Chamber and committees

I welcome the consultation by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service. Addressing unwanted fire alarm signals is a priority in the fire and rescue framework for Scotland. Unwanted fire alarm signals are an issue for fire services throughout the United Kingdom. They place the public and firefighters at risk by causing unnecessary blue-light journeys and diverting resources away from genuine emergencies. The consultation seeks to understand stakeholders’ views on the options that it puts forward. I would expect there to be further SFRS engagement to explore any significant concerns that are raised, before a final decision is made on the way forward.

Jamie Greene is right to point that out. There are three options in the consultation; two of them exempt sleeping premises. That covers care homes, which the member rightly mentioned, along with hospitals, prisons and so on.

A reduction in unwanted fire alarm signals could release significant resources that could be deployed to more productive and beneficial tasks, including prevention and fire safety work. Although the SFRS remains committed to driving down the number of unwanted fire alarms, it will always respond to alarm signals immediately, with appropriate resources, if fire is confirmed or if signs of fire are reported.

It is worth noting that, as I said, two of the options that are set out in the consultation exempt premises such as care homes and hospitals from being call challenged, which means that an immediate response will be sent to investigate a call and the cause of the alarm. Any potential change in the response to such premises will be discussed thoroughly before any final decision is made on the way forward.

We are committed to modernising the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service so that it can do more to keep communities safe and contribute to better outcomes for the people of Scotland. That has been demonstrated though our continued investment in the SFRS, with a further uplift of £8.7 million in resource for 2021-22, which brings the total budget to £343 million. We are consulting on our fire and rescue framework for Scotland. Modernisation is at the heart of our priorities and objectives for the SFRS.

We are aware of the findings of the cross-party group’s report, which follows its inquiry into websites that host adverts for sexual exploitation. We have previously written to the online platforms, including Vivastreet, to make our concerns clear and help to ensure that people are protected from exploitation. We will continue to develop policy in that area as part of our on-going engagement with the United Kingdom online safety bill, and as part of our work to develop a model for Scotland that challenges men’s demand for prostitution.

Last week, we published in the programme for government the Scottish Government’s commitment to develop a model that effectively tackles men’s demand for prostitution. We will progress that in this parliamentary term. Due to the complexities of the issue, we require to assess not only the legislative needs of our chosen model but the support that is available for those who are involved in prostitution. We will be commissioning a programme of lived experience engagement to further inform the work.

Many countries have adopted a challenging demand model from which we can learn, and we are working on a comprehensive international review to develop our evidence base and understand key challenges and common principles applied across the approaches.

I know that the member shares my resolve to get this right and supports our overarching aspirations to embed equality and human rights in Scotland.

The consultation highlighted that we need to do more to ensure that women are able to access appropriate support services that can meet their needs. We know that services, including those that help people exit prostitution, are inconsistent across Scotland, and our aim is to address that. As part of that work, I am clear that we need to involve the voices of those involved in prostitution in the design of the services that affect them.

I am grateful to Clare Adamson for highlighting the relevance of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. It is because we attach such fundamental importance to the rights and wellbeing of our children that we legislated to incorporate the convention, as far as possible, into Scots law.

When the Parliament voted unanimously to approve the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (Incorporation) (Scotland) Bill in March, it was a milestone, not an end point. Work needs to be ramped up to ensure that the convention’s provisions bring real-life benefit to our children. That applies to the provisions of article 24, on health and wellbeing, which include ensuring that

“all segments of society, in particular parents and children, are informed, have access to education and are supported in ... the prevention of accidents”.

Of course, we are not setting off from a standing start. A lot of good work on education around risk assessment and accident prevention is already being undertaken. There is also the underlying contribution of the getting it right for every child programme. We have a very good platform on which to build.

On the prevention of accidental drowning specifically, we will strengthen our work with key organisations, including Water Safety Scotland and RoSPA, to identify and deliver the most effective ways of facilitating access to appropriate education and support.

As I said in my initial answer, a range of stakeholders were present at the meeting that I convened on 11 August. As you would imagine, the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service was at the meeting. I specifically asked it to review the location of its assets for exactly the reason that Jackie Baillie mentioned and to look at future arrangements. She was right to raise the situation at Loch Lomond.

However, there is no simple single answer to the challenge of drowning prevention. There is obviously a role for education, signage and life-saving equipment. All water can be dangerous, but Jackie Baillie is right to point out that there are locations where the dangers are more significant, where it is especially important that there is clear warning signage and appropriate life-saving equipment.

I will again speak to the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service about the particular incident that Jackie Baillie mentioned and will come back to her.

The Scottish Government takes the issue of water safety very seriously and welcomed the drowning prevention strategy when it was published by Water Safety Scotland in 2018. I thank Clare Adamson for her contribution to the strategy and her continued support for Water Safety Scotland, which has a lynchpin role in this area.

As Clare Adamson will know, the Scottish Government continues to provide funding, via the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, to support the operation of Water Safety Scotland. In addition, this year, the Scottish Government has worked with partners to support a number of water safety activities and campaigns.

We also work closely with Water Safety Scotland and other partners to support the recommendations in its drowning prevention strategy and initiatives that can help to raise awareness of the hazards around water and reduce deaths from accidental drowning. On 11 August, I convened a meeting with a range of key stakeholders to drive further action around delivery of the drowning prevention strategy, and I will convene a follow-up meeting later this month.

I am well aware of the risk to public safety that is caused by careless, inconsiderate and antisocial driving. That is why I fully support Police Scotland and its partners in dealing with the misuse of vehicles in an appropriate and proportionate way. Local policing teams are ideally placed to engage with members of the local community to identify where the misuse of vehicles is causing distress to the public. That ensures that those areas can be prioritised for proactive action to prevent future instances and identify and deal with those who are engaged in the misuse of vehicles.