Chamber and committees

I have section 3(c) of the Natural Environment (Scotland) Bill in front of me, which concerns the purpose of ensuring consistency with other regimes. It has been suggested to us that that would open up a “race to the bottom” with other regimes. Stakeholders have expressed concerns about that purpose, but my understanding is that it relates to alignment with environmental outcome reports in England, for example.

Could the power in part 2 be used to make substantial revisions to the Scottish EIA regime to align it with environmental outcome reports? I am asking about the purpose of ensuring consistency and compatibility.

A seven-year period is covered in the Skye house documentary. You have talked about unannounced visits and other visits. How many visits are we talking about, especially if you go back to investigate three months later? Do the visits involve speaking to the staff and the teams on the ground in each of the three ward areas? I am curious as to why the culture—which, as the documentary showed, evolved into something quite disturbing—was not picked up on sooner.

I know that there are complexities around planning, whether that is for flu or other potential disease pathogens. We have talked about various reports, such as the module 1 report, the respiratory action plan and the one that recommended the Scottish pandemic sciences partnership. Work is under way, but are you confident that that is a process of simplification?

I do not want to cause shock or alarm to anybody, but how do the scientists who work with humans in tracing the genomics of pathogens and viruses work with our veterinarians, for instance? We have recently had issues with Schmallenberg virus and bluetongue, and there has been foot and mouth in Germany, so I am thinking about the zoonotic aspects of avian influenza, which Sir Gregor has mentioned. How do we work with other scientists to track and trace the potential pathogens from ticks, fleas and other wee beasties?

We are a few years down the line from the Covid pandemic, and I am sure that we all have personal experiences and remember things about it, including what could have happened or what could have been done. During the pandemic, as a registered nurse, I was giving vaccines as well as being an MSP. I am therefore interested to know the detail of any progress that has been made in implementing the United Kingdom Covid-19 inquiry’s module 1 recommendations that the emergency preparedness and resilience structures should be simplified. I see that Sir Gregor is nodding.

If you were to be given more powers, what powers would you want to have?

I had some thoughts about the work that I have done previously on eating disorders. I know that the Mental Welfare Commission did an exercise to map eating disorder services in Scotland. We saw an increase in the number of people assessed and diagnosed with eating disorders during Covid. We have had lots of discussions about that and there has been additional funding from the Scottish Government. The eating disorder charity Beat has been really good at engaging with and supporting people through its activities online.

I would be interested to hear about any updates or recommendations following the mapping exercise. What would you say needs to be the number 1 priority in, for instance, referrals, given the eating disorder services that we have across Scotland? For example, in Dumfries and Galloway and in the Borders there are on-the-ground specialists, but sometimes people then need to be referred to Skye house.

Good morning, and thank you for being here. I declare an interest in that I am still a registered nurse. My background and experience are as a general nurse.

I am interested in the Scottish mental health law review, which made some recommendations. The convener has already touched on this a wee bit. Given that the Mental Welfare Commission does not have enforcement powers, how does it ensure that the recommendations that it makes following its visits lead to meaningful service improvements?

Just before Julie Paterson comes in, I note that there are issues with young people transitioning from in-patient care to community care. Eating disorders affect boys and girls—everybody thinks that they affect only girls, but they do not. I am interested in the community aspects of care.

I am sorry for interrupting you.

We are all Es on this committee, aren’t we? [Laughter.]

Good morning, Joe. I have a quick question for you. You mentioned engaging with aquaculture developers. Does the Government help to support the development of marine planning as a profession, to ensure that adequate resources and expertise are out there? It is a complex matter. I know that different organisations have proposals for salmon farms, and now we are proposing an extension to 12 nautical miles. What does the Scottish Government do to support further marine planning?