Chamber and committees

One of the factors that Mr Findlay will be calculating in the cost assessment that he has just put on the record is the fact that, as part of this exercise, we intend to increase the pay and remuneration of social care workers around the country. No wonder he objects to that, because the Conservatives have objected to every attempt on our part to improve pay for social care workers the length and breadth of the country.

I assure Mr Findlay that, at the present moment, significant pressure is being applied to improve the delayed discharge position in local authority areas where it is poor. We maintain that pressure on a constant basis and it occupies a huge amount of my attention as First Minister and that of the health secretary. Some areas are improving, but not nearly fast enough. If we have a situation in which, in one local authority area, it is possible for there to be only 9.3 members of the public in delayed discharge per 100,000, how is it justifiable for there to be 10 times that number in any other part of the country? That is why we need a national care service.

I understand why Patrick Harvie put that question to me, and I understand the basis and substance of his point.

What I said back on 30 May 2024 was:

“we have to have a legal basis for saying, for matters that are not related to the Israel-Gaza conflict, that we are not providing a grant.”—[Official Report, 30 May 2024; c 18.]

That is the key legal test that the Government must satisfy. Whatever else is happening in the world, the Government has to act within the law, and, under my leadership, it will do so, because I believe fundamentally in the rule of law in all circumstances—it would help if many other people believed in the rule of law as well with regard to resolving some of these issues.

I do not in any way dismiss the points that Patrick Harvie put to me, but I simply say that I have to act within the law, and that, as I have assured him, I will explore once again whether there are any actions that we can take that will properly address our legal responsibilities and the moral and ethical issues that he fairly put to me this afternoon, and I will keep the matter under review.

I very much agree with Collette Stevenson that minimum unit pricing has been effective. Recent commentary in The Lancet—in a contribution by internationally renowned public health experts—stated:

“Policy makers can be confident that there are several hundred people ... who are alive today as a result of minimum unit pricing.”

That is something that I think we should all welcome as showing the effectiveness of the policy. However, minimum unit pricing is not the only instrument of policy that we have. On alcohol treatment, the Government has made available £112 million to alcohol and drug partnerships, and we have made £100 million available—or will do so over the course of this parliamentary session—to increase access to residential rehabilitation. We will work with stakeholders to create a new national service specification, alongside guidance for alcohol treatment, to address these issues.

I am familiar with the research that Mr Mundell puts to me, and I acknowledge the significance of the issue arising where dyslexia is not identified and, as a consequence, not supported. I am very happy to agree to meet Mr Mundell and Dyslexia Scotland; I have engaged with the organisation in the past, and I would welcome a continuation of that dialogue. There are obviously financial implications of meeting the costs of the assessments that Mr Mundell highlighted to me, but we will have those discussions and identify what further actions the Government can take to support the legitimate aspirations that Mr Mundell has outlined.

I am familiar with the case—I sympathise very much with the family involved, and I understand that this circumstance will add to the distress that they are suffering.

Jackie Baillie received a reply on that question from the health secretary last night, and I assure her that we are in touch with the relevant authorities to try to find a way through the situation to resolve the issue. I do not have a solution as yet, but I assure her that we are actively working to try to ensure that that is the case, and to do so as swiftly as we possibly can.

I appreciate the difficulty that Mr Doris puts to me, and I am happy to confirm that we will make representations to the United Kingdom Government on that basis to see what can be achieved. It is a deeply regrettable situation that the Afghan embassy faced closure following the dismissal of staff by the Taliban Government. Individuals should have access to representation by their Government, and they should be supported in ensuring that their needs are met. I give Mr Doris an assurance that we will make those representations to the United Kingdom Government to determine how those issues can be resolved.

As Mr Doris raised with me the issue of the Afghan population in Scotland, I make the point that their contribution to our country is deeply valued and that they are citizens who are welcome here. We want to do everything that we can to ensure that they can contribute to our society and can be well supported in so doing.

I am happy to put it on the record that I value enormously the contribution that police officers make to our lives in Scotland. They are essential contributors to the safety of members of the public, and they provide a pivotal and essential role that is highly valued by me, as First Minister, and by the Scottish Government.

Police pay is negotiated through two separate processes—the Police Negotiating Board for Scotland for police officers’ pay, and the joint national consultative committee for police staff pay. Pay claims have now been submitted for both officers and staff and will be progressed through the relevant negotiating processes. That process will resolve the issues that Pam Gosal put to me.

Our police officers in Scotland have consistently been the best paid in the United Kingdom, at the minimum and the maximum of each rank. That recognises their hard work and the valuable contribution that they make daily, as well as our commitment to investing in policing.

With regard to police numbers, recruitment is under way, which is designed to boost police numbers. The statistics on that will be published in due course.

The specific point on financial transactions is very important for the affordable housing supply programme budget, because we experienced a 62 per cent cut to financial transactions by the previous United Kingdom Government. That financial mechanism was crucial in enabling the affordable housing programme to be sustained at the previous level, and it has largely accounted for the falls in available investment. We have made representations to the UK Government—I have raised the issue with the chancellor and the Deputy Prime Minister—to secure a change to that approach. We will get the answer to that point in the budget on 30 October.

I say to Emma Roddick that those investment streams are absolutely crucial in enabling us to sustain our investment in affordable housing, but the Government is also deploying innovation with other mechanisms that we have developed, such as charitable bonds and the work on negotiation around providing financial support to bring void properties back into use, which demonstrate some of the flexibility that we are putting in place to address the housing challenges that we face around Scotland.

The Government has made clear our commitments in relation to the A96, including dualling the A96 between Inverness and Nairn and in relation to the Nairn bypass. A review is under way in relation to the remainder of the route. That will be concluded in due course, and Parliament will be advised of its implications.

The Government is committed to ensuring that we take measures to address road safety in all parts of the country. The transport secretary is focused on those measures and has put in place a range of practical steps to ensure that that is the case.

I commend my friend and colleague Karen Adam for the tremendous leadership that she offers in this area of policy. She is a champion of the deaf community and raises such issues assiduously.

Our efforts are underpinned by our see hear strategy, which was a product of partnership working with local authorities, health boards and the third sector. See hear funding is used through localised sensory support partnerships, which include the third sector, to help to put supports in place for deaf people. I commend their activity, and I commend Karen Adam for the leadership that she shows on this matter.