Seòmar agus comataidhean

On the basis of the guidance from Food Standards Scotland, historic evidence and the weight of opinion from the scientific community, can we close the petition under rule 15.7 of the standing orders? I do not think that Food Standards Scotland or the Scottish Government will shift on this issue.

I am quite happy to withdraw my recommendations and to write to—

I welcome Roger Mullin, who is one of my constituents.

I wonder whether the committee could write to key stakeholders, including the Law Society of Scotland, the National Union of Journalists and the Scottish Newspaper Society, seeking their views on the action that is called for in the petition.

Good morning to the cabinet secretary and the other witnesses. The pandemic increased the use of digital technology. What impact has that increased use of digital services had in remote rural areas? I am conscious of time, so I will roll all my questions into one. What are the potential benefits and risks of a reliance on digital services in rural areas?

A friend of mine had a position in NHS Highland to go to, but after three months of searching, they could not find suitable accommodation. I have strong connections to Aviemore, where the residents welcome the new community hospital. However, once again, there is no accommodation, unless you want to pay £600 a week for a holiday let.

In your opening statement, you mentioned that the University of the Highlands and Islands had increased the number of its places by 33 per cent. Will we not lose people from such areas if there is no accommodation? Is lack of affordable accommodation the biggest barrier to recruitment and retention of staff, and how can we fix it?

Perhaps Dr Smith can give us more information—possibly later in writing—on the use of public libraries. They are community buildings that are well used and are usually central to communities, so I am interested in hearing about that aspect.

Thank you for that, cabinet secretary. Will you provide specific examples of how a preventative and proactive care programme has informed spending decisions? You have given some examples, but how important has that been in making those decisions?

Good afternoon. Cabinet secretary, is it realistic to expect a shift towards preventative spend when the immediate pressures and demands on healthcare are so great?

Considering all that we heard from you just now and the fact that the Scottish Government is engaging and consulting on the development of a national strategy on ending intimate and sexual violence against men and boys, which will complement the equally safe strategy, along with all the evidence that we have been given, I am happy to close the petition under rule 15.7 of standing orders. I genuinely do not think that the committee can take the petition anywhere.

Once we have taken evidence from coroners and pathologists, I wonder whether we could invite the relevant minister to come before us to give evidence.