Chamber and committees

It is important not to imply that there is a deficit in public understanding and knowledge. We need to look at the positives. Because of the pandemic, the public are probably extremely well educated about clinical vulnerabilities and so on.

What learning will we take forward from what has been initiated in data collection during the pandemic, and how will we do that?

Does Ed Humpherson want to come in on that?

I have a quick supplementary about Scottish Government policy versus local delivery. Are there any barriers in health boards, IJBs, local authorities or even the third sector that might hinder the successful implementation of the Scottish Government’s programmes? How is the digital capability being kept up to support people whose first language is not English?

The information that is available to the public is fabulous, and I have been using the Public Health Scotland dashboard to better inform myself. I am interested in what we can do digitally to support people’s health literacy if we are going to encourage people to take better care of themselves outside of the pandemic. How do we support the development of a more health-conscious public?

A number of witnesses have mentioned the once-for-Scotland approach. That seems to fit some areas, whereas other areas need a tailored approach. The Datix Cloud IQ system is a cloud-based reporting mechanism for recording adverse events and safety concerns and for looking at quality assurance and the improvement of care. Would that be a “Once for Scotland” approach, whereas the ALISS approach seems to involve directing people to, for example, specific social prescribing in their health board or local authority area?

I welcome the opportunity to speak in this debate on linking food and climate change, and I congratulate Foysol Choudhury on securing it. It is clear that the aims of the Paris agreement and the COP26 Glasgow declaration cannot be reached without addressing food systems.

Farmers are at the front line of climate change. They experience the effects of extreme and unpredictable weather. They can be—and are—a huge part of the solution to tackle the climate emergency and support food security.

Producing food and drink sustainably means rearing, growing and processing them in a way that helps preserve and protect the environment for future generations. During the Parliament’s festival of politics this year, I chaired an event called “Will vegans really save the planet?”, which explored sustainable food production and the role of our diet in tackling the climate emergency. It highlighted a University of Oxford report that concluded that the food system is globally responsible for a third of all greenhouse gases, and it also explored whether reducing the amount of meat and dairy consumed helped to reduce agriculture’s environmental impact.

One of the conclusions from the event was that a vegan diet and the use of meat substitutes can involve intensive water use, can lead to a high number of air miles as a result of flying certain products such as avocados across the globe and can significantly contribute to deforestation. A key message for consumers was that procuring food sustainably means buying it from producers who minimise their impact on the environment—for example, by reducing their carbon emissions—and support the longevity of the industry. That is why it is so important to support schemes such as Scotland Loves Local and shop local, and local farmers markets such as those in Moffat, Dumfries, Kirkcudbright, Wigtown and the newly established market in Stranraer. I thank all those who support such initiatives. It was also clear from the event that a vegan diet is not the sole solution to tackling the climate emergency and that supporting our agriculture businesses to be sustainable is crucial, too.

I welcome the steps that are being taken by the Scottish Government to support our agricultural sector’s transition to net zero. I am also aware that it is moving forward with a successor to the common agriculture policy that will guide farming, food production and land use for the future, and I would welcome comments or an update from the minister on timescales in that respect. I also want to mention the Good Food Nation (Scotland) Bill, which Foysol Choudhury referred to, which proposes local and sustainable food production, and the formation of the agricultural sustainability working group, led by the president of NFU Scotland, Martin Kennedy, both of which are welcome steps in tackling the global climate emergency.

I briefly want to highlight local action by constituents: Chris Nicholson, chair of the Scottish Tenant Farmers Association; Colin Ferguson, the Dumfries and Galloway chair of the NFUS; Machars beef and sheep farmers Kenny Adams and William Moses; and film-makers Willeke Van Rijn and Julia Farrington. The group have created an informative short film to coincide with COP26 called “Talking With Farmers: Farming and Climate Change in the Machars”, which can be found on YouTube. It highlights the importance of supporting and engaging with farmers to tackle the climate emergency, and it provides insight into and some solutions for the custodians of our land. I encourage members to watch it and commend all involved in making it, and I look forward to engaging with them to learn how we promote food sustainability and tackle the climate and biodiversity emergencies.

I was struck by William Moses’s statement in the film that

“If we look after our soil, it will look after us.”

I want to add to that comment by saying that we need to do that to ensure that we in Scotland can sustainably produce and provide what is recognised across the world as world-class food produced to the some of the best welfare standards, and to support an approach that helps to achieve the sustainable development goals.

In the development of the refreshed Scottish attainment challenge, what steps has the Scottish Government taken to tackle the poverty related-attainment gap in rural areas?

Does Brian Whittle agree that it takes around 136 litres of water to make 1 litre of almond milk?

In addition to citizens assemblies, can the minister outline how the Scottish Government is creating space for genuine public involvement in decision making?

Skills planning that meets the current and future needs of Scotland’s rural economy is a vital part of the suite of measures that is needed to develop a highly skilled workforce and deliver sustainable economic growth. Can the cabinet secretary outline how the “Skills Action Plan for Rural Scotland: 2019-2021” is working to support rural skills across Dumfries and Galloway and the Scottish Borders?