Alistair Wilson Case
I remind members of my entry in the register of members’ interests; my wife is a sergeant with Police Scotland.
November will mark 20 years since Alistair Wilson was murdered on the doorstep of his home in Nairn. In two decades, his killer has never been caught. Alistair’s family have spoken with The Press and Journal and raised serious concerns about Police Scotland and Chief Constable Jo Farrell.
Andrew Wilson was four when his father was murdered. This week, he said:
“we question why our family is still being kept in the dark while Jo Farrell is basking in the media spotlight as she talks of building bridges and providing confidence to our family.
We don’t know whether Jo Farrell has been confused or perhaps even caught in a lie, but she has certainly failed to reassure us that she has a grip on this worsening situation.”
Alistair Wilson’s family describe the conduct of the chief constable as “insulting” and “callous”. Does the First Minister agree with the family of Alistair Wilson?
Obviously, this is an incredibly sensitive case. First, I express my sympathy to the Wilson family for the tragedy that they suffered almost 20 years ago. I share their frustration that the case has not been resolved.
Douglas Ross will know that there has been extensive intervention and investigation to try to identify who was responsible for the murder of Alistair Wilson. I very much welcome the fact that the Lord Advocate—who, as Mr Ross will understand, is the independent head of the prosecution service—has instructed that a fresh investigation be undertaken of the case.
On Douglas Ross’s point about the actions of the chief constable, he will, again, appreciate that the police operate with absolute operational independence from the Government. It would be inappropriate of me to indicate any opinion on the stance that has been taken by the chief constable. The matter is for the chief constable to address. Certainly, the First Minister should not indicate to the chief constable what actions she should take in relation to a live investigation.
I know the situation very well. My question is not about the live police investigation but about the comments this week of a family who are still grieving their loss in horrific circumstances. The response from Police Scotland, following the decision by the Lord Advocate, clearly falls below any standard that we should expect—particularly from the chief constable of Police Scotland.
I hope that the First Minister will at least reflect on that language—“insulting” and “callous”. The chief constable is being described by a grieving family as “callous”. I hope that the First Minister will reflect on that and seek to address what could happen.
Alistair Wilson’s case has been unsolved for two decades. That period has spanned the tenures of several chief constables and several Government ministers. The Wilson family have raised concerns about the current chief constable’s handling of the case. However, the Scottish Government is not powerless in the situation; indeed, the First Minister has previously spoken about on-going police investigations in his own constituency. Has he or his justice secretary spoken to the family of Alistair Wilson about their significant concerns? If so, what is being done to address those?
I do not want, in any way, to create any sense that I am not sympathetic and empathetic to the situation in which the Wilson family find themselves. Alistair Wilson was murdered on his own doorstep, and his killer or killers have not been brought to justice. That deeply concerns me.
It is important that I place it on the record that Police Scotland has had formidable success in resolving cases of murder—some of them long in the past—because of improvements in investigative procedures and practices. Those have resulted in a number of people being brought to justice who had previously remained free, having committed some of the worst crimes imaginable in our society. Police Scotland focuses on resolving such matters. That is why I said in my first response to Mr Ross that I welcome the Lord Advocate’s instruction for a further investigation of the case.
Neither I nor the justice secretary have spoken to the Wilson family about their concerns. Mr Ross raises the fact that I have expressed points in relation to previous cases in my own constituency. I say to him, respectfully, that I did that when I was on the back benches; I was not First Minister. It is a very different matter when the First Minister starts commenting on live cases. I need to avoid doing that for the sake of protecting the constitutional separation of responsibility for operational matters that lies with Police Scotland.
I say to Mr Ross that I have every sympathy with the Wilson family. I hope that the actions that the Lord Advocate is taking, which have now been pursued by Police Scotland, will provide a resolution to their deep concerns.
In December last year, the Wilson family complained to the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner about the handling of the police investigation. If we consider the issue of police complaints more widely across the country, we should remember that the current system was set up by the Scottish National Party Government when it centralised Scotland’s police forces back in 2013. The Wilson family’s experience clearly shows that the current system is not fit for purpose.
The Police (Ethics, Conduct and Scrutiny) (Scotland) Bill, which is currently before Parliament, aims to address those failings, but there are still areas where the system falls short. Just yesterday, His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary in Scotland called for an amendment to the bill that would allow officers to face criminal charges if they abused their positions. I agree with that proposal. I confirm that Scottish Conservatives have lodged an amendment that would add such a provision to the bill, which the Criminal Justice Committee will consider next week. Will the First Minister back the inspectorate’s calls and support the Scottish Conservatives’ amendment, to ensure that any police officers who abuse their positions are held to account?
I have a great deal of sympathy with the point that Mr Ross has raised with me. Ministers will look carefully at the amendment that comes forward at stage 2. The purposes of the Police (Ethics, Conduct and Scrutiny) (Scotland) Bill, which I began scrutinising when I was on the back benches and sat on the Criminal Justice Committee, are coming to stage 2 proceedings in committee; Parliament supported the bill at stage 1.
The issues that His Majesty’s Inspectorate of Constabulary raised in its proposal have not been the subject of consultation as part of the preparation of the bill, so we have to be mindful of that when considering any amendments that are lodged. Parliament prefers to ensure that issues are the subject of consultation.
Having said that, I am sympathetic to the point that Douglas Ross raises. I want to ensure that the Police Investigations and Review Commissioner is able to undertake the types of functions that both Mr Ross and I would want them to undertake. That has to be effective, it has to be transparent and it has to be challenging. As the bill takes its passage through Parliament, I give Mr Ross the assurance that ministers will look carefully at and consider carefully any proposals that will work to strengthen the test that I have put to Parliament.
We would welcome that, because our amendment would strengthen the bill and fill a void that even HMIC has recognised.
The truth is that, although Police Scotland may have let down the Wilson family, the Government has been letting down police officers and the communities that they serve across Scotland. Officer numbers are now at their lowest level for 17 years. The SNP used to promise that it would put 1,000 additional officers on Scotland’s streets, but numbers are down by 1,200 compared with when the SNP created Police Scotland a decade ago.
The number of major investigation team detective inspectors—who investigate the most serious crimes, including murders such as that of Alistair Wilson—is down by a third. Police Scotland is so stretched that it is no longer able to investigate every crime.
Quite frankly, the SNP has left our police to fight crime with one hand tied behind their back, and the results are clear. Violent crime is at its highest level in a decade, and our prisons are so overwhelmed that SNP ministers have been forced to release prisoners en masse. Does the First Minister agree with his deputy, Kate Forbes, who said that, under the SNP, policing has been “stretched to breaking point”?
I have to put on the record the fact that levels of crime in Scotland are currently at 40-year lows. That is a tribute to the work of police officers who are focusing on tackling crime in localities.
I accept that police numbers have fallen. The last census was at the end of June, when police numbers were sitting at 16,207. That is lower than the Government expected, given that we had provided the police with record funding of £1.55 billion, and I expect those numbers to increase in the next census. It should be of some reassurance to Mr Ross that police numbers are strengthening as a consequence of the significant levels of recruitment that the chief constable and Police Scotland are undertaking at the moment.
There is an inherent contradiction in Mr Ross’s question. His accusation is that crime is not being pursued but that the prisons are full. If the prisons are full, that suggests to me that crime is being pursued and that more individuals are being convicted and imprisoned. [Interruption.]
Let us hear the First Minister.
I respectfully say to Mr Ross that there are challenges in relation to the work of Police Scotland. Police Scotland will take the necessary steps to investigate crimes where there is evidence to do so, and people will be prosecuted where there is a case to do so. That is what we would expect, and that is what we would expect in a system in which we have a 40-year low of crime as a consequence of the Government’s stewardship of police resources in Scotland.
Homelessness Figures
Figures published this week have revealed the extent of the homelessness crisis in Scotland. On the Scottish National Party Government’s watch, 40,685 homelessness applications were recorded last year, which is the highest number in a decade. As of 31 March this year, there were almost 32,000 live homelessness applications.
Every number represents a human being in desperate need of help and support, but the SNP Government is failing them. In the face of the homelessness crisis, the Parliament shamed the Government into declaring a housing emergency earlier this year, but, despite that, the Minister for Housing, Paul McLennan, insists that the Government has a good track record on tackling homelessness, which is at a decade high.
First Minister, is there a housing emergency or not?
Yes, there is a housing emergency. The Government recognises that and is taking action to remedy it. A range of action is being undertaken to ensure that we improve the availability of accommodation through tackling the issue of voids. Further work is being undertaken to strengthen investment in the construction of new homes and the refurbishment of existing homes to be available for rent, and steps are being taken in the planning system to tackle the housing emergency. The Government is absolutely focused on building on its strong record of house construction to tackle the challenges that we face.
I welcome the fact that the First Minister recognises that there is a housing emergency, but his broader answer demonstrates a Government with its head in the sand—one that is oblivious to the struggles of thousands of Scots who face homelessness as we speak.
Let us look at the facts. Under the present SNP Government, we have the lowest levels of home building by housing associations since Thatcher. Overall, house building is down by 17 per cent, and the affordable home building target is in tatters. Shamefully, we now have record numbers of children in temporary accommodation without a home to call their own—more than 10,000 children have been left homeless on the Government’s watch, and the number of young people living in bed and breakfasts has soared by more than 900 per cent in just the past three years.
First Minister, with record levels of homelessness, and with you now agreeing with the declared housing emergency, will you change course, or will you back your out-of-touch housing minister?
I would be grateful if you could speak through the chair, Mr Sarwar.
Mr Sarwar has challenged me on the Government’s record, and he has talked about facts, so allow me to share some facts with the Parliament. Between 2007 and 2024, the Government has been responsible for the construction of an average of 7,750 affordable homes each year. During that period, we endured the financial crash and 14 years of austerity under the Conservative Government. Of course, we now have the prolonging of austerity under the new Labour Government.
Between 1999 and 2007, when Mr Sarwar’s party was in charge of the Scottish Government—Jackie Baillie was a minister in that Government for a short period—and when money was so flush that the Labour Government left money in the Treasury kitty unspent, an average of 5,448 affordable homes were built each year. Just so that everybody hears that clearly, I repeat that, at a time of plenty, when the money literally could not be spent in time, an average of 5,448 homes were delivered each year by the Labour Party. Under this Government, the number is 7,750 homes each year, so we are getting on with the job.
The First Minister wants to talk about a time when I was 16 years old, not a time when 10,000 children are homeless in Scotland—right now, under this Government’s watch. That is the devastating consequence of what the First Minister admitted was a Government that has been too focused on what it cannot do, rather than on what it can do. Scots are left to pay the price for an SNP Government that has lost its way, that is incompetent in government and that is bad with people’s money.
Housing in Scotland is completely the responsibility of the SNP Government. After 17 years, when will it take responsibility, rather than always looking for someone else to blame? For the Minister for Housing to claim that the Scottish Government has a proven track record on tackling homelessness when it is at record levels is not just inept but shameful. Paul McLennan simply cannot continue.
Will the First Minister recognise that he has a choice: put up with more failure or get to grips with the housing emergency, sack the housing minister and change direction?
I would just point out to the Parliament that, as usual, when Anas Sarwar is faced with facts that rebut his argument, he always plays the man and not the issue. That is what Anas Sarwar always does.
Let me come back to the facts. I am not evading our responsibility. Under this Government, we have built 7,750 affordable homes each year on average. In comparison, when Mr Sarwar’s party was in charge, when the money was so abundant that ministers could not actually spend it, Labour managed to build only 5,448 houses a year. [Interruption.]
Let us hear one another.
That says to me that this Government is getting on with the job.
Mr Sarwar said that this area of policy is all under the responsibility of the Scottish Government. To an extent, that is true—housing policy is our responsibility. However, there is a budgetary question here. I point out to Mr Sarwar that our capital budget, which is what builds affordable homes, was facing a cut of nearly 9 per cent under the spending plans of the Conservative Government, and the incoming Labour Government is going to carry on with those plans. Our financial transactions budget has been cut by a whopping 62 per cent.
Briefly, First Minister.
I have raised with the Chancellor of the Exchequer and the Deputy Prime Minister the total stupidity and folly of presiding over a 62 per cent cut in the financial transactions budget. If Mr Sarwar would like to help Scotland in any way, shape or form, why does he not persuade the United Kingdom Labour Government to desert the Tory agenda and start investing in our country?
ScotRail Peak Fares Removal Pilot
This week is climate week. The Climate Change Committee tells us that we urgently need to decarbonise transport and get people out of cars and planes and on to buses, trains and their own feet and wheels. The Scottish Government’s pilot to abolish peak rail fares, which was championed by the Scottish Greens in Government, ends this week, which will hike up the prices of train fares for many workers and students who do not have any choice about when they travel. Is that the right message for the Scottish Government to send in climate week?
The Government has invested in the pilot exercise. It was due to run for a six-month period; we extended it for a further six months. There has therefore been a year-long pilot to determine whether it was an effective way to deliver modal shift—which I agree with Lorna Slater must happen—within the resources that we have available. Unfortunately, the pilot showed that not enough difference had been made to the patterns of travel for the investment that was required. We would need to find £40 million to continue with that exercise.
I have gone through the enormous challenges that we face in the public finances on several occasions with Parliament—indeed, the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government did so a few weeks ago. However much we wish to take forward the peak fares pilot, we simply do not have the resources to enable that to be the case for the scale of impact that the pilot identified.
We have put in place other measures to discount fares to encourage more travel by train and we will continue with those measures.
The First Minister is in luck, because I have a suggestion for how he could raise that money. Oxfam has reported that £21.5 million a year—enough to abolish peak fares for good—could be raised through a tax on private jets, assuming that it was embedded in the air departure tax, which is legislation that Parliament passed seven years ago but has not acted on. We all understand the need to ensure an exemption to the air departure tax for our island communities. Will the First Minister work with the United Kingdom Government to urgently introduce that tax so that commuters can once again have fair prices on our trains?
Lorna Slater makes a very interesting and welcome suggestion. She has provided a complete explanation of the point, because she recognises—as I do—the importance of securing an exemption from air departure tax for the Highlands and Islands. I am glad that there is a point of agreement there. As for taxing private jets, I would be very much in the spirit of doing that.
As Lorna Slater and all members of Parliament will realise, we must agree on the terms of a budget. The finance secretary and I will be happy to engage with all willing partners around the Parliament, including my friends in the Green Party and in all parts of the parliamentary chamber, on agreeing budget measures as we secure common ground. [Interruption.]
Thank you, members!
In the spirit of collaboration, for which I am absolutely renowned, I will happily take forward those issues with the UK Government, with which I am enjoying such collaborative and co-operative discussions just now, although it could go further on some other questions.
Energy Prices (Low-income Households)
To ask the First Minister what discussions the Scottish Government is having with energy companies regarding a possible “social tariff” to reduce bills for low-income households. (S6F-03402)
The Scottish Government has engaged with energy suppliers in recent weeks on the options that are available to reduce bills for households across Scotland. We are now establishing a working group to co-design a social tariff mechanism that would secure cross-sector support and demonstrate the viability and positive outcomes of such a policy to the United Kingdom Government. The Scottish Government will consider eligible fuel types, consumer eligibility, the regulatory environment, funding and delivery.
Despite Labour’s pre-election promises, household energy prices are set to rise by £149 in October, and 860,000 Scottish pensioners are to lose out on the winter fuel payment. It is vital that the Scottish Government works on a social tariff to produce a fairer pricing model. Does the First Minister agree that Westminster’s decisions will disproportionately affect people who are living in Scotland and particularly the Highlands and Islands, where the winters are much colder? Has he raised that with the UK Government?
Emma Roddick has raised very serious issues, especially on behalf of her constituents in the Highlands and Islands where, as she correctly indicates, the hardship of the decisions that were made by the United Kingdom Government to end the universal winter fuel payment will have a particularly acute effect because of the habitual differential temperatures in the Highlands and Islands. I recognise those issues and the Scottish Government has raised those points with the United Kingdom Government. As Emma Roddick will know, the issue was essentially landed on the Scottish Government, along with a budget cut of £160 million.
The work that we are undertaking on the co-design of a social tariff is being taken forward by the acting Minister for Climate Action, Dr Allan. We are engaging with relevant parties on that work. The issue requires agreement from the United Kingdom Government and engagement with it, which we will pursue as a consequence of the discussions.
Undoubtedly, this is an important issue. I am sure that, after 17 years, another working group will be widely welcomed.
It is clear that making work pay and accelerating the just transition will also be vital components of reducing bills. To do that, significant investment in renewables needs to come from the whole of the UK working together. GB energy, which will be headquartered in Aberdeen, will play a crucial role in bringing down bills and delivering energy security. Recently, Scottish National Party MPs failed to vote for GB energy. Will the First Minister confirm that a publicly owned energy generation company, based in Aberdeen, will have the support of the Government? What work is he doing in his renewed constructive relationship with UK ministers to move those issues forward?
I could almost suggest that Mr O’Kane has asked a planted question to allow me to talk about the virtues of my collaboration with the United Kingdom Government, which I will happily do. Last Thursday evening, the acting Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero and Energy and I had the pleasure of meeting the chair of GB energy, Juergen Maier, who was generous with the time given to me. We spent several hours discussing GB energy’s plans. On Friday morning, Juergen Maier came to a meeting of the Scottish energy advisory board, which I chair with Professor Sir Jim McDonald, the principal of the University of Strathclyde, to further discuss the issues with a much wider range of stakeholders.
I am absolutely certain that GB energy will not be an energy generation company any time soon—I am absolutely convinced of that. It may be a helpful vehicle in arranging and collaborating on investment proposals, which we will happily engage with it on, but I do not think that Mr O’Kane can sustain the line of argument that GB energy will be an energy generator, because it ain’t going to be that any time soon. We will work with GB energy. We have had constructive discussions, and a lot of projects are already in the pipeline—we are supporting them with investment from the Scottish National Investment Bank. If there is other investment support from GB energy or the national wealth fund, we will welcome that and we will work collaboratively to produce a good outcome for Scotland.
In listening to the interaction between Emma Roddick and the First Minister on raising energy bills, it strikes me that we could get agreement across the chamber on those in our communities who are housebound, and potentially have disabilities, who have high levels of energy use. First Minister, are they not the first people whom we should be supporting?
Mr Whittle raises a really important issue in highlighting the fact that individuals who are not on particularly high incomes and who may be just above the pension credit threshold, which is not very high—if my memory serves me right, somebody on an income of about £12,000 will be above the threshold—could be in the situation that he describes, in which they have very high energy use because of their physical condition and their needs but they will not be eligible for a winter fuel payment. That is why the universality of the payment to date has been important.
I am sympathetic to exploring what more we can do to help individuals, but I am sure that Mr Whittle will understand the difficulty that I face, given that we have had an abrupt removal of £160 million from our public finances, which prevents us from delivering a universal benefit, much as I would like to do so.
999 Control Rooms (Domestic Abuse Experts)
To ask the First Minister whether the Scottish Government plans to embed domestic abuse experts in 999 control rooms, similar to plans announced by the United Kingdom Government for England and Wales. (S6F-03383)
Police Scotland’s contact assessment model already ensures that people receive the support and safeguarding that they need in a timely fashion when they are in contact with control rooms. That is primarily an operational matter for Police Scotland, but we will be interested to see how the pilot proposals in England and Wales develop, and we will want to see the outcomes and benefits that they bring to victims of domestic abuse, which is of paramount importance to us.
Police Scotland responds to a domestic abuse call every nine minutes. That means that, every nine minutes, a potential victim is in need of urgent assistance. It is worth examining whether having domestic abuse experts in 999 control rooms would make a difference. I have also put forward proposals, in my “United Against Violence” paper, to expand training so that all front-line public sector workers can understand and spot the warning signs of domestic abuse. Would the First Minister consider introducing such a scheme?
I know that the Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs met Pam Gosal to discuss that and other questions yesterday, and I am very interested in her proposals. We need to do all that we possibly can to ensure that those who experience domestic abuse are able to receive the support that they require. It should be stated that domestic violence should not be happening in any circumstance whatsoever but, where it happens, we should provide support, so I am open to discussing the issues that Pam Gosal puts to me today.
I welcome the legislative proposals in the Criminal Justice Modernisation and Abusive Domestic Behaviour Reviews (Scotland) Bill, which was introduced this week, that can help to prevent domestic violence. However, does the First Minister agree that it is only by changing social attitudes and specific behaviours of those who perpetrate domestic violence, the vast majority of whom are men, that we will truly see a difference in reducing domestic and gender-based violence?
I agree with Rona Mackay. Those who perpetrate violence and abuse, the majority of whom are men, must change their actions and behaviour, and we must root out and tackle the toxic masculinity culture and gender inequality that leads to violence, harassment, misogyny and abuse against women. We should stand against that, and we should call it out wherever we see it.
Our equally safe strategy is aimed at preventing and eradicating violence against women and girls, and the legislative proposals in the Criminal Justice Modernisation and Abusive Domestic Behaviour Reviews (Scotland) Bill are designed to help us in the process.
I am also very keen to ensure that we work across the chamber to capture some of the thinking that Pam Gosal has put to me in order to make sure that we do everything that we can to address this scourge in our society.
Violent Crime (Young People)
To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government’s response is to reports regarding the number of young people aged 11 to 14 who are involved in violent crime. (S6F-03394)
The Government is concerned at any increase in violent behaviour involving young people, particularly after so many years of decline. Since 2006-07, there has been a 74 per cent reduction in the number of children who are referred to the Scottish Children’s Reporter Administration on offence grounds. More generally, for adults, non-sexual violent crime has fallen by 58 per cent since 2008-09, according to the most recent Scottish crime and justice survey.
Our violence prevention framework is delivering a number of key actions for young people, including the recent quit fighting for likes campaign, which aims to prevent the filming and sharing of violent incidents on social media.
Police Scotland data indicates that almost 14,000 violent crimes were committed by children in 2023-24, but, worryingly, there is a sharp rise in the number of children in the 11 to 14 age group being involved or armed with weapons such as knives, blunt objects and bottles. Knives were the most common weapon that was used or present. Concerningly, the chief constable told the Criminal Justice Committee last week that
“the number of assaults on officers by under-18s is on the increase.”—[Official Report, Criminal Justice Committee, 11 September 2024; c 34.]
Does the First Minister acknowledge that cuts to youth services could have made the problem worse?
YouthLink Scotland and other organisations have criticised the lack of data available. Given the severity of the crimes, what exactly is the Government doing to engage with that age group? On the face of it, it does not appear that the Government is doing much at all.
The Government is taking a number of steps. In the past two years, we have invested more than £4 million to implement the actions that are set out in the violence prevention framework.
We work with a range of partners, including YouthLink Scotland, which Pauline McNeill referred to and which delivers our national No Knives, Better Lives programme. We also work with the Scottish violence reduction unit, which has a formidable track record on tackling knife crime and violent crime, and Medics Against Violence.
I do not say any of that to suggest in any way that there is not a serious issue that has to be confronted. The Government can take a range of measures and we can work with partners.
Over the summer, I met a brave young person who has been very much involved in the Daily Record our kids, our future campaign. I warmly commend that young person and the Daily Record for the work that they have brought forward. In that conversation, I committed to drawing together representatives of all political parties to reflect on what more we could do to tackle the issue. That will be taken forward. Knowing the deep interest that Pauline McNeill has in the subject, I would welcome her participation in that cross-party summit.
We move to constituency and general supplementary questions.
Organ Donation Week
This week is organ donation week. It is an opportunity to encourage people across Scotland to make known their organ donation wishes, and to explain the importance of sharing a person’s organ donation decision with loved ones, so that that choice can be honoured. I say that as a former liver transplant team nurse.
Will the First Minister provide an update on what action the Scottish Government is taking to promote the importance of organ donation and the importance of people making their wishes known?
A range of awareness campaigns is in place to encourage individuals to take the steps that Emma Harper has set out. That is an important life-saving activity that can involve us all. I use this opportunity to make clear the Government’s support for the aspirations that Emma Harper set out.
Social Media (Dangers of Overuse)
What is the Scottish Government’s reaction to the findings in a new study by the World Health Organization that Scottish 13-year-old girls are displaying addictive behaviours towards social media, and that boys of the same age are showing the highest levels of daily gaming? How does the Government plan to manage that potentially dangerous and damaging behaviour?
That is a serious issue. As the father of a 13-year-old, I wrestle with those challenges constantly. I say that in all seriousness, given the degree of young people’s focus on social media.
We must encourage young people to see social media activity in perspective with the rest of their activities, so encouraging healthy, active lifestyles is important, too. Next week is Scottish women and girls in sport week, and the Government is engaged in a lot of promotional work to encourage more participation and engagement in sporting activity by women and girls. Next week, I will visit UHI Perth in Perth city to support some of that work.
We must encourage the raising of awareness of the dangers of social media and its overuse. Parliament has already discussed some of the very acute dangers. For example, some months ago, Evelyn Tweed put a question to me about the tragic case in Dunblane. We must ensure that there is wide understanding of the difficulties and challenges that can arise from overuse of social media.
Insulin Supply
I have been contacted by Alan Ronald, who is a type 1 diabetic. Last month, he visited more than six different pharmacies before eventually getting insulin in Glasgow. Yesterday, he was told at his diabetic clinic that there were only four vials left in Glasgow, so we can imagine his distress. Will the First Minister advise what urgent steps are being taken to address the acute shortage of insulin?
That is a very important issue. I recognise the importance of individuals having access to insulin supplies. Procurement is undertaken on a United Kingdom-wide basis. I am not familiar with the challenges that Jackie Baillie puts to me about supply and circulation. I will look into that in the aftermath of First Minister’s question time, because it is critical that individuals who rely on that supply are able to obtain it. I will write to Jackie Baillie with an update later today.
International Week of Deaf People
In the light of this being international week of deaf people, how is the Scottish Government ensuring that Scotland is the best place for deaf people to visit and to live, work and learn in?
I commend my friend and colleague Karen Adam for the tremendous leadership that she offers in this area of policy. She is a champion of the deaf community and raises such issues assiduously.
Our efforts are underpinned by our see hear strategy, which was a product of partnership working with local authorities, health boards and the third sector. See hear funding is used through localised sensory support partnerships, which include the third sector, to help to put supports in place for deaf people. I commend their activity, and I commend Karen Adam for the leadership that she shows on this matter.
A75 (Improvements)
From a response to my letter to the Prime Minister, I understand that the Department for Transport is still in discussions with His Majesty’s Treasury regarding the £8 million committed by the former Prime Minister Rishi Sunak to fund a study on the A75. I am also aware that the Secretary of State for Transport has met the cabinet secretary to discuss shared transport priorities.
Will the First Minister update members on any progress that is being made and confirm his commitment to work with the United Kingdom Government to deliver the much-needed bypasses for Crocketford and Springholm? Will the First Minister also agree to meet me and the south-west Scotland transport alliance to consider its calls to form a task force to deliver those urgent improvements?
First, let me say that we will engage constructively with the United Kingdom Government on the issue. I know the importance of the issue to Mr Carson and his constituents, so we will engage constructively on that basis. I would be very happy to meet Mr Carson and his local campaigners to discuss the improvements to the A75 and to take forward that dialogue. It might be beneficial for me to come down to Galloway to have that conversation.
I am aware of there being quite a bit of uncertainty about the funding for particular projects that many of us believed were in the course of being delivered, because of the upcoming budget process and the spending review. I am aware of a number of projects for which the United Kingdom Government is not at this stage able to honour the commitments that were given by the previous Government. Mr Carson will appreciate that that is not an issue that is under my control, but I will engage constructively—as I know the finance secretary is doing with the Treasury—on those points. We can perhaps discuss some of those when I meet Mr Carson and his constituents.
Financial Services
I am aware that the recently published global financial centres index has recognised that Edinburgh continues to further its standing as one of the world’s leading financial centres. That is good news for all of Scotland, as is Glasgow’s success in climbing up through the rankings. Will the First Minister provide an update on how Scottish Government initiatives are supporting financial services in Scotland to thrive and develop, thereby creating new opportunities, well-paid jobs and sustainable growth?
A formidable amount of work is going on in that area. On Tuesday evening, I had the pleasure of addressing the ethical finance global summit dinner, which took place in Edinburgh, where there was an extensive range of investors who had come to Scotland for a three-day summit on green ethical investments. It was a tremendous showcase opportunity for the Government to engage with.
The Deputy First Minister responded to the report of the Scottish task force for green and sustainable financial services on Wednesday, and the Minister for Business opened the new fintech wing at the Edinburgh Futures Institute and marked the launch of the fintech Scotland festival.
I cite all that activity because it is indicative of the energy that the Government is putting into securing investment. The Global Ethical Finance Initiative has been many years in gestation, but we are now beginning to see the fruits of that activity as a consequence of the sustained focus and leadership of ministers in this Government. I am delighted to see the progress that has been made in Edinburgh and in the transformation in Glasgow’s position in the rankings, which has been significant. That demonstrates the strength of the Scottish financial services sector, of which we should be enormously proud.
Creative Scotland (Funding)
Following warnings that Scotland faces a “cultural recession”, it was reported that Creative Scotland and the Scottish Government were in talks over the immediate future of arts organisations. With decisions on multiyear funding due only weeks away, will the First Minister reassure arts organisations and confirm when funding for Creative Scotland—which will enable it to make those long-term decisions—will be released and how large its budget will be?
I am enormously sympathetic to financial support for the artistic and cultural sector in Scotland. It is absolutely fundamental that we have stable and supportive financial arrangements in place for the sector.
The operational challenge is that the Scottish Government does not know what its budget will be for the next financial year. That decision will be influenced significantly by the Chancellor of the Exchequer’s budget to be announced on 30 October, so the Government has to wrestle with the challenge of providing assurance when it does not have assurance from the United Kingdom Government. That is nobody’s fault—it is just timing.
The one thing that I want to be absolutely crystal clear about to Parliament today is that the Scottish Government will support the cultural sector to fulfil its potential in Scotland. That sector is part of our essential identity as a country. The Government will stand behind it. We simply have to ensure that we have the practical assurance in place to give the financial commitments that Mr Choudhury seeks from me and that, as I quite understand, the cultural sector requires to hear from us.
We are focusing on that question, and the Cabinet Secretary for the Constitution, External Affairs and Culture, Angus Robertson, is engaged in discussions with Creative Scotland on the best way to navigate our way through those challenges.
On a point of order, Presiding Officer. In his response to me, the First Minister wanted to put on record that
“levels of crime in Scotland are currently at 40-year lows”—
those are his words. However, we already have a record: the Scottish Government’s own statistics, which were published this summer, said that crime in Scotland from 2022-23 to 2023-24 rose by 4 per cent. How could the crime levels be at their lowest level for 40 years when the Scottish Government’s own figures say that they have increased—
Mr Ross, if I might stop you there. As you will be aware, points of order are to be used to address whether proper procedures are or have been followed and they are not to be used to continue debate. There is a mechanism to address inaccurate comments, as the member will be aware, so I am very interested to understand what the point of order is.
Presiding Officer, given that the Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs has been sat next to the First Minister today and so the First Minister had that information available, what remedies does the First Minister have at his disposal to update Parliament if he has deliberately or inadvertently misled Parliament on that important issue?
I simply repeat that points of order refer to whether proper procedures have been followed. The content of members’ contributions is a matter for members, and members will be aware of the mechanism that exists to address any inaccuracies.
First Minister’s questions is concluded. The next item of business is a members’ business debate in the name of Rona Mackay. There will be a short suspension to allow the chamber and gallery to clear.
12:49 Meeting suspended.Air ais
General Question Time