Chamber and committees

Like Rona Mackay and Christine Grahame, I agree that this is an important issue. Has the Scottish Government assessed whether the divergence from Covid-19 restrictions in England, with the approach of the dangerously named “freedom day” on 19 July there, will create confusion about the Scottish Covid-19 rules and, therefore, barriers to their enforcement? Can the First Minister reaffirm that action will be taken to ensure that people in Scotland and those visiting from other parts of the UK, including to my South Scotland region, are aware of Scotland’s more responsible approach to easing Covid-19 restrictions?

What action is the Scottish Government taking in response to high numbers of people not attending their appointments at Covid-19 vaccination clinics? Is the Government exploring innovative ways, such as text messaging, for vaccination team staff to contact people about vaccination, which could help to ensure attendance?

I remind members that I am a member of NHS Dumfries and Galloway’s vaccination team.

There are many reasons why women might be reluctant to attend their screening test. Those range from difficulties in attending or being examined due to physical disability to cultural and language barriers, lack of awareness and uneasiness. What action is the Scottish Government taking to break down those barriers and help more women attend their appointment when called?

I welcome the First Minister’s announcement yesterday regarding changes to the guidance on weddings, which are key to the hospitality sector. I have been contacted by wedding venues in the south of Scotland that have asked whether a specific route map out of Covid-19 can be created for the sector that takes account of the diverse nature of weddings and wedding venues. Will the minister consider that? If it is possible, will he outline a potential timeframe for its establishment?

I remain a registered nurse and am a member of NHS Dumfries and Galloway’s vaccination team. I will continue to be available as and if required to support further Covid vaccinations in the upcoming months, and I will update my entry in the register of interests as necessary to declare any income that is derived when that occurs.

I nominate Gillian Martin.

Gillian Martin was chosen as convener.

I welcome the opportunity to speak in the debate, and I congratulate Bob Doris on bringing it to the chamber, and on his excellent contribution. I also acknowledge and thank Christina McKelvie for the huge amount of work that she has put into raising awareness of MND, and for previously leading the debate in Parliament over a number of years.

My contribution will focus on the fantastic work of MND Scotland, both nationally and across my South Scotland region, the groundbreaking medical advances that have been made over the past 12 months, and on some points of interest in my region.

As Bob Doris said, this June marks 40 years since police officer John Macleod and his wife, Peigi, first launched MND Scotland from their living room, after John was diagnosed with motor neurone disease. Since then, many people—activists, healthcare professionals, researchers and those who have been diagnosed with MND—have helped to create a movement to fight back against MND through research and clinical trials. They have also helped to power MND Scotland’s life-changing support services through fundraising, donations and political action.

Across Scotland, including in my South Scotland region, MND Scotland provides support services for those who are living with MND, including through face-to-face support services, emergency financial grants, advocacy services and, during the current Covid-19 pandemic, video support and one-to-one phone calls. The charity’s work has been a lifeline for many, and I thank John and Peigi and all at MND Scotland, past and present, for the outstanding job that they do.

I highlight that Dumfries and Galloway in my South Scotland region has a particularly high prevalence of MND—higher than in other areas of Scotland. Across Dumfries and Galloway, an average of 15 people per 100,000 are diagnosed with MND, which compares with a United Kingdom average of five to seven people per 100,000. Figures show that the issue is particularly acute in Stranraer, where the statistics translate to 57 people per 100,000 being diagnosed with MND. I am thinking of my colleague the former MP Richard Arkless, his wife Anne and their family at this time, because both Richard and Anne have lost close members of their family to MND. No one knows exactly why MND is so prevalent in Dumfries and Galloway. MND has such a profound and devastating impact on the lives of so many, and there is a clear need for further research across the south-west of Scotland.

I welcome the significant advances in MND research over the past 12 months. Currently, almost everyone in Scotland who is living with MND is participating in MND Scotland’s new clinical trial, MND-SMART. Although typical clinical trials focus on a single drug, MND-SMART will allow more than one treatment to be tested at a time, which will give patients a higher chance of receiving an active treatment rather than a placebo. The project, which is being led by researchers at the Euan MacDonald Centre at the University of Edinburgh, has been developed to find effective medicines more quickly. The clinical trial will include as many people who have been diagnosed with MND as possible, regardless of how the disease or current treatments affect them.

The first trial is looking at amyotrophic lateral sclerosis and involves interleukin-2, which is used for treating some types of cancer. The study will focus on immune cells in the blood, which can influence the speed at which ALS progresses. I welcome the research and agree that it will improve the life chances of people who are living with MND in Scotland.

I wish MND Scotland a happy 40 years and every success as it moves forward. Again, I highlight the high levels of MND across Dumfries and Galloway, and I ask the minister to bear that in mind as policies move forward.

I welcome the opportunity to speak in this important debate on Scotland’s drug policy. I agree with the Government that the drug-related death figures that were published in December are unacceptable, and I welcome the fact that we are moving forward with updated, innovative and person-centred approaches to better address problem drug use in Scotland.

I welcome the publication of the medication-assisted treatment standards and all the work that the minister outlined in her opening remarks. There is so much going on, and I look forward to any progress. I agree that it is crucial to address inequality, listen to lived experience and work in partnership with housing, the police and families.

I am keen to continue supporting efforts to enhance ways of working. I plan to continue to be part of the cross-party group on drug and alcohol misuse, along with my colleague Monica Lennon, and I would welcome others who might wish to join that cross-party group.

In the previous session, as the deputy convener of the Health and Sport Committee, I had the opportunity to participate in the Scottish Affairs Committee’s inquiry into Scottish drug-related deaths in 2019. The inquiry heard directly from drug and alcohol support agencies, health services, academics, those with lived experience and families who had been affected by problem drug use. All the witnesses agreed that urgent reform is needed to solve the issue of drug deaths in Scotland.

The inquiry also heard from experts from Portugal, Germany and Canada, who examined the international evidence from countries that are taking a more progressive public health approach, not a punitive criminal justice approach, to tackling problem drug use. We found that the levels of deaths associated with drug misuse and eviction in those countries had reduced significantly, including by as much as 40 per cent in Canada. One recommendation from the Scottish Affairs Committee was that the UK Government must urgently introduce legislation to allow the Scottish Parliament to take its own approach to this hugely significant issue.

I support the motion, which calls for a four-nations summit, and I agree that the 50-year-old law needs to be reformed. A collective, four-nations approach could recommend and achieve law reform. The Conservatives’ amendment does not go far enough in addressing that. Working constructively is welcome, but continuing with a criminal justice approach, not a public health approach, is wrong according to the current evidence-based approaches that we are reading about. I am not surprised by the Conservatives’ amendment, however, as the UK Government’s Home Secretary, Priti Patel, has consistently stated that she will not give the powers over drug policy to this Parliament or change the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. Indeed, she has stated that the drugs law is fit for purpose. However, maintaining the status quo isnae gonnae work.

In the past few months, much welcome work has been undertaken by the SNP Government, which has committed £250 million of additional funding for urgent action to deal with addiction issues and the harm caused by addiction. We are preventing and reducing both alcohol and drug harm among many individuals by establishing the new national mission to reduce drug-related deaths and harms. The mission was announced by the First Minister and is supported by an additional £50 million per year.

Drug and alcohol services have been supported during the Covid-19 pandemic, including in Dumfries and Galloway, in my South Scotland region, where assertive outreach is under way. The investment, through the programme for government in 2021-22, of a further £20 million over two years to tackle illicit drugs is also really important.

Brian Whittle talked about street benzos, and that subject has been covered extensively in my South Scotland area by the BBC. More people are accessing illicit street benzos through the internet, through Facebook advertisements and so on. My understanding is that street benzos are being used when people cannot access their heroin or cocaine dealers. Street benzos can be much more potent in their strength, especially when consumed with alcohol, and that leads to the devastating consequences of death that we are seeing.

In addition to other areas that the Government is investing in, I am interested in what the minister said about the £1.4 million and the 10 third sector projects that are being funded through the national development project fund. That is also welcome, as we know how important our third sector partners are.

I will highlight some further issues for the minister. Anything that we undertake needs to tackle stigma and discrimination, which are a huge issue, especially in rural areas. I also ask for a commitment from the minister that any new policy approach will ensure that rural parts of Scotland are included. I look forward to seeing progress across the whole of Scotland, including in my South Scotland region. I welcome the acknowledgement that we need to achieve better outcomes and support services and that we must talk about compassionate communities.

I look forward to hearing the minister’s response at the conclusion of the debate.

I welcome the opportunity to speak in the debate, and I thank Douglas Ross for bringing it to the chamber today. I also acknowledge that Richard Lochhead, who is the constituency MSP for Elgin, has been very active on the matter, and it is good to see cross-party working on the issue.

I will focus my remarks on the Scottish Government’s review of maternity services at Dr Gray’s hospital, and on similar issues presented by rurality that are experienced by women across Dumfries and Galloway in my South Scotland region, particularly in Stranraer and Wigtownshire.

I agree with the motion that the decision to downgrade maternity services in Elgin, albeit on clinical safety grounds, has caused serious concern for many women and families across the area. Douglas Ross mentioned travel distances for mums who are on a green pathway, but for many expecting mothers with medium or high-risk pregnancies, the prospect of travelling many miles for maternity services will cause much anxiety. It is a 150-mile round trip from Stranraer to Dumfries, and friends’ experiences tell me that many people get anxious when having to travel such a distance.

I, too, commend the work of the Keep MUM group in ensuring that a proper, consultant-led maternity service is restored at Dr Gray’s hospital as soon as possible. I also commend the work of the doctors, midwives, nurses and the whole multidisciplinary team at Dr Gray’s hospital for their professionalism in working with mothers and all other patients.

I welcome the fact that, in March, the Scottish Government commissioned an independent review into maternity services at Dr Gray’s hospital, which is being chaired by Ralph Roberts, the chief executive of NHS Borders. The independent review is currently considering

“how a consultant-led service could be reinstated that is safe, deliverable and sustainable and will take into account the views of women, their families, staff and stakeholders.”

The review is due to publish its findings later this month, and I look forward to seeing its recommendations. I welcome the Scottish Government’s action to see a safe, consultant-led maternity service for mothers across Elgin and wider Moray.

Across Wigtownshire in my South Scotland region, expecting mothers have also faced issues when it comes to maternity services. Since 2018, there have only been out-patient maternity services at the Galloway community hospital, meaning that expecting mothers have to either have a home birth or travel on a 150-mile round trip to Dumfries and Galloway royal infirmary when they go into labour. However, a number of antenatal services such as ultrasound, treatment of early-onset complications, such as pre-eclampsia, and managing post-delivery issues are being delivered at the Galloway community hospital.

The situation has presented many challenges for women across the area, particularly when it comes to urgent cases and medium and high-risk pregnancies. Therefore, I ask the cabinet secretary in his closing speech to confirm whether there are options available for rural hospitals such as the Galloway community hospital and Dr Gray’s. I also ask him whether the review is looking at the whole multidisciplinary team with regard to the required skills and competence and the support that is needed to re-establish an obstetrician-led team at Dr Gray’s. In my experience as a clinical nurse educator in NHS Dumfries and Galloway before coming to the Parliament, I know how important it is to have safety as the number 1 priority.

I welcome the debate and the action that the Scottish Government is taking to allow for the re-establishment of a consultant-led maternity service at Dr Gray’s hospital in Elgin. I repeat my ask that the cabinet secretary explores innovative ways for rural health board settings, such as in Galloway and Elgin, to continue to deliver to meet the needs of the local people.

Will the cabinet secretary expand a bit on how people across Scottish communities, particularly in rural areas such as Dumfries and Galloway and the Scottish Borders, can use the advice from the Climate Change Committee and on how action can be taken from that advice?