The Official Report is a written record of public meetings of the Parliament and committees.
All Official Reports of meetings in the Debating Chamber of the Scottish Parliament.
All Official Reports of public meetings of committees.
Displaying 766 contributions
Health, Social Care and Sport Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 12 November 2024
Elena Whitham
The witnesses have already answered a few of the questions that I had, but I would like to take some time to explore a little bit about whether discrimination will occur if neurodivergence is included within the definition of mental disorder. Will you also talk about Alzheimer’s and the issue of fluctuating capacity that we heard about from the earlier witnesses. Does either of you have concerns with regards to those two issues?
Health, Social Care and Sport Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 12 November 2024
Elena Whitham
I remind members that my entry in the register of members’ interests states that I am a member of the Humanist Society Scotland. I have a quick question for Lynda Towers. The Law Society’s submission expresses concern about solicitors being used as proxies. My understanding is that, as the bill is currently drafted, they would be involved in the process by having to sign for somebody who is physically unable to do so. Will you expand a little bit on why the Law Society has concerns in that regard?
Health, Social Care and Sport Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 12 November 2024
Elena Whitham
That is very helpful. I have a follow-up question. For the purposes of the bill as it is drafted, and with the existing law—the 2003 act—as it stands, am I right to infer that neurodivergence would be included in the definition of a mental disorder, versus what may come forward from the Scott review at some point in time?
Health, Social Care and Sport Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 11 November 2024
Elena Whitham
Good evening. I declare an interest, in that I am a Humanist Society Scotland member and I am also a Canadian citizen.
My first question is on coercion and safeguarding. In the interests of time, I will join my questions together, so I will just have one question in total. Like the bill, Canadian law seeks to prevent coercion. What measures are in place to ensure that only those who fully meet the criteria have access to MAID? We can keep it to track 1 MAID, as that is the equivalent of the proposed law that is in front of us—we do not have a track 2 option.
The second part of my question is about specialist training. How do we ensure that doctors who provide MAID are adequately trained to assess coercion and to ensure that safeguards are in place? I will start with Dr Green and then go to Dr Coelho.
Health, Social Care and Sport Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 11 November 2024
Elena Whitham
Dr Coelho, do you want to come in?
Health, Social Care and Sport Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 11 November 2024
Elena Whitham
Thank you. I have other questions, convener, but in the interests of time, I will pass back to you and other colleagues.
Rural Affairs and Islands Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 6 November 2024
Elena Whitham
On those measures in relation to which you are looking at habitats legislation and the bit of research that is being undertaken in order to figure out what you do before the next season opens in May, is there a possibility that that will link into the development of a fisheries management plan in the future? Would you seek to look at the plan in England, which is in draft form, in order to align the two? The committee understands that DEFRA is looking at a wrasses complex fisheries management plan.
Rural Affairs and Islands Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 6 November 2024
Elena Whitham
Good morning. The committee became very aware of wild wrasse during our follow-up salmon inquiry, and I would like to talk about wrasse as a non-quota species. The cabinet secretary will be aware, as the committee now is, of petition PE2110, which calls on the Scottish Parliament to urge the Scottish Government to look at introducing a statutory fisheries management plan that focuses on protecting wild wrasse stocks, given their particular vulnerabilities with regard to their biological and reproductive characteristics. I would like to explore that. There was a call for views in 2020 that resulted in some measures to control the harvesting of live wrasse in the salmon farming industry. How are those control measures working in practice?
Rural Affairs and Islands Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 6 November 2024
Elena Whitham
For clarity, in the absence of a fisheries management plan for wrasse, the species is afforded some protection under the measures that are already in place and which you might seek to bring in before 2025.
Health, Social Care and Sport Committee [Draft]
Meeting date: 5 November 2024
Elena Whitham
Good morning. Before I ask a few questions, I declare an interest, as I am a member of the Humanist Society of Scotland and a member of the Parliament’s cross-party group on end-of-life choices.
Professor White, you have spent a lot of your career researching voluntary assisted dying, and you are here today to speak to us in that capacity. Can you give us your views on the Scottish bill as drafted? What has it got right, and where could it be improved?
You mentioned your concerns about discrimination based on disability, which is why there are slightly different administration routes in Australia. Can you speak to that aspect, please?