Neil Gray
Scottish National Party · Scotland
“I welcome the fact that, through the police and the courts, our justice system is ensuring that justice is done. Victims show enormous bravery and trust in our legal system in reporting crime, and I want that to continue.”
“The Scottish Government-funded Caledonian system is a good example of a community-based programme that aims to address the behaviour of men who have been convicted of domestic abuse, alongside providing support to affected women and children.”
“On the day after my appointment as justice secretary, I visited HMP Edinburgh to see the level of pressure that the Scottish Prison Service is facing due to an increasing prison population. It is clear that staff want to focus on rehabilitation and reducing reoffending but that it is increasingly difficult for them to do so.”
“Scotland shows a clear and persistent trend of increasing the length of average custodial sentences, including a 37 per cent rise between 2014-15 and 2023-24.”
“However, although the operational impact that will result from the changes is expected to be minimal, I still advise the Parliament to give legislative consent to the relevant sections of the bill.”
“I note my thanks and appreciation to the Parliament for expediting consideration of this legislative consent motion. It is regrettable that we are having to expedite scrutiny on an LCM, which is due to the UK Government’s timetabling for the National Security (State Threats) Bill.”
The complete record
Every one of 889 lines we hold for Neil Gray, in date order, each linked to its source. Free to read, in full, without an account. Page 13 of 18.
“The Scottish Government is committed to preventing malnutrition and dehydration, and we have established a working group to develop recommendations for prevention, early detection and early intervention. We will shortly publish a 10-year population health framework, which, alongside recommendations from the malnutrition working group, will inform a new diet and healthy weight implementation plan. The Scottish Government is also supporting Health Improvement Scotland to review the 2014 food, fluid and nutritional care standards, which aim to ensure that everyone receiving care gets safe, effective and person-centred nutritional care. Carol Mochan: Malnutrition is believed to be on the increase across Scotland, particularly in our vulnerable communities.”
“The question on the motion that we have just debated will be put at decision time. Decision Time 17:01”
“The selection panel therefore believes that Karen’s nursing background and her patient and safety-centred approach equip her well to undertake this new role. I am sure that the Parliament will want to wish her well in her appointment. I move, That the Parliament nominates Karen Titchener to His Majesty The King for appointment as the Patient Safety Commissioner for Scotland under schedule 1 paragraph 4 of the Patient Safety Commissioner for Scotland Act 2023. Stephen Kerr: On a point of order, Presiding Officer. I apologise. When I intervened to talk about whistleblowing, I should have indicated that I am the director of WhistleblowersUK, which is a not-for-profit organisation that advances the case for a change in the law in order to protect whistleblowers. The Presiding Officer: Thank you, Mr Kerr. Your comments are on the record.”
“The commissioner will take a macro-level view of patient safety in Scotland and seek to improve overall safety rather than address individual cases. Our nominee, Karen Titchener, has more than two decades of senior leadership experience within the national health service and is widely recognised as a national and international authority in complex care that is delivered in the home, including acute hospital-level care, palliative care and end-of-life services. Karen has been working in the United States since 2017 and is currently serving as the vice-president of hospital-at-home operations in Wisconsin. Karen’s extensive experience across the United Kingdom and international healthcare systems gives her a deep understanding of the challenges and opportunities in delivering safe, effective, person- centred care.”
“I reassure Stephen Kerr that very clear processes and pathways are available to people in the health service to be able to whistleblow. Each health board has its own whistleblowing champion and there is a national whistleblowing officer that people can contact. I have made it clear to boards that I expect there to be a culture of accepting whistleblowing. Paul Sweeney: The commissioner’s remit covers all healthcare providers that are operating in Scotland, including the national health service and NHS-contracted and independent healthcare providers. The commissioner will work collaboratively with other organisations to improve patient safety, adding value to the patient safety system in Scotland. The commissioner’s role will not duplicate the work of existing organisations.”
“It is going in the right direction, and I fully anticipate that there will be further progress to come. The progress comes off the back of intensive work that is being done on a whole-system basis—with our health and social care partnerships, our health service, our local government colleagues and our community and voluntary sector partners—to ensure that capacity is in place to support them. In Glasgow, in particular, that work is under way. We are supporting similar work in Lothian, and it will be rolled out to other parts of the country through the operational improvement plan. Annie Wells will see greater progress coming.”
“I am hopeful that the work that local systems are undertaking as part of that will deliver better outcomes for patients and ensure that hospital beds are there for those who need them. Annie Wells: In March alone, delayed discharges led to 60,129 hospital bed days being lost, which is a rise of 3 per cent on the same month last year. That is thousands of people who are stuck in hospital for longer than is necessary. Will the cabinet secretary spell out what immediate and medium-term actions the Government is taking to tackle that, and when we can expect to see real progress? Neil Gray: I hear what Annie Wells is saying, and I appreciate the concern, which I share. In March, we saw a reduction in the level of delayed discharge. I accept that it was marginal and small, but it is progress.”
“I remain concerned about the delays that people are experiencing in our hospitals. I am clear that, for those who are delayed, a 27-day average is unacceptable. That is why reducing delayed discharge remains a priority for the Government. However, it is important to reflect on the fact that 97 per cent of all discharges happen without delay. In addition, the latest figures show some progress in reducing the number of people who are delayed, although we continue to work to drive that number down much further. Our operational improvement plan sets out how we are taking forward the commitment in the NHS renewal framework to shift the balance of care from hospital to the community.”
“I know that today’s debate will continue to be conducted with similar sensitivity and respect. Irrespective of the outcome of this vote, we must use the momentum to ensure that Scotland is a place in which we can have open, honest and supportive conversations about living and dying well. I will return to the point that I made earlier about the consequential choices that we have before us. Given the deeply held views in Parliament and among our constituents, whichever way Parliament votes this evening, we must show leadership to those whose views will not have been reflected in Parliament’s decision and provide reassurance, support and clarity. Regardless of the position that Parliament takes today, I intend, as quickly as possible, to do what I can from the Government’s perspective to provide just that. 14:57”
“I take this opportunity to put on record my gratitude to the NHS staff, hospice staff, community and social care staff and general practice staff who provide palliative care services across Scotland. They do a remarkable job. Pam Duncan-Glancy: If the bill were to pass, what area of the health service budget would provide the additional training and support that would be required? Neil Gray: That question came up during the committee scrutiny stage. Other than to say that we believe that there will be a cost that has not been fully factored in, that will be a decision for Government to look at, depending on the progress of the bill. We do not have a view on that at this stage of the proceedings. I thank everyone in the chamber for the way in which members have handled the discussion around assisted dying thus far.”
“Palliative care that is delivered well can reduce hospital admissions and unnecessary treatment while improving outcomes for patients. That is why we want those who have responsibility for planning and delivery of health and care services to prioritise palliative care and invest in it some of the record £21.7 billion that we have put into health and social care services this year. However, funding in isolation is not enough. We need everyone in Scotland to feel empowered to talk about living and dying well and to understand what services are available to them when they need them. Whether or not we, as individuals, support the principles of the bill, we should be grateful for the spotlight that the debate has put on palliative care.”
“There is not a choice of one or the other before us today, but rather a decision on the principle of assisted dying. We are currently finalising the consultation analysis report on our draft strategy, “Palliative Care Matters for All”, and we will publish the final strategy and delivery plan this summer. The draft strategy focused on deliverable outcomes and actions that will help people of all ages get access to high-quality palliative care services, wherever they might be. It also focused on ensuring that our public services are sustainable, person centred and effective, particularly as the need for palliative care increases in years to come. The feedback from the consultation showed strong support for that person-centred approach, which will be reflected in the final strategy.”
“I know that Mr McArthur takes the issues of competence very seriously, and I give him and every member in the chamber my commitment that, should the bill pass stage 1, the Government will consider his proposals carefully and decide on the best route forward. I would like to reflect on the recommendation concerning end-of-life care. Although I do not wish to conflate matters, knowing that palliative care can benefit people for many years and not just at the end of life, it is important to restate the Government’s commitment to ensuring that everyone who needs it can access well co- ordinated, timely and high-quality palliative care and care around dying. That commitment will remain paramount regardless of the outcome of today’s vote.”
“The committee’s recommendations included considering how the bill would interact with all other key aspects of end-of-life provision and consulting with specialist bodies to ensure that capacity provisions in the bill are fair, do not discriminate and offer protection to vulnerable groups. Although I, on behalf of the Government, will remain neutral at this stage of the bill process, should the bill pass stage 1, we will engage sensitively and constructively on the issues that the committee has raised; the need to be demonstrably objective in that phase is a second explanation for my abstention today. The committee raised the issue of legislative competence. I am pleased that Mr McArthur has acknowledged concerns around legislative competence and has sought to propose options for remedy in his policy memorandum.”
“As the Government’s lead minister for the bill, I feel that it is important that I reflect the Scottish Government’s position, and so, after careful consideration, I have taken the decision to abstain in the vote today. I have paid close attention to the committee’s evidence gathering, and before I address the recommendations in the committee’s stage 1 report, I pay tribute to it for its diligent scrutiny. Although committee members will, of course, have their own personal views, they have put those to one side, listened dispassionately to the evidence and produced a sensitive and well-crafted report to assist MSPs in their deliberations. I thank members of the committee, those who gave evidence and the clerks for the service that they have given to us all.”
“First, I extend my thanks to Liam McArthur for introducing the bill. I think that every member, regardless of their personal view on the bill, would agree that Mr McArthur has undertaken careful and considered work on this complex, sensitive and emotive topic. This debate is one of the most significant that we have faced during the current session of Parliament, and the vote is a matter of conscience for colleagues on all sides of the chamber. As you will be aware, Presiding Officer, colleagues will be wrestling with their individual consciences, recognising that there is no inconsequential choice before us today. The Government has taken a neutral position on the bill at this stage—a decision that I outlined in my memorandum to the committee last year.”
“If it is felt that additional safeguards are necessary to ensure that that happens, that individuals have the protection that they need but that access is available, I am open to looking at those. Importantly, it appears—as polls confirm—that a sizeable majority in the disability community support a change in the law every bit as strongly as the population as a whole. That said, I am committed to continuing to engage with Ms Duncan-Glancy and, if they wish, the three groups that have been most vocal in their opposition to the bill, to see what might be done at stage 2 to allay those concerns as far as possible.”
“As happens across the board at the moment, health and care are delivered in a way that meets the needs and circumstances of different parts of the country. The decision on how best to deliver would be for the respective health boards, working alongside partners. On fluctuating capacity, there are questions around capacity as a whole. The medical profession consistently wrestles with that issue at the moment and, ultimately, any legislation would need to reflect that. However, as I have said, there would need to be a determination that there was the capacity to understand the consequences of the decision that was made, not just at the point at which the request was made but at the point at which medication was provided.”
“I thank Liam McArthur for taking an intervention as he sets out his introductory points. I will ask two practical questions. First, how does he envisage the delivery of the service? Does he expect it to be as available in his Orkney Islands constituency as it would be in my Airdrie and Shotts constituency, or would it be more centrally operated? Secondly, in the determination of their decision making, how does he envisage accounting for those who have fluctuating capacity? Liam McArthur: I thank the cabinet secretary for those questions—which, again, were raised during evidence to the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee. On delivery, there has been much discussion about whether there would be an opt-in or an opt-out model of care. I am reasonably relaxed about that but would need to understand how an opt-in model might work.”
“We all have a personal vested interest in ensuring that our public services work well, which is why we have escalated NHS Grampian to level 4, and it is why we continue to provide that additional support and scrutiny.”
“Will you please do a shift with an ambulance crew in Grampian—a shift that interfaces with accident and emergency—-and see it for yourself? The Presiding Officer: Always speak through the chair, please. Neil Gray: First, I have shadowed front-line shifts—although not in NHS Grampian, I accept— in order to see what the situation is like for those who serve our public services on the front line in health and social care. Secondly, on the constituency representation that Ms White makes, she paints an unacceptable picture for that family and for those who are served by NHS Grampian, referring to some of the pressures that have been felt. I declare an interest in that I have a family member living in Grampian and served by NHS Grampian.”
“A mother in her mid-70s, herself a nurse by profession, had a bad fall. Her husband spoke to NHS 24 and called 999, and an ambulance was eventually dispatched. He was advised that the wait would be four to eight hours. As she was drifting in and out of consciousness, her family took the difficult decision to lift her and drive to Aberdeen royal infirmary. Tragically, after they arrived, they were told that she would soon pass. Her family are shocked and are massively traumatised by what happened. Above all, they are haunted by how it happened. We have had enough of the cabinet secretary’s excuses. He needs to know just how bad the situation is on the ground, so that families are not asking the same difficult questions. My ask, cabinet secretary, is for you not just to do visits that are pre-arranged.”
“NHS Grampian is receiving a 3 per cent baseline uplift of £39.2 million, which represents a 0.6 per cent real-terms increase compared with 2024-25. The NHS Scotland resource allocation committee—NRAC—formula is an objective measure of the need for healthcare services across Scotland, and the Scottish Government’s approach has been to move boards towards NRAC parity. NHS Grampian’s £800,000 share of the £55 million additional parity maintains the board within 0.6 per cent of NRAC parity. It is quite something for Ms White to raise the matter of funding of our public services when her party wants to take £1 billion out of public investment in Scotland. Tess White: This is not about taking pops. The deepening crisis in NHS Grampian is not just about board meetings and balance sheets; it is about people.”
“Wherever we look, from waiting times to ambulance turnaround times, NHS Grampian is on its knees. That is little wonder, given that it has the lowest bed base in the whole of Scotland. A decade of chronic underfunding has put unsustainable pressure on national health service staff, and there are huge implications for patient safety. Just this week, front-line workers raised the alarm in The Press and Journal about patients dying and getting harmed because ambulances are still queuing for hours outside Aberdeen royal infirmary. Does the cabinet secretary finally accept that his Government has short-changed NHS Grampian for years? Neil Gray: No, I do not. In 2025-26, health boards will receive increased investment in their baseline funding totalling £16.2 billion, with NHS Grampian receiving more than £1.34 billion.”
“First, it is important to acknowledge that staff in NHS Grampian continue to work tirelessly to deliver the high-quality healthcare that we expect. I have been able to see that at first hand in the visits that I have made in Grampian of late. Escalation to stage 4 will bring enhanced support and scrutiny from the Scottish Government. That will include a whole-system diagnostic to be carried out by an external consultancy, which is expected to conclude in June and will help to inform a tailored package of support. That intervention will provide a robust basis for the wider transformational work that is required over the longer term in NHS Grampian to ensure the sustainable delivery of high-quality healthcare services. Tess White: The Scottish National Party Government has repeatedly been warned about the perfect storm in NHS Grampian.”
“Neil Gray: The figures that the First Minister provided to the Parliament yesterday, which Sue Webber reflected on, are accurate. Although the 62-day target has been more difficult for us to meet, we have been treating more patients within that timeframe than at any time since pre-Covid. That serves to illustrate the additional demand that there is on services. We have continued to prioritise prostate cancer. I again pay tribute to Sir Chris Hoy for his campaigning and awareness-raising work. In that regard, I have written to the UK National Screening Committee, which we take a lead from in our screening programmes, in order to ensure that we have the right processes and policies in place to meet the demands that Sue Webber is asking us to address.”
“Compared with a decade ago, 16 per cent more patients receive care within the 31-day standard and 11 per cent more within the 62-day standard.”—[Official Report, 6 May 2025; c 11.] However, the reality is that prostate cancer outcomes in Scotland have fallen significantly behind those in England. Cancer staging is the same on both sides of the border. Despite national health service spending being higher per person in Scotland, more than one in three men are diagnosed at stage 4, which compares with only one in eight in London. That gap is staggering and unacceptable. Can the cabinet secretary tell us when men in Scotland can expect the same chances of early diagnosis, which helps to save lives, as those who live elsewhere in the UK?”
“Although cancer waiting times reporting across United Kingdom nations are not directly comparable, we note that prostate cancer five-year survival rates in Scotland are similar to those observed in England. The earlier prostate cancer is diagnosed, the easier it is to treat, which is why we continue to invest in our detect cancer earlier programme. Additionally, the Scottish Government continues to invest in cancer services and in improving waiting times. Over the past five years, we have invested more than £40 million, which has been focused on urological cancers, including prostate cancer, and colorectal and breast cancers. In 2024-25, £11.3 million was provided to boards. Sue Webber: Yesterday, the First Minister said in his statement: “More cancer patients are now treated faster.”
“What new actions will the minister take to fend off the formal dispute that is coming down the tracks? Neil Gray: First and foremost, we will continue talking to the BMA. On the announcement on the programme for government, the 100,000 new appointments are to help general practice to deliver what it does best, which is to prevent ill health. Cardiovascular disease is evidently an issue for us in Scotland, and we have worked with the BMA to deliver on that, for which I am grateful to it. That basis of constructive dialogue and of finding ways in which we can support general practice is the way in which I will deal with the discussions with the BMA. Yes, we need more resource going in and, yes, we need to provide GPs with greater support, because they are the absolute fulcrum of our NHS. Women’s Health Outcomes 7.”
“We will keep talking to the BMA, with which I have a very constructive and positive relationship—yes, there are challenges, but there is also an agreed sense of purpose in terms of the opportunities that there are for general practice to contribute. Willie Rennie: It seems that yesterday’s programme for government announcement did not impress the British Medical Association, because it is pretty angry today. It thinks that there is more rhetoric than reality and that what was announced yesterday will “do very little” and is a “drop in the ocean”. The reality is that the share of the overall health budget for general practitioners has fallen every single year in real terms since 2008. That has a direct impact on the staff that GPs employ and the way that they can meet demand.”
“The Government has been listening carefully to the views of Scotland’s GPs, who have described the multiple contributions that general practice can make as we shift to more community-focused care and have argued that GPs must be given the resources that they need to fulfil their role. We have listened and we have been persuaded. As a result, we are already committed to increasing investment in primary and community care, so that GPs and services in the community will have the resources that they need to carry out their essential role in our health system. That was evident from the budget and from the programme for government announcement yesterday.”
“That intensive and on-going cycle of work is carried out in close collaboration with health boards. As well as the actions in the operational improvement plan that are being taken forward, that is reflected across health boards’ year-on- year delivery plans. We know that there is still some way for us to go, but we are seeing clear improvements. In 2020-24, nationally, in-patient and day-case activity was more than 7.4 per cent more than in 2023, and new out-patient activity was 2.4 per cent higher. We will build on that in the year ahead. Accident and emergency waits are improving, and the number of people stuck in hospital unnecessarily is reducing. Waiting times are coming down. That is progress, and it is just the start of the progress that I want to deliver for Mr Gibson’s constituents and for the people of Scotland, who cherish our”
“Kenneth Gibson: I welcome progress on increasing the number of surgical procedures by 50 per cent this year, as indicated in the programme for government. Despite record numbers of NHS doctors, nurses, support staff and investment, many of our constituents are enduring lengthy waits for treatment. Will the cabinet secretary detail which health boards are showing the greatest signs of improvement and how that is being shared across the NHS to help to drive recovery? Neil Gray: Mr Gibson is absolutely right that sharing best practice across the health service is critical to ensuring that we can deliver for the people of Scotland. The centre for sustainable delivery has a central role in working across NHS Scotland to drive that productivity and share best practice.”
“In March, we published the “NHS Scotland operational improvement plan”, which details how we will deliver a more accessible NHS, with reductions to long waits and service pressures. Productivity will be increased through a number of measures that are set out in the plan, including regional delivery models and maximising our national treatment centres, deploying digital technologies such as the roll-out of the new digital dermatology pathway and a national theatre scheduling tool, and collaborating with health boards to identify and implement best practice, to maximise and optimise efficiencies. That is supported through a record £21.7 billion investment, including £200 million to directly target long waits and improve flow through hospitals.”
“I hope that the additional investment that we are bringing forward this year will not just provide sustainability but deliver against the waiting times that we want to see and give confidence to patients such as Mrs Gault that we will get through those. Dr Gulhane is absolutely right to say that it is imperative that we do so for those women, and that is what we intend to do. National Health Service Productivity 4.”
“Where is the real plan to cut the shocking waiting times and give women the timely, life-changing treatment that they deserve? The Deputy Presiding Officer: I also need briefer questions. Neil Gray: I absolutely understand and sympathise with the position that Mrs Gault is in. I thank Sandesh Gulhane for raising the issue again. I will need to check the Official Report. I do not remember describing this as cosmetic surgery, but as reconstructive surgery, which it is. It is a complex procedure that requires specialist provision. The £30 million intervention that we brought forward last year allowed for the employment of further consultants in the field.”
“Shareen is waiting for breast reconstruction surgery following cancer treatment and was told that she would be on the waiting list for years. The Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care assured me that the Scottish Government was working with health boards to maximise capacity and reduce waiting times. Six months later, patients in Glasgow are being told that waiting times are longer than the 104 weeks that was advised last year. The reality is that patients are facing a wait of a further three to five years. Those are not just numbers—they represent years of uncertainty, distress and delayed recovery. For women, breast reconstruction is not a luxury. It is not simply cosmetic surgery, as the cabinet secretary said last year. It is, in fact, a vital part of healing from cancer.”
“Last year, we provided funding to several health boards to deliver reductions to plastic-breast backlogs. Through our £100 million investment to address long waits this year, we have extended that level of funding to NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and NHS Grampian, and it will be provided on a recurring basis to ensure longer-term service sustainability. Through engagement with health boards, we have improved our understanding of the existing consultant workforce that is qualified to deliver those complex procedures and are engaging with NHS Education for Scotland to assess training capacity in that area to improve waiting times for that crucial procedure. Sandesh Gulhane: I declare an interest as a practising national health service general practitioner. In the chamber last year, I raised the case of my constituent Shareen.”
“Ms McNair will be interested in the work that has been done by the incredible rapid cancer diagnostic services, which have been expanded to NHS Forth Valley this week, providing primary care with access to a new fast-track diagnostic pathway for people with non-specific symptoms of suspected cancer, such as brain tumours. The Deputy Presiding Officer: There are a couple of supplementary questions. They will need to be brief, as will the responses.”
“I also thank them for their campaigning and fundraising over the years. Awareness raising and lived experience are absolutely critical in getting to the point of being able to detect less survivable cancers such as brain tumours early, so I thank them for that. Alongside what I have set out around the less survivable cancers task force, of which the Brain Tumour Charity is a member, and developing practical and impactful actions to raise awareness and support increased detection of those cancers, we have also invested in our Get Checked Early website, which has content on brain cancer to highlight symptoms and advises when to seek professional advice.”
“Marie McNair: During the recent wear a hat day event in the Parliament, I met two of my constituents, Don and Rachel McKie, who, sadly, lost their son to a glioblastoma in 2006. Since that time, they have raised more than £50,000 for the Brain Tumour Charity. They are such an inspiring family. Less survivable cancers such as brain tumours can be difficult to diagnose, as, often, they present as non-specific conditions. What more can be done to raise awareness? Are there any plans to commit further investment to fund the essential research that is required? Neil Gray: First, I thank Marie McNair for her advocacy and her campaigning work in bringing the wear a hat day event to the Parliament. I pass on my deepest condolences and sympathies to her constituents, Mr and Mrs McKie, for their loss.”
“Through our 10-year cancer strategy and action plan, there is a key focus on improving outcomes for less survivable cancers, including brain tumours. Actions include the Get Checked Early and NHS Inform websites highlighting possible symptoms of brain tumours and encouraging early detection and referral; the Scottish referral guidelines for suspected cancer providing updated clinical guidance for the urgent referral of suspected brain tumours; a new national headache pathway, which lists the symptoms that require urgent or emergency assessment to exclude a brain tumour; and a clinical management pathway for adult brain tumours, supporting consistency in access to treatment and care.”
“They failed to vote for the budget—a budget that is delivering progress on eradicating child poverty, delivering for the economy and on combating the climate emergency and delivering for our public services—because politics is their priority. Delivery is our priority. We are delivering, and those parties cannot stand it—[Interruption.] They do not like it—they are rattled. Farage has got them rattled, Presiding Officer—[Interruption.]”
“This is a programme for government that is focused on hope and delivery. It is a programme that shows that the Government understands the reality of the headwinds that people are facing and that we are taking action. We are seeing progress in our health service: accident and emergency waits are down; delayed discharge is down; and more procedures are being delivered. There is much more for us to do, but we are making progress. Labour and the Tories cannot stand that, because, while we are delivering for the people of Scotland, they are contributing precisely nothing. They opted out of the budget process while others in the chamber achieved something for the country.”
“A strong, dynamic and growing economy will support measures to invest in our public services and to eradicate poverty. Our devolved employability programmes have supported tens of thousands of people to enter— and to progress in—work. Scotland has a track record of success when it comes to attracting investment, and we consistently outperform other parts of the UK. However, we are not resting on our laurels. That is why we are accelerating a targeted programme of key engagements on key investment. Scotland is, and will continue to be, a globally facing country—one that is open for business. In our programme for government, we have set out a clear, focused agenda to deliver—to deliver for the people of Scotland and, as I have set out, to deliver for the whole of Scotland.”
“It is in the face of that situation that we have set out a clear, focused agenda to deliver for people and communities right across the country. This programme for government not only sets out what we will do to achieve our key priorities over the coming year but underlines our many strengths and the many successes that have been delivered. Although child poverty levels remain high, we are making progress. We are investing in early learning and childcare, in housing and in measures such as the Scottish child payment. Those investments will support families to escape poverty. Child poverty levels in Scotland are falling at a time when they are rising in other parts of the country. In this programme for government, we are ensuring that businesses are in the best possible place to create jobs and grow the economy.”
“Turbulent times globally have seen costs rise, and the impacts of those rises pose risks for everyday life. Decisions of Westminster Governments have not just worsened the cost of living challenges that the people of Scottish are facing; in many cases, it is the decisions of Westminster Governments that have caused the challenges, because Scotland is an afterthought for those Governments. From Brexit to rising energy bills and austerity in the form of cuts to winter fuel payments for our pensioners, it is our people who have suffered. Only when it starts to cost Labour at the ballot box—only when the pain threatens its own power, not when the pain is felt by pensioners—does the party brief that it will consider its position. It is so disappointing to see that from a Labour Government—from a Labour Government, Presiding Officer.”
“Kevin Stewart: On the health service, one point that has not been brought up very much is the expansion of pharmacy first, which I am very much in favour of. Can the cabinet secretary give us his assurance that pharmacists will help to come up with the details of that expansion to benefit folk across the country? Neil Gray: Yes—pharmacists and others across the primary care sector are fundamental to the future success and sustainability of the health service, and I am happy to give that confirmation. Also on a health theme, Gillian Mackay made a series of constructive health-related asks, some of which we are progressing. I would be more than happy to pick up on them and discuss them at our next meeting. We understand the challenges the people are facing and the issues that families are dealing with.”
“I will take away Sarah Boyack’s point regarding the linkage between mental health and economic inactivity. We are incredibly cognisant of that point, and it is something that we are delivering against, including in Lothian, where we understand that there are specific challenges. I see that Joe FitzPatrick is seeking to intervene remotely. I will take his intervention. The Deputy Presiding Officer: We are not hearing you, Mr FitzPatrick. I invite the cabinet secretary to continue. Neil Gray: Kevin Stewart focused on the health service, Audrey Nicoll spoke about energy and the economy, and Stuart McMillan spoke about his work regarding non-surgical cosmetic procedures while also addressing the fact that that has been a cross-party effort.”
“It has also abandoned the women against state pension inequality—the WASPI women. Labour’s failure in Government has opened the door to Farage, and it should be ashamed. Members raised a number of other issues, but I will not be able to turn to all of them. Patrick Harvie referenced the peak rail fares removal pilot and supporting that in the spirit of consensus. He needs to be reminded that the pilot was extended after the Greens left the Government, and that we extended the pilot for a second time in the summer of 2024, as opposed to while the Greens were in government. There are a number of very good contributions to reflect on. Emma Roddick delivered a thoughtful contribution on how we counteract the rise of Nigel Farage and the opportunity that is open to us through independence.”