Chamber and committees

Does Ms Dowey believe that hate crime laws in England and Wales should be repealed?

During the past few weeks, the people whose voices have been drowned out by Tory misinformation regarding the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021 are those who will benefit from the legislation.

Can the cabinet secretary detail how the 2021 act will help to provide greater protection for victims and communities?

Good morning, minister. This situation stemmed from the UK Government introducing legislation unilaterally, and I am interested to know whether any cross-border issues still have to be ironed out or whether any other concerns have arisen.

We know that disposable vapes pose environmental risks, both as an eyesore through littering and as a harm through fires in waste facilities. How can local authorities be supported in managing the safe disposal of, and the waste management associated with, single-use vapes?

I am delighted that the recent report by the commissioner for fair access highlights a 45 per cent increase in students from the most deprived communities entering university since 2013-14. That is so welcome, and it highlights the fact that the SNP and the Greens are the only parties that can be trusted not to put a price on education. Access to university should always be based on the ability to learn and not the ability to pay.

In the newly published paper in our “Building a New Scotland” series, we include a proposal to enshrine the Government’s policy on free tuition in the permanent constitution of an independent Scotland. The paper also sets out how new powers could be used to

“make the conditions and foundations for learning even stronger, so that every young person has the best chance possible of succeeding at school and in post-school education.”

We should all have the opportunity to continue learning throughout our lives.

Poverty contributes to a lack of attainment. In an independent Scotland, with full powers over employment and social security, we could tackle child poverty and other inequalities. When I sat on the children’s panel in the east end of Glasgow, 15 years ago, a social worker told me that their measure of attainment was to get a child from a severely deprived area to go to school every day. Poverty is cruel, divisive and disempowering. With independence and the full incorporation into Scots law of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, we could ensure that children’s rights were upheld, protected and respected.

The facts speak for themselves. Labour, the Conservatives and the Liberal Democrats have repeatedly broken their promises on tuition fees. Those fees are spiralling. They were tripled to £9,000 a year by the Lib Dem-Conservative coalition and in 2016 were raised again to £9,250 per year. I am lucky in that my children and nieces and nephews have all had the chance to go to university. The eye-watering sum that my family would have had to pay had we not lived in Scotland under an SNP Government honestly does not bear thinking about.

In Scotland, we have world-renowned universities, excellent colleges and—despite what some would have us believe—outstanding schools and teachers up and down the country. Over the past few days, I have visited two of those schools—Lenzie academy and St Ninian’s high school in Kirkintilloch—to present them with awards. As ever, I was amazed at the ethos and achievement of our teachers and pupils. The pupils come from every background, and each of them is equally deserving of going on to higher education.

Scottish Labour’s hypocrisy on supporting students is pretty staggering. It claims to remain committed to supporting free tuition but, yet again, refuses to hold Keir Starmer to account for his flip-flopping on the matter. I hope that Pam Duncan-Glancy will stay true to the commitment that she made in her contribution. It is getting harder to distinguish between Scottish Labour and the Scottish Conservatives when it comes to education policy, be that on graduate endowment fees or new formulas.

Interestingly, the sixth annual report of the commissioner for fair access shows that the increase in the number of deprived students entering universities has not come at the expense of students from more affluent areas. The SNP is committed to ensuring that a wide range of support opportunities is available for students from all backgrounds as they pursue their educational careers in Scotland.

I am very proud that unaccompanied children who are asylum seekers, as well as the children of asylum seekers, are entitled to free tuition in Scotland. All of Scotland’s young people should have the same opportunities to progress in life. High-quality learning and teaching are crucial to disrupting the impact of poverty in our education system. All of us will agree on that, but only the SNP can commit clearly to the ability to learn, not the ability to pay.

To ask the Scottish Government what representations it can make to the United Kingdom Government regarding the potential amendment of its Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill to cover Scotland, to ensure that there is parity and equality for all sub-postmasters and sub-postmistresses who have been affected. (S6O-03229)

Given the reserved nature of the Post Office and the compensation scheme, I am concerned that if any Scottish legislation does not mirror the UK legislation, it might risk sub-postmasters’ access to the compensation scheme. What assessment has the Scottish Government done of those risks, particularly if the bill is amended during its passage through Westminster?

During a recent event that I sponsored in the Scottish Parliament, I had the opportunity to meet a young girl with ADHD who expressed concerns about her medication. She shared her experience of having to skip medication days. Can the minister advise on measures to ensure that no child with ADHD needs to skip their medication days?

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the availability of attention deficit hyperactivity disorder medication supplies in Scotland. (S6O-03191)

We know that many survivors of sexual offences do not want to report them straight away, so I, too, welcome Police Scotland’s settlement that

“time is no barrier to justice”.

What more could be done to encourage victims of sexual violence and domestic violence to come forward, no matter when the offences took place?