Seòmar agus comataidhean

How important is it to embed the medication assisted treatment standards in practice, especially to ensure that individuals receive appropriate medication while they are in police custody?

I would like to invite the petitioner and representatives of Who Cares? Scotland, CELCIS, the Scottish Throughcare and Aftercare Forum, the Promise, and the Children and Young People’s Commissioner Scotland to a round-table discussion to explore issues that the petition raises. If the committee agrees to that, could we also invite some people with life experiences of the situations that are raised in the petition?

Before we make any further recommendations, could we write to the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee to ask it what relevant work it intends to do in that area, and whether it will consider what the petition asks for?

Good morning. Since the legislation came into force, birds have been restricted in doing what they naturally do and your captive birds are not allowed to hunt mountain hares. How has that affected their welfare?

It is a very difficult situation if the Scottish Government is not going to move on the matter at all. I wonder whether we could write to the Government, highlighting the recommendations of the independent inquiry into child sexual abuse in England and Wales. We could ask that it consults on the introduction of legislation that places certain individuals—mandated reporters—under a statutory duty to report child sexual abuse, and that it considers the need for and value of a child protection authority for Scotland.

The Scottish Drug Deaths Taskforce recommends that the MATS should be embedded by May 2024. Is the Scottish Government on course to meet that? If not, how much work is still to be done?

Considering that the UK Climate Change Committee recommends a reduction of meat consumption rather than a ban on production; that the Scottish Government’s climate change plan update sets out a plan for a 24 per cent reduction in overall emissions from the agriculture category by 2032; that banning meat production may have negative environmental and economic consequences; and that the Scottish Government has stated that it continues to actively promote the consumption of fresh, local and seasonal produce, I suggest that the committee consider closing the petition under rule 15.7 of the standing orders.

In light of the Scottish Government’s response and there being no plans to reintroduce the right-to-buy scheme for council tenants, I think that there is nothing that the committee can do but close the petition under rule 15.7 of the standing orders.

The committee could consider writing to Police Scotland, seeking information on the number of threatening and abusive behaviour offences that have been recorded in each year over the past decade and whether the data can be broken down by occupation and workplace. The committee could also write to the Scottish Taxi Federation and Unite Scotland to seek their views on the petition.

Okay. If that is the case, would the committee like to ask the petitioner and the SPSO to give evidence to members?

I also have another, rather lengthy, ask. Could we write to the SPSO on the issues raised in the petition, including its approach to the handling and consideration of evidence and the rationale for not reviewing its decisions when complaints are upheld? Could we also write to the Scottish Government to clarify its view on the need for, or the desirability of, a review of the SPSO after 20 years of operation, and ask whether it considers that its processes and safeguards in relation to the SPSO are sufficient and effective? Finally, could we ask the Government whether it considers that the legislation governing the SPSO is fit for purpose, whether it would benefit from a review and what revisions might be required?