 The final item of business is a member's business debate on motion 7769, in the name of Evelyn Tweed, on National Lyme Disease Awareness Month. This debate will be concluded without any questions being put, and I would ask those members who would wish to speak in the debate to please press the request to speak buttons. I call on Evelyn Tweed to open the debate around seven minutes. I am very happy to speak in the chamber in Lyme Disease Awareness Month. This is a very personal debate for me, as I first became aware of Lyme Disease through my good friend Pauline Bowie, who I have known since our university days. Pauline is now an ambassador for the Lyme Resource Centre, and she is in the gallery tonight with fellow Lyme Disease sufferers, colleagues and young people from St Peter the Apostle High School in Clydebank. I warmly welcome them to our Scottish Parliament. Working at summer camp in 1989, she noticed a small circular rash on her thigh, and Pauline was told by the director that it was probably ringworm. Over the next few years, she suffered a whole range of debilitating symptoms from those associated with the flu to inflamed joints, nausea, insomnia and dizziness. She had breathing difficulties, heart palpitations, and was diagnosed with anxiety and hyperventilation and told how to use a paper bag to breathe into. She was unable to do many of the things that she loved but could not get answers from doctors. Years passed and her symptoms worsened. By the mid-2000s, she had extreme joint pain. In 2017, she suffered two incidents of pain so extreme that she was hospitalised with suspected heart attacks. Dys, speech slurring, blood vision and brain fog were all put down to anxiety. Tests were inconclusive. Thirty years later, after hearing that her cousin was ill with Lyme Disease, she googled it. She was very shocked to find out that she was a textbook case. Lyme Disease is caused by a bacteria called Lyme Borreliosis, which can be passed on to humans by infected ticks. Ticks infected with Lyme Disease are found all over the UK. Anywhere there are pets, wild mammals, birds, there are ticks. Woodland, open countryside and even urban parks and gardens. Removing ticks quickly will help prevent infection but removing them incorrectly may increase the infection risk. Many people with early symptoms develop a circular red skin rash around the tick bite, often described as looking like a bull's eye on a dartboard. Lyme Disease can also cause flu-like symptoms, a fever, fatigue and migratory joint or muscle aches and pains. There are conflicting opinions on how best to treat Lyme Disease, but it is most often treated through a course or courses of antibiotics. Lyme Disease can often be treated effectively if detected early on, but if it is not treated early or treatment is delayed, there is a risk of developing very severe and long-lasting symptoms like polynes. For people without the red rash, laboratory tests are used to diagnose Lyme. However, the tests are not sensitive and can tell the difference between current or past infections. There are enormous challenges here in diagnosing Lyme Disease. Many do not notice that they have been bitten by a tick. That is easily done when some bites are as small as a poppy seed. When their symptoms appear, they do not associate it with ticks. That happened to Leslie Paterson, world champion triathlete and Oscar-winning screenwriter from my constituency. Lyme Disease took her out for a year. Even now, it still impacts her and, like many others, she has no idea where or when she was infected. What we see is the classic indicator of Lyme, the bull's-eye rash, often does not look like a bull's-eye. It can appear in different shapes as well as different presentations on darker skins and it does not appear at all in around a third of the cases. It is why ranging symptoms can look like any number of other conditions leading Lyme Disease to be called the Great Pretender. Symptoms that later turn out to be caused by Lyme Disease are misdiagnosed as other conditions such as anxiety or chronic fatigue. Patients have been dismissed and told that symptoms are in their heads. When Pauline told her doctor that she might have Lyme, she was told that she was jumping on a fad. Inevitably, this lack of awareness among GPs has a detrimental effect along existing lines of inequality. Those already marginalised women, disabled people and people of colour are less likely to get a diagnosis and to timely treatment. Lyme Disease action developed an online training course in collaboration with the Royal College of General Practitioners, covering how to identify and treat the disease. However, the charity Lyme Disease UK notes that only a very small percentage of GPs have taken the course. Tick bites are often associated with recreational activities such as hill walking or working in sectors such as forestry farming. However, more evidence is being found of tick bites being much closer to home. The Big Tick project found that one third of dogs checked in their study had ticks attached to them. Pet owners are at risk as ticks can drop off in the home or transfer. However, 47 per cent of owners were not aware that they too were at risk of infection from tick bone diseases. The British Medical Journal has called for more national and international debates on Lyme Disease, which I am glad that we are contributing to today. It has also called for a solid research agenda, as well as robust public awareness campaigns. Indeed, Dr Lucy Gilbert, a senior research fellow from Glasgow University, has noted the need for more research into tick populations and Lyme Disease in urban areas. However, funding remains a challenge. There is huge appetite to make change in this area from committed and well-informed organisations such as the Lyme Resource Centre, leading awareness campaigns to start-ups in the highlands who are developing an app to map the risk of Lyme Disease. As well as awareness-raising, action such as BRAC and control can also help to mitigate risks. The issues here are multi-sectoral, overlapping healthcare, education, forestry and land management to academia. To take successful action, I will take the intervention. From what you are saying, deer are a key host of ticks, so it is important that we support our rural workforce to ensure that we have individuals who are able to effectively manage those deer populations to stop the spread of Lyme Disease. I would say anything that we can do to look at the tick population and Lyme Disease needs to be considered, in my opinion. I am going to go back to the part that I was just finishing off. The issues here are multi-sectoral, overlapping healthcare, education, forestry, farming and land management to academia. To take successful action, a collaborative approach is required. I look forward to hearing everyone's contribution today in the chamber to the debate and hearing what steps the Scottish Government will take to engage stakeholders and tackle the issues surrounding this complex disease. I now call on Marie McNair to be followed by Alexander Burnett. I congratulate my colleague Evelyn Tweed for securing this important debate and her thoughtful and knowledgeable opening speech. I am pleased to be able to speak in tonight's debate on raising awareness of Lyme Disease. It can be devastating to people and it is vital that everyone knows how to prevent its transmission. I am a committed campaigner on this issue and this debate is very welcome and being a useful vehicle to help get the message out. In Scotland there has been a significant increase in the number of cases of Lyme Disease being reported each year. Lyme Disease is an increasing problem as we enter the warmer summer months. It is vital that alongside our healthcare partners we do all we can to ensure our constituents are properly informed about its dangers. One of the few benefits that came out of the Covid-19 pandemic was that many took the time to explore everything that Scotland has to offer, spending time walking, hiking and enjoying our beautiful outdoor spaces. We are so fortunate to have such fantastic countryside on our doorstep, but with this renewed desire to explore those areas there has been also a sharp rise in the number of people being bitten by ticks, the main driver of Lyme Disease in Scotland. Recent research found that almost two thirds of people in Scotland have either been bitten by or know someone who has been bitten by a tick. More concerning than that however is that the same research found that over half of people in Scotland do not know what to do when bitten by a tick. Those are extremely concerning figures and show just how much work we still need to do. I am also pleased to repeat the experience of my constituent Pauline who joined us here today in the public gallery alongside pupils from St Peter's Apostle High School in Clydebank. Pauline is keen to raise awareness of its impact and share her story. As Pauline's MSP, I am happy to do so and ensure the voices of my constituents are heard in our Parliament. After being bitten by a tick over 30 years ago, Pauline experienced flu-like symptoms and expanding Bill's Eye rash. Pauline was misdiagnosed numerous times and, after seeing a range of different specialists, it was not until 2018 that she was finally diagnosed with Lyme Disease. Unfortunately, she spent decades of facing a wide range of debilitating symptoms before getting the treatment that she needed. That was an absolutely horrific experience for Pauline and we must do everything we can so that situations like this do not happen again. I was also struck by the case of Rico Franke, publicised by the NHS. Rico is a 40-year-old father of three who has lived with Lyme Disease for over 12 years. He went from being a superfit gymgoer to being completely floored. His lifestyle was significantly disrupted. If it can happen to Rico, it can happen to any one of us. There is no cure for Lyme Disease, so we must do three things. We must educate people about prevention and improve our testing capacities, ensure that patients with Lyme Disease get the support and treatment that they need. With the warmer summer months just around the corner, it is important that we prioritise the first of those actions, educating people about dealing with tick bites. Always check for ticks after spending time in green spaces. Carefully remove any as soon as possible. Even make sure that your socks are tucked into your trousers. Also, if you have a red circular rash and flu-like symptoms, arrange to see your GP urgently. We want to see people enjoy their time in Scotland's beautiful outdoors, but we also want to make sure that they are doing so safely so that they do not have to go through what Pauline, Rico, and many others have had to endure. Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. I thank Evelyn Tweed for securing this very important debate, recognising National Lyme Disease Awareness Month. Since elected in 2016, I have been involved with the campaign to improve awareness, diagnosis and treatment, meeting with petitioners, professors, doctors and groups such as tick-borne illness campaign Scotland to try and make progress on improving materials and education on the disease. Sadly, as we have heard, many sufferers of Lyme disease are misdiagnosed due to the lack of knowledge surrounding the disease, which can have long-lasting and debilitating effects. Whilst we try and encourage people to enjoy the outdoors and explore our beautiful countryside, thousands of new cases are detected every year in the UK. We need to educate medical staff to ensure that they recognise the disease. With Lyme disease, early diagnosis and treatment is vital. Otherwise, patients risk devastating symptoms. Early signs, as we have heard, can include the bull's-eye rash, flu-like symptoms and fatigue, but untreated, which can develop into joint pain, swelling, nerve problems, heart problems and chronic fatigue syndrome. It is very troubling to hear of a new TBE virus in the UK, which, reportedly, can be fatal. I hope that the Scottish Government will engage with a UK-wide approach to improve detection of that. However, that is not just a rural issue, as budget cuts to councils have seen less grass-cutting in urban parks, often dressed up as conservation, but actually just creating a breeding ground for ticks and more infections. While advice, such as rolling up our socks, might seem sound, it is akin to the former First Minister telling schools to chop the bottom off doors during the pandemic. It is a poor substitute for improving resources and public awareness campaigns from the Scottish Government. We need to ensure that all avenues of raising awareness are used. I was very interested in the Lyme app being piloted in the Highlands a few years ago, but I have heard no more progress on that and when it will be extended across Scotland, and, hopefully, the Minister can update us on that project tonight. I am also delighted that the first-ever conference on tick-borne diseases will be held in Inverness later this month. Over the last few months, I have raised numerous questions in Parliament to find out what action is happening. The Scottish Government recently confirmed that it will continue using its own platforms to highlight the risks and symptoms of Lyme disease. Yet, three years ago, when I asked how much traffic their web pages obtained, the results were poor. They are avoiding bugs in germs' outdoors page, which also contains information relating to Lyme disease, had little over 12,000 views in the last three years, since till 2020. So, I would be interested to hear the updated figures for this and other sites. But in a world with social media at our fingertips, the Scottish Government health page and the Office of the Chief Executive of NHS Scotland haven't tweeted about Lyme disease since last year. The NHS national services Scotland account hasn't tweeted about ticks or Lyme disease since 2020. Along with Public Health Scotland and NatureScot, not one account has tweeted in support of Lyme disease awareness month. So, can the minister tell me where are the public campaigns that the SNP Government promises? I'm really not sure if he just hadn't seen it, but I noticed a Scottish Government awareness campaign about ticks yesterday. I'm very glad for the member. I don't think that that reduces the point that there are numerous sites within the Scottish Government's control that should be pushing the awareness of Lyme disease and are clearly failing to do so. So, the question is still to the minister, where is the information being spread to as many people as possible to warn them of the risks of ticks? What commitments will the Scottish Government make to improving awareness, testing and treatment of Lyme disease? Finally, who exactly is and sits on the Scottish Government-led Lyme disease awareness raising group, and what action have they taken this month? After seven years of being involved in the subject, the silence is deafening. I now call Jim Fairlie to be followed by Carol Mocken. Thank you, Presiding Officer. I would like to thank my colleague Evelyn Tweed for bringing forward this absolutely vital debate on me being Lyme's disease awareness month. My contribution this evening will be based around cause and effect. Lyme disease is spread by ticks, so the effect of not controlling tick in their habitat is more Lyme's disease. I used to marvel at the skill and stockmanship of folk. I used to refer to it as a high hill folk, a farm and cattle sheep on the hills over thousands of acres with wild-bread sheep and dogs to match. The ticks were a huge concern, which is why the old sheep dip pens would be a hive of activity at least twice a year, as neighbours rallied round to help each other to get the hill yw's dipped. The spring rise before dipping could literally see hundreds of ticks hanging from pregnant sheep causing anemia, poor thrive or the killing diseases, lopinil virus or tick-borne fever in young stock. In areas of high infection, lopinil could kill anywhere between 5% and 10% of young stock in any given year. The need for hill-bread sheep to be bound to the ground is, in large part, due to the ability of the sheep to be able to deal with tick-borne infections through genetics of generations of sheep being on the same ground over many decades. If new sheep were brought onto that ground, the losses due to tick-borne fever or lopinil could be as high as 60% of infected animals. As for those reasons that chemical prevention were created with the old-fashioned and now no longer used organophosphate dips, they were highly effective at killing ticks and scab mite on sheep, and I can remember quite vividly the clean smell as well as the lift in health and condition and the vitality of freshly dipped sheep. Those dips were, however, not without side effects, particularly for humans, and were then replaced with the synthetic pyrethroid dips. They were good at controlling scab and sheep, but not ticks, so that meant the invention and evolution of the now-used poron insecticides, which are extremely effective at killing huge numbers of ticks, which in turn makes it easier for humans and dogs to avoid being bitten. The reason for me asking for this indulgence in describing hill farming and its history of association in controlling tick infections is that, over the past 20 to 30 years, literally hundreds of thousands of sheep have been taken off the hills as farmers are found at harder and harder to be profitable. What that has meant is that the tick has been allowed to thrive unchecked over huge swathes of Scotland where the sheep have gone off. Grousemoor managers were, for a number of years, buying hundreds of male castrate sheep called weathers and running them over the hills as tick mops to try and control the tick number. These weathersheep would be treated with chemical poron released to the hill and, as they swept over the ground, they would be mopping up huge numbers of tick, which would in turn be killed with insecticide that was on the sheep. I thank the member for taking intervention. I absolutely agree with the measures that are taken to reduce the load of ticks that are in the environment and therefore reduce the impact on humans. However, would the member agree with me that bracking control is absolutely vital in reducing the tick load in the countryside? Right now, there is only one chemical that can do that effectively, and that is azulux. We are waiting for an emergency authorisation to use that, and NatureScot has called for that emergency authorisation to come into force. Does the member agree with me that we need a year-on-year licence to allow this chemical to be used, rather than the annual circus where we see farmers and sprayers having to argue their point on an annual basis? That was coming in my speech. This man-made intervention of treating sheep for ticks has helped the ground-nesting birds, wildlife, grousemure managers and sheep and cattle farmers. As a by-product of that, it helps folk that we tell to go out and enjoy the countryside, the ramblers, the walkers, the hikers and the campers who take the hills in their thousands every weekend by cutting down the sheer weight of tick numbers that can infect people, mammals and birds alike. That is just one part of the interventions that we can use among others to have as habitat control, and that brings the subject that is high in the gender right now, which is bracking control. Bracken, as we know, is a noxious weed that grows in abundance in our hills, reaching up to five or six feet tall and blanketing literally thousands of acres of hillground and ensuring that nothing else can grow. It creates virtual bracken deserts, but, as importantly, it is a harbinger for huge numbers of ticks. With its height, it means that ticks can be shoulder or even head height to a human as it waits for a host to feed on. My colleague Fergus Ewing will talk more in depth about this, but bracken control is difficult, especially on hillground, which is often very steep and dangerous for mechanical interventions. My ask of the Scottish Government is that I urge, with maximum urgency, the licences needed for aerial bracken control using azulam are issued. For the avoidance of doubt, no one uses azulox unless at an absolute last resort, not least of all because of the cost. There has been no new science this year that would have been different from last year. I very much hope that the decision to issue the licences will be imminent. Thank you, Mr Fairlie. I now call Cara Mocken to be followed by Liam McArthur. Thank you, Presiding Officer. I also thank Evelyn Tweed for bringing this. It is really interesting to debate the chamber. I say that, quite included, it is nice to be because I do not put myself forward as an expert at all, so I have really tried to listen hard to the contributions made by all the members, and I will endeavour to go back and speak to the Labour group about that, because it seems that it is an important issue that we need to push and get right for people. However, I am glad and grateful for the opportunity to speak in the debate on behalf of Scottish Labour and to make that commitment, as I have said. Like many in the chamber, I represent a rural region in south of Scotland, which has so much beautiful woodland and outdoor space. Even before the debate, I recognised the importance of raising the issue of ticks and the associated bacterial infection of Lyme disease. We know that symptoms may not be easily recognised and diagnosed and can be missed, as Evelyn Tweed mentioned. I hope that highlighting the issue will help us to ensure better awareness within the population, so reducing infection risks and supporting NHS staff and the healthcare workforce in recognising the signs and symptoms that result in an appropriate diagnosis of that condition. As we have heard, Lyme disease is a bacterial infection spread to humans by infected ticks. Many of us who have dogs that enjoy long woodland walks recognise ticks as tiny spider-like creatures found in woodland and heath areas. Ticks can be found in any areas with deep or overgrown vegetation where they have access to animals to feed on. Although reported to be more prevalent in the highlands of Scotland, it is not just rural areas as we have heard. Woodlands and dense vegetation in urban parks see plenty of wildlife, including the spider-like tick. Members have brought that to the chamber very well. The fact that we are now seeing it in other areas is that more humans would be walking. Ticks, as we have heard, feed in the blood of birds and mammals, including humans. That is where the problem lies. Ticks bite and could potentially infect us with Lyme disease. A tick bite can only cause Lyme disease in humans if the tick has already bitten an infected animal. In some of the research that I was looking at, it was talking about what some of the other members were speaking about, the different way in which farmers manage their animals nowadays. Members have raised the important information that they needed to recognise, ticked by signs and symptoms, and went to seek medical advice. I do not have that in my speech, but it is also really relevant to some of the other matters that I had not gone over in research on the management of the farmlands and the beautiful countryside around it. I appreciate that. There were a couple of things that struck me that were of interest to raise with the public and with the minister. First, tick bites and feeds on your dog and cat, which is really relevant in urban areas. They can be on your dog or cat for a few days and then drop off. It is possible that the tick can pass disease on to your pet, and that includes Lyme disease. During my research for the debate, I noticed information about signs and symptoms on dogs and cats. I believe that the pet-loving Scottish public would wish to know some of that so that their animals can get it, but it is also very relevant, as Evelyn Tweed mentioned, in preventing tick transfer to humans. The second point that I wish to raise was about workplace safety, which Rachael Hamilton raised. The Scottish Wagellian Trust has the Lyme disease UK as its charity for that very reason, because it is very aware that its staff working in the field could be affected by Lyme disease. It is very keen to see further research into Lyme disease, which I think is important. In the interests of time, I will move on and say that my speech had talked about some of the things that other members have talked about and sensible things that you can do. It is really important that the minister does feedback to us on the fact that we need to raise that public awareness about some of the really reasonable and easy things that you can do, but just how we manage that in the countryside as well. Thank you very much, Presiding Officers, and to all the members who spoke tonight. It has been a few years since I have had the opportunity to take part in a debate on Lyme disease, which is an important but often unrecognised issue. I warmly congratulate Evelyn Tweedon and thank her for providing this opportunity. I also extend my welcome to those in the gallery who are joining us this evening. I thank to those who provided briefings for this evening's debate. I first came into contact with the issue of Lyme disease when I was a member of the then rural affairs committee back in the 2007-11 session of Parliament. I think that we have come a bit of a distance since then. I do not think that it is fair to say that there has been no progress. I noticed that the Scottish Land and Estates briefing disacknowledged that medical awareness of Lyme's disease is better than it was, as it is as good as it needs to be, possibly not. I think that there is variability, but certainly there seems to be a bit of progress that has been made in that sense. Nevertheless, as Evelyn Tweedon and others have identified, we are looking at an increased incidence of tick-borne Lyme disease as a result of many different factors. We have heard in terms of the changing and forming practices that Jim Fairlie was referring to, the extension of afforestation. Now, when going forward, it is likely to play a part as well, but some of the issues that we are seeing around climate change are also having an effect in increasing the number of ticks and therefore heightening the risk of infection. We are also seeing, I think, higher numbers being diagnosed, but still I think that it is accepted that underreporting and certainly continued mist or underdiagnosing as well. I think that all of that speaks to the need to redouble efforts to raise that awareness and to improve the diagnosis. The treatments that are available, I think that Evelyn Tweedon was right to point that there is not a magic bullet in this respect, but early diagnosis and early treatment certainly improve the outcomes. There are clearly those who are more at risk in terms of our farmers, our foresters, our land managers and those who are accessing the countryside as well, our hikers, ramblers, et cetera. However, the point that Evelyn Tweedon, Carol Mock and others have made about the risks to those who do not necessarily fall into that category—to dog owners, for example, and I say that this is the owner of a Springer Spaniel, who spends far too much time sticking his head where it shouldn't be and is picking up ticks on a regular basis that we need to deal with. I think that raising awareness amongst groups that perhaps didn't really see this as an issue for them will be a focus of attention going forward. I think that Jim Fairlie was also right to point that there is a human risk here, but the risk in terms of livestock, particularly for Lypingill, shouldn't be underestimated either. I think that I would join with others in underscoring the need for increased research, for braking control, which there is not a silver bullet, but there is no doubt that a more sensible approach to the licensing of Azulam would certainly help and make a huge difference and continued efforts in the area of awareness raising. I would say that that will need to be done carefully, because I think that what we don't want to do is spread food and alarm, discourage the public from accessing the countryside in a responsible fashion. We don't want to be necessarily overloading laboratories with testing that isn't necessarily of a benefit, but I think that we need to acknowledge that there is a risk of heightened risk going forward that needs to be addressed, and that awareness raising campaign, as Alexander Burnett pointed out, will need to ramp up, it will need to extend, it will need to become a bit more sophisticated in a social media age to communicate the very important message that Evelyn Tweeds has allowed this Parliament to reinforce this evening. Thank you very much, indeed. Thank you, Mr MacArthur. I now call Fergus Ewing, who will be the last speaker before I ask the minister to respond. I warmly congratulate Evelyn Tweeds on bringing this debate here and for her very moving account of the horrific impacts that this disease has had on her constituents who are here this evening. Because of that, it is vital that we take all steps to prevent others from being in the position of being exposed to infection, likely infection, of this disease. Brachan habitat, as members have said, is by far the most important habitat, or reservoir habitat, for ticks and tick-borne disease. Professor Roy Brown, an expert on brachan and ticks, a lifelong expert, has highlighted that there is far more brachan, it has grown exponentially, and there is far more ticks in the brachan, and a far higher proportion of the ticks, particularly adult females to understand, are infective and carry various diseases, of which Lyme's disease is perhaps the best known, but Laupangill, as Liam MacArthur has mentioned, is also there and related to other forms of ill health. The only way to tackle this, at the moment, effectively is the Astrolab Astrolox, and Scottish Land and Estates confirm that in their representations to us all tonight. Astrolox is, unfortunately, subject to a process of annual emergency authorisation. It should be used automatically, frankly. Science is the same as it was last year, but this process, this laborious process, has to be undergone. The four administrations in the UK must issue approvals to the health and safety executive who have delegated responsibility to give advice to the four administrations. That process is fine, but it is too slow. I have been in correspondence with HSE last year and again this year, and just before this debate, I was informed that they have not yet taken a decision. Now, nobody really wants to get into the blame game, but it is apparent that for whatever reason the delay has occurred, it is now very serious, and particularly so because, as it happens, the manufacture of the drug has now been shifted to India, and therefore there could be a further delay of six weeks before it can be procured, and it needs to be applied in a season, which finishes in August and September. The window is very short indeed. We are on the last week before authorisation can be given and can be ineffective, and that is why we really need to get a substantive response from the HSE. I would particularly be grateful to minister. I know that she is very knowledgeable about Astrolox before her elevation if she was working alongside Mr Fairlie, myself and others to advance the arguments that I am making this evening. I know from last week's response when I raised the issue with the First Minister in FNQ that he says that it is a serious threat that needs to be dealt with, and he did say in that response to me that the HSE had made a recommendation and that the Scottish Government had considered and responded to that recommendation, but he did not say what that response was. Being an inquisitive kind of guy, as members may know, can the minister share with us, because I think that we are all coming from the same angle here. We want to get this sorted. What was that response? I believe that it is minister Slater that is responsible. Did she say yes or not? What was the response? We need to be clear that Scotland has played our part in getting this to a yes. There is some suggestion from the UK Government that a further treatment known as Amido Saphuron, or Squire Ultrax commercial name, is being considered. This is not effective. Let me make that point clear. Clear advice is that that will not work. If the UK Government is considering that, it should think again. Liam McArthur is right. We do not want to set hairs running. We do not want to set alarm for people who want to enjoy the countryside. On the other hand, we owe it to our population to take all practical and sensible steps to avoid further people getting this ghastly disease. People who work in rural Scotland, as has been highlighted by members across the chamber, would be catastrophic if a process, a process of approval, a cumbersome, unnecessarily complicated process were to become the enemy of achieving the purpose of that very process, which is designed to protect the public against the risk of contracting a disease, which, as Evelyn Tweed has said, is an extremely serious one, albeit that it is not sufficiently well understood or appreciated in society as a whole. I now call on the minister, Jenny Minto, to respond to the debate. I too like to join other members here today in thanking Evelyn Tweed for bringing this motion to the chamber during Lyme disease awareness month. I also would like to welcome Pauline and everyone else to the gallery and I hope that your recovery continues. I am very pleased to have the opportunity to close this debate and to highlight the importance of raising awareness of Lyme disease. We know that the majority of cases of Lyme disease can be treated with antibiotics, but for some it can have serious impact on their daily lives. I have literally 30 seconds in Douglas Lumsden. My first encounter with a tick was almost 50 years ago. I spotted this odd growth on my spaniel's head. Thankfully, a friend knew what it was and quickly whipped it out with tweezers. At that point, it was just an ugly beastie, but now I know so much more about the impact that ticks can have on our health and the importance of removing them safely. I really appreciate the contributions that have been made by various members in this debate. Now, every walk I go on, I check my colleague Jim for ticks, as well as ensuring that I am tick-free too. I would like to touch on some of the contributions from members to this debate, but first of all I will take Mr Lumsden's intervention. Douglas Lumsden. I would like to thank the minister for taking the intervention. I have been contacted by a constituent, Emily Gilmour, from Inverruri, who has Lyme disease along with her son. It has spent 40,000 so far on private treatment abroad. Will the minister look into the case and see if she can get the treatment that she requires here in Scotland? I thank Douglas Lumsden for that intervention. As I can't comment specifically on cases, but yes, I would be happy to look further into that. It is these personal stories that Evelyn Tweed and Marie McNair spoke about that are so important, that really emphasise the need for increasing awareness and a co-ordinated approach. Marie McNair talked about educating, testing and supporting the right treatment. Alexander Burnett commented on the awareness campaign. I have just had a wee look. The Scottish Government tweeted five days ago about Lyme's disease, and we have also put things on Facebook and Instagram, and we will have a wider campaign. Alexander Burnett. I thank the minister for taking that intervention. Jim Fairlie also mentioned that the Scottish Government had tweeted about that, and I certainly accept that. However, none of the health sites—he might have been mistaken—I referred to the Scottish Government health sites, none of them have tweeted or posted around any of that. As that is under the minister's portfolio, I wonder if she could comment on that. I thank Alexander Burnett for that. I think that this debate is really important. Therefore, there will be tweets going out as a result of the debate from the Minister for Public Health and Women's Health Account, and I will be re-tweeting. I hope that Alexander Burnett will join me in re-tweeting as well. I thank him for his intervention. The points that Jim Fairlie raised with regard to sheep being tick magnets that I too have heard from a number of my constituents and Carol Mocken have emphasised the importance of having debates like that in the chamber, and of recognising that they are prevalent in urban areas as well as in workforces and on our pets, which I have noted. I thank you for recognising that, and I look forward to hearing how you speak about it further in your group as well. I really appreciated Liam McArthur's acknowledgement about careful education and acknowledging the importance of awareness in the population and also about proportional control, and I agree that we should not be alarmist. If I may at this point, I know that a number of members have brought in and have discussed as you luxe, and as Fergus Ewing pointed out, it does not fall within my portfolio. However, I would like to comment that the Scottish Government does absolutely recognise concerns about the potential risk of uncontrolled bracken, and is aware of the role that bracken plays in relation to tick populations, and the role that Azulux has played in recent years. As the member pointed out, Azulux has no current UK or EU authorisation, and the HSE is responsible for assessing emergency authorisations. The Scottish Government has responded, as the First Minister said, to the HSE's recommendation, as will all UK Administrations. It is the HSE who will respond to the applicant when ready to do so, and I am afraid that at this point I cannot provide any further update to this. I have taken a few, Mr Carson, so I will just continue. I note the points that Mr Ewing and others have made. As we have heard this debate coincides with Lyme Disease Awareness Month, but it is also important, as we have seen a rise in cases in Scotland in recent years, as Marie McNair noted. We are blessed in Scotland that we have such amazing opportunities to get out and explore our wonderful country, whether climbing mountains, walking in woodland or simply enjoying a stroll in the park. Although we believe that there is no such thing as bad weather, just bad clothing, it is true that spring and summer more people are likely to be enjoying the out-of-doors. Therefore, providing information on how to avoid being bitten by a tick, how to remove and attach ticks safely and the signs and symptoms to be aware of is absolutely key. We know that prevention is the best defence against Lyme Disease, and the Scottish Government is committed to raising awareness of Lyme Disease and is currently running a campaign to find a tick, remove it quick. With posters and information cards in every community pharmacy in Scotland, we want to highlight the key messages of tick avoidance, signs and symptoms to watch out for and signposting to NHS Inform for further information. I would like to thank the Lyme Disease Awareness Raising Group, whose membership includes representatives from the Lyme Resource Centre, Visit Scotland, Rambler Scotland and Public Health Scotland, as well as the Scottish Government officials from infectious diseases early learning and childcare and Active Scotland who co-designed the campaign. We are also planning a follow-up in the summer with posters and GP practices, leisure centres, libraries and community centres, and hopefully public transport as well, and that will reinforce key messages for people who have already seen the campaign, but also target people who are visiting Scotland from the rest of the UK or abroad. I also appreciate that work needs to be done to raise awareness of Lyme's disease amongst health professionals to ensure confidence and diagnosing the condition and starting patients on antibiotic treatment as soon as possible. If early signs are missed, it is more likely that longer-term symptoms will develop, and I absolutely recognise the importance of that with a member of my own family spotting the symptoms and, thankfully, a very aware GP. We are making progress in Scotland on testing and diagnosis, and we are also working closely with stakeholders and clinicians through Health Professionals Education subgroup. Following the recent identification in Scotland of a probable case of tick-borne encephalitis, which is potentially a serious infection, clinical surveillance has been increased. Public Health Scotland has inquested the UK Health Security Agency to undertake tick capture and testing in Loch Ernhad in mid to late June to assess whether TBE infection can be identified in ticks in Scotland. It is important to note, however, that one probable case is not evidence of a significant change to the human health risk in Scotland from TBE. However, in my view rightly, the Scottish Health Protection Network tick-borne diseases group, a multidisciplinary expert group dedicated to Lyme disease, has recently reconvened following the Covid-19 pandemic, and officials have requested that surveillance, including for TBE, be included as part of their future work. I would reiterate that the risk of Lyme disease should not put people off spending time outdoors. There are a few simple steps that you can take to protect yourself. Cover up bare skin, ideally wear long trousers and tuck them into your socks, even long grass, which has been said. Use insect repellent. Check yourself in clothing for ticks after being outside. If you find one, carefully remove the whole tick using a tick remover or fine tweezers and speak to your GP if you develop symptoms. I would like to reiterate my thanks to Evelyn Tweed for bringing this motion today and to everyone here who has contributed to this debate to raise awareness of Lyme disease. Thank you Minister. That concludes the debate and I close this meeting.