Browse content similar to 30/06/2011. Check below for episodes and series from the same categories and more!
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Hello, a very warm welcome to our live coverage of First Minister's | :00:20. | :00:24. | |
Questions. It's the last one before the summer recess and it's been a | :00:24. | :00:27. | |
busy week with lots to discuss, controversy over the Commonwealth | :00:27. | :00:32. | |
Games and a public sector strike. Let cross live to the chamber and | :00:32. | :00:41. | |
Even though at the last day of term, first Minister's Questions is | :00:41. | :00:51. | |
:00:51. | :00:52. | ||
already under way. Let's listen in Thank you, presiding officer. We | :00:52. | :00:56. | |
haven't actually set a date for the election of my successor yet. None | :00:56. | :01:03. | |
the less, I take those remarks in the way in which they were made. | :01:03. | :01:07. | |
The times we have faced each other, the First Minister and I have often | :01:07. | :01:12. | |
talked about the NHS. The First Minister and Nicola Sturgeon have | :01:12. | :01:18. | |
told us that they are protecting the NHS. Yet this week we find out | :01:18. | :01:24. | |
that in the last six months 1600 NHS jobs have gone. 700 of those | :01:24. | :01:28. | |
are nurses and midwives, the very people that the front line of | :01:28. | :01:33. | |
patient care. The RCN called this unsustainable. Why it is the First | :01:34. | :01:38. | |
Minister not protecting the NHS, as he promised he would? Well, as Iain | :01:38. | :01:43. | |
Gray knows, we have guaranteed or consequential will go to the | :01:43. | :01:46. | |
National Health Service. That was not a universal view when it was | :01:46. | :01:52. | |
being debated last autumn. I remember that Iain Gray himself | :01:52. | :01:58. | |
said Bonn Newsnight Scotland, 8th September 2010, quote, we would not | :01:58. | :02:03. | |
ring-fence the health budget. That protection of the health budget has | :02:03. | :02:08. | |
meant that, even in these difficult times, in every single category, | :02:08. | :02:14. | |
health, employment, food, consultants, dentists, nurses, | :02:14. | :02:17. | |
through health professionals, it is substantially up-to-date on the | :02:17. | :02:23. | |
level that we inherited in 2007. The First Minister needs to examine | :02:23. | :02:26. | |
the statistics he has given in order to make sure of their | :02:26. | :02:30. | |
veracity. The fact of the matter is that there are fewer nurses and | :02:30. | :02:36. | |
midwives in the NHS now than there were at the end of 2007-2008, which | :02:36. | :02:40. | |
was the last Budget put in place by the previous Labour administration | :02:41. | :02:48. | |
up to 2007. It was not just nurses that got big promises that the | :02:48. | :02:52. | |
First Minister would protect them. In March he announced that if the | :02:52. | :02:56. | |
people returned him as First Minister, he would secure that | :02:56. | :03:01. | |
prize of no compulsory redundancies. He was specific. Local government, | :03:01. | :03:07. | |
schools, colleges, the health service. 50 staff at Telford | :03:07. | :03:11. | |
College in Edinburgh are facing compulsory redundancy. Chances are, | :03:11. | :03:16. | |
some of them voted for him on the basis of that promise. Well, he has | :03:16. | :03:25. | |
his job as First Minister. But they are getting P45s. Mike Russell told | :03:25. | :03:30. | |
the committee this Tuesday, I have no power to enforce this policy. So, | :03:30. | :03:37. | |
why did Alex Salmond make the promise? Firstly, can I correct | :03:37. | :03:42. | |
Iain Gray on that the health stir the statistics? Consultants went up | :03:42. | :03:48. | |
by 20% from September 2006 on a full-time equivalent basis. That is | :03:48. | :03:53. | |
the basis of the term of the last SNP administration. General | :03:53. | :04:00. | |
practitioners were at 7.2%. Nursing and midwifery staff, at 833. | :04:00. | :04:07. | |
Dentists up by 20%. Allied health professionals up by 9%. That is a | :04:08. | :04:12. | |
comprehensive increase, even under the most difficult, severe, | :04:12. | :04:16. | |
Westminster reduced budgetary cutbacks, our decision to pass on | :04:16. | :04:20. | |
the full consequential, to ring- fence the National Health Service, | :04:20. | :04:25. | |
it is showing that we are sustaining that level of investment | :04:25. | :04:29. | |
for staff in the National Health Service. Secondly, as Iain Gray | :04:29. | :04:34. | |
well knows, there are no compulsory redundancy pledge was made to | :04:34. | :04:38. | |
central government staff, 30,000 of them. It's been made to the | :04:38. | :04:41. | |
hundreds of thousands of people that work at the National Health | :04:41. | :04:44. | |
Service in Scotland. These pledges are not available elsewhere in the | :04:44. | :04:49. | |
United Kingdom. Nor, incidentally, is that a new phenomenon. I have | :04:49. | :04:54. | |
quotes here from 2006 where Tony Blair, then the Prime Minister, | :04:54. | :04:57. | |
said in answer to a question, it was all right, there would only be | :04:57. | :05:01. | |
a few hundred compulsory redundancies in the National Health | :05:01. | :05:05. | |
Service in England. Don't let us believe that compulsory | :05:05. | :05:08. | |
redundancies South of the Border started as a Tory-led initiative. | :05:08. | :05:13. | |
We have applied the policy in the areas we directly control. As Iain | :05:13. | :05:18. | |
Gray well knows, the colleges, thanks to the statute passed by the | :05:18. | :05:23. | |
Labour party in government, independently run in Scotland. The | :05:23. | :05:26. | |
Education Secretary gives them advice and, hopefully, colleges | :05:26. | :05:35. | |
around Scotland will take that advice. He was right, the promise | :05:35. | :05:41. | |
was worthless. As for directly employed employees, what about the | :05:41. | :05:46. | |
16 workers who are redundant today? It's a company wholly owned by the | :05:46. | :05:50. | |
Scottish government. They are employed by a company owned by the | :05:50. | :05:57. | |
Scottish government and they are redundant today. Promises to nurses | :05:57. | :06:03. | |
and college staff were worthless. What about teachers? Paul Blisland | :06:03. | :06:09. | |
is a newly qualified teacher who, no matter how hard he tries, cannot | :06:09. | :06:15. | |
get a job. 80% of his colleagues are in the same boat. Mr Russell | :06:15. | :06:23. | |
wrote personally to Paul in January. He promised him that there will be | :06:23. | :06:27. | |
a sufficient number of vacancies for all teachers seeking employment | :06:27. | :06:37. | |
:06:37. | :06:38. | ||
in 2011. Where are they? Can we just correct Iain Gray? There are | :06:38. | :06:46. | |
no compulsory redundancies in the company. I hope he will accept that. | :06:46. | :06:50. | |
It's not appropriate to come to the chamber and make a statement that | :06:50. | :06:54. | |
is not true. There are no compulsory redundancies. In areas | :06:54. | :07:00. | |
where we have managed to prevail in advice to other public bodies, and | :07:00. | :07:03. | |
thinking of the college which, after some debate, accepted the | :07:03. | :07:13. | |
policy of no compulsory redundancies and, recently, even | :07:13. | :07:17. | |
the leader of the Council on air, rude bits -- reversing his policy | :07:17. | :07:24. | |
of compulsory redundancies. Don't underrate the ability of ministers | :07:24. | :07:28. | |
to persuade her even Labour authorities to follow that policy. | :07:28. | :07:32. | |
I fully accept that one of the areas that we haven't yet convinced | :07:32. | :07:36. | |
the value of our policies is some Labour-led councils in Scotland, | :07:36. | :07:42. | |
who, as we know from previous debates, are responsible for the | :07:42. | :07:48. | |
vast majority of the decline in teacher numbers in Scotland. This | :07:48. | :07:54. | |
is the pattern, isn't it? He makes the promise and then he blames | :07:54. | :08:02. | |
someone else when he breaks it. And yes, he did say when he made that | :08:02. | :08:05. | |
announcement in March that he would spend every day trying to deliver | :08:05. | :08:09. | |
this policy. And isn't that the problem? That he has spent every | :08:09. | :08:17. | |
day doing something else. He has been busy. I don't deny that. This | :08:17. | :08:22. | |
non-stop constitutional bickering over his referendum. They are | :08:22. | :08:28. | |
gratuitously insulting Supreme Court judges. Let's not forget a | :08:28. | :08:32. | |
bill on sectarianism so badly drafted that his own minister | :08:32. | :08:42. | |
:08:42. | :08:46. | ||
couldn't explain it. In tangents, And, all the time, in deference to | :08:46. | :08:50. | |
cuts to nurses, redundancies in colleges and teachers on the | :08:50. | :08:55. | |
scrapheap. All they get our excuses. When is he going to get off his own | :08:55. | :08:59. | |
personal agenda and start paying some attention to the promises on | :08:59. | :09:03. | |
jobs and services he made to the people of Scotland only six weeks | :09:03. | :09:11. | |
ago? I recognise that rhetoric. It's a throwback to some 50 days | :09:11. | :09:15. | |
ago. That is what Iain Gray was arguing in the election campaign in | :09:15. | :09:19. | |
Scotland. Let's reflect on some of the things that have happened since | :09:19. | :09:26. | |
the election campaign. Unemployment fell by 10,000 over the quarter, | :09:26. | :09:30. | |
the second consecutive reported fall in Scotland. Official | :09:30. | :09:33. | |
statistics show for their 5th successive year that Scotland are | :09:33. | :09:39. | |
is in a stronger budgetary position and the UK as a whole. A specific | :09:39. | :09:44. | |
announcement, which I know he is dying to welcome, Amazon, the | :09:44. | :09:48. | |
creation of 900 jobs, a European Centre of excellence, one of the | :09:48. | :09:52. | |
great companies in the renewable revolution announcing the start of | :09:52. | :09:56. | |
their employment recruitment programme in Scotland. I know that | :09:56. | :10:00. | |
Iain Gray, in his current position, is not able to welcome these signs | :10:00. | :10:04. | |
of positive achievement under the most adverse circumstances. But I | :10:04. | :10:09. | |
know that he is less committed, in a different position, when he will | :10:09. | :10:12. | |
be able to give a judicious review of these things, it will be the | :10:13. | :10:16. | |
first to welcome the positive achievements of this administration. | :10:16. | :10:20. | |
Question number 2, Annabel Goldie. To ask the First Minister when he | :10:20. | :10:25. | |
will next meet the Prime Minister. First Minister? If I may, presiding | :10:25. | :10:29. | |
officer, I would like for this last meeting of the parliament before | :10:29. | :10:39. | |
:10:39. | :10:40. | ||
summer recess to be used to say a word or two about Annabel Goldie. I | :10:40. | :10:45. | |
said that I will miss enormously the wit with which she pursues her | :10:45. | :10:48. | |
case and calls at first Minister's Question Time. I won't miss quite | :10:48. | :10:53. | |
as much that I was often on the receiving end of much of that wet. | :10:53. | :11:01. | |
His stewardship at the last parliament, the Labour Parties | :11:01. | :11:04. | |
supported to bring more police on the streets of Scotland, greater | :11:04. | :11:07. | |
support and co-ordination of the drug rehabilitation programme. | :11:07. | :11:11. | |
These subjects, I know, are very close to her heart. I thoroughly | :11:11. | :11:16. | |
enjoyed it bi-weekly jousts with Annabel Goldie. I wish her every | :11:16. | :11:24. | |
success in her endeavours in the Can I felt the first Minister for | :11:24. | :11:28. | |
his very gracious comments? I am glad he has its -- enjoyed the | :11:28. | :11:31. | |
experience of exchanges with me at First Minister's Questions. I'm | :11:32. | :11:39. | |
coming back in September! I felt a little apprehensive from his | :11:39. | :11:44. | |
adulation that perhaps he wasn't. None the less, but you for your | :11:44. | :11:51. | |
comments. Presiding officer, can I ask the First Minister why Scotland | :11:51. | :11:55. | |
tops world cocaine use from a report from the United Nations, why | :11:55. | :12:00. | |
there are fewer nurses and midwives in Scotland than last year, why | :12:00. | :12:04. | |
childhood obesity is escalating, while only 7% of reported rapes end | :12:05. | :12:08. | |
in conviction? Clearly, the First Minister has taken his eye off the | :12:08. | :12:12. | |
ball. Prefer it to Grandstand on everything from the Supreme Court | :12:13. | :12:19. | |
to provoke a constitutional tension. But why has he allowed this | :12:19. | :12:23. | |
appalling catalogue of failure to happen right here in Scotland, | :12:23. | :12:30. | |
under his watch? I don't accept Annabel Goldie's structures in that. | :12:30. | :12:35. | |
I'm delighted to find out that she is going to be back after the | :12:35. | :12:40. | |
recess to upgrade me on these issues. I hope, incidentally, that | :12:40. | :12:44. | |
she reconsiders the entire position undersides to make that come back a | :12:44. | :12:48. | |
permanent feature. I think the Conservative Party would be well- | :12:48. | :12:51. | |
advised to compare the talents of Annabel with the available | :12:51. | :13:01. | |
:13:01. | :13:03. | ||
She's given me ample opportunity to talk about some of the things that | :13:03. | :13:07. | |
she will have noticed. Let's talk about the health service in | :13:07. | :13:17. | |
:13:17. | :13:17. | ||
particular. Waiting time targets no show that 99.9% of patients | :13:17. | :13:23. | |
awaiting -- awaiting topics or less for their first outpatients | :13:23. | :13:27. | |
appointment. Patients with drug problems are getting treatment more | :13:27. | :13:31. | |
quickly, they to 4% offered an appointment within four weeks of | :13:31. | :13:35. | |
referral. Many of the issue she referred to are deeply structured | :13:35. | :13:38. | |
within Scottish society. But I know she will be the first to welcome | :13:38. | :13:42. | |
these positive signs of improvement. I know that Annabel Goldie would | :13:42. | :13:47. | |
also, in fairness, acknowledge that we face extraordinary difficult | :13:47. | :13:50. | |
times in public spending in Scotland. -- just might have | :13:50. | :13:56. | |
something to do with the 1300 million pounds of cutbacks being | :13:56. | :14:01. | |
implemented by the Westminster government. If presiding officer, | :14:01. | :14:06. | |
time and again the First Minister has proclaimed the virtues of free | :14:06. | :14:10. | |
university education. His mantra has been the ability to learn, not | :14:10. | :14:14. | |
the ability to pay. He never told us that his mantra comes with small | :14:14. | :14:18. | |
print. It doesn't apply to soups from England, Wales or Northern | :14:18. | :14:22. | |
Ireland and does not plug the funding gap. Isn't this the most | :14:22. | :14:27. | |
brazen and bare-faced sell-out of his so-called political principle? | :14:27. | :14:30. | |
Pate he divisive, hypocritical because it wouldn't even be | :14:30. | :14:34. | |
possible in an independent Scotland, a hugely damaging to the welcome | :14:34. | :14:37. | |
tradition of UK students studying in Scotland and utterly ineffective | :14:37. | :14:41. | |
in plugging an escalating funding gap of over �200 million. Will he | :14:41. | :14:48. | |
abandon his little Scotland mindset and bring forward serious proposals | :14:48. | :14:51. | |
for the long-term funding and sustainability of a Scottish | :14:51. | :15:01. | |
:15:01. | :15:03. | ||
Annabel Goldie knows full well that the circumstances means we could | :15:03. | :15:08. | |
not possibly fund the frieze of students from elsewhere in the | :15:08. | :15:11. | |
silence, no more than we could fund the free personal care of the | :15:11. | :15:14. | |
people of England nor indeed the prescription charges of the people | :15:15. | :15:21. | |
of England. I don't understand why Annabel thinks we have ever argued | :15:21. | :15:26. | |
anything other. We wanted to have a �6,000 fee across the board but we | :15:26. | :15:30. | |
were persuaded by the university principals and university Scotland | :15:31. | :15:38. | |
that the better way to go was the way that out blind -- that was | :15:38. | :15:42. | |
outlined by the Secretary of State for Education. Time and time again | :15:42. | :15:46. | |
she has upbraided me with quotes and principles across Scotland, as | :15:46. | :15:52. | |
she said, not in support of our policy. Virtually every principal | :15:52. | :16:02. | |
:16:02. | :16:08. | ||
in Scotland has support its it. -- has supported it and many other | :16:08. | :16:11. | |
universities have announced the announcement by the University | :16:11. | :16:21. | |
:16:21. | :16:22. | ||
Secretary yesterday. Could I turn to Annabel's famous quote from | :16:22. | :16:27. | |
Professor Muscat telly. What he said today was, we fully support | :16:27. | :16:31. | |
the Scottish government moving quickly to address the issue of | :16:31. | :16:35. | |
non-Scottish UK student fees in the light of the UK Coalition | :16:35. | :16:38. | |
government was might increase in the south of the border. The | :16:38. | :16:42. | |
measures outlined by the Scottish government by a part in ensuring | :16:42. | :16:47. | |
that Scottish universities maintain their world-class offering. Why has | :16:47. | :16:52. | |
Annabel deserted him at this crucial time. When she quoted him, | :16:52. | :16:58. | |
she upbraided me in my lack of Latin. Only a few short months ago. | :16:58. | :17:07. | |
If I could say to Annabel, what she does in terms of the future, | :17:07. | :17:17. | |
Carpathians, seize the day. First Minister will be aware of the | :17:17. | :17:24. | |
announcement by Lloyds group of the loss of 15,000 jobs and many of | :17:24. | :17:28. | |
those are in my constituency. Can I ask the First Minister to contact | :17:28. | :17:31. | |
Lloyd's urgently for reassurances and clarity for Scottish-based | :17:31. | :17:40. | |
staff who this morning woke up only to uncertainty? We have been in | :17:40. | :17:44. | |
touch with Lloyds this morning and John Swinney will be speaking to | :17:44. | :17:49. | |
them again this afternoon. What I can say is that they have given us | :17:49. | :17:53. | |
a statement saying that they expect these reductions to take place | :17:53. | :17:57. | |
without using compulsory redundancy. Of course, they pledged to continue | :17:57. | :18:03. | |
work with the Scottish government financial services task was to | :18:03. | :18:06. | |
ensure maximum levels of employment are maintained across the wider | :18:06. | :18:10. | |
financial services industry in Scotland. These are difficult times | :18:10. | :18:18. | |
for Lloyds Bank staff. I have here the work force statistics for the | :18:18. | :18:23. | |
financial sector. After the financial crisis, unemployment in | :18:23. | :18:29. | |
the financial sector in Scotland fell. On the latest statistics last | :18:30. | :18:39. | |
:18:40. | :18:42. | ||
week, it had risen back-up. Some of that work, both in promoting the | :18:42. | :18:45. | |
financial services sector in Scotland, the success in attracting | :18:45. | :18:49. | |
jobs, and also the success in placing people from the major | :18:49. | :18:54. | |
clearing banks, is thanks to this task force that was established to | :18:54. | :18:58. | |
make that possible. So I'm pleased in these difficult circumstances | :18:58. | :19:02. | |
that Lloyds Banking Group have said they will work fully with the | :19:02. | :19:04. | |
financial services jobs Taskforce to minimise compulsory redundancies | :19:04. | :19:08. | |
and to maximise levels of employment across the Scottish | :19:08. | :19:16. | |
financial sector. Can I ask the First Minister if he is aware of a | :19:16. | :19:26. | |
:19:26. | :19:35. | ||
recent decision... 59 staff will be made compulsorily redundant. Is he | :19:35. | :19:38. | |
aware that the staff had been advised a task force had been set | :19:38. | :19:43. | |
up and yet this has been denied? What support is the Government | :19:43. | :19:47. | |
offering to staff at this time and what is in place for the children? | :19:47. | :19:57. | |
:19:57. | :20:02. | ||
It is a difficult situation in terms of this. I can assure the | :20:02. | :20:04. | |
constituency member that meetings are being held to establish the | :20:04. | :20:08. | |
best way to secure the maximum employment as well as the primary | :20:08. | :20:12. | |
purpose, which is to make sure that care is available for the children | :20:12. | :20:17. | |
in the secure estate. I have been involved in meetings about this. | :20:17. | :20:21. | |
The Cabinet Secretary for Justice and the Consider the member have | :20:21. | :20:28. | |
also been involved. Everybody is working for the best outcome of | :20:28. | :20:33. | |
both the staff and the children. ask the First Minister what | :20:33. | :20:36. | |
discussions the Scottish government has had with the legal profession | :20:36. | :20:42. | |
regarding the attendance of solicitors during interviews | :20:42. | :20:51. | |
following the ruling? There have been discussions. Once we see the | :20:51. | :20:57. | |
results of the review about questioning suspects, the society | :20:57. | :21:01. | |
will continue to be fully involved in discussions about long-term | :21:01. | :21:05. | |
changes that might need to be made. While of course welcoming the | :21:05. | :21:09. | |
continuing discussions with the Law Society of Scotland and recognising | :21:09. | :21:15. | |
that Scotland's legal system is clearly capable of adapting quickly | :21:15. | :21:21. | |
to... Does the First Minister agree that Scottish courts must be given | :21:21. | :21:26. | |
parity to the UK Supreme Court as soon as possible? A yes, I do. I | :21:26. | :21:30. | |
would like to place on record my thanks to Lord McCluskey and his | :21:30. | :21:37. | |
expert team for producing such a considered report in such a short | :21:37. | :21:44. | |
timescale. The definitive report will be produced in the autumn. A | :21:44. | :21:49. | |
key recommendation of the report is that Scotland's highest court must | :21:49. | :21:53. | |
be placed on a level footing with other courts across the UK when it | :21:53. | :21:57. | |
comes to appeals before the UK Supreme Court. I welcome that | :21:57. | :22:04. | |
recommendation. I revel -- I welcome the recommendation of the | :22:04. | :22:08. | |
amendments to the Scotland Bill to make sure that there -- that the | :22:08. | :22:12. | |
High Court of judiciary will be on a parity with court south of the | :22:13. | :22:17. | |
border. That is an anomaly which must be addressed. Appropriate | :22:17. | :22:21. | |
amendments to the Scotland Bill must be addressed after the | :22:21. | :22:28. | |
publication of the report. First Minister will be aware that | :22:28. | :22:32. | |
the Law Society of Scotland has estimated that the proposed | :22:32. | :22:36. | |
Scottish Legal Board Helpline will cost twice as much as the amount | :22:36. | :22:41. | |
currently spent on police station advice, while at the same time | :22:41. | :22:47. | |
solicitors are voting with their feet away from the process. Will | :22:47. | :22:50. | |
the First Minister agreed to investigate this and resist the | :22:50. | :22:53. | |
development of any system which will be more costly and less | :22:53. | :23:03. | |
:23:03. | :23:06. | ||
effective? This is precisely why we have the review. I am sorry why she | :23:07. | :23:10. | |
does not want to understand why these matters are relevant. She | :23:10. | :23:20. | |
:23:20. | :23:20. | ||
should look at Lord McCluskey's report. Many aspects of Scottish | :23:20. | :23:25. | |
law have come before the UK courts. That is where the problems came | :23:25. | :23:30. | |
from. The solution we are trying to find both in terms of implementing | :23:30. | :23:35. | |
the Millo-Chluski recommendations when they finally come before us -- | :23:35. | :23:39. | |
the McCluskey recommendations but also the review. That is precisely | :23:39. | :23:45. | |
the way to deal with such matters. I know she it supports the actions | :23:45. | :23:51. | |
we are taking but is finding it a wee bit difficult to say so! To ask | :23:51. | :23:54. | |
the First Minister what reason discussions the Scottish government | :23:54. | :24:01. | |
has had on the UK government on the devolution of powers. John Swinney | :24:01. | :24:05. | |
presented proposals to the Chief Secretary at for the Treasury on | :24:05. | :24:12. | |
borrowing powers in the Scotland Bill. These reflect a consensus | :24:12. | :24:16. | |
across the Scottish Parliament for a sustainable borrowing for | :24:16. | :24:20. | |
Scotland. I look forward to these proposals being considered by the | :24:20. | :24:25. | |
UK government. While there is now clearly consensus in Parliament for | :24:25. | :24:28. | |
the urgent transfer or borrowing powers, does the person has to | :24:28. | :24:31. | |
share with me the belief that Scotland must have more access to | :24:31. | :24:36. | |
economic levers to boost the economy and support jobs? Those who | :24:36. | :24:41. | |
welcome the Commons that the time has come for Scotland to have full | :24:41. | :24:46. | |
fiscal responsibility? It is extraordinary. Four years in this | :24:46. | :24:51. | |
Parliament and Lord Fox hardly ever mentioned a sensible idea. It goes | :24:51. | :24:56. | |
back to the House of Lords -- he comes -- he goes back to the House | :24:56. | :25:00. | |
of Lords all time Andy comes up with a cracker. I think the time | :25:00. | :25:10. | |
:25:10. | :25:15. | ||
has come when we must... The responsibility for raising money as | :25:16. | :25:19. | |
well as spending it goes to the Scottish and other governments. Out | :25:20. | :25:24. | |
of the mouths of babes and innocence and Lord Foulkes comes a | :25:24. | :25:33. | |
declaration which the Labour Party in Scotland would do well to follow. | :25:33. | :25:43. | |
:25:43. | :25:47. | ||
Regarding the Forth Road Bridge, does the First Minister welcome the | :25:47. | :25:57. | |
:25:57. | :25:58. | ||
UK government pre-payment? We do welcome initiatives. It will allow | :25:58. | :26:06. | |
the advanced borrowing. Even under the financial control resulting in | :26:06. | :26:10. | |
substantial savings to the Scottish press, it is more any order of 1.5 | :26:10. | :26:15. | |
billion. But any contribution is welcome. Any sign of flexibility is | :26:15. | :26:20. | |
welcome. But I know that with his long-standing support, not just of | :26:20. | :26:25. | |
fiscal responsibility, but for fiscal federalism even, that the | :26:25. | :26:30. | |
member will understand why pre- payment is no substitute for real | :26:30. | :26:36. | |
financial and economic powers. ask the First Minister what action | :26:36. | :26:41. | |
the Scottish government will take in response to figures showing that | :26:41. | :26:45. | |
one in 10 care homes have been assessed by social care and social | :26:45. | :26:48. | |
work improvements Scotland as weak or unsatisfactory in at least one | :26:48. | :26:53. | |
area of the inspection. government has already taken | :26:53. | :26:57. | |
actions. It was this government that introduced a grading system to | :26:57. | :27:03. | |
which Jackie Baillie refers and we showed in 2008/910 per cent of care | :27:04. | :27:10. | |
homes for elderly were unsatisfactory. Figures for 2010/11 | :27:11. | :27:14. | |
show that that figure has fallen by nearly a quarter. But his good | :27:14. | :27:17. | |
progress, which I am sure Jackie Baillie will be first to welcome. | :27:17. | :27:22. | |
But of course there is still room for improvement and we will strive | :27:22. | :27:27. | |
to make further progress. It is still a matter of concern, I think, | :27:27. | :27:31. | |
if a significant portion of our cams are being assessed as being | :27:31. | :27:35. | |
weak or unsatisfactory, because we all want the best standards, the | :27:35. | :27:39. | |
very best possible quality of care for older people. And of course the | :27:39. | :27:43. | |
new care inspect it has a key role to play. A couple of weeks ago, the | :27:43. | :27:50. | |
Cabinet Secretary for help was adamant that the Budget was 1% and | :27:50. | :27:59. | |
I was wrong to say it was 25%. They published a plan showing a cut in | :27:59. | :28:08. | |
their budget of 25%. And let's not forget... Please do not forget the | :28:08. | :28:13. | |
question. Who should we believe? The Cabinet Secretary or the | :28:13. | :28:17. | |
inspectorate? When he reinstate the Budget, stop the staff cut so we | :28:17. | :28:27. | |
:28:27. | :28:30. | ||
can protect the quality of care of Scotland's older people. The budget | :28:30. | :28:40. | |
:28:40. | :28:46. | ||
is 35.4 �4 million,. The Labour Party happens dizzily demanded that | :28:46. | :28:49. | |
future years spending are considered as part of the spending | :28:49. | :28:54. | |
review. The crucial matter which Jackie Baillie chooses not to | :28:54. | :29:02. | |
inform the chamber is that the new regime has resulted in a fall in | :29:02. | :29:08. | |
unsatisfactory homes. It is a crucial matter. The new inspections | :29:08. | :29:13. | |
are unannounced. It is a much better framework. But I think | :29:13. | :29:17. | |
Jackie Baillie will find, as the future budgets are announced, that | :29:17. | :29:22. | |
her fears are misplaced again and the 1%... | :29:22. | :29:26. |