Chamber and committees

I have another wee question. Previously, we have talked about additional skills to deliver additional services. For example, in one of our members’ business debates, we spoke about the fact that optometrists are often the first people to detect type 2 diabetes, and that would lead to a referral for a blood glucose check. Could that check be delivered in an optometry setting? It would require people to receive additional training to ensure they had the right level of competency and skill.

There we go.

I will pick up on what Jess Sussmann just said and relate it back to her comment about support for art. I had a case of someone who wanted to use self-directed support money for art therapy to help them tackle social isolation. Their proposal was refused, because it related to art and was therefore not seen as important.

Jess, how do you feel about that sort of support being used to benefit people and tackle social isolation in that way? I know that art therapy is really good for that. I see that you are shaking your head. What are your thoughts on that?

I heard the cabinet secretary’s response to Maggie Chapman. The UK Government has just announced that it will impose a 35 per cent tariff on top of existing tariffs on a range of imported goods from the Russian Federation, including fertilizers, wood, beverages, spirits, vinegar and cereals. How does the Scottish Government envisage that increase in tariff affecting food security here, in Scotland?

On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I forgot to mention earlier that I, too, am a practising NHS employee who has been a vaccinator for the past two years, since the vaccines were introduced.

I welcome the opportunity to speak in the debate and I welcome “Scotland’s Strategic Framework Update”. I want to be crystal clear: Covid-19 is still with us, as we heard from the First Minister earlier. Although vaccination is protecting us from the worst impacts of the virus, infected people are still requiring hospital attention, including intensive care support. Thankfully, that requirement is now less than we previously experienced.

The publication of the updated version of the Covid-19 strategic framework marks the point at which we move away from legal restrictions and instead rely on personal behaviours, adaptations and mitigations. I welcome the fact that the requirement for face coverings has been extended a wee bit, and I welcome the other measures that have been put in place. This is an important point in our national journey through and out of the pandemic, and our return to normality must go hand in hand with a continued determination to look out for and look after one another.

We all have a part to play in ensuring a safe and sustainable recovery by continuing to follow public health advice on getting vaccinated, testing as regularly as appropriate, wearing face coverings when required or recommended and keeping rooms ventilated. All of that still matters, even as we lift the remaining legal requirements. We know how successful face coverings have been in protecting one another from the virus, and it is absolutely vital that we look to support and protect people. I know that it is not as comfortable to wear a face covering as it is to not wear one, but we must ensure that people who want to continue to wear them feel that they can do so without fear of being judged. I would support any action to make available FFP2 masks, which are more secure fitting and protect the wearer more effectively than other standard face coverings.

The threat of new variants remains. In the past 14 days, we have heard of the emergence of a sub-lineage variant called deltacron BA.2, which is another variant of the SARS-CoV-2 virus. It appears to be even more transmissible than the already highly transmissible omicron variant. Professor Adrian Esterman, who is a former World Health Organization epidemiologist, said that the BA.2 variant is “pretty close to measles” in transmissibility, and measles is

“the most contagious disease we know about.”

It is therefore right that the strategic framework update sets out how we will respond to future threats at national level. The strategic intent has been revised from a focus on suppressing cases to a focus on managing Covid effectively using adaptations and health measures, which include vaccination, treatment, surveillance, strengthening the resilience of health and social care in general, and adaptations in behaviours and physical environments.

The update sets out a clear framework of threat levels and potential responses, which provides as much clarity as possible for planning purposes and retains crucial flexibility to ensure that responses are effective and proportionate.

I highlight the Support in Mind Scotland briefing that we received ahead of the debate. We must continue to recognise how people’s mental health has been affected during the pandemic, including people who had a mental health diagnosis prior to Covid. I acknowledge that tailored direct mental health support must continue.

On vaccinations, I understand that, currently, 34.5 per cent of people in Ukraine have had a first dose of the vaccine, which compares with 73.1 per cent of people in Scotland. I would be interested to hear from the Deputy First Minister about how we can commit to helping people arriving from Ukraine—who we welcome—to access their first, second or, if appropriate based on clinical need, additional dose.

I support the motion, I welcome the framework and I look forward to the Deputy First Minister’s response.

I was not planning on speaking, but I contributed in previous years and I wanted to support my colleague Gillian Martin by being in the chamber when she led the debate. I thank her for leading the debate this year. I remember Bruce Crawford leading previous debates on the topic when I was a newbie MSP.

In my career as a registered nurse, I looked after terminally ill people in the perioperative or perianaesthesia environment, not directly in end-of-life care. I was also able to look after people in a ward setting. When I was a clinical educator in NHS Dumfries and Galloway, I worked with the team in the Alexandra unit at Dumfries and Galloway royal infirmary and the Dalrymple ward at Galloway community hospital, where end-of-life and pain-management care is provided by an amazing team. I thank them all because they are awesome.

I also thank the Marie Curie staff, nurses, carers and volunteers. Without them, we could not raise the funds that are needed. They are all fantastic and I could not do what they do every day.

The briefing that Ellie Wagstaff from Marie Curie sent us ahead of the debate talks about the £250,000 per week that is needed to support front-line services. Stephen Kerr mentioned the £14,000 that is needed for the hospice in his area. That highlights how investment is required to provide the best person-centred end-of-life and palliative care that Gillian Mackay mentioned in her speech.

It is interesting to hear everybody else’s speeches. As Paul McLennan said, 31 out of the 32 local authorities have Marie Curie services.

I welcome the great daffodil appeal and the reception that will take place in Holyrood on Wednesday 16 March, where speakers will reflect on their personal experience, which I am sure will be very valuable for all of us to hear.

I end by again thanking Gillian Martin for, and congratulating her on, leading this year’s debate. I look forward to hearing the minister’s response. I once again thank all the volunteers who are fundraising for this year’s great daffodil appeal.

The cabinet secretary mentioned mixed fisheries in her statement. I know that the Firth of Clyde and the Clyde catchment area are really important. Constituents have contacted me about the decision to include creel fishers in the seasonal closure of cod fishing between 14 February and 30 April. I understand that the seasonal closure has been a long-standing measure to protect fish stocks. Will the cabinet secretary ensure that the Scottish Government will work closely with creel fishers to ensure that they are able to plan for any potential future interruption to their business?

Will the member give way?

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what action it is taking to advance and support the use of the Scots language across the Scottish Parliament campus. (S6O-00858)

I welcome the opportunity to speak in this debate and I recognise Alex Rowley for securing it. He has just outlined the complexity of the care system. My first job when I left school, before I started my nurse training, was in a care home. I know that that was a long time ago, but I remember the complexity of the work that we were trained for and asked to do.

I want to be clear from the outset that our social care workforce here in Scotland are absolutely valued. They do crucial work every day, often in very challenging circumstances. The Covid-19 pandemic has emphasised the need for our social care sector to be supported and valued.

Social care includes all types of personal and practical support for children, young people and adults who require it. It includes a wide range of roles, such as home carers, care home staff, activity and care co-ordinators, care managers, social work assistants, children and young persons support workers, day centre staff, cleaners in care settings, admin support staff and many others. It is important to keep that in mind when discussing the sector. It is more complex than just being about one job, one role or one pay scale.

Social care is an investment in Scotland’s people, society and economy. Many of us or our family members or friends will already use social care, and many of us will need to use it at some point in our lives.

The social care sector in Scotland employs approximately 200,000 people and has an estimated financial value to Scotland’s economy of £3.4 billion. The sector is hugely important, and a lot of work is going on to improve it and the experience of its workforce.

The Scottish Government is committed to supporting people to stay at home or in a homely setting with maximum independence for as long as possible.

It is crucial to attract and retain the right people to work in social care, support and social work. That has not been helped by the withdrawal from the European Union, as Alex Rowley said.

We need to raise the status of social care as a profession. We have discussed that in the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee, of which I am a member. To do that, the Scottish Government has embarked on the largest reform of adult social care in Scotland. Working with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, people with lived experience, unpaid carers and other stakeholders, the Scottish Government has developed priorities that are currently being implemented when it comes to social care. They include

“a shared agreement on the purpose of adult social care support, with a focus on human rights”

and

“social care support that is centred on a person, how they want to live their life, and what is important to them”.

What matters to them is important. Another priority is

“changing attitudes towards social care support, so that it is seen as an investment in Scotland’s people, society and economy”.

That is also valuable. A further priority is:

“strengthening the quality and consistency of co-production at local and national level”.

Derek Feeley’s independent review of adult social care was a crucial step towards the creation of the national care service for Scotland. It will enable us to improve the experiences of everybody who works in or uses social care. The review was comprehensive and found many aspects of our adult social care system that are worthy of celebration, such as the introduction of self-directed support. The Carers (Scotland) Act 2016 is also important, as is the introduction of free personal care.

Given the aims that the Government has in mind, which also include the principles of fair work, we need to welcome the fact that the Scottish Government is taking issues forward, and I look forward to working further with the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee to look at what we can do. I also look forward to hearing from the minister in his response.