17/01/2013 Politics Scotland

Are a very warm welcome to Holyrood where MSPs have been questioning

ministers this morning. We heard from Westminster that the passage

of the measure to allow the referendum to be transferred to

Scotland. And the European Union also. Let us cross to the chamber

now. Thank you. That general questions

are still ongoing. It will not be long until we get to the main event.

MSPs are talking about the position of gypsy and traveller communities

in Scotland. Later today, we have a debate on biodiversity.

Questions to the First Minister. Thank you very much. What

engagements he has planned for the rest of the day? With permission, I

should tell the chamber I spoke to the Prime Minister this morning

about a hostage taking situation in Algeria. A terrorist group has sees

the BP and Statoil facility in the Sahara. I can confirm that a number

of Scots are among the hostages. The UK government reports that one

UK National has been killed in the attack. The chamber will understand

that in the interests and safety of the hostages, the information that

can be given out is limited. The priority is their safety and to

keep the family is informed. The Scottish police service is fully

engaged with the Metropolitan Police on the latter and ministers

are at in contact with the Foreign and Commonwealth Office's. I know

the whole chamber is united in condemnation of the attack and also

in hoping for the early and safe release of the hostages. Can I

thank the first minister for that and, of course, we entirely agree

with him in the conclusion he comes to and our thoughts are with the

families concerned. On 22nd March 1920 10, the then Health Secretary

said, hidden waiting lists have been abolished and she added, no

one is on a hidden waiting list. On 21st March last year she told this

Parliament that way heading waiting lists -- there were hidden waiting

lists in West Lothian but nowhere else. Since then, they have been

discovered at NHS Tayside and NHS greater Clyde and Lanarkshire.

Yesterday, we learned of a serious problems with NHS Grampian. Was a

Nicola Sturgeon misleading Parliament and the country or was

she just incompetent? Do things. Of course, let us remember that, under

the Labour Party, hidden waiting lists were endemic. And these

endemic practices were abolished by the Scottish National Party. I

don't think any Labour leader is in a position to attack the SNP in

terms of waiting lists across the NHS. In terms of the situation in

NHS Grampian, it is something which, as a local MSP I am aware of, we

were given a briefing by NHS Grampian in December. The 18 week

treatment time guarantee has not been breached in NHS Grampian. They

had a serious difficulty with one scanner when it went out of

operation due to a skull -- flat and that resulted in a backlog of

treatment. But the health board prioritised those covered by the 18

we guarantee and cancer patients have an even more rigorous

guaranteed. But the people in a backlog reported about is quite

untrue. The backlog consists of 500 cases and they are being dealt with

in terms of action by the health board. 550 patients and provision

is being made at the Golden Jubilee Hospital to help clear that. The

scanner is now back in operation at NHS Grampian and both the scanners

in Aberdeen are being moved to the Aberdeen Royal Infirmary. Nothing

of this justifies the charge that There are hidden waiting lists in a

NHS Grampian. Hidden waiting lists across the NHS were abolished when

the Labour Party were turfed out of office. That is astonishingly

complete and -- complacent. I didn't just talk about Grampian,

although the First Minister Wade wish to reflect that the auditor

general said there was a billion pounds of backlog in repairs and �5

million hunt -- �500 million of that may affect patient care. Dame

-- that maybe why there was a problem with the scanner in the

first place. The First Minister has a London Life's coach, I understand,

and it would suit him to make him understand what real-life was

almost people in this country -- he has a real life coach. Before this

SNP's hidden at waiting time scandal broke, figures across

Scotland for patience missing appointments for treatment due to

social unavailability peaked at at almost 21,000 in 20th June 11 and

it has now fallen to just over 9,500. If the figures were not

being figured -- fiddled before, how does the First Minister

explained how patience were suddenly available for appointments

they were not available for before? The very fact that Johann Lamont is

able to quote figures indicates but position between now and then.

After investigation, in 2006, we knew that 35,000 people have been

given a system by which people were hidden in the National Health

Service so statistics could never come to light. I am a north-east of

Scotland ms Peake and my family and constituents use the health service

in Grampian. Therefore, I have more immediate knowledge of the

situation than Johann Lamont has. Let us look at the current

performance of NHS Grampian. The idea that, if the Labour Party were

in charge there were not be flooding in any building across

Scotland, is a remarkable indication! NHS Grampian's current

performance is 93% of patients were seen and treaty it within 18 weeks

of referral. In 2012, no patient in NHS Grampian had waited more than a

certain period of time for an out- patient or day-case appointment.

That compares with the six months in March 2007 and of the Labour

Party. So, let the Labour Party be the last people to come here and

pretend an NHS was safe in their hands. Under Labour, tens of

thousands of patients were on hidden waiting lists.

The First Minister does not understand something basics. This

is not the difference between the MSP and Labour - might be it SNP.

The first minister says he can give us figures, but I didn't ask just

about Grampian but the whole of the country. Their own audit tells us

there is not sufficient data to tell us what the scale of the

problem is and he might want to address that. We seem to be in a

place where Nicola Sturgeon said hidden waiting lists were abolished

and she was right. When she said the only problem with hitting

waiting times was in lay the end and she was right and when it turns

out there were problems the length and breadth of the country, she is

still right. According to the First Minister, the system she presided

over was working well. So why then is her successor having to change

the system because it is not transparent enough? It was Nicola

Sturgeon as health secretary who ordered the investigation into NHS

led the and. I remember having this conversation at last week with

Johann Lamont and I pointed out the praise that had been heaped on

Nicola Sturgeon as health secretary and she was leaving honest. Jackie

Baillie looked askance. I looked up last year about this and on the 1st

September 1920 12, the difference is that I have had with her, she

said, I have always suspected -- respected her talent and energy. We

are missing you already, Nicola! It is a shame that your talent and

energy are being diverted, she said. She is less optimistic than even

Jackie Baillie. If I were first minister I would listen back to

that and I think you might find it a little more than embarrassing

because I am asking about a very serious issue. He says Nicola

Sturgeon called an investigation into NHS Lothians. But the problem

is she did not look at what the answers were and she did know -

might not look beyond NHS low the end to find out what words

happening in the rest of the country. It would appear she was

the Health Secretary for the good bits, but the bad bits are nothing

to do with this government whatsoever. It is the bad bits and

the difficult bits that beat -- patience across Scotland and staff

have to face every day of the week and it is about time the first

minister took responsibility. He has been talking about the right --

writes the Scots could have and a return constitution for

independence. But the right to a government which tells the truth,

at the right to a first minister who will be straight with them, at

the right to be treated by the NHS within 18 weeks and the right to be

told the truth. Be isn't it a case that whether it is the First

Minister on Europe, Auch on the banks of England, or on NHS waiting

times, the people of Scotland cannot trust a word this government

says. Just in case Johann Lamont missed it, what about Tony Blair on

Iraq? The charges do not stand up to examination. I will tell you the

reason... Alone a Bradford did a report on NHS Grampian. Last month,

she gave a story about health and equality in Scotland. She said, I

put this report to the main political parties yesterday. The

SNP said it shifted to more prevented Yves spending. The Labour

and Lib Dem parties called it a disgrace and disturbing and Taylor

pointed out to them that they were in government for this period and

must share part of the responsibility. They said they

would get back to me with an amended statement, but I am still

waiting for that. Even when as in health and equalities, the Labour

Party shares responsibility across the chamber, the reflex action is

to call it a disgrace, followed by and a barrister silence. When they

find out that part of the statistics and the period, they

were in office and that is why people have a genuine concern for

the NHS because they were unwilling to face failures for their time in

office. I'm delighted to say Nicola Sturgeon improved that and --

during her term in office. The bitterness extent because it is

dispossession. The Labour Party cannot get used to the fact that

they are not in government. Which is presumably why the deputy, after

days of calling for a raise in the quality of debate in Scotland,

suggested that Scotland was not a democratic place as a parliament in

the conventional sense. This is a proportional parliament elected by

Unlike in Westminster, where the government was foisted on it people

Widnall mandate whatsoever. The eye also associate myself with the

First Minister as regards the serious situation in Algeria. In

the week before Christmas, I asked the First Minister wide he promised

the people of Scotland he would seek send up to 500 million on

building projects but actually spent just �20 million. He blamed

legal delays. Is that still his reasoning? I gave an indication

that on any project based situation, the project has to come for work in

order for the money to be spent. The Aberdeen bypass, if I remember,

will cost some �600 million. It is therefore a substantial part of the

programme. I remember the explanation, which are perfectly

reasonable, given the delays in that project. This Parliament

welcomes the fact that the legal protests have been fought off and

the project will now go ahead. I remember when this line of

questioning was pursued, there was this idea what that we should spend

money on another project and not had it then available for the

project in the north-east of Scotland. I think that is perfectly

reasonable and I think that the people of Scotland would expect

that the badly-needed peripheral it is now going ahead. I was there for

that exchange and have read the transcripts, which the First

Minister might want to do. He is broadly speaking to the story that

the Aberdeen peripheral wrote had an issue to do with the spend. By

yesterday, we heard something different from the man in charge.

This was a man appointed to set up new schools and hospitals, the head

of the Scottish Futures company, Barry White. After European Union

it advice that did not exist, college funding that is going down

instead of up, another example of the First Minister telling the

people of Scotland something which is simply untrue, the real tragedy

is that our construction industry and communities where promised the

early �500m of building projects, which this Parliament has failed to

deliver. Even people on his Parliamentary committee said that

the whole scheme and is over optimistic. Will the First Minister

and now hold his hands up and say he is not spending the money and

that his excuses do not stand up and that delay one brick has been

laid. Ruth Davidson is just saying that we are not spending the money

- all of that project money is being used. The problem has been an

extraordinary success. How do we know that? Even George Osborne is

talking away from the private finance initiative and try to see a

non-profit system similar to the programme in Scotland. The position

the Scottish government faced was a one-third cut in the capital budget.

The great advantage of this is that aid it can be processed quickly, as

John Swinney has demonstrated time and time again. The building

programme is a fantastic improvement on a Private Finance

Initiative and far from being cut back, all of the non-profit

distribution programme is being spent. Given the remarkable savings

that the Scottish Futures trust had brought into being, as established

by this government, criticised by the Conservative Party, she should

hang her head in shame at suggesting that either we should

not spend the money, not have the programme, not of the schools, not

have the peripheral writ, not have the capital spending or

alternatively who back to the discredited and ways for Private

Finance Initiative so loved, but even now abandoned, by our

colleagues in London. Will the First Minister welcome the recent

use this morning that it is safe for the loyal to be flowing again

from the or oil rig which had problems in the last few days. What

could be done to prevent this happening in the future? We of his

they have the great responsibility for environmental concerns. We have

had leaks of oil and the past. The initial response of responsibility

lies with the Westminster government. I think the chamber

will wish that the book precautionary shutdown of the Alfa

platform and the effect on the other platforms on the Brent

oilfield was exactly the right thing to do. The problem was

identified remarkably quickly and was dealt with it very quickly.

Production is now renewing a cross the Brent system. It is the very

legitimate issue to be raised, but I think the practice, in terms of

the Alfa oilfield, and we will have to see the report to examine this

in detail, but this was an example of how the company procedures to an

incident with oil such as this, it reminds us that the recovery of oil

and gas in the waters of Scotland is an inherent difficult process

and the procedures to safeguard the environment have to be first class.

An elected as the First Minister why issues will be discussed at the

next meeting of the Cabinet. Up issues of current importance. There

is going to be an imposition of the group's directors on the Scottish

police forces and the author or chief inspector will not have any

overall control. This was laughed off as creative tension. Both sides

have now hired lawyers to fight each other. Is the first Ministers

still laughing about this? Did I just say, I have not regard this as

anything other than a serious matter. I said to the chamber that

I believe it is capable of resolution. I hope every member of

the chamber looks on it with this attitude. Perhaps it is better to

allow the meeting to take place tomorrow and then if Willie Rennie

wants to question me next week, he will not doubt have the opportunity.

As far as the structures that were set up, it is not really a matter

for the First Minister. But make no mistake, the Government is very

irresponsible of the responsibilities as it will

discharge them. In the First Minister will forgive me, I will

ask the question this way. Does it matter before the decisions are

taken question that he is responsible to this Parliament. He

should not be so complacent. The chief constable has been stripped

of his independence. How can the chief constable be held to account

by the police authority when that authority will control many of the

services themselves. It will be a jumble and lead to a blame game.

The Chief Inspector of Constabulary said the authority will not be able

to hold itself to account. Will the First Minister accept that the

legislation is not fit for purpose and must change? No, I do not

accept that. It was passed by an over a will stop I am sure that if

the Labour benches would have said if it was not fit for purpose, they

would not have voted for it when it came to decision time. I do not

think it is a question about the legislation, but the policy

question. By it refute the premise in today's - firstly, I regard it

as the situation which must be resolved, the scum that takes its

responsibilities very seriously in this matter. -- this government.

Secondly, the premise of his question was inaccurate. Any range

of figures. His forecast on College waiting lists may not turn out to

be true. I think it is better that, given the meeting is tomorrow, we

should wait until we get a the report from that, before we talk

about that, but I believe the question is based on false premise.

I have liked to as the First Minister what assessment be

Scottish government has made regarding United Kingdom pension

reform in Scotland. Bob the sick, this will require fire at further

study, but that will be done. It is clear that the initial claims that

the majority will be better off and not, in fact, true. It appears that

the analysis, particularly by the Institute of Fiscal Studies that

women, they were supposed to be the biggest winners, will actually end

up with the lower pension. What action can the Scottish government

take to protect the people of Scotland from United Kingdom

pension reform, which may reduce many other older people to poverty

in older age. Is this evidence that we are not in this together or

better together? Obviously, a cross the range of social security, the

Scottish government has taken the action it can. That is limited

action when it pours lie elsewhere to try and mitigate some of the

effects. For example, council tax benefits and the emergency loan

fund. But let us not pretend that without the correct course, the

Scottish Damant cannot do everything to mitigate this. A --

the Scottish government. The report says, in the long run, it could

reduce the tension for most people. That study would suggest that the

initial changes suggests that the United Kingdom Government were

rather gilding the lily. This will hugely strengthened the EDS case in

the upcoming independent campaign. Unelected as the First Minister

regarding the posting of internet information by convicted criminals.

It is illegal for any convicted criminal to have any sort of device

which allows them to post any information online. The use of

films or recordings in Scottish prisons is illegal. Will he confirm

whether the Scottish Prison Service will give such written consent and

will prevent this film been posted online and what action will be

taken on this case if anything has been breached? I know everyone will

regret the heart -- her imposed on the family of the deceased.

Following this meeting, the report has been issued to the Scottish

Prison Service. The matter has been investigated and it is clear that

the present allowed to a meeting and the test was carried out in the

region's area. All of this was set out in a letter from the government.

Of this appears to have been carried out correctly, with in

prison rules. And it agree that the Scottish Prison Service has acted

properly and in good faith. At no point that the encouraged the film

to be uploaded to the internet. The Scottish Prison Service intends to

review the process in the future, to ensure that safeguards are in

place to make sure that families are given every consideration. I

would say that we have a huge range of checks and balances, so if the

appeal process is lost and people still claim there could be a breach

of justice, of course we have the Criminal Cases Review system for as

a final stop. That is the correct process to use for people in that

position. That follows the integrity process. Can I ask the

First Minister what discussions the First Minister has had with the NHS

regarding senior appointments? we have had many discussions with

the NHS. The appointment of individual managers is the

responsible of the egg individual NHS boards with relation to their

individual recruitment policies. When Nicola Sturgeon was Health

Minister, she rightly put in place procedures to make sure the

appointment process for senior doctors and consultants was based

on transparency and public accountability. Does the First

Minister agree with his colleague John Mills and that the process for

the appointment of senior managers lacked that transparency and will

he agree that a Scottish government has a responsibility to address

this question mark it is a legitimate question to raise.

after a report in the Sunday Herald, we asked for information regarding

this appointment in Teesside. In the consideration of the change,

NHS Tayside sought independent advice from the evaluation

committee about any potential impact on the NHS. It was the

belief that this would not be the case that there may be any problem

of the role been diminished and there was no requirement to re-

evaluate the appointment. There was no change in salary involved in

this process. That tends to support the view of the national evaluation

committee, which the NHS in Teesside had sought. The Health

Secretary responded to the report. There is no question that members

of this Parliament that are quite right to raise this question. We