Seòmar agus comataidhean

Will you provide clarity about the dispute resolution process where differences occur? Are you satisfied that an effective process is in place?

The framework commits the Scottish Government to making joint decisions about some food products that it would previously have had autonomy to regulate. Does the minister have any concerns about whether that will impact on the Government’s ability to regulate food products on public health grounds, for example?

Good morning. I have spoken to football teams that have adopted a social responsibility approach to sponsorship and are moving away from associations with alcohol and gambling brands. That is laudable, but they are in the minority, and teams that are facing difficult financial circumstances will probably be less likely to take that step.

What are your thoughts about encouraging sporting teams to move away from alcohol sponsorship gradually versus an overall ban? Do you recognise that a ban is probably the best and fastest way to ensure the end of alcohol sponsorship? Is there a possibility of providing financial support to clubs, either in the event of a ban or to clubs that end alcohol sponsorship?

The report notes that data on primary care needs to be improved. For example, it says:

“Data on the number of GP appointments carried out is not available”.

How important is it that that data is collected and what impact would that have on how services are planned?

I will follow up on what my colleagues have been asking about and on what was said earlier about data. I have spoken to a couple of stakeholders about the climate impact of medicines. In your opinion, do we have sufficient data to be able to assess any climate impacts of changes in medication and how we prescribe medication? I am thinking about asthma inhalers in particular. The powder ones are infinitely better for the planet than the more traditional ones are. Do we have the data that we would need to assess the impacts of moving away from, for example, the more harmful types of asthma inhalers?

Good morning and welcome. I am sorry that I cannot be with you in person today.

Audit Scotland previously recommended that data on waiting times based on the categories in the clinical prioritisation framework should be published. However, that has not yet happened. To what extent is there transparency regarding how long patients will be expected to wait and how they are prioritised?

We sometimes hear from constituents that they are placed on a list but then hear nothing more about when they will be seen or how they will be prioritised, which obviously impacts on a patient’s experience of the system as a whole.

Good morning, cabinet secretary. Witnesses have told the committee that a culture change is needed with regard to social prescribing, because many patients are still not comfortable with the idea. Some organisations heard that people felt short-changed when they were redirected to links practitioners rather than a GP, and GPs also made the point that time constraints limited their ability to explain social prescribing to patients. What action is being taken at the national level to facilitate that sort of thing and to promote and explain social prescribing and its benefits to the public?

In a previous meeting, I asked witnesses about the inverse care law and how, as the system becomes more complicated to navigate, with people being expected to self-refer to different services, we mitigate the risk that those with lower levels of health literacy might become less likely to engage with health services. Witnesses highlighted that “targeted communication” is vital, in addition to

“detailed analysis of the data that is being collected on ... who is accessing different services directly instead of through GP referrals”.—[Official Report, Health, Social Care and Sport Committee, 8 March 2022; c 25.]

What action is the Scottish Government taking on that, and what plans are there to collect and analyse that data?

We know that, in urban areas, there are sometimes barriers to people attending different sites for appointments and so on. Could geographical variations in the provision of alternative pathways exacerbate inequalities, particularly for people in rural areas, where the distance between appointments might be significant?

Thank you.