Chamber and committees

Consideration of the latter matter would fall to Shona Robison, who is the cabinet secretary in charge of social security.

I have just answered the first part of the member’s question. We keep under continual review things that we might want to legislate on. Although that aspect does not feature in the 22 bills that the member referenced, we will introduce a number of other bills that do not feature in those 22 bills. It is possible that other bills might also be introduced. The party that the member represents has mentioned two or three bills that it wants to introduce, so the list of 22 bills is not exhaustive. As I said, we keep—and will continue to keep—under review the extent to which introducing legislation is appropriate or possible.

On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I was unable to access the app. I would have voted yes.

In my view, the police have the capacity to respond to crime on the streets, and they respond extremely well, as evidenced by some of the lowest crime rates that we have seen in Scotland for many years. The police are very much used to dealing with people in a distressed state and are very much trauma informed in their response. We are trying to ensure that that is the case across the justice system, and I think that they have done a very good job.

In relation to the capital budget, I note that the Conservatives proposed no amendment to the budget, so they proposed no additional funds—either capital or resource—for the police. I assume from that that the Conservatives support the increased levels of expenditure that we have provided to the police.

On police numbers, I simply point out that we have around 32 police officers for every 10,000 people in Scotland, whereas there are 23 police officers for every 10,000 people across the border. We have increased police numbers since we formed the Scottish Government, whereas the Government that the member supports has reduced police numbers by 17,000—and it is now trying to row back from that. We have a very good record, and we are very supportive of the police.

It is worth pointing out that decisions about the disposition of police forces are a matter for the chief constable. I would hope that the member would support that.

That is a very good question. I refer to my comment about trying to ensure that the whole justice system is trauma informed. As I am sure the member, as convener of the Criminal Justice Committee, knows, Police Scotland has made a pledge under the NHS national trauma training programme to support our communities, especially those people who are identified as being vulnerable and at risk. The police do that in their daily working practices, liaising closely with national and local partners.

On the specific issue of training, Police Scotland has worked to integrate trauma-informed practices in many key areas of business, and it has adopted the use of NHS Education for Scotland materials. That includes specialist training for detectives and custody officers. It has also committed to providing specific training to all probationary officers as part of the initial training programme.

At the root of the question that Willie Rennie asks is a serious point about the prevalence of mental ill health in Police Scotland. He referred to the situation two years ago. We know that, since then, additional pressures have built up, not least through Covid, but also through working patterns and non-holiday periods. People have had to work through holidays, and we know that there has been a lot of pressure as a result of the 26th United Nations climate change conference of the parties—COP26—and so on. Those things all mean that pressures have increased, and I acknowledge that.

However, it is not true to say that that has not been discussed with the Scottish Police Authority and the chief constable. I have discussed it myself with both the SPA and the chief constable, and I will discuss those issues, and related matters, with the Scottish Police Federation this afternoon. We take these matters seriously, and we are aware of the pressures on police officers. That is one reason why we have ensured that in Scotland, unlike in other parts of the United Kingdom, police officers have had a pay rise this year, and that we maintain police numbers, which can help to reduce the pressures on individual police officers.

We are committed to ensuring that all veterans who live in Scotland can access the best possible care and support, including safe, effective and person-centred healthcare. We fund two veteran-specific mental health and wellbeing providers—Combat Stress and Veterans First Point. Additionally, each national health service board has an armed forces and veterans champion, who can offer veterans advice and guidance.

To return to the previous question, we have bold ambitions for new Scottish disability benefits, which come under the remit of the cabinet secretary who is responsible for that area. We have identified several ways to provide disabled people, including veterans, with a different experience when accessing the support to which they are entitled, which includes improving the application process, assisting applicants to gather supporting information from a professional to help make decisions and abolishing functional assessments.

The issue also impinges on a previous question and answer about identity cards, which would allow veterans to access services more easily. In addition, as part of the benefit take-up strategy, we will continue to engage with our seldom-heard groups, including veterans, to maximise take-up and to ensure that such voices are heard and considered in our policy work.

I am certainly happy to meet with members and consider that. The objections to the Cancard scheme come from the medical profession, at least in part, but I am happy to consider the point and write to both members with more information and, after that, to have a meeting to discuss it further.

No finalised online safety bill has been published by the UK Government yet. Although there has been engagement between officials in the Scottish Government and those in the UK Government, I have not yet had any discussions with the UK Government about the impact on Scotland of its proposed bill.

The member raises an important point. As he says, the Parliament has agreed legislation that will simplify and modernise the law on defamation, and I am pleased that the Scottish Government expects to lay commencement regulations in early May, which will bring the 2021 act into force this summer.

I agree that it was a deplorable and tragic act that led to the killing of Sir David Amess, and we would want to support anything that can lead to a situation in which such an appalling attack is less likely in the future.

Given that the bill has not been published, it is difficult to give any agreement at this stage. In fact, the UK Government has made a number of announcements that have changed the bill’s proposed content. However, I will look seriously and sympathetically at the bill—from what I have heard and from what I have seen reported in newspapers, it will have potentially productive elements. Scottish Government officials and I will engage with the UK Government on the issues.