:00:24. > :00:28.Are a very warm welcome to Holyrood where MSPs have been questioning
:00:28. > :00:34.ministers this morning. We heard from Westminster that the passage
:00:34. > :00:41.of the measure to allow the referendum to be transferred to
:00:41. > :00:46.Scotland. And the European Union also. Let us cross to the chamber
:00:46. > :00:51.now. Thank you. That general questions
:00:51. > :00:57.are still ongoing. It will not be long until we get to the main event.
:00:57. > :01:07.MSPs are talking about the position of gypsy and traveller communities
:01:07. > :01:08.
:01:08. > :01:14.in Scotland. Later today, we have a debate on biodiversity.
:01:15. > :01:20.Questions to the First Minister. Thank you very much. What
:01:20. > :01:25.engagements he has planned for the rest of the day? With permission, I
:01:25. > :01:34.should tell the chamber I spoke to the Prime Minister this morning
:01:34. > :01:41.about a hostage taking situation in Algeria. A terrorist group has sees
:01:41. > :01:45.the BP and Statoil facility in the Sahara. I can confirm that a number
:01:45. > :01:49.of Scots are among the hostages. The UK government reports that one
:01:49. > :01:53.UK National has been killed in the attack. The chamber will understand
:01:54. > :01:59.that in the interests and safety of the hostages, the information that
:01:59. > :02:03.can be given out is limited. The priority is their safety and to
:02:03. > :02:08.keep the family is informed. The Scottish police service is fully
:02:08. > :02:12.engaged with the Metropolitan Police on the latter and ministers
:02:12. > :02:18.are at in contact with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's. I know
:02:18. > :02:26.the whole chamber is united in condemnation of the attack and also
:02:26. > :02:30.in hoping for the early and safe release of the hostages. Can I
:02:30. > :02:34.thank the first minister for that and, of course, we entirely agree
:02:34. > :02:40.with him in the conclusion he comes to and our thoughts are with the
:02:40. > :02:46.families concerned. On 22nd March 1920 10, the then Health Secretary
:02:46. > :02:51.said, hidden waiting lists have been abolished and she added, no
:02:51. > :02:59.one is on a hidden waiting list. On 21st March last year she told this
:02:59. > :03:03.Parliament that way heading waiting lists -- there were hidden waiting
:03:03. > :03:12.lists in West Lothian but nowhere else. Since then, they have been
:03:12. > :03:19.discovered at NHS Tayside and NHS greater Clyde and Lanarkshire.
:03:19. > :03:22.Yesterday, we learned of a serious problems with NHS Grampian. Was a
:03:22. > :03:31.Nicola Sturgeon misleading Parliament and the country or was
:03:31. > :03:39.she just incompetent? Do things. Of course, let us remember that, under
:03:40. > :03:44.the Labour Party, hidden waiting lists were endemic. And these
:03:44. > :03:50.endemic practices were abolished by the Scottish National Party. I
:03:50. > :03:56.don't think any Labour leader is in a position to attack the SNP in
:03:56. > :04:06.terms of waiting lists across the NHS. In terms of the situation in
:04:06. > :04:06.
:04:06. > :04:12.NHS Grampian, it is something which, as a local MSP I am aware of, we
:04:12. > :04:17.were given a briefing by NHS Grampian in December. The 18 week
:04:17. > :04:24.treatment time guarantee has not been breached in NHS Grampian. They
:04:24. > :04:28.had a serious difficulty with one scanner when it went out of
:04:28. > :04:34.operation due to a skull -- flat and that resulted in a backlog of
:04:34. > :04:40.treatment. But the health board prioritised those covered by the 18
:04:40. > :04:46.we guarantee and cancer patients have an even more rigorous
:04:46. > :04:51.guaranteed. But the people in a backlog reported about is quite
:04:52. > :04:58.untrue. The backlog consists of 500 cases and they are being dealt with
:04:58. > :05:04.in terms of action by the health board. 550 patients and provision
:05:04. > :05:10.is being made at the Golden Jubilee Hospital to help clear that. The
:05:10. > :05:14.scanner is now back in operation at NHS Grampian and both the scanners
:05:14. > :05:19.in Aberdeen are being moved to the Aberdeen Royal Infirmary. Nothing
:05:19. > :05:25.of this justifies the charge that There are hidden waiting lists in a
:05:25. > :05:33.NHS Grampian. Hidden waiting lists across the NHS were abolished when
:05:33. > :05:42.the Labour Party were turfed out of office. That is astonishingly
:05:42. > :05:46.complete and -- complacent. I didn't just talk about Grampian,
:05:46. > :05:52.although the First Minister Wade wish to reflect that the auditor
:05:52. > :05:59.general said there was a billion pounds of backlog in repairs and �5
:05:59. > :06:04.million hunt -- �500 million of that may affect patient care. Dame
:06:04. > :06:10.-- that maybe why there was a problem with the scanner in the
:06:10. > :06:14.first place. The First Minister has a London Life's coach, I understand,
:06:14. > :06:24.and it would suit him to make him understand what real-life was
:06:24. > :06:25.
:06:26. > :06:30.almost people in this country -- he has a real life coach. Before this
:06:30. > :06:35.SNP's hidden at waiting time scandal broke, figures across
:06:35. > :06:40.Scotland for patience missing appointments for treatment due to
:06:40. > :06:47.social unavailability peaked at at almost 21,000 in 20th June 11 and
:06:47. > :06:53.it has now fallen to just over 9,500. If the figures were not
:06:53. > :06:55.being figured -- fiddled before, how does the First Minister
:06:55. > :07:01.explained how patience were suddenly available for appointments
:07:01. > :07:10.they were not available for before? The very fact that Johann Lamont is
:07:10. > :07:16.able to quote figures indicates but position between now and then.
:07:16. > :07:21.After investigation, in 2006, we knew that 35,000 people have been
:07:21. > :07:28.given a system by which people were hidden in the National Health
:07:28. > :07:32.Service so statistics could never come to light. I am a north-east of
:07:32. > :07:37.Scotland ms Peake and my family and constituents use the health service
:07:37. > :07:43.in Grampian. Therefore, I have more immediate knowledge of the
:07:43. > :07:48.situation than Johann Lamont has. Let us look at the current
:07:48. > :07:52.performance of NHS Grampian. The idea that, if the Labour Party were
:07:52. > :07:59.in charge there were not be flooding in any building across
:07:59. > :08:07.Scotland, is a remarkable indication! NHS Grampian's current
:08:07. > :08:14.performance is 93% of patients were seen and treaty it within 18 weeks
:08:14. > :08:21.of referral. In 2012, no patient in NHS Grampian had waited more than a
:08:21. > :08:27.certain period of time for an out- patient or day-case appointment.
:08:27. > :08:33.That compares with the six months in March 2007 and of the Labour
:08:33. > :08:39.Party. So, let the Labour Party be the last people to come here and
:08:39. > :08:46.pretend an NHS was safe in their hands. Under Labour, tens of
:08:46. > :08:49.thousands of patients were on hidden waiting lists.
:08:49. > :08:59.The First Minister does not understand something basics. This
:08:59. > :09:04.
:09:05. > :09:09.is not the difference between the MSP and Labour - might be it SNP.
:09:10. > :09:19.The first minister says he can give us figures, but I didn't ask just
:09:19. > :09:22.about Grampian but the whole of the country. Their own audit tells us
:09:22. > :09:27.there is not sufficient data to tell us what the scale of the
:09:27. > :09:31.problem is and he might want to address that. We seem to be in a
:09:31. > :09:35.place where Nicola Sturgeon said hidden waiting lists were abolished
:09:35. > :09:39.and she was right. When she said the only problem with hitting
:09:39. > :09:43.waiting times was in lay the end and she was right and when it turns
:09:43. > :09:48.out there were problems the length and breadth of the country, she is
:09:48. > :09:54.still right. According to the First Minister, the system she presided
:09:54. > :10:03.over was working well. So why then is her successor having to change
:10:04. > :10:06.the system because it is not transparent enough? It was Nicola
:10:06. > :10:11.Sturgeon as health secretary who ordered the investigation into NHS
:10:11. > :10:16.led the and. I remember having this conversation at last week with
:10:16. > :10:22.Johann Lamont and I pointed out the praise that had been heaped on
:10:22. > :10:32.Nicola Sturgeon as health secretary and she was leaving honest. Jackie
:10:32. > :10:33.
:10:33. > :10:36.Baillie looked askance. I looked up last year about this and on the 1st
:10:36. > :10:43.September 1920 12, the difference is that I have had with her, she
:10:43. > :10:50.said, I have always suspected -- respected her talent and energy. We
:10:50. > :10:58.are missing you already, Nicola! It is a shame that your talent and
:10:58. > :11:05.energy are being diverted, she said. She is less optimistic than even
:11:05. > :11:09.Jackie Baillie. If I were first minister I would listen back to
:11:09. > :11:17.that and I think you might find it a little more than embarrassing
:11:17. > :11:21.because I am asking about a very serious issue. He says Nicola
:11:21. > :11:26.Sturgeon called an investigation into NHS Lothians. But the problem
:11:26. > :11:30.is she did not look at what the answers were and she did know -
:11:30. > :11:34.might not look beyond NHS low the end to find out what words
:11:34. > :11:37.happening in the rest of the country. It would appear she was
:11:37. > :11:42.the Health Secretary for the good bits, but the bad bits are nothing
:11:42. > :11:47.to do with this government whatsoever. It is the bad bits and
:11:47. > :11:53.the difficult bits that beat -- patience across Scotland and staff
:11:53. > :11:59.have to face every day of the week and it is about time the first
:11:59. > :12:04.minister took responsibility. He has been talking about the right --
:12:04. > :12:11.writes the Scots could have and a return constitution for
:12:11. > :12:20.independence. But the right to a government which tells the truth,
:12:20. > :12:25.at the right to a first minister who will be straight with them, at
:12:25. > :12:33.the right to be treated by the NHS within 18 weeks and the right to be
:12:33. > :12:40.told the truth. Be isn't it a case that whether it is the First
:12:40. > :12:44.Minister on Europe, Auch on the banks of England, or on NHS waiting
:12:45. > :12:54.times, the people of Scotland cannot trust a word this government
:12:55. > :12:58.
:12:58. > :13:08.says. Just in case Johann Lamont missed it, what about Tony Blair on
:13:08. > :13:15.
:13:15. > :13:21.Iraq? The charges do not stand up to examination. I will tell you the
:13:21. > :13:28.reason... Alone a Bradford did a report on NHS Grampian. Last month,
:13:28. > :13:32.she gave a story about health and equality in Scotland. She said, I
:13:32. > :13:37.put this report to the main political parties yesterday. The
:13:37. > :13:41.SNP said it shifted to more prevented Yves spending. The Labour
:13:41. > :13:45.and Lib Dem parties called it a disgrace and disturbing and Taylor
:13:45. > :13:48.pointed out to them that they were in government for this period and
:13:48. > :13:53.must share part of the responsibility. They said they
:13:53. > :14:02.would get back to me with an amended statement, but I am still
:14:02. > :14:06.waiting for that. Even when as in health and equalities, the Labour
:14:06. > :14:14.Party shares responsibility across the chamber, the reflex action is
:14:14. > :14:19.to call it a disgrace, followed by and a barrister silence. When they
:14:19. > :14:24.find out that part of the statistics and the period, they
:14:24. > :14:31.were in office and that is why people have a genuine concern for
:14:31. > :14:36.the NHS because they were unwilling to face failures for their time in
:14:36. > :14:42.office. I'm delighted to say Nicola Sturgeon improved that and --
:14:42. > :14:46.during her term in office. The bitterness extent because it is
:14:46. > :14:52.dispossession. The Labour Party cannot get used to the fact that
:14:52. > :14:57.they are not in government. Which is presumably why the deputy, after
:14:57. > :15:03.days of calling for a raise in the quality of debate in Scotland,
:15:03. > :15:07.suggested that Scotland was not a democratic place as a parliament in
:15:07. > :15:17.the conventional sense. This is a proportional parliament elected by
:15:17. > :15:21.
:15:21. > :15:31.Unlike in Westminster, where the government was foisted on it people
:15:31. > :15:32.
:15:32. > :15:41.Widnall mandate whatsoever. The eye also associate myself with the
:15:41. > :15:46.First Minister as regards the serious situation in Algeria. In
:15:46. > :15:51.the week before Christmas, I asked the First Minister wide he promised
:15:51. > :15:57.the people of Scotland he would seek send up to 500 million on
:15:57. > :16:05.building projects but actually spent just �20 million. He blamed
:16:05. > :16:12.legal delays. Is that still his reasoning? I gave an indication
:16:12. > :16:19.that on any project based situation, the project has to come for work in
:16:19. > :16:26.order for the money to be spent. The Aberdeen bypass, if I remember,
:16:26. > :16:31.will cost some �600 million. It is therefore a substantial part of the
:16:31. > :16:39.programme. I remember the explanation, which are perfectly
:16:39. > :16:44.reasonable, given the delays in that project. This Parliament
:16:44. > :16:50.welcomes the fact that the legal protests have been fought off and
:16:50. > :16:55.the project will now go ahead. I remember when this line of
:16:55. > :17:00.questioning was pursued, there was this idea what that we should spend
:17:00. > :17:05.money on another project and not had it then available for the
:17:05. > :17:09.project in the north-east of Scotland. I think that is perfectly
:17:09. > :17:16.reasonable and I think that the people of Scotland would expect
:17:16. > :17:22.that the badly-needed peripheral it is now going ahead. I was there for
:17:22. > :17:26.that exchange and have read the transcripts, which the First
:17:26. > :17:32.Minister might want to do. He is broadly speaking to the story that
:17:32. > :17:37.the Aberdeen peripheral wrote had an issue to do with the spend. By
:17:37. > :17:43.yesterday, we heard something different from the man in charge.
:17:43. > :17:53.This was a man appointed to set up new schools and hospitals, the head
:17:53. > :17:53.
:17:53. > :17:57.of the Scottish Futures company, Barry White. After European Union
:17:57. > :18:01.it advice that did not exist, college funding that is going down
:18:01. > :18:06.instead of up, another example of the First Minister telling the
:18:06. > :18:16.people of Scotland something which is simply untrue, the real tragedy
:18:16. > :18:16.
:18:16. > :18:20.is that our construction industry and communities where promised the
:18:20. > :18:24.early �500m of building projects, which this Parliament has failed to
:18:24. > :18:32.deliver. Even people on his Parliamentary committee said that
:18:32. > :18:36.the whole scheme and is over optimistic. Will the First Minister
:18:36. > :18:41.and now hold his hands up and say he is not spending the money and
:18:41. > :18:48.that his excuses do not stand up and that delay one brick has been
:18:48. > :18:58.laid. Ruth Davidson is just saying that we are not spending the money
:18:58. > :18:59.
:18:59. > :19:05.- all of that project money is being used. The problem has been an
:19:05. > :19:10.extraordinary success. How do we know that? Even George Osborne is
:19:10. > :19:16.talking away from the private finance initiative and try to see a
:19:16. > :19:23.non-profit system similar to the programme in Scotland. The position
:19:23. > :19:30.the Scottish government faced was a one-third cut in the capital budget.
:19:30. > :19:35.The great advantage of this is that aid it can be processed quickly, as
:19:35. > :19:39.John Swinney has demonstrated time and time again. The building
:19:39. > :19:43.programme is a fantastic improvement on a Private Finance
:19:43. > :19:48.Initiative and far from being cut back, all of the non-profit
:19:48. > :19:53.distribution programme is being spent. Given the remarkable savings
:19:53. > :19:58.that the Scottish Futures trust had brought into being, as established
:19:58. > :20:02.by this government, criticised by the Conservative Party, she should
:20:02. > :20:07.hang her head in shame at suggesting that either we should
:20:07. > :20:13.not spend the money, not have the programme, not of the schools, not
:20:13. > :20:19.have the peripheral writ, not have the capital spending or
:20:19. > :20:25.alternatively who back to the discredited and ways for Private
:20:25. > :20:31.Finance Initiative so loved, but even now abandoned, by our
:20:31. > :20:40.colleagues in London. Will the First Minister welcome the recent
:20:40. > :20:45.use this morning that it is safe for the loyal to be flowing again
:20:45. > :20:51.from the or oil rig which had problems in the last few days. What
:20:51. > :20:56.could be done to prevent this happening in the future? We of his
:20:56. > :21:03.they have the great responsibility for environmental concerns. We have
:21:03. > :21:10.had leaks of oil and the past. The initial response of responsibility
:21:10. > :21:15.lies with the Westminster government. I think the chamber
:21:15. > :21:19.will wish that the book precautionary shutdown of the Alfa
:21:19. > :21:23.platform and the effect on the other platforms on the Brent
:21:23. > :21:26.oilfield was exactly the right thing to do. The problem was
:21:26. > :21:33.identified remarkably quickly and was dealt with it very quickly.
:21:33. > :21:39.Production is now renewing a cross the Brent system. It is the very
:21:39. > :21:43.legitimate issue to be raised, but I think the practice, in terms of
:21:43. > :21:48.the Alfa oilfield, and we will have to see the report to examine this
:21:48. > :21:55.in detail, but this was an example of how the company procedures to an
:21:55. > :22:01.incident with oil such as this, it reminds us that the recovery of oil
:22:01. > :22:06.and gas in the waters of Scotland is an inherent difficult process
:22:06. > :22:11.and the procedures to safeguard the environment have to be first class.
:22:12. > :22:21.An elected as the First Minister why issues will be discussed at the
:22:22. > :22:23.
:22:23. > :22:29.next meeting of the Cabinet. Up issues of current importance. There
:22:29. > :22:34.is going to be an imposition of the group's directors on the Scottish
:22:34. > :22:39.police forces and the author or chief inspector will not have any
:22:39. > :22:44.overall control. This was laughed off as creative tension. Both sides
:22:44. > :22:50.have now hired lawyers to fight each other. Is the first Ministers
:22:50. > :22:54.still laughing about this? Did I just say, I have not regard this as
:22:54. > :22:59.anything other than a serious matter. I said to the chamber that
:23:00. > :23:08.I believe it is capable of resolution. I hope every member of
:23:08. > :23:12.the chamber looks on it with this attitude. Perhaps it is better to
:23:12. > :23:17.allow the meeting to take place tomorrow and then if Willie Rennie
:23:17. > :23:22.wants to question me next week, he will not doubt have the opportunity.
:23:22. > :23:28.As far as the structures that were set up, it is not really a matter
:23:28. > :23:31.for the First Minister. But make no mistake, the Government is very
:23:31. > :23:35.irresponsible of the responsibilities as it will
:23:35. > :23:40.discharge them. In the First Minister will forgive me, I will
:23:40. > :23:43.ask the question this way. Does it matter before the decisions are
:23:43. > :23:48.taken question that he is responsible to this Parliament. He
:23:48. > :23:53.should not be so complacent. The chief constable has been stripped
:23:53. > :23:58.of his independence. How can the chief constable be held to account
:23:58. > :24:04.by the police authority when that authority will control many of the
:24:04. > :24:07.services themselves. It will be a jumble and lead to a blame game.
:24:07. > :24:12.The Chief Inspector of Constabulary said the authority will not be able
:24:12. > :24:17.to hold itself to account. Will the First Minister accept that the
:24:17. > :24:25.legislation is not fit for purpose and must change? No, I do not
:24:25. > :24:28.accept that. It was passed by an over a will stop I am sure that if
:24:28. > :24:33.the Labour benches would have said if it was not fit for purpose, they
:24:33. > :24:36.would not have voted for it when it came to decision time. I do not
:24:36. > :24:42.think it is a question about the legislation, but the policy
:24:42. > :24:48.question. By it refute the premise in today's - firstly, I regard it
:24:48. > :24:56.as the situation which must be resolved, the scum that takes its
:24:56. > :25:04.responsibilities very seriously in this matter. -- this government.
:25:04. > :25:10.Secondly, the premise of his question was inaccurate. Any range
:25:10. > :25:15.of figures. His forecast on College waiting lists may not turn out to
:25:15. > :25:21.be true. I think it is better that, given the meeting is tomorrow, we
:25:21. > :25:28.should wait until we get a the report from that, before we talk
:25:28. > :25:32.about that, but I believe the question is based on false premise.
:25:32. > :25:35.I have liked to as the First Minister what assessment be
:25:35. > :25:40.Scottish government has made regarding United Kingdom pension
:25:40. > :25:45.reform in Scotland. Bob the sick, this will require fire at further
:25:45. > :25:51.study, but that will be done. It is clear that the initial claims that
:25:51. > :25:55.the majority will be better off and not, in fact, true. It appears that
:25:55. > :25:59.the analysis, particularly by the Institute of Fiscal Studies that
:25:59. > :26:03.women, they were supposed to be the biggest winners, will actually end
:26:04. > :26:07.up with the lower pension. What action can the Scottish government
:26:07. > :26:15.take to protect the people of Scotland from United Kingdom
:26:15. > :26:21.pension reform, which may reduce many other older people to poverty
:26:21. > :26:28.in older age. Is this evidence that we are not in this together or
:26:28. > :26:33.better together? Obviously, a cross the range of social security, the
:26:33. > :26:37.Scottish government has taken the action it can. That is limited
:26:37. > :26:43.action when it pours lie elsewhere to try and mitigate some of the
:26:43. > :26:48.effects. For example, council tax benefits and the emergency loan
:26:48. > :26:58.fund. But let us not pretend that without the correct course, the
:26:58. > :26:58.
:26:58. > :27:08.Scottish Damant cannot do everything to mitigate this. A --
:27:08. > :27:11.
:27:11. > :27:15.the Scottish government. The report says, in the long run, it could
:27:15. > :27:22.reduce the tension for most people. That study would suggest that the
:27:22. > :27:30.initial changes suggests that the United Kingdom Government were
:27:30. > :27:40.rather gilding the lily. This will hugely strengthened the EDS case in
:27:40. > :27:44.
:27:44. > :27:54.the upcoming independent campaign. Unelected as the First Minister
:27:54. > :27:54.
:27:54. > :27:58.regarding the posting of internet information by convicted criminals.
:27:58. > :28:07.It is illegal for any convicted criminal to have any sort of device
:28:07. > :28:16.which allows them to post any information online. The use of
:28:16. > :28:24.films or recordings in Scottish prisons is illegal. Will he confirm
:28:24. > :28:29.whether the Scottish Prison Service will give such written consent and
:28:29. > :28:37.will prevent this film been posted online and what action will be
:28:37. > :28:47.taken on this case if anything has been breached? I know everyone will
:28:47. > :28:50.
:28:50. > :28:56.regret the heart -- her imposed on the family of the deceased.
:28:56. > :29:06.Following this meeting, the report has been issued to the Scottish
:29:06. > :29:08.
:29:08. > :29:16.Prison Service. The matter has been investigated and it is clear that
:29:16. > :29:21.the present allowed to a meeting and the test was carried out in the
:29:21. > :29:25.region's area. All of this was set out in a letter from the government.
:29:25. > :29:30.Of this appears to have been carried out correctly, with in
:29:30. > :29:34.prison rules. And it agree that the Scottish Prison Service has acted
:29:35. > :29:42.properly and in good faith. At no point that the encouraged the film
:29:42. > :29:47.to be uploaded to the internet. The Scottish Prison Service intends to
:29:47. > :29:53.review the process in the future, to ensure that safeguards are in
:29:53. > :29:59.place to make sure that families are given every consideration. I
:29:59. > :30:05.would say that we have a huge range of checks and balances, so if the
:30:05. > :30:11.appeal process is lost and people still claim there could be a breach
:30:12. > :30:17.of justice, of course we have the Criminal Cases Review system for as
:30:17. > :30:27.a final stop. That is the correct process to use for people in that
:30:27. > :30:27.
:30:27. > :30:34.position. That follows the integrity process. Can I ask the
:30:34. > :30:39.First Minister what discussions the First Minister has had with the NHS
:30:39. > :30:49.regarding senior appointments? we have had many discussions with
:30:49. > :30:52.
:30:53. > :30:59.the NHS. The appointment of individual managers is the
:30:59. > :31:04.responsible of the egg individual NHS boards with relation to their
:31:04. > :31:08.individual recruitment policies. When Nicola Sturgeon was Health
:31:08. > :31:12.Minister, she rightly put in place procedures to make sure the
:31:12. > :31:16.appointment process for senior doctors and consultants was based
:31:16. > :31:22.on transparency and public accountability. Does the First
:31:22. > :31:26.Minister agree with his colleague John Mills and that the process for
:31:26. > :31:30.the appointment of senior managers lacked that transparency and will
:31:30. > :31:40.he agree that a Scottish government has a responsibility to address
:31:40. > :31:43.
:31:43. > :31:48.this question mark it is a legitimate question to raise.
:31:48. > :31:56.after a report in the Sunday Herald, we asked for information regarding
:31:56. > :31:59.this appointment in Teesside. In the consideration of the change,
:31:59. > :32:07.NHS Tayside sought independent advice from the evaluation
:32:07. > :32:13.committee about any potential impact on the NHS. It was the
:32:13. > :32:18.belief that this would not be the case that there may be any problem
:32:18. > :32:27.of the role been diminished and there was no requirement to re-
:32:27. > :32:33.evaluate the appointment. There was no change in salary involved in
:32:33. > :32:40.this process. That tends to support the view of the national evaluation
:32:40. > :32:44.committee, which the NHS in Teesside had sought. The Health
:32:44. > :32:54.Secretary responded to the report. There is no question that members
:32:54. > :32:56.
:32:56. > :33:01.of this Parliament that are quite right to raise this question. We