:00:24. > :00:27.Welcome to the Scottish Parliament at Holyrood, where MSPs were taking
:00:27. > :00:31.evidence from the Scottish Secretary this morning, looking at
:00:31. > :00:36.the details of a referendum. Michael Moore said he was confident
:00:36. > :00:41.that further devolved powers would go to Holyrood once the Scots had
:00:41. > :00:45.said no to independence in the referendum. He said he was speaking
:00:45. > :00:50.from his perspective as a Liberal Democrat. He believed Labour would
:00:50. > :00:55.also be looking at things. And that proposals would emerge. There is a
:00:55. > :00:59.degree of scepticism from the nationalists on the committee. It
:00:59. > :01:06.is questions to the First Minister today. Now we can cross to the
:01:06. > :01:11.chamber. We are finishing off the session of
:01:11. > :01:17.questions to Mr Salmon's ministers before getting on to the main event.
:01:17. > :01:21.-- Alex Salmond's ministers. One thing that may come up his football
:01:21. > :01:28.trouble at Hearts football club and a light for Celtic after their
:01:28. > :01:33.victory over Barcelona -- delight for Celtic after their victory over
:01:34. > :01:38.Barcelona last night. And celebrations for 2014,
:01:38. > :01:44.commemorating World War One. Fiona Hyslop is answering questions on
:01:44. > :01:49.that particular subject at the moment. A few seats away is the
:01:49. > :01:59.First Minister, Alex Salmond, preparing his papers. Joanne Lamont
:01:59. > :02:01.
:02:01. > :02:05.from Labour will ask the first question. -- Johann Lamont. Now we
:02:05. > :02:11.can tune in for the very end of Fiona Hyslop's contribution, then
:02:11. > :02:16.we expect the beginning of First Minister's Questions.
:02:16. > :02:20.For future generations, learning the lessons of war and
:02:20. > :02:23.commemorating those who have lost their lives is very important.
:02:23. > :02:27.Before we moved to First Minister's Questions, members will wish to
:02:27. > :02:37.join me in welcoming to the gallery the President of the Australian
:02:37. > :02:38.
:02:38. > :02:44.Senate. APPLAUSE. And standing up for applause. Now
:02:44. > :02:49.to First Minister's Questions. Question number one. If I made a
:02:49. > :02:56.putt from protocol, in this very important week, because I have
:02:56. > :03:00.often disagreed with them. -- May I delayed protocol. But I do not
:03:00. > :03:08.doubt his commitment to Scotland. I ask the whole parliament to pay
:03:08. > :03:11.tribute to Craig Levein. LAUGHTER. And may I, of course,
:03:11. > :03:17.congratulate the First Minister on his longevity and I ask him what
:03:17. > :03:21.engagements he has planned for the rest of the day? I think the whole
:03:21. > :03:29.chamber should congratulate President Obama for his re-election
:03:29. > :03:33.to the biggest office in the world. APPLAUSE. And Glasgow Celtic, over
:03:33. > :03:39.the outstanding victory over what many people think is the greatest
:03:39. > :03:43.team in the world. I have no difficulty in agreeing with the
:03:43. > :03:48.First Minister on those two counts. According to Audit Scotland, the
:03:48. > :03:53.NHS has an outstanding �1 billion bill in terms of repairs. We have
:03:53. > :04:00.lost more than 2000 nurses. The First Minister has imposed real-
:04:00. > :04:07.terms cuts of almost �200 million. Yesterday, the Auditor-General said
:04:07. > :04:14.the NHS in Scotland was on a number warning. Does the First Minister
:04:14. > :04:19.agree? -- was on an Amber warning. Scotland's Health Services well-
:04:19. > :04:22.managed in terms of finances. You should concede that there are more
:04:22. > :04:28.people working in the National Health Service in Scotland than
:04:28. > :04:32.when the SNP took office. More importantly, on every single
:04:32. > :04:40.judgment of output, waiting lists, patient care, Scotland's National
:04:40. > :04:45.Health Service is performing outstandingly. I have to say that
:04:45. > :04:50.the First Minister's breathtaking complacency, in the face of a
:04:50. > :04:56.serious warning from the Auditor General, that the NHS is on an
:04:56. > :04:59.Amber warning, it does him and his Government no service whatsoever.
:04:59. > :05:07.People of this country deserve better. It is clear the First
:05:07. > :05:10.Minister does not agree with a Auditor General in the NHS. When he
:05:10. > :05:14.said -- both he and his Education Minister said we were wrong when we
:05:14. > :05:20.spoke about education cuts, the Auditor-General has now said not
:05:20. > :05:30.once, but twice, that college budgets have been cut by 24% in
:05:30. > :05:33.
:05:33. > :05:39.real terms. Is she right what is she scaremongering? -- or is she?
:05:39. > :05:43.We have protected the spending of the health boards in real terms.
:05:43. > :05:47.And just encase the former deputy leader of the Labour Party in
:05:47. > :05:53.Scotland for gets, the Labour Party refused to make that commitment
:05:53. > :05:59.last year. That was in their election campaign. And as bad as
:06:00. > :06:04.Scotland's colleges are concerned, we have get big -- we have kept
:06:04. > :06:07.commitment on full-time colleges. As we look forward, given their
:06:07. > :06:15.extraordinary capital investment going into Scotland's colleges that
:06:15. > :06:21.the present moment, the total funding is going to reach �655
:06:21. > :06:27.million by 2014-2015 in capital and revenue investment, comparing
:06:27. > :06:31.favourably not just with funding now, but with the �217 million when
:06:31. > :06:37.the Labour Party took office in the first devolution Parliament. In
:06:37. > :06:44.that year, the total capital investment in that Scotland's
:06:44. > :06:52.colleges was �4 million. The expectation in 2014-2015 is for
:06:52. > :06:58.�184 million. APPLAUSE. I would say that his white noise
:06:58. > :07:02.between the end of one question and the beginning of another. The First
:07:02. > :07:07.Minister wants this to be a theoretical argument between us,
:07:07. > :07:12.this is the independent voice of the Auditor General saying there is
:07:12. > :07:20.a serious problem in the NHS and in college funding. And he denies it.
:07:20. > :07:25.Let me get this right. When it is said we need to face up to public
:07:25. > :07:29.spending crisis, the First Minister says that is wrong. When the
:07:29. > :07:34.current Auditor General talks about at that in college funding, she is
:07:34. > :07:40.wrong. When the Auditor General says the NHS is in crisis, she is
:07:40. > :07:46.wrong again. If you will not listen to the people counting the numbers,
:07:46. > :07:52.maybe those treating patients? One person said not being frank about
:07:52. > :07:55.how money is spent store some problems for the future. When my
:07:55. > :08:01.the First Minister face up to reality and beech tree it with the
:08:01. > :08:06.people of Scotland? -- and the straight with the people of
:08:06. > :08:11.Scotland? There are pressures on public services. That includes the
:08:11. > :08:15.health service. Things would be worse if the Labour Party had not
:08:15. > :08:19.defended the real terms increase in revenue spending in the National
:08:19. > :08:23.Health Service which we committed to in the election, the Labour
:08:23. > :08:30.Party refused to commit to, which is perhaps one of the reason she is
:08:30. > :08:38.there and I am here as First Minister. I think she is edging
:08:38. > :08:43.towards, talking about a affordability of public services,
:08:43. > :08:47.the review of the key pledges and promises defining not just the
:08:47. > :08:52.administration of the SNB, but the devolution era. The commitment to
:08:52. > :08:58.not having tuition fees, so there is no obstacle to going to college
:08:58. > :09:04.or university. The commitment to free travel for pensioners. These
:09:04. > :09:08.are crucial gains of devolution, which she and her party are now
:09:08. > :09:13.putting at risk. These were things that they committed to only last
:09:13. > :09:20.year in the election, but are now up for review in the Med -- In the
:09:20. > :09:24.bleak midwinter cuts. These other things not just on which this party
:09:24. > :09:30.has been judged and re-elected, but on which the Labour Party will be
:09:30. > :09:34.judged and never elected on that platform. Acknowledging pressures
:09:34. > :09:39.in funding is not the same as doing something about it. That is his job.
:09:39. > :09:45.Secondly, I am not be edging towards anything, but asking the
:09:45. > :09:48.farce Minister to listen to what the auditor general and one nurses
:09:48. > :09:52.and doctors and people in public services are seeing now about what
:09:52. > :09:57.is happening to their services. This is not an argument for an
:09:57. > :10:01.election, but understanding what is happening in the real world to
:10:01. > :10:07.ordinary people. We know the First Minister does not believe the
:10:07. > :10:15.Auditor-General, or her predecessor, Nordic experts he himself up points.
:10:15. > :10:20.Do you yourself believe that politicians should have a higher
:10:20. > :10:24.duty and more to the economic cycle than the political cycle? I read
:10:24. > :10:34.that to understand that politicians should always put the interests of
:10:34. > :10:36.
:10:36. > :10:41.their country before the interests of their party. Order! When will
:10:41. > :10:47.you join the rest of us in the real world? When we you face up to the
:10:47. > :10:53.cuts happening now in the real world? And a �3 billion worth of
:10:53. > :10:56.cuts he is delaying until after his referendum? Does Alex Salmond still
:10:56. > :11:03.believe himself or has he joined the rest of Scotland in not
:11:03. > :11:08.believing a word he says? Auditor General never said the
:11:08. > :11:18.National Health Service of Scotland was in crisis. She pointed out that
:11:18. > :11:19.
:11:19. > :11:22.health boards were well-managed. We have maintained real term spending
:11:22. > :11:26.in the revenue of the National Health Service in Scotland,
:11:26. > :11:30.something the Labour Party refused to do. That does not mean there is
:11:30. > :11:36.no pressure. How could and there be when this Government and every
:11:36. > :11:39.public service faces cuts from Westminster? -- how could there not
:11:40. > :11:43.be? There is no solution to addressing the problem of cuts from
:11:43. > :11:50.Westminster than threatening, as the Labour Party is now doing, to
:11:50. > :11:54.cut the vital services to pensioners and students in Scotland.
:11:54. > :11:59.She is the fourth Labour leader I have faced across the chamber. If
:11:59. > :12:03.she pursues this line, she will certainly not be the last Labour
:12:03. > :12:06.leader that I face across this chamber, because she is putting
:12:06. > :12:16.forward to the people of Scotland the incredible proposition that,
:12:16. > :12:17.some high free personal care of the elderly is unaffordable,
:12:17. > :12:20.concessionary prices for travel for prisoners is not affordable, that
:12:20. > :12:26.abolition of tuition fees is not affordable, all the things she
:12:26. > :12:29.wants to cut from the Scottish people, but maintains that �163
:12:29. > :12:34.million Scotland currently contributes to the far this month
:12:34. > :12:41.and refurbishment of the Trident missile system, but that is somehow
:12:41. > :12:47.or affordable. APPLAUSE. How can the Labour Party maintained a
:12:47. > :12:50.position that spending on weapons of mass destruction is affordable
:12:50. > :12:57.but things essential to the people of Scotland shall be dispensed
:12:57. > :13:04.with? You will never be elected on that basis.
:13:05. > :13:14.Ruth Davidson. Thank you. To ask the First Minister when he will
:13:15. > :13:17.
:13:17. > :13:21.next meet the Prime Minister? It may be appropriate to mixed up -
:13:22. > :13:27.- to mix up the leaders there. I have no plans to meet the Prime
:13:27. > :13:32.Minister in the near future. apologies for that mix up. Thank
:13:32. > :13:35.you. Let us stick with the Auditor General. All that Scotland
:13:35. > :13:39.published a highly critical report this week showing that the
:13:39. > :13:45.offending cost Scotland �3 billion per year. -- Audit Scotland
:13:45. > :13:48.published. You have had five years to get this right. Why, according
:13:48. > :13:55.to their Auditor General, is there such a mismatch between what is
:13:55. > :13:58.delivered and what is known to work to tackle re-offending? Can I say
:13:58. > :14:04.that there are substantial signs of progress in the Scottish justice
:14:04. > :14:09.system. You do not get the lowest level of recorded crime for 37
:14:09. > :14:14.years without establishing progress within the justice system. That is
:14:14. > :14:19.something which I believe has been largely contributed to by having
:14:19. > :14:23.police across communities, 1,000 extra police, which the
:14:23. > :14:28.Conservative Party support and say they support. But it is belied by
:14:28. > :14:32.the action of the Conservative Party at Westminster, radically
:14:32. > :14:38.cutting police numbers side of the border. We take with great care and
:14:38. > :14:44.attention, because re-offending rates and a key issue, we takes
:14:44. > :14:48.suggestions, positive suggestions, but I think you should concede that
:14:48. > :14:51.the criminal justice system, in terms of what matters, that is the
:14:51. > :14:56.falling rates of recorded crime in Scotland, is performing well for
:14:56. > :15:00.the people of Scotland. The Auditor General seems to think that what
:15:00. > :15:05.matters is having a real spending programme that actually works.
:15:05. > :15:10.Audit Scotland says that the money is being spent on things not known
:15:10. > :15:13.to work. It says there needs to be stronger national leadership, there
:15:13. > :15:21.is a lack of cohesion, that real offending rates are relatively
:15:21. > :15:26.static. -- but those that offend again a relatively static. They say
:15:26. > :15:30.there is still an urgent need for improvement and in all areas.
:15:30. > :15:36.Communities across Scotland are seeing the same people committing
:15:36. > :15:42.the same crimes time after time. Whatever the First Minister is
:15:42. > :15:45.doing now is not working. So when is he going to do what Audit
:15:45. > :15:50.Scotland are urging him to do and get serious, not just about crime,
:15:50. > :16:00.but those who offend again? Let us look at some initiatives designed
:16:00. > :16:04.to tackle this. The violence reduction Unit, which introduced
:16:04. > :16:08.unsupported by this Government, commanding general support across
:16:08. > :16:14.this chamber, the work against violence against women, including
:16:14. > :16:19.domestic abuse, has increased substantially. The support for
:16:19. > :16:25.victims' rights and compensation. The bill and legislation passed
:16:25. > :16:30.through this parliament commands general agreement. But I do not
:16:30. > :16:37.agree with Ruth Davidson sweeping aside the reality in terms of the
:16:37. > :16:41.statistics that recorded crime in Scotland is at a 37 years low. That
:16:41. > :16:45.must show some aspects of a justice system performing well. I do Archer
:16:45. > :16:49.had to look carefully at the interventions which have been
:16:49. > :16:54.budgeted for this Government under great difficulties and stringencies
:16:54. > :17:00.of the intervention funds, both for early years and those who real
:17:00. > :17:05.friend, to give national leadership we believe is necessary to pursue
:17:05. > :17:10.the assault on crime rates. -- those who offend again. Can I say
:17:10. > :17:15.gently that, if the achievements that have been made had been
:17:15. > :17:19.against a huge didn't see in public spending, I do not really see why
:17:19. > :17:24.threatening to cut the Scottish budget by over �1 million, as she
:17:24. > :17:29.did this week, will help the spending on Criminal Justice, on
:17:29. > :17:33.public services, on the National Health Service or any other area of
:17:33. > :17:37.Scottish life. That is the programme has got it -- the
:17:38. > :17:41.programme the Conservative party wanted was used, so be it, but do
:17:41. > :17:51.not argue for public spending they director dinky areas whilst
:17:51. > :17:57.
:17:57. > :18:01.simultaneously proposing up other To ask the First Minister, what is
:18:01. > :18:08.the Scottish Government's position on the compensation received by
:18:08. > :18:13.William Beggs as a result of delays to his appeals? The case was
:18:13. > :18:17.contested vigorously and that was the Scottish Government's position.
:18:17. > :18:21.We have to accept the court judgment. We have no choice in that
:18:22. > :18:25.mattered. But the Scottish Government's position, and I expect
:18:25. > :18:33.the position of this entire chamber was to pursue vigorously against
:18:33. > :18:38.that compensation claim. Thank you for that response. Would the First
:18:38. > :18:43.Minister agree that the public, generally, and certainly the
:18:43. > :18:45.communities across Ayrshire find such awards extremely distasteful
:18:45. > :18:49.and would he issue of this parliament that his Government will
:18:49. > :18:56.take steps to minimise the opportunities that prisoners are
:18:56. > :19:00.take advantage of to receive a financial benefit from such events?
:19:00. > :19:06.That was a bonus question. I doubt if there is a single person in
:19:06. > :19:12.Scotland who doesn't believe that that award is extremely distasteful.
:19:12. > :19:16.I think we can be reasonably certain that that would command the
:19:16. > :19:22.ascent of the overwhelming almost unanimous view of the Scottish
:19:22. > :19:27.people. The point about opposing the award indicates the seriousness
:19:27. > :19:31.with which the Scottish Government and I am sure opposition parties
:19:31. > :19:36.take the matter. But you must know that once the court judgment is
:19:36. > :19:41.made, we have to follow the court judgment. However distasteful it
:19:41. > :19:46.may be. And therefore, that is why -- while he is right to say it is
:19:46. > :19:51.distasteful, we have to acknowledge what has happened in a court of law.
:19:51. > :19:55.Question number three. To ask the First Minister what issues will be
:19:55. > :20:05.discussed at Cabinet? Issues of importance to the people of
:20:05. > :20:07.
:20:07. > :20:11.Scotland. I was shocked this morning to read the Daily Record!
:20:11. > :20:17.But in the Daily Record this morning, and this is serious,
:20:17. > :20:22.pharmacists were being condemned as methadone Berens. Does the First
:20:22. > :20:27.Minister think it is right for frontline help officials --
:20:27. > :20:37.professionals be attacked for carrying out the Government drugs
:20:37. > :20:39.
:20:39. > :20:44.strategy? First Minister. I think it is hugely important that we
:20:44. > :20:49.maintain the cross-party consensus in the policies Against drugs.
:20:49. > :20:56.Almost 20 years ago, I joined a cross-party initiative in Scotland
:20:57. > :21:02.Against drugs and watched that initiative which I think was well-
:21:02. > :21:06.meaning and well meant dissolve into acrimony between the competing
:21:06. > :21:10.claims of a variety of treatments and approaches to the drugs issue.
:21:10. > :21:14.At the end, to some extent, didn't actually matter who was right or
:21:14. > :21:19.wrong because so much attention was given to the variety of difference
:21:19. > :21:24.in treatment that meant the policy itself was compromised. At think
:21:24. > :21:29.the road to recovery policy agreed by this Parliament is hugely
:21:29. > :21:36.important. That doesn't mean it is perfect and Notts could walk of
:21:36. > :21:46.improvement and amendment -- and not capable of improvement and
:21:46. > :21:51.amendment. We will fail people of Scotland if we don't do that.
:21:51. > :21:56.Willie Rennie. Can I thank the First Minister for the sensible
:21:56. > :22:01.respond -- response. I am reassured by what he says. We are now in the
:22:01. > :22:06.position where people being attacked by MSPs are not drug
:22:06. > :22:12.pushers but the pharmacists. It is not easy work. It is not pleasant.
:22:12. > :22:17.But it benefits everyone. Methadone has cut death, cut disease and it
:22:17. > :22:21.cuts crime. MSPs should not be seeking to close down treatment
:22:21. > :22:26.options and attack the staff delivering them. The scandal,
:22:26. > :22:31.actually, the scandal is that methadone is not methadone for drug
:22:31. > :22:35.users, it is that drug addiction remains so rampant in one of the
:22:35. > :22:40.world's wealthiest nations. What leadership and the First Minister
:22:40. > :22:46.proviso that a drugs strategy is based on evidence and the expertise
:22:46. > :22:50.of our health professionals? don't think that the views which
:22:50. > :22:54.you expels a general across this chain. Some people are entitled to
:22:54. > :22:59.their views. It is better to try and achieve the consensus around
:23:00. > :23:03.the road of recovery. I think they should be a recognition that the
:23:03. > :23:07.problem is hugely serious, as indicated by the number of drug-
:23:08. > :23:17.related deaths. They also should be a recognition that that path
:23:17. > :23:26.towards death was set every long time ago. There is also indications,
:23:26. > :23:29.in terms of dropping drug use among drug use, and that is not to
:23:29. > :23:33.minimise the scale of the problem. It just shows there are some
:23:33. > :23:38.hopeful signs, if we keep a coherent approach to this huge
:23:38. > :23:43.social issue and a try to unite behind it. I'm certain we can do
:23:44. > :23:48.that if we can come and unite around a consensus policy so that
:23:48. > :23:52.people know that the key thing about this is not to score points
:23:53. > :24:01.off each other but unite around a strategy which can actually help
:24:01. > :24:05.and assist he -- the people we are here to serve. Maureen Watt. To ask
:24:05. > :24:11.the First Minister what impact fungal diseases will have on trees
:24:11. > :24:17.in Scotland. And you for raising this issue. Members will be aware
:24:17. > :24:21.that ash dieback has been detected in Scotland. But as the
:24:21. > :24:25.commissioners have worked around the clock completing a survey to
:24:25. > :24:30.identify potential distribution of the disease in Scotland. Thank you
:24:30. > :24:35.to were those who undertook this work. We have responded to requests
:24:35. > :24:40.for help from forestry England and have sent staff to help them
:24:40. > :24:43.complete their serviced. There are 11 sites in Scotland with confirmed
:24:43. > :24:48.signs that the disease. Because infection is seasonal, we have a
:24:48. > :24:52.window of opportunity to further develop our plans to mitigate its
:24:52. > :24:57.impact. The Environment Minister will convene a summit of key
:24:57. > :25:02.stakeholders this coming Tuesday to take that stage and process forward.
:25:02. > :25:10.Maureen Watt. Can I thank the First Minister for that answer at can I
:25:10. > :25:15.be the first person in this chamber to sincerely congratulate the first
:25:15. > :25:20.Mr unbecoming Scotland's longer serving the First Minister. Given
:25:20. > :25:24.that the UK Government may not have released advice in relation to the
:25:24. > :25:30.bowl lability of ash trees as speedily as they could have done
:25:30. > :25:37.and that there is now speculation that a threat could exist to hour
:25:37. > :25:41.iconic Scots pines, what advice can you give to us? The Forestry
:25:41. > :25:46.Commission have been undertaking regular surveys and we are
:25:46. > :25:51.monitoring the impact. Trials of forest management techniques are
:25:51. > :25:56.under way to identify ways to manage the risk of disease. We're
:25:56. > :26:02.doing everything we can, as a Government, to protect, as the
:26:02. > :26:07.remember right he describes, the Scots pines species which is truly
:26:07. > :26:12.iconic in Scotland. Given the expressions of concern about
:26:12. > :26:15.various species in Scotland, isn't it time we had a national plan in
:26:15. > :26:19.Scotland for tree health and by a security and that this Parliament
:26:19. > :26:25.could take a lead that would set a new turn to this debate in the
:26:25. > :26:33.whole of Britain? I think that is a positive suggestion. That will be
:26:33. > :26:35.considered at the meeting this coming Tuesday. Jackie Baillie.
:26:35. > :26:42.of the First Minister what steps the Scottish Government is taking
:26:42. > :26:48.to improve treatment for people with dementia? The key to effective
:26:48. > :26:52.treatment to dementia is effective and early treatment. The target
:26:52. > :26:59.introduced by our Government has led to a 39% increase in diagnosis.
:26:59. > :27:02.This is to be welcomed but there is no room for complacency. We will be
:27:02. > :27:08.putting 300 dementia champions in place next year to insure people
:27:08. > :27:10.who receive a new diagnosis of dementia are entitled to a minimum
:27:10. > :27:16.of post diagnostic support. This has further to the announcement
:27:16. > :27:24.last weekend that all health boards in Scotland have appointed an
:27:24. > :27:29.Alzheimer's nurse. Jackie Baillie. Can I thank the First Minister for
:27:29. > :27:32.his response and very much welcome the progress made. The 14 makes
:27:32. > :27:38.additional specialist nurses does need to be set against -- against
:27:38. > :27:41.the cut of overrule nurses in Scotland. Can I bring to his
:27:41. > :27:46.attention a Freedom of Information response from NHS Fife which says
:27:46. > :27:50.that during 2011, the highest number of bed ward moves for a
:27:50. > :27:55.dementia patient in a single hospital stay was 13. Does the
:27:55. > :27:58.First Minister share my view that this number of moves for a dementia
:27:58. > :28:03.patient is an acceptable and what measures will he take to their
:28:03. > :28:07.eradicate the practice of boarding out from our NHS? That is precisely
:28:07. > :28:14.why we have introduced inspections of hospitals to address such
:28:14. > :28:18.concerns. Can I just say to Jackie Baillie that her comments about the
:28:18. > :28:21.appointments to have less than credit and I think I would prefer
:28:21. > :28:27.the views of Henri Simons, the chief Executive of Alzheimer's
:28:27. > :28:30.Scotland who said there is a significant milestone in our
:28:30. > :28:36.attempt to ensure that people with dementia and their families are
:28:36. > :28:39.treated with the utmost dignity and respect at all times. He gets the
:28:39. > :28:43.point we Jackie Baillie fails to get that these appointments are
:28:43. > :28:47.directed to ensure that people with the denture and their families are
:28:47. > :28:55.treated properly across our excellent National Health Service.
:28:55. > :29:01.-- with dementia. Can the First Minister provide assurance that
:29:01. > :29:07.there will be an enhanced integrated social care strategy?
:29:07. > :29:11.This is Scotland's First dementias strategy that was completed in 2010
:29:11. > :29:17.and has now been taken forward. I think it reflects the recognition
:29:17. > :29:25.which I am sure his shared across the chamber that this condition is
:29:25. > :29:30.of extraordinary seriousness. glad to hear the last part of the
:29:30. > :29:34.first Mr's answer but I have my doubts because the people who are
:29:34. > :29:38.working in the integration of health and social care services at
:29:38. > :29:42.ground level are under great stress and they are trying to do
:29:42. > :29:46.everything at the one time. I would imagine that this might be an extra
:29:46. > :29:50.task too far and so I will be getting in touch with the Health
:29:50. > :29:55.Minister to get an assurance of how this will be carried out, if that
:29:55. > :30:05.is all right with the First Minister. I am sure that Malcolm
:30:05. > :30:06.
:30:06. > :30:11.McDowell and will much appreciate it. That is part of the response.
:30:11. > :30:15.Liz Smith. To ask the First Minister would support the Scottish
:30:15. > :30:21.Government is providing two female college students? The number of
:30:21. > :30:27.women students attending colleges has been maintained at 65,000 full-
:30:27. > :30:32.time places. This is the same level to live in 2006 and 2007. That put
:30:32. > :30:36.has been achieved with a 42% increase in funding for childcare
:30:36. > :30:43.which is of crucial importance to many female in steep -- female
:30:44. > :30:50.students. I think the First Minister -- thank the first Mr.
:30:50. > :30:56.Could you explain how the 26% decline in female student numbers
:30:56. > :31:02.sits with the Scottish Government's promises to widen access and
:31:02. > :31:06.maintain overall student numbers? The position, as I have stated, it
:31:06. > :31:10.is true that the Scottish Government is concentrating on
:31:10. > :31:14.full-time courses because these are the courses which prepare people
:31:14. > :31:18.for Employment but it is also true that we have expanded student
:31:18. > :31:23.support in colleges to record levels in order to enable people to
:31:23. > :31:30.attend these full-time courses. We have also expanded funding by 42%
:31:30. > :31:32.for child care so that female students are not disadvantaged. The
:31:32. > :31:36.credibility of the Conservative Party on this matter would be
:31:36. > :31:40.somewhat greater if it wasn't for what is happening to the revenue
:31:40. > :31:46.and the capital budget south of the border in terms of colleges with
:31:46. > :31:50.the pressure is infinitely greater than it is in Scotland. And finally,
:31:50. > :31:53.is there going to be some acknowledgement any time from
:31:53. > :31:57.Elizabeth Smith that this year in Scotland, we have the highest
:31:57. > :32:02.number of full-time students in college and university than any