at the weekend, I asked for greater urgency to be given to engagement with her agents on that question, because I am dissatisfied with how long it has taken. Through Mr Findlay, I express my apology to Ms Clair today.

The NHS in Scotland relies on the commitment and contribution of thousands of members of staff the length and breadth of the country, and I record my thanks to them for the work that they put in to ensure that we are well cared for in the national health service.

The NHS is recovering from the Covid pandemic, and we are making progress in that respect. We know that more work has to be done, but information that is available shows that there have been improvements in the latest quarter, with reductions in the length of the waiting lists for diagnostics and in-patient and day-case activity, as well as an improvement in cancer performance.

I accept that work remains to be done to improve the performance of the national health service, but the Government is putting in the investment and maintaining the focus to enable that to happen.

I think that members of the national health service workforce will welcome the investment that the Government has made to ensure that NHS staffing has gone up by 26 per cent in the period between when this Government came to office and now. In cancer care, for example, the consultant oncologist workforce has increased by 50.4 per cent over the past 10 years.

The Government is investing in our NHS staff and, into the bargain, we have put in place pay settlements that have meant that we have not had to suffer and endure industrial action in the NHS in Scotland.

I point out to Mr Sarwar that, at the end of September, the number of patient waits for one of the eight key diagnostic tests showed a decrease of 7.4 per cent. The most recent data also shows that 73.2 per cent of patients were treated on time, within the 62-day cancer waiting time target, which is higher than the figure in the previous quarter.

I am the first to acknowledge that we have challenges in recovering from the Covid pandemic, but the Government is making the investment and the interventions to ensure that our national health service performs in a fashion that meets the needs of the people of Scotland.

I understand the significance of the cases that Mr Findlay puts to me today, but there are some fundamental points that I need to put on the record about them. The granting of bail in the Claire Inglis case was an independent judgment that was arrived at by the courts. It is wrong for ministers to be involved in those cases. I accept that there will be vigorous debate about the appropriateness of judgments, but those decisions are taken by the independent judiciary, and none of us wants to have a judiciary that is anything other than independent.

In the case of Denise Clair, a judgment was arrived at by the Crown, which independently assessed the case for prosecution. Again—and I know that Mr Findlay would not be arguing for this—nobody accepts that those decisions should be taken by a process that is anything other than independent.

In relation to the legislation that the Parliament has passed, Mr Findlay knows that the Government has had to take that step because of the significant rise in the prison population, requiring ministers to ensure that our prisons are safe, especially for prison officers to work in. The reason why there is no governor’s veto is that the Government has amended the timescale under which individuals will be released from prison, but we have put in significant safeguards to ensure that those who are convicted of domestic violence and serious assaults are not included in the release scheme that we have put in place.

I will always take seriously the concerns of victims and will take the necessary action to ensure that the interests of victims are fully and properly taken into account in all the steps that the Government takes.

I point out that, in relation to the early release schemes that have been put in place previously, there have been opportunities for victims to be fully advised about the circumstances of release through the victim notification scheme, should they wish to take up that opportunity, which is not always the case.

I will correct one of the points that I made in my earlier answer. I should have made reference to sexual assault as being an offence for which constraints are applied in the legislation.

I do not think that Mr Findlay’s characterisation of mass early release is at all appropriate. The Government took steps to ensure that our prison system is safe for those who work in it, just as Mr Findlay’s colleagues in the then United Kingdom Government did. The difference is that this Government came to Parliament, set out its case and asked for parliamentary consent to the steps that the Government was taking. That is what we do in a democracy.

I do not think that Mr Eagle helps the farming industry—[Interruption.]

I have been briefed by officials on the developing situation in Shetland, and I understand that they have met the board to discuss the issue as a matter of urgency. The latest news is undoubtedly a regressive step, and the Minister for Public Health and Women’s Health will be overseeing through officials that appropriate mitigations are in place to ensure that the legitimate aspirations that Beatrice Wishart has put to me are fulfilled for her constituents in the Shetland Islands. The issue will have the focused attention of the public health minister, who will be happy to engage with Ms Wishart on the question.