 Iebydd yr ysgol yw ei gyntaf, ac kitaeth Iethig, i rydw i'r ei fyswysfyniadau, oedd yr ystaf我不 oes pwynt y cyfrifiad, ac yn y ddweud mae Cymru, jyw oedd ein, Douglass Ross. Iebydd yr ysgol yw hynny yn ystafelles, mae cyfraeg meinemachdaro o sut ffyrdd Michael Matheson's dyshonnidol. Mae'n Gymru'i ddaf i fynd o oedd Osendigaethau SNP a ddim yn ystafellu. Mae'n give yn butbwyntau gyda unigol i ddigwyddol nad o'r ysgol, But she didn't, so let me give her another opportunity today. Do Scottish Government ministers always tell the truth? Befy spurn fwy angen i ddiweddfa'r cwestiwch am ennill o'r ddiwedd ochr am ddydd i yng nghydfawr Lord James Douglas Hamilton? Lord James had a long and distinguished career as a public servant in three parliamentary chambers, including, of course, this one. Mae ddwyngdd yn gweithio, mae'n ddysgu, ddechrau y pethau, ddysgu amddangos, ddysgu ac yn ddigwydd, ddysgu y bydd y cyfnodau yng nghymru, ac ydym yn gweithio, ddysgu'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio i'ch ddysgu i'r gwirionedd, mae'n gweithio'n gweithio'n gweithio i'r gwirionedd. Felly, dwi'n gweld i'r gwirionedd hwnnw i'r gwirionedd hwnnw i'r gwirionedd hwnnw i'r gwirionedd. ond ond, wrth Llwp, mae'n cyforoedd yr oeddiw yng Nghymru. Rhywbeth ymlwble ysgu oedd, rwy'n ei wath ymiliau iail, rwy'n ei wneud, na nid o'r rhai i'ch meddwl clymeth, rwy'n ei wneud ymlaen i chi i'r ysgolfaen ddafod â'r ymlaen oeddiw, fel hynny a'r oeddiw rhai i chi i chi oedd yr oeddiw. Rwy'n ei wneud yw'r cyffredinion iddynt, a allan nhw'n ei ddod hyffredinion. Of course, Minister should tell the truth. What I was referring to was the fact that sometimes people get things wrong, sometimes people make mistakes, including, of course, Douglas Ross himself, who made a mistake worth around £28,000 when he was late with his outside earnings. Of course, ministers should always tell the truth. Can I begin on an area where we will agree? Lord James Douglas Hamilton was a true gentleman and a friend to everyone he worked with, not just in Holyrood and at Westminster as a minister, an MP and a member of the House of Lords, but also as a local councillor where he started his career in public service. I think the tributes we have seen across the political spectrum have helped his wife Susie and their children in the wider family at this difficult time and they are all in our thoughts today. That was quite a telling answer. First of all, the Deputy First Minister was basically saying that there are more important issues than a Government minister claiming £11,000 of taxpayers' money and thinking he could get away with it. That's why this issue is important. The simple question was, do Scottish Government ministers always tell the truth? We still haven't had a yes or no answer. We've had a conditional answer that they would try to, but sometimes they make mistakes. That is not what is at heart here. It's what Michael Matheson claimed for. It's about what he said, what he did and then the cover-up. It's quite clear now that this SNP Government defends dishonesty. Michael Matheson claimed taxpayers' money when he shouldn't have. He changed his story. He made up ludicrous excuses. Does the Deputy First Minister seriously believe that Michael Matheson has been 100 per cent honest throughout the scandal? Michael Matheson has reimbursed the Parliament in full for the costs that he has incurred. Michael Matheson set out his position in his personal statement in detail. Of course, he has also referred himself to the Scottish Parliament corporate body. He has also recognised, importantly, that he should have handled the situation better and he has accepted responsibility. He has rightly apologised in full. The appropriate thing now, of course, is to allow the Scottish Parliament corporate body to look into this matter. I am sure that that is something that they will do with a pace that is required. Of course Michael Matheson could have handled the situation better. He could have told the truth. He could have been honest. We can't park this issue to the Scottish Parliament investigation because they are looking at the claim made for taxpayers to pay £11,000 of a bill. They are not looking at the statements made, which now seem to have been dishonest from Michael Matheson. Let's remember that he is the MSP that once bragged about watching six football matches in a single weekend, but now he wants us to believe that when he was on holiday he never watched the games, he never knew the football was on and he never spoke to anyone about it. When a giant bill came in, he was completely clueless about it. Does she seriously expect the public to believe a word of this story? Michael Matheson has set out the circumstances and the way in which he handled it in the course of his personal statement. As for the matters that the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body will look into, that is a matter for them. They can obviously refer the matter elsewhere if they feel that that would be the appropriate thing to do. Michael Matheson has given a full account to this Parliament and he also opened himself up to questions from members of this Parliament. As he has accepted, he should have handled the situation better. He has accepted responsibility and he is rightly apologised for that. I think that the appropriate thing now is to allow the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body to look into this. The reason I said what I said at the beginning about Douglas Ross' priorities is that Douglas Ross has had nothing to say about an autumn statement given by the Tory chancellor that has given no money whatsoever for public services for this government, for this country, for our public services for next year. I actually think that the public are pretty concerned about that because that will impact on every part of the public sector across Scotland. If the Tories don't care about that, the SNP certainly does care about that. Of course I have spoken about the autumn statement, £545 million extra money coming to the Scottish Government to spend on public services, but the public are also speaking about this, about how one of the most senior members of the SNP government, one of the highest-paid ministers in Scotland, tried to claim £11,000 of taxpayers' money for his iPad bill. The problem for the SNP Government is that the public don't believe Michael Matheson. A poll yesterday showed that the vast majority of Scots believe that he should stand down. That included a majority of SNP voters who believe that Michael Matheson needs to go. They can see that he's not focused on the day job. In the middle of an NHS crisis, the public need to trust the health secretary. They don't. Nurses and doctors when they meet him need to know that he's honest. He's not. The health secretary has lost the confidence of the country and he needs to go for the good of our NHS. This week, the Deputy First Minister said that the public sector workforce would need to shrink. Shouldn't that start with sacking Michael Matheson? Of course, what Douglas Ross didn't refer to in the poll was that 72 per cent were dissatisfied with Rishi Sunak's performance as the Prime Minister and, of course, 54 per cent of people support independence for Scotland. In terms of Michael Matheson getting on with the job, Michael Matheson is getting on with the job of being health secretary ahead of what, of course, is expected to be a challenging winter for the health service. If Douglas Ross cared anything about the NHS, he would be objecting to the fact that next year only £10.8 million has been given to the NHS from the UK Tory Government. Less than £11 million. I think that actions speak louder than words. I don't think that Douglas Ross and the Tories care about the NHS if they're prepared to support the Tory Government on that matter. In terms of what the health secretary has been doing this week, he has announced £42 million of funding for an extra 153 doctor training places next year, the largest annual expansion on record and, of course, he met with the Royal College of Nursing to discuss our agenda for change and to hear about issues facing nurses. On that point, of course, there's no money for agenda for change pay from this Tory Government for next year, which is an absolute outrage. Question number two, Anna Summer. I start by echoing the comments about Lord James Douglas Hamilton and his sad passing and saying condolences to his family. I never had the privilege of meeting him, but I think you can tell from all the comments from right across the political spectrum in how much high regard he was held. For weeks now, the health secretary has been trying to save his job while the crisis in the NHS continues, and things are getting worse. In one week, over 1,000 patients waited over 12 hours to be seen at A&E. Tens of thousands are waiting for crucial diagnostic tests, including cancer, and waiting lists are now the longest they have ever been. 828,398 Scots are now on an NHS waiting list. Over 80,000 of them have been waiting for over a year, but, tragically, for many, they will never receive treatment. Can the Deputy First Minister tell us how many people died last year while on an NHS waiting list? First of all, the Government and I take these matters very seriously. Indeed, those are challenging figures, and we know that behind the figures are people who are waiting too long for treatment. Long waits are regrettable. We have seen a significant reduction in the longest waits since those targets were announced. We have also seen some improvements in diagnostic waiting times. The latest figures also show that NHS activity has increased. On the actions that we are taking, we are committed to further reductions through our £1 billion investment in the NHS recovery plan to increase capacity to help the NHS recover from Covid. Of course, in each of the next three years, we will provide NHS boards with £100 million to help to reduce inpatient and day-case waiting lists by an estimated 100,000 patients. We will deliver year-on-year reductions. Of course, none of this is made easier by the complete lack of funding from the UK Tory Government in next year's NHS requirements. The Government's head is absolutely in the sand. 828,398 of our fellow Scots are on an NHS waiting list, and that is the pathetic answer that we get from the Government. Our freedom of information request to health boards shows that, in the past year, 24,567 people died while on an NHS waiting list. Many of those people are waiting anxiously, often in pain, for potentially life-saving tests and operations. Two years ago, HUMSA use have launched an NHS recovery plan that has failed. It has got worse, not better, but rather than having a Government that is focusing on those problems, we have a First Minister and a Health Secretary going from crisis to crisis. When lives are being lost, surely we need a Health Secretary and a Government focused on doing their jobs, not saving their jobs. The Health Secretary and, indeed, the entire Government is focused on the NHS because those are serious statistics. As I said earlier, behind every statistic is a person and a family, and I deeply regret that anyone has lost their life while on an NHS waiting list. Of course, those issues and challenges are not unique to the Scottish Health Service. Every health system is under the same amount of challenge. The Welsh Health Minister said just a couple of weeks ago that the NHS in Wales, like other healthcare systems, is facing the most challenging financial pressure in recent history. That is due to the impact of continued increasing demand on services, persistently high inflation on costs, including energy, medicines and pay-related pressures, in addition to the impact of the pandemic and on-going Covid-related costs. We are all facing those challenges. Of course, as I set out in my first answer, some of the actions that we are taking, the £1 billion NHS recovery plan, the £300 million investment over the next three years to bring down in-patient and day-case waiting lists, I would have thought that was something Jackie Baillie would have welcomed rather than talking from a sedentary position. However, none of that is made easier by the £10.8 million that we have received or will receive in consequentials for the NHS next year. It's not working. People are dying and waiting lists are going up. Our NHS is in crisis. Patients are being failed and staff are burnt out. We have a health secretary fighting to save his job. I would say to SNP backbenchers that this is your constituents on these NHS waiting lists. Perhaps show some care for them. After 16 years of SNP government, it keeps getting worse, not better. Shona Robison was the health secretary who promised to end delayed discharge but numbers are still on the rise. Humza Yousaf was the health secretary who promised to bring down waiting lists, but in the two years since his failed recovery plan, they have gone up 28 per cent. That is 182,000 more people on NHS waiting lists. Michael Matheson was appointed to fix the mess, but today we reveal that over 24,000 people have died on an NHS waiting list in the past year. Won't you accept that NHS patients and staff can't afford yet another winter with a failing SNP health secretary and a failing SNP government? As I said earlier on, the challenges and the R challenges are affecting every healthcare system in these islands. There is nothing exceptional about the Scottish health service or the challenges facing it, even though Labour would try to make it so. If you look at the comments that I gave from the Labour Health Minister in Wales, they are facing exactly the same problems. There is nothing exceptional about the problems facing the NHS in Scotland. The action that we are taking, I have set out in my answer previously. We are investing, we will continue to invest, we will continue to make sure that funding goes to the front line and not follow Tory spending plans. What won't be helped, though, is, of course, the Labour Shadow Health Secretary, Wes Streeting's answer that seems to be to open the door for the private sector to come into the NHS. I don't think that that's the answer for Scotland's health service going forward. This Government will invest in a publicly funded, publicly run health service and will not be privatising it. To ask the Deputy First Minister what action the Scottish Government is taking to tackle any stigma associated with disclosing a diagnosis of HIV in light of world AIDS Day on 1 December. Well, tackling stigma is a significant part of our work towards HIV transmission elimination by 2030. Of course, it's good to see so many members across the chamber wearing their red ribbons today. This commitment is clear within the sexual health and bullet-borne virus action plan published this week and the HIV transmission elimination plan, which will follow shortly. We've funded the excellent anti-stigma campaign developed by the Terence Higgins Trust, the UK's first television campaign on HIV AIDS in nearly four decades. Terence Higgins Trust estimates that it has already reached almost 10.5 million UK viewers and listeners throughout broadcast media and 43 per cent of the adult population in the STV region. Building on this will continue to work with healthcare professionals and the public to raise awareness and to dispel myths around HIV so that people living with the virus can do so without fear of stigma and discrimination. I thank you Deputy First Minister for that answer. During the debate marking world AIDS day this week, it was very welcome that members across this chamber were united in their will to end HIV transmission in Scotland by 2030. Can the Deputy First Minister say any more about the steps that the Scottish Government is taking to achieve this ambitious goal? I've asked the amount of work that's underway as part of the sexual health and BBV action plan, which was published on Tuesday and the HIV delivery plan, which will be published shortly. That includes working with three NHS boards to pilot HIV opt-out testing in A&E departments following an e-prep clinic and supporting our third sector partners in continued community engagement such as fast track cities. Let us never forget that the H in HIV stands for human. There really aren't enough minutes in the day to name even a handful of the people this world has lost to AIDS over the last 40 years. Many suffered that illness in the face of prejudice, ignorance and bigotry. It's good to see that science has come on so well in the last 40 years, but there is still so much more to do. I ask the Deputy First Minister if she will ensure that the Government in Scotland pulls out all stops to make sure that we end new transmissions of HIV by 2030. In doing so, we also pay tribute to the incredible organisations that work day in and day out to tackle that danger much greater than the virus itself, the danger of stigma. I very much agree with Jamie Greene, and I think that I would want to join with him very much in paying tribute to those organisations that have worked for many decades from really, really difficult times when stigma was commonplace in every walk of life, to a position now that thankfully we have moved on a lot from that stigma, although too many people still suffer from it. That's why this campaign is so important to break down those barriers and of course stands very much in stark contrast from some of the media campaigns from those decades ago. I would want to join with Jamie Greene and others in playing our role as leaders within this Parliament and leaders within Scotland to make sure that we play our role in breaking down that stigma even further. To ask the Deputy First Minister when the Scottish Government will publish the results of the A96 corridor review. The Government remains committed to making improvements to the A96, including dualling in Burness to Nairn and the Nairn bypass. Despite the stark challenges we now face on our capital budget as a result of the UK Government's autumn statement, which taking into account inflation is forecast to result in an almost 10 per cent real-terms group in our capital fund. So just in case you didn't hear that, nearly a 10 per cent real-terms cut in our capital funding. I'm acutely aware of the importance of the route to those that live and work in the north and northeast of Scotland. The current plan is to fully dual the route and as part of this process we're undertaking the corridor review. The review's initial consultation generated 11,000 different options to improve the corridor and it's only right that these are fully appraised. I'm expecting Transport Scotland's advice on the emerging outcomes before the end of the year, following consideration by ministers. There'll be a consultation on the outcomes and an update on timings for this, which will be provided by the Cabinet Secretary in due course. The review, which was ordered simply to appease the Green Party, was supposed to be published over a year ago. The fact is that in 2011 the SNP promised the people of the northeast that the A96 would be dualled fully by 2030 and over a decade of prevarication, millions of taxpayer pounds, endless excuses later, nothing, not even a mention of Aberdeen to Huntley in the programme for government. Deputy First Minister, the people of the northeast want a straight answer. Will the SNP fulfil the promise to fully dual the A96 between Inverness and Aberdeen by 2030? Yes or no? I think that Liam Kerr is pretty insulting to that consultation. It's generated 11,000 different options to improve the corridor. That's a bit insulting to all those who have taken the time to contribute to that consultation. Given the level of interest, I would suggest that that was the right thing to do. As I said in my initial answer, I'm expecting Transport Scotland's advice on the emerging outcomes before the end of the year. Following that, the Cabinet Secretary will provide an update in due course. I've said we remain committed to making the improvements to the A96, including dualling in Inverness, Nairn and the Nairn bypass. If Liam Kerr is serious about the importance of infrastructure, why are they then supporting the Tory spending plans that cut capital by 10 per cent over the next five years because it's capital that is required to build roads and other infrastructure projects? The Tories are cutting the amount of money available to do these things and are making no objection, as I can see it, to their Tory Government down south. I would call that hypocrisy. The Deputy First Minister may ask a simple question. By what year will the construction of the Nairn bypass be completed? As the First Minister confirmed to the member during a programme for government statement to Parliament on 5 September, I want to reiterate that we are fully committed to making improvements to the A96. That includes dualling the Inverness to Nairn section, including the Nairn bypass, which already has ministerial consent following a public local inquiry. I can also advise that Transport Scotland continues to progress the significant work that is required to prepare for the publication of made orders, including the compulsory purchase order, with a view to completing the statutory process as soon as possible. In terms of our infrastructure investment plan, I have said that we will set out that plan alongside the budget in the light of the changes that will have to be made in the light of the cut to our capital budget of 10 per cent over the next five years. I can say to Fergus Ewing that the commitments that I have laid out in my answer are commitments that we will make. To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to reports that some young people are leaving schools struggling to read. I think that it is important to look at the facts. The facts are that pass rates this year for English national 5, higher and advanced higher are the same as or higher than pass rates that were pre-pandemic in 2019. The PISA 2018 reading results, which looks at the reading abilities of 15-year-olds, confirmed that Scotland was above the OECD average, and 82 per cent of pupils who left school in 2021-22 had achieved the SCQF level 5 or above in literacy. Clearly, any young person leaving school struggling to read is unacceptable, but the evidence shows that our young people continue to achieve well in literacy and English and their achievements should not be downplayed at all. We should be celebrating those achievements. I agree that reading and writing are fundamental to future and unlocking a young person's potential, but I am worried about the response. One in three children in Scotland are struggling to read. The EIS says that early years teachers are reporting an increase in the number of children presenting in primary 1 with delayed development and poorer, minimal speech and language skills, and the national primary school literacy attainment gap has grown to the highest rates since 2018. Of course, the Deputy First Minister will be aware of reports over the weekend highlighting concerns from Scottish teachers that students are leaving secondary school functionally unable to read. A situation that former teacher Annie Glenny describes as unforgivable. Does the Deputy First Minister recognise that this is a growing problem and can she set out what the Government intends to do about it? On a point of agreement with Pam Duncan-Glancy, there has obviously been an impact from the pandemic on the development of many children's speech and language in particular. We understand that, which is why it is important to ensure that those supports are in place to help those young people to catch up on the developmental skills that they require. However, in terms of the points of the results, as I said in my answer, the past rates this year for English national 5, higher and advanced higher, are the same as or higher than the past rates pre-pandemic in 2019. We are talking about slightly different things here. I will acknowledge absolutely the point about developmental needs, including, importantly, speech and language therapy, but let's not talk down the results of our young people, which are actually, in the circumstances, very good indeed in something that we should congratulate them on achieving. It is very challenging to deliver good outcomes for children who leave secondary schools struggling to read if we do not address literacy in early years and primary. The latest statistics show that primary 1 pupils failed to achieve the expected level in reading, and I note the comments regarding Covid. However, as it is the Deputy First Minister and the Government's job to deal with the after-effects of Covid, where is the appropriate investment in our schools to ensure that no child is left behind as per the Scottish Government's promise? Well, not a penny of investment for schools was given in the autumn statement. Not a penny. Not one penny. The Tory benches have almost to a person— Deputy First Minister, please use your music. We need to hear the Deputy First Minister's response. Thank you. The Tory benches, Presiding Officer, have almost to a person, advised and demanded that I follow Tory spending plans as set out in the autumn statement. If I did that, what that is going to mean is not a penny of extra investment in our schools or public services, apart from the £10.8 million for the health service, which is a drop in the ocean. The Government will not follow Tory spending plans, because we recognise the need to invest in our schools, hospitals and police services. We will set out our budget plans on 19 December, but they certainly will not replicate the reckless investment of public services that we see from the Tory Government supported by those benches. To ask the Deputy First Minister what steps the Scottish Government is taking to mark the 16 days of activism against gender-based violence. I think that we should all be shocked that in the 21st century, violence, abuse and harassment remain an everyday occurrence for women and girls. We continue to have to take action to prevent and tackle it domestically and globally as a Government of society and as individuals. In addition to the informed debate yesterday, which I heard and I thought was very good, next week alongside COSLA, we will publish a refresh of our equally safe strategy that is aimed at preventing and eradicating violence against women and girls and focusing on early intervention, prevention and support services. Our £19 million of annual funding from our Delivering Equally Safe Fund supports 121 projects from 112 organisations and almost 32,000 people benefited from those support services last year. During the 16 days of debate yesterday, we heard about the need for the perpetrators of abuse and violence to change their behaviour, but we know that it continues. Does the Deputy First Minister agree with me that it is therefore vital that we change our justice system, including establishing a sexual offences court, so that victims of sexual abuse no longer feel as they have told the Justice Committee that they are re-traumatised by the court process? Rona Mackay makes a very important point. There is absolutely a need for reform and I want to recognise the bravery of survivors of sexual violence who have spoken out to call for change. They have been clear that the personal cost of pursuing justice is too high and it has left many re-traumatised. That is why the proposals contained in the victims' witnesses and justice reform bill, like establishing a sexual offences court, are so important. Collectively, those reforms put victims at the heart of our criminal justice system and create a system that recognises and responds to the trauma experienced by victims and survivors to ensure that victims maintain confidence in our justice system. We will now move on to constituency and general supplementaries, and I call Cookabstuit. Yesterday marked 10 years since a police helicopter crashed into the Clutha bar in the city centre of my constituency of Glasgow, Kelvin, tragically killing 10 people and injuring 31. The Clutha bar was rebuilt and opened again in 2015, a subsequent air accident investigation informed improvements to aircraft safety regulations. However, the painful memory of that disaster still runs deep amongst my local communities. Will the Deputy First Minister join me in paying tribute to the emergency services, the families and the wider Glasgow community who pulled together in the face of such a tragedy as we remember all those affected? Yes, I absolutely will. I thank Cookabstuit for the question. The events of 10 years ago are still fresh in my mind. I remember it really well, and I'm sure they are of all those in the chamber. My thoughts continue to go out to all those impacted by what happened that night. Those who were injured, those who tragically lost loved ones and also to the emergency services who showed such bravery trying to save lives. I also remember the way that the community came together to show solidarity with all those affected by the disaster. In the hardest of times, the people of Glasgow showed a strength and compassion that we'll never forget, and it's right that 10 years on we remember those who are affected by the loss of life but also the communities that are impacted to this day. I call Sue Weber. Deputy First Minister, the use of mobile phones has been highlighted as one of the most frequent and disruptive behaviours in schools. Lisa Kerr, head teacher of Gordonston, has stated, "'Teenagers rarely thank adults for placing boundaries, but we will never forgive ourselves if we don't act now." The evidence is there. For the sake of our children's futures and our teachers' wellbeing, will the Deputy First Minister commit to take immediate steps to ban and restrict mobile phone use in our schools as soon as possible? As I understand, councils would already be able to do that, but we'll make sure that Sue Weber gets a full response to her question. She raises a reasonable point that mobile phones can be disruptive. Of course, the education secretary set out in her statement yesterday many of the issues regarding behaviour in our schools, so we'll make sure that the education secretary writes to Sue Weber with further details on that. I call Alec Rowley. Presiding Officer, anyone who walked from the bus or train station this morning will have walked past homeless people sleeping in the street. We now know that last year, 244 of our fellow citizens in Scotland died while homeless. With 15,000 Scots currently homeless, can I ask the Deputy First Minister what steps are the Scottish Government taking to support people who will be rough sleeping over the coming festive period? Deputy First Minister. Alec Rowley raises a really important point. Of course, it is very much our ambition to eradicate rough sleeping from our streets, and we're taking a number of actions to do so. In terms of the issues of homelessness more broadly, Scotland of course has the strongest rights in the UK for people experiencing homelessness. We have taken action on local connection, on extending unsuitable accommodation orders, and in addition to the funding that goes through local government, we're giving councils £30.5 million each year to help prevent homelessness, and we're providing £100 million from our multi-year ending homelessness together fund. Of course, we have also given moneys to try to reduce the use of temporary accommodation. Housing first is also being funded in order to help people with complex needs, which we know is the case for many. In terms of the deaths, the estimated 244 deaths, I regret every one of those deaths. It is a tragedy, and behind all those figures is a person and a family, and we should remember that. I call Liam McArthur. Earlier this week, NHS Orkney was moved to the first stage of formal escalation by the Scottish Government. NHS Orkney is far from the only health board in Scotland whose financial position is precarious with debt levels rising, but there are particular challenges faced by a small island health board. Can the Deputy First Minister confirm that the Government will respond positively to any request for assistance from NHS Orkney? Will every effort be made to help NHS Orkney achieve financial stability as soon as possible, while at the same time ensuring patient needs and staff wellbeing are safeguarding? To Liam McArthur, those are important matters. I can say to him that the Scottish Government is directly engaging with NHS Orkney, and we will be looking to provide tailored support to support the board going forward. It is important as we enter winter that NHS Orkney alongside other boards are well prepared to meet the challenges that winter will bring. I am sure that the health secretary will be happy to update Liam McArthur on some further details about the support that will be provided. After First Minister's questions, I am meeting with campaigners who have been fighting to get a fair deal for clients of McLeures solicitors following the Thyrm Gwyn Bursham 2021. It is estimated that there could be as much as 100,000 people impacted UK-wide, and complaints that I have received include what they consider the exorbitant fees charged by solicitors to remedy errors or to make changes to trusts, as well as families discovering trusts were never set up by McLeures despite fees having been paid. Can I ask the Deputy First Minister how the Scottish Government can seek to support impacted families, as well as what reforms can be considered to prevent such failings happening in the future? I am aware of the issues that Bob Doris raises and the number of families that are facing difficulties as a result of McLeures going into administration. Although I cannot comment on individual cases, the Scottish Government has taken proactive steps to help mitigate against such a situation. Such cases show the need for legal regulation that centres on the public interest and protection of the consumer. The regulation of legal services Scotland Bill, which is currently going through Parliament, will introduce the authorisation of legal businesses. This will bring benefits such as consistency in how legal firms are regulated with all entities having to meet the same high standards and a greater collation of data that would enable the regulator and the legal profession to identify and address deficiencies early, taking the necessary preventative action. Russell Findlay. The UK Government is banning XL bully dogs after a spate of horrific attacks, some fatal, but the SNP has refused to sign up to this plan. It looks like they are willing to risk public safety just to diverge from the rest of the UK. Will the Deputy First Minister U-turn and ban XL bullies before more people get hurt? That is a complete misrepresentation of the facts by Russell Findlay. Let me say what is actually happening. We are carefully considering the evidence on the XL bully dogs and whether similar changes to ban this breed should be applied in Scotland. Public safety is paramount in our deliberations. Scotland already has a dog control notice regime that is unique in the UK and is focused on preventing dog attacks from happening in the first place, but we remain concerned about the reported attacks and deaths due to suspected XL bully dogs. Of course, the UK Government announced the proposal to ban XL bullies without any notice to the Scottish Government and no consultation, which was perhaps not the most helpful way to proceed. We are carefully considering the evidence and we are meeting with a range of stakeholders and animal welfare organisations. We will take forward those considerations as swiftly as we can. I am sure that the cabinet secretary will update Parliament in due course. Eight years ago, the construction began with hundreds of houses in the western gateway area of Dundee. Those buying homes were promised a school and paid an additional £5,000 on a roof tax to help pay for it. For the failure of SNP councillors to secure funding, there appears now to be no plan on how to get that school built. This week I received a letter from the education secretary reassuring me that the Scottish Government remains committed to working with the council, but without a funding commitment it is just empty words. So if the SNP and Dundee have failed to deliver this school, they have failed the community. Will the Deputy First Minister commit today that the Government will find a way forward to getting this school built? Of course, the education secretary, when she set out the latest round of leap funding, had looked at those schools that were in the bottom categories of requiring to be refurbished. She also took into account some of the issues of RAC that have been raised in this chamber to come to the conclusions of the priorities that should be given to the latest round of leap funding. What she also set out was that there will be further discussions with COSLA in order to set out what comes next in terms of the funding of the school estate going forward. However, this Government has invested hugely in the school estate over the last few years to bring up to scratch schools across the country, and those schools now remaining in the poorest category is much smaller than when this Government came to power. Today, world leaders are gathering for COP28, and the stakes could not be higher. The UN has warned that current climate pledges are falling short of the action that we need, and that we are on course for a brutal three degrees of global heating this century. So it is deeply concerning to hear reports that the UAE is attempting to strike fossil fuel deals at COP, worsening climate injustice for people already living on the brink of disaster. Does the Deputy First Minister then agree with me that at COP28 we need to see a just and credible plan for the end of fossil fuels, not secretive backroom deals? At COP26, we were the first global north government to commit funding to address loss and damage. A year ago, COP27 saw both a breakthrough agreement on a loss and damage fund and a disappointing lack of progress on reducing emissions and keeping 1.5 alive. No nation has all the answers or the means to respond to the scale of the problem of climate change alone, which is why the bringing together of the global community at COP28 is so important. Scotland has much to offer at COP28. The First Minister is participating in this year's summit to demonstrate once again our commitment to tackling the twin crises of climate change and nature loss in tandem in a way that is just and fair for all. He will also ensure that Scotland continues to play a bridging role in ensuring the voice of women, young people and the global south influence debate and influence action.