 The first item of business is portfolio questions. Rural Affairs, Land Reform and Islands is the first portfolio. If a member wishes to request a supplementary question, they should press the request to speak button or indicate so in the chat function by entering the letters RTS during the relevant question. I call question number one, Cookeab Stewart. To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its plans to support community gardens. Minister Gillian Mar줘? We recognise the benefits community gardens can bring to the wellbeing of individuals, bringing communities together and improving local biodiversity. This year, we're providing £100,000 to Green Action Trust to deliver the Y Growing Food Together fund. Eight community food growing projects will benefit from the fund,� the Children and cares to increase the land available for community growing and improve food growing skills, empowering communities and individuals to grow their own food. Community growing projects have also benefited from the investment through the Empowering Community programme, with a further £3.7 million from the vacant and deraillank land investment programme, and that will support six growing projects directly. The Greyfriars biophilic community garden in my constituency has been shortlisted for the evening times community garden champion team awards later this year, with the winners being announced on December 5. With projects involving the local community improving primary schools, a community garden has been a force for good for the local community. Does the minister agree with me that community gardens provide significant improvements and wellbeing benefits? Greyfriars is a shining example of what can be achieved involving the community. I absolutely do agree. I am absolutely delighted to hear that Greyfriars biophilic community gardens has been nominated for the evening times community champion team awards. I wish them all the best on that. I am sure that the gardens are a wonderful place. I will put that on my list of gardens to visit. It is an excellent example of the huge range of benefits community gardens can bring, including, but not limited to increased nature-based volunteering opportunities and education communities up and down the country. We are already reaping the many benefits of community gardens, which, as the member said, includes significant environmental and wellbeing benefits. I wish them all the best. I would like to put on record my thanks to James Barnes, David Lidiate and Stan Greene, for hosting an amazing gardening and horticultural CPG just outside here in the Parliament last week. We discussed in the CPG the need for horticulturists, gardeners and farmers for the future generations. I wondered how the minister and the Government could support skills and training to contribute in those sectors. I had a really good discussion with Stan Greene. He had a stand in the colleges of Parliament as well around horticulture. It was great to meet him and it sends us the CPG. Our vacant and derelict land investment programme demonstrates our commitment to bringing sites back into use, particularly for horticulture. There is a good example of quite a number of sites throughout the whole of Scotland that can use the funding for whatever they want to do in that space. That could include training as well. I mentioned in my response to Co-Cab Stuart that the two streams of funding that are doing that—of course, we are not just talking about equipment and plants and soil here—we could be talking about training as well. It is up to those individual projects to decide how to use that money, but there is certainly money and funding available. To ask the Scottish Government what discussion the rural affairs secretary has had with ministerial colleagues regarding the development of rural skills to help to deliver its commitments in relation to pitland restoration in the programme for government 2023-2024. Training and retention of a skilled rural workforce is critical to deliver pitland restoration targets. A variety of skills initiatives are under way, including on-site demonstration days, a newly launched training course, a new entrance initiative and training on public contracts Scotland's tendering. Rural skills were included during a discussion of the ministerial working group on the rural delivery plan. This meeting was attended by the Deputy First Minister, Cabinet Secretaries for Rural Affairs, Land Reform and Islands, and Education, TransportNet-0, and Just Transition, myself and other ministerial colleagues. My officials are now increasing efforts to expand our work in this area going forward, including using existing links with other ministerial responsibilities. The programme for government 2023-2024 outlines plans to restore 10,700 hectares of degraded pitland over the course of the next year. It also outlines plans to progress action with crofters and Scottish ministers crafting states to support further pitland restoration. Can the minister advise how the Scottish Government is measuring the restoration of pitland and ensuring maintenance of its unique carbon-catching properties across Scotland's ruler lands? I thank the member very much for his interest in this topic. We are ramping up our progress towards achieving our targets in pitland. We have increased between 2023 and 2024 restoration of pitland by 40 per cent, and then again 2022-23 increased by 35 per cent. That is something that is significantly ramping up. NatureScot, for example, is delivering activities through their pitland skills plan and supplier development programme to assist small and medium enterprises to tender for this work successfully. We are putting in place a range of training opportunities that are focused on key crafting areas in the western isles, Shetland, Sutherland and Skye. In recent weeks, we have heard both the justice secretary and the environment secretary talk about the need to include pitland restoration in plans to bolster natural flood defences. The minister talked about ramping up pitland restoration. Of course, the SNP and the Green Government are well behind on its targets to meet pitland restoration. Will the minister ensure that farmers and land managers are included in the Scottish Government's flood resilience planning as we move forward? I have come into the chamber today to answer a question about how skills development in pitland restoration works, but I am very happy to write to the member with the answer to his question about including farmers in managing flood plans through pitland. The pitland restoration industry is in its infancy, and there is likely much that we can learn from the rewetting of pitlands that has occurred in countries such as Germany, Poland, Lithuania and Latvia. To what extent can the minister say that the pitland restoration industry is disadvantaged by being cut off from the skills and experiences of practitioners in Europe by the hard Brexit that we have now, which Labour now seems to support? It is clear that a hard Brexit has had a detrimental impact on our rural skills sector. However, the Scottish Government is alive to this risk and recognises that international co-operation is crucial in addressing the dual challenges of the climate crisis and biodiversity decline. We sponsored the pitland pavilion at COP26 to champion international co-operation on conservation, restoration and sustainable management of pitlands. NatureScot is working with Counterpart on the island of Ireland through its involvement in the shared island fund, which is supporting, among other things, a new investment of €15 million in pitlands restoration that will benefit cross-border co-operation, knowledge sharing and expertise building. To ask the Scottish Government how much grant funding it provides directly to each of Scotland's botanic gardens annually. Scotland is home to many world-class botanic gardens, including the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh, which operates across four locations in Scotland. The Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh receives funding from the Scottish Government as well as a range of other sources. Over the course of this current financial year, Scottish Government granted aid to RBGE was worth £30.4 million. I thank the cabinet secretary for that answer. Glasgow's botanic gardens have provided free access to generations of visitors for more than 180 years. Their benefits are huge, including for health and wellbeing. Recognising that, free access has been sustained for nearly two centuries, but, like so many cherished facilities and vital public services, they do not seem to have survived SNP green cuts, with the council now suggesting charges of £3 for an adult and £1.50 for a child. I note that the cabinet secretary did not mention Glasgow Botanic Gardens in her answer. What funding does she provide to Glasgow Botanic Gardens and what is her view of charges during a cost-of-living crisis? There are a couple of points in Pam Duncan Glancy's question that I would like to address. I mentioned specifically the Royal Botanic Gardens in Edinburgh and the four different locations and the fact that we directly fund them through grant and aid. That is because there is a statutory body, a non-departmental public body, and that was set up and established through the Natural Heritage Scotland Act 1985, which is why it received that grant and aid. Other than that, that is why I did not mention Glasgow Botanic Gardens, because we do not directly fund those other bodies, and it is because there is a statutory body that they get that direct funding there. I completely appreciate the member's points about free access, and I think that the last thing we may be wanting to do is exclude people from green spaces, particularly in our city centres as well. Again, we are in a really tough time at the moment in relation to our budgets. We are feeling it within the Scottish Government, and I know that local government is feeling that too. There was an uplift in local government funding last year, and I would just come back to the point that, in relation to Glasgow Botanic Gardens, that is a disadvantage. Minister, I will need to move on. Question 4 is not lodged. To ask the Scottish Government what measures it is taking to support farmers to protect crops, including from future flood-related damage. The Scottish Government places a high priority on supporting farmers to protect crops from a wide range of threats, including pest diseases and adapting to the changing climate. Key elements include our investments in the Plant Health Centre and Farm Advisory Service, and overall we invest almost £50 million a year in the portfolio of strategic research to support advances in sustainable crop production, natural resources and the environment, and that includes research aimed at improving crop resilience. On future flood-related damage, I have seen and discussed first-hand the impact on crops for farms affected by recent severe flooding. At NFUS autumn confidence on 26 October, I committed to working with the farming sector to bring forward support for the repair of flood banks damaged by that extreme rainfall during October, protecting our vitally productive farmland. The cabinet secretary will be aware that it has been widely reported that Scotland's farm was suffered extensively from flooding and storm-related damage during October, with the cost expected to run into millions. Will the cabinet secretary commit to a support fund to ensure that future food security remains a top priority in the uncouched and rural communities bill? What has been so concerning about this as well is that, although there have been some immediate impacts, I think that it will be a while before we are able to assess the full extent of the damage that happened after the recent flooding events and the recent storms, too. As I outlined in my initial response, I did outline some initial funding package and where we believe we can add the most helpful support at the moment. Of course, we will be looking to consider any measures through the passage of the agriculture bill as it proceeds through the Parliament. I have been out to visit different farmers as well, so first-hand the damage to some of the flood banks in Persia, too, so I appreciate the seriousness of that and what is impacting some of our most productive land in the country. It is vital that we work together to try and improve the resilience of our farmland going forward. I agree with the minister and indeed Mr Balfour in the need to compensate farmers for lost crops. However, could we involve farmers in offsetting flood water at the start of a flooding episode to stop damage downstream and make sure that that is properly compensated for and planned for in the future? I think that what is clear from all of this is that it is vital that we work across catchment areas. I think that when we have seen the recent flooding events, we need to consider that wider impact and what more we can be doing at various parts of the river. I think that it is that catchment level engagement, which will, of course, have to include farmers and land managers to see what any other potential solutions might be so that we can increase that resilience and be able to adapt to what could be and what is looking like increasing flooding events going forward. As well as needing practical support to mitigate and adapt to climate change, we know that the impact of extreme weather also is emotional with a toll on people's mental wellbeing. Farmers, as we know, face particular challenges with mental health and isolation. What more can the Scottish Government do to support farmers who might be struggling emotionally right now? Karen Adam raises a really important point. As I outlined in one of my previous responses, I have been out to visit some of the farmers first hand. I have seen the people and businesses within my constituency, too. You can see that real significant emotional toll that events like this have on everyone. Our farmers, as well as the professionals and the volunteers who are involved in responding to those events and who are now involved in that recovery work, too. We cannot forget that extreme weather events do have devastating consequences and really test people's resilience. I think that, in acknowledgement of that and the effects of flooding on farmers and recognising the increased need, as Karen Adam mentioned, for emotional, financial and practical support, they might need now, as well as, over the course of the weeks to come, a recently announced £50,000 of grant funding to RSAPI to enable them to continue to provide the help and to bolster that support available through their own flooding crisis fund. Just to put on record, my thanks to RSAPI for all the incredible work that they are doing. To ask the Scottish Government how it will help farmers to plan for their succession. Scotland's Farm Advisory Service, which is funded by the Scottish Government, currently offers farmers and crofters access of up to £1,000 in funding for specialist one-to-one advice on succession planning. In addition to that, the Farm Advisory Service provides extensive guidance and advice with succession planning, too. Additionally, the Scottish Land Matching Service, which is funded by the Scottish Government, acts as a free service and engages with those seeking or offering joint venture arrangements in relation to land. By doing that, it provides a platform for planning for succession for farmers and crofters who are wanting to take a step back from the business. I thank the cabinet secretary for that answer. I shall be aware that many of Scotland's farmers are elderly and the younger generation are not attracted by the profession. Succession planning is essential not only for the future of Scottish agriculture but also to ensure that we tackle rural depopulation. Will the cabinet secretary ensure that the commitment to farmers for their succession planning remains in place for the foreseeable future? I think that it is a really important point that the member has raised. I am really glad that she raised that question today, because it is something that we need to encourage our farmers, landowners and land managers to think about. That is where I would also highlight that the Scottish Land Matching Service is really valuable work in that regard, and it is also looking at the working with the Crofting Commission just now to have the succession discussion when it comes to crofting too. I am committed to maintaining that support and ensuring that we do all that we can to get our new entrants into the industry as well. As much as there are challenges, this is a really exciting time in our rural economy. There is a strong future there, and I would encourage people to get involved and to think of that as a career of choice for the future. Farming is an intergenerational affair, and succession is often about custodianship and viability of the farm business in the future. I can tell you that I was recently at the Damali blackface top sale, and the place was full of young people, desperate to get involved in blackface sheep breeding. As the cabinet secretary said, it has agreed with me that Scotland's farmers are better served than this regard by the SNP's commitment to active farming and food production, and that the best thing that the Tories can do to help farmers to plan for the future is to demand clarity over the future funding for agriculture from Westminster. I would agree entirely with that, because we need that certainty, we need that clarity from the UK Government about future rural funding after 2025, because beyond that point we have no idea what funding we are going to receive. Of course, if we were still in the EU, not only would we have that certainty of funding, but we would have it over a seven-year period and be able to provide that longer-term assurance. Of course, agriculture is devolved and it is crucial that Scottish Government policies are unhindered by the threats that are posed by the UK Internal Market Act, the subsidy control regime and the lack of long-term replacement EU funds. To ask the Scottish Government how its agricultural development projects will boost organic produce and improve environmental practice as part of its work towards achieving its net-zero targets. I am fully committed to supporting organic farming under our vision for agriculture, where we outlined our ambition for Scotland to become a world leader in sustainable and regenerative agriculture. We have funded the role of an organic development manager with a key objective of addressing market opportunities domestically and internationally for Scottish organic produce. That has included significant research into organic habitat provision in Scotland, as well as contributing to work on a small producer's pilot scheme. We are working with the organic sector to establish a new organic food informing action plan to deliver that sustained growth of the organic market. I thank the cabinet secretary for that answer. On the back of the deputy First Minister's recent visit to Marysil Farm in my region to highlight Scottish Government funding for the Scottish Organic Dairy Goals 2023 project, can the cabinet secretary indicate how the project can identify meaningful measurements of natural capital and carbon, as well as address issues relating to organic protein in Central Scotland? First of all, I am delighted that we have been able to fund the project through the Knowledge Transfer and Innovation Fund, because the project, among a range of other outputs, is undertaking a series of carbon audits and soil analysis testing among the organic co-operative. Those tests are being discussed and being benchmarked across the co-operative with the support of experts alongside that to explore the value that is there in conservation management and the potential marketable value in measurables. They are having similar peer-to-peer support by hosting meetings on grasslands and on soils to optimise forage utilisation and home-grown proteins. The outcome of all the work is the increase in confidence for informed decision-making on carbon efficiency, natural capital management and organic proteins. Overall, the work that is being taken forward by the group should offer a more efficient, resilient and market-led Scottish organic dairy sector. A recent flooding has demonstrated how vulnerable Scottish agriculture can be to bad weather and exposed the impact that it can have in crop basolians, including in areas such as Eastlothian and the Scottish Borders. Will the Scottish Government now finally commit to kicking its political prejudices into touch and commit to the use of genetic technology as a means to bolster our future food resilience? I think that the question was relating to specifically organic produce and improving environmental practice, but perhaps in that context. I mean again, I've already outlined in previous responses again recognising the damage that's been done by the recent flooding, how important building that resilience is. I've outlined a number of measures we're looking at there, how we need to work with our farmers and land managers, so I do feel I've addressed that in previous responses. Thank you, Presiding Officer. Draw members' attention to my register of interest, which shows that I was previously an owner of a private rented property in the North Lanarkshire Council area. I ask the Scottish Government what continued engagement it's had with the Scottish Land Commission about its proposal for compulsory sale orders since it first proposed them in August 2018. The Scottish Government regularly engages with the Scottish Land Commission on a broad range of matters, and that includes recent discussions relating to the Rural and Island Housing Action Plan, which affirms our programme for government commitment to taking forward work in 2024 to consider the justification for and practical operation of compulsory sales orders, and particularly in light of our commitment to reforming compulsory purchase orders. I thank the cabinet secretary for that answer. She'll no doubt be aware that there was a cross-party support, including from the Government-backed benches, on taking forward compulsory sale orders. I wonder whether the cabinet secretary can give a timeline for delivering those potential new powers so that councils have that ability to really address the blight that those empty homes have on rural communities. Mark Griffin raises an important point, and he's absolutely right that there is cross-party support for considering this as an issue. That's why we had the commitment within our programme for government this year to continue the work in relation to that. The issue with compulsory sales orders is that it is a complex matter, and I think that it's only right that we consider that alongside the view of compulsory purchase orders that's getting under way as well. As I've already said, the PFG commitment says that we will continue the work on that this year, but I will be keeping Parliament updated, happy to keep in touch with the member too as that work develops and progresses. Does the cabinet secretary agree that stifling of community progress by absentee landlords reveals just why that relationship between communities and the land must continue to be reformed? I agree, and I think that the member raises a really important point. Absentee landowners, who are often really difficult to trace, represent a real substantial barrier when it comes to supporting communities to thrive. We know, through all the community ownership that we've seen, that community-owned assets have a real positive impact, both in rural and urban communities, and that's why we are committed to strengthening that, encouraging that, and we are committed to continuing on our journey with land reform and to doing that on an on-going basis. We have taken great strides in relation to land reform since devolution, and this Government is committed to progressing further land reform legislation. We've already consulted on proposals, we've published the results of that consultation, and again we will be bringing forward that legislation to the Scottish Parliament. That concludes the portfolio questions on rural affairs, land reform and islands, and there will be a very short pause before we move on to the next portfolio to allow front-bench teams to change positions, should they so wish. Thank you. The next portfolio this afternoon is NHS recovery, health and social care. Again, if a member wishes to request a supplementary question, they should press the request of speak button during the relevant question, or enter the letters RTS in the chat function, if online. Question number one, I call Audrey Nicolle. Thank you, Presiding Officer. To ask the Scottish Government for an update as to how its winter preparedness plan will aim to reduce pressures on the Scottish health service. Winter plan jointly published with COSLA on 24 October sets out a whole system approach to respond to surges in demand for health and social care services and actions to relieve pressure points across the system. New funding measures include £50 million of a boost for the Scottish Ambulance Service, to assist with recruitment and up to £12 million to expand hospital at home. This expansion will enable more people to be treated at home rather than in hospital and will deliver at least 380 additional beds this winter, relieving pressure on NHS wards. I thank the cabinet secretary for his response. The additional funding set out in the plan for hospital at home is indeed very welcome and will no doubt reduce pressure on our A&E departments this winter. Can the cabinet secretary say any more about how the expansion of hospital at home will help people across Scotland, including my constituents this winter? The additional £12 million investment for this winter, which will provide for the expansion of hospital at home services, will assist constituents in the member's constituency and right across the country by providing additional capacity, particularly for a range of services, including children and people with respiratory conditions. That will help to support boards who are taking forward a range of initiatives to develop hospital at home within their respective areas in order to expand it over the course of this winter. The funding that we are making available to them will allow them to go ahead and to develop those services this month and into the winter months in order to provide greater capacity. It is supplementary from Sandesh Gohani, who is joining us online. Thank you, and it is a question of interest as a practicing NHS GP. Dr Donald MacAskill of Scottish Care says that the Scottish Government's winter plan is not worth the paper it is written on. To quote him further, it says nothing, it gives no hope, and Rachel Cackett of the Coalition of Care and Support agrees with him. We now have Reformed Scotland's recent report telling us that waiting times for head operations are soaring and the Chair of BMA Scotland commenting that we have a system bursting at the seams with a workforce running on empty. In light of all of this, how confident is the Cabinet Secretary that this winter patients are going to get the service they need and deserve and that you can maintain social care and that this will not be the worst winter on record again? There is a range of measures that we have taken forward with our winter plan. One, we started its development earlier this year and we have taken a partnership approach to its development. That is why it is a joint whole system approach with COSR to meet some of the pressures that we know and expect within our health and social care system going forward. We also engage with the social care sector in the development of the plan, and, of course, the additional investment of some £50 million in our ambulance service and the additional £12 million in expanding hospital at home are all part of the package of measures that we are putting in place to help to try to meet the demand that we will face over the course of the winter months. The Cabinet Secretary will have seen the troubling statistics yesterday that show increased waiting times in A&E, delayed discharge rates, which have sky-high and the level of cancelled operations up again. That is only autumn. Can the cabinet secretary tell us how much his plan will reduce A&E waiting times by over the winter period and will his plan also eradicate waits of over 12 hours? The plan, as Jackie Baillie will be aware, is to try to help to meet some of the challenges that we will face over the winter months. I have not heard from the fact that A&E performs is not where we would want it to be. A big part of that is because acute rates are greater and we have numbers of people who are staying in hospital for longer periods than previously was the case with hospital occupancy levels are a greater level. All of that will present challenges, which is why, very specifically, the interventions that we have with additional funding is to try to help to reduce and manage some of that demand over the course of the winter months. I cannot quantify exactly where it will help to improve it by because we do not know what the demand will be over the course of the winter and we do not know what the full pattern of demand will be over the course of the winter months because of the very nature of winter illnesses. What I can assure the member of is that we are determined to try to do everything that we can to support the system through what we know will be a very challenging period both at a health and social care level, which is why we have taken a whole systems approach in partnership with COS on its development. To ask the Scottish Government what its responses to the reported plan closure of Erskine Park home. Minister Marie Todd. Renfrewshire health and social care partnership and the care inspector are aware of the plan closure and they have met with the provider. We know that the national care home contract has been cited as the reason for this and we are sympathetic to the rising costs of specialist care, but we do understand that Erskine is offering all residents the opportunity to move to their veterans village that is very close by should they wish to do so. Regrettably there will be situations where the independent sector or local authority run care homes close is out with the remit of the Scottish Government to intervene. Our focus is on ensuring that local partners who are responsible do what is required to ensure transition to suitable alternative placements. Neil Bibby. I thank the minister for that answer. Erskine, the charity for veterans provides fantastic and specialist services to many older people in my region and this closure will clearly be disruptive to residents. If a charity such as Erskine is having to make such a difficult decision because of the challenging financial situation it and other independent care providers are in, can I ask the minister how the Scottish Government will ensure that there is adequate funding in place for the whole social care sector to ensure that staff are well paid, people are kept out of hospital and looked after so that they can receive the appropriate and quality care that they need. The member will welcome the fact that social care funding is increased by over 800 million compared to 2122. It is part of a record high health and social care budget of more than 19 billion. We have made a commitment to increase in this course of this Parliament the spending on social care by a quarter and we are ahead of trajectory on that. We continue to work with partners to address the pressures that they face and to take forward reform to deliver improved and sustainable services. On social care workers pay, those delivering direct care and commission services will see their pay increase to a minimum of £12 an hour from April next year, up from the £10.90 minimum rate introduced this year. The creation of a national care service will help to provide consistency in further improved pay and conditions, access to training and development and ensuring that a career in social care is attractive and rewarding. We are beginning to make those improvements now. To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what steps are being taken to increase recruitment and retention of staff in the Scottish Ambulance Service this winter. The Scottish Government has provided £50 million above baseline funding to support the Scottish Ambulance Service this year. This investment supports on-going work to recruit 317 front-line staff, helping to increase capacity to respond to emergencies. This includes 18 additional clinicians working in the integrated clinical hub who, through additional triage, can offer patients alternative treatment routes, reducing a number of hospital admissions. To support retention of staff, the Scottish Government invested £568 million in the NHS agenda for change 2324. Paydeal ensuring that NHS Scotland agenda for change staff remains the best paid in the UK. I thank the cabinet secretary for that answer. The £50 million in funding announced in October to support recruitment in the Scottish Ambulance Service is very welcome and will play an important role in ensuring that the service is prepared for the winter months ahead. Will the cabinet secretary join me in recognising the incredible efforts of our ambulance service, particularly during the busy winter period? Can he say any more about how this investment will help to support increased demand? I would join Jackie Dunbar and Payne tribute to the incredible work that is carried out by our ambulance staff throughout the course of the year, but particularly during the winter months when we see demand at its peak. The £50 million of funding that was announced last month will assist the Scottish Ambulance Service to further develop its demand and capacity work in order to help to continue to build on the additional staff in which they have been recruiting over the course of the last couple of years. As a result of our additional investment over the course of the last few years, they have been able to recruit 101,388 additional staff since 2020. I can also advise the member that the Scottish Ambulance Service is working to recruit staff within the ambulance control centres and clinicians to work within its integrated clinical hubs, which help to guide patients to the most appropriate community pathway where that is applicable. I need to move on to the supplementary question, which is from Tess White. Cabinet Secretary, the £50 million is welcome. However, a freedom of information request has revealed that more than 850,000 hours of overtime was worked by SAS staff between April 2022 and July 2023 at a cost of £24.4 million. Recruiting ambulance service staff takes time and onboarding them takes time. Can the cabinet secretary promise our overworked ambulance staff that they will receive better support this winter than they did last winter? That is why we are providing them with additional funding to recruit more staff and to provide additional clinical staff within the clinical hubs to support paramedics on the ground when they are dealing with patients. That is exactly what the purpose of the funding and additional staff capacity is for. To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to improve the detection and treatment of estimated 1.3 million people in Scotland living with high blood pressure. Our heart disease action plan and stroke improvement plan both include the aim of minimising preventable cardiovascular disease by improving detection, diagnosis and management of risk factor conditions such as hypertension or high blood pressure. The ConnectMe programme delivers a national pathway for high blood pressure diagnosis and management. The pathway is already used in every health board and by most GP practices in Scotland. Evaluation has shown its having a positive impact on reducing blood pressure. It has enabled more than 85,000 people in Scotland to remotely monitor their blood pressure, contributing to improved blood pressure control. Data from the Scottish Health Service suggests that only one quarter of the people with high blood pressure are treated to target. With high blood pressure being associated with around 50 per cent of heart attacks and strokes, will the minister commit to prioritising action of high blood pressure to reduce the burden of health health that it causes for people in Scotland? I recognise the importance of taking action to tackle risk factors such as high blood pressure in order to minimise preventable cardiovascular disease. That is why, as I said in my initial response, we have already prioritised that by including actions to improve the diagnosis and management of high blood pressure in both our heart disease action plan and stroke improvement plan. If I highlight, for example, in our heart disease action plan, it supports community models of detection. Although it is important to note that such efforts should be aligned with clear referral pathways for furlough investigation and clinical advice. To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the winter Covid-19 vaccination programme. The winter flu and Covid-19 vaccination programme began on 4 September and will run until 31 March, with the majority of vaccinations completed by 11 December to ensure maximum protection over the festive period. The midway point of the programme uptake is strong. As of 29 October, over 810,000 Covid-19 vaccines along with over 1.2 million flu vaccinations have been administered. Getting vaccinated is the safest and most effective way to protect yourself and the NHS this winter, so if you are eligible but yet to book an appointment, I would encourage you to do so. Liz Smith, I am asking the question, however, because I have had representations from quite a few constituents that they do not feel that the information provided about the time when they will be eligible for the vaccination is being sent to them. I wonder if you could have discussions with NHS Scotland just to ensure that that information is as clear as possible. Minister, I thank Liz Smith for that question and would agree that the information sent has to be absolutely clear. Yes, I am happy to speak to my officials about that. To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact of the Scottish mental health law review on the legal status of autistic people in relation to treatment and involuntary detention. The Scottish mental health law review recommended making changes to the mental health act, while retaining provisions and covering non-consensual care and treatment. As part of our mental health and capacity reform programme, we will work with partners to consider those proposals, and in particular the definition of mental disorder, to reach a position on who should be within the scope of the mental health act. That work will be undertaken alongside the development of a proposed learning disability autism and neurodivergence bill to enhance and protect the rights of people with learning disabilities, autistic people and neurodivergent people. The minister will be aware that the current definition of mental disorder, as outlined in the mental health care and treatment Scotland act 2003, incorporates autistic people, while the Scottish Government's commitment to work with partners on definitions in the space is welcome. The recommendations of the Scottish mental health law review of that autistic people continue to fall within the scope of the act is not. Given that autism is a lifelong neurodevelopmental difference, not a mental health condition, does the minister agree with me that autism must be removed from the scope of the act as part of the promised reforms, and will she commit to working with partners to deliver that much-needed change? The issue of the definition of mental disorder within the mental health care and treatment Scotland act 2003 is complex and sensitive. I absolutely recognise the concerns of many people with a learning disability, autistic people and organisations who advocate for or on behalf of them. I can confirm that scoping work has already started within the mental health and capacity reform programme to consider the issue, including plans to engage with stakeholders. It is too early at this stage in the programme to establish whether autism should remain in scope of the definition. There is significant work needed to inform that position. What assessment is made of the ability of children living in temporary accommodation to access health services, in particular in relation to current levels of treatment for mental health services? Everyone should receive the best possible care and treatment from our health services, including mental health services, regardless of whether they are living in temporary accommodation. Children living in temporary accommodation can access local GP and mental health services, including CAMHS referrals if appropriate. CAMHS is available for all children and young people who meet the agreed referral criteria in Scotland. For others, community-based mental health support might be the most appropriate form of support. We are providing local authorities with £15 million per year to fund community-based mental health support and services for children and young people. The figures show a total of 2,265 children living in temporary accommodation here in the capital. It is little wonder that Edinburgh City Council last week declared a housing emergency. I have been supporting and working with a number of families living in temporary accommodation who have been unable to register with GPs here in the capital, with many GPs operating closed lists and therefore telling families to go to accident and emergency to access health services. What review has been undertaken to look at children living in temporary accommodation and what health services are available to them? If not, will ministers agree to urgently undertake this review? I am not aware of a review that has been done in my area of portfolio on mental health. I assure you that children are able to access CAMHS even when they are staying in temporary accommodation. There are statutory obligations on local authorities to assess the needs of the household, not particularly the needs of the children but to assess the needs of the household. That does encompass assessing their health needs. If there is difficulty in registering with the GPs, as Miles Briggs narrates, the health board has a role in ensuring that everybody can access general practice services. Should he have examples where that has not been the case, I will be more than happy to take that up with him outside of the chamber if the member were just happily right to me and furnished me with the details. An important strand of ensuring accessible mental health services to young people is through a high standard of community-based mental health support that the minister referenced earlier. Will the minister provide an update on the steps that are being taken by the Scottish Government to support community-based mental health? The £15 million annual funding that I previously referred to has enabled local authorities to put in place more than 300 community services across the country for children, young people and their families. Local authorities report that more than 45,000 people accessed those supports in the second half of 2022. The services are focused on prevention and early intervention and include supports for positive mental health and wellbeing, as well as emotional distress. Our easy accessibility is an absolutely core principle of the community services, and many of the supports are accessed through self-refero. Members across the chamber will be familiar with young people who have struggled to access mental health support. The Government made a commitment that 10 per cent of NHS expenditure would be dedicated to mental health, yet it is a target that has still not been met. In fact, it is currently £180 million adrift in cash terms. How can the minister justify that and ensure that people can access mental health services when they are so far off the target? Of course, the focus of the question is those children living in temporary accommodation. Absolutely. I am happy to take the question. We have made a commitment in that term of Parliament to ensure that 10 per cent of the entirety of the health budget is spent on mental health and 1 per cent of that on CAMHS. What we have seen from this Government is that, while there are real challenges undoubtedly remaining, we are seeing really positive signs of improvement in CAMHS. The waiting list for first-time appointments has been reduced by almost a third in the last year. Children waiting over 18 weeks has decreased by two thirds in the same period. The national performance against the 18-week CAMHS standard is the third highest achieved since the quarter ending in June 2017. Of course, the medium wait time for CAMHS services is 11 weeks. That means that way more than half of the children who are referred for CAMHS appointments see their CAMHS specialist within the 18-week target. To ask the Scottish Government what progress it has made on eliminating long waiting times for NHS patients. We are working closer with NHS boards to reduce long waits and to deliver on a commitment in our £1 billion NHS recovery plan to increase inpatient, daycase and outpatient activity. In each of the next three years, we plan to provide NHS boards with £100 million to help to reduce inpatient and daycare case waiting lists by an estimated at 100,000 patients and deliver year-on-year reductions. We will work closely with NHS boards and stakeholders on a number of key actions that will see patients treated as quickly as possible. 2023 is also a milestone year for the NTC programme, with NTC Fife and Highland opening in the spring and NTC Four Valley, and the completed extension of NHS Golden Jubilee will open later this winter. Alexander Burnett. Patients are waiting years for NHS treatment, including one in NHS Grampian waiting six years for surgery. Another constituent who was hospitalised with gallstones in March 2020 is still waiting for a gallbladder removal. He is in significant pain, suffering regular attacks resulting in hospitalisation and vomiting for up to 12 hours at a time. He also has had to take off significant time off work, causing financial difficulty for family. That backlog is having devastating impacts on people across Scotland. In addition to what the cabinet secretary said, what concrete plans does the Scottish Government have to ensure that health boards are able to reduce waiting lists and my constituent will receive his operation? I recognise the concern that the member raised on behalf of his constituent. I deeply regret someone having to wait an extended period of time for the treatment that they clearly require. Obviously, the decision in terms of priorities is a clinical decision, but the member will recognise that a significant backlog of elective work has developed as a result of the pandemic, not just here in NHS Scotland but across the UK and globally. We can see the impact that that has had on healthcare systems. In the member's challenge to me about what specific action are we taking to address it, as I outlined, we are investing an additional £100 million over the course of the next three years in order to make sure that we see sustained reductions in waiting lists across all speciality areas. That is a funding priority that we have made because we want to make sure that we see waiting times reducing for individuals such as his constituent. That investment over the course of the next three years will allow us to treat an extra 100,000 people through the NHS. I have received requests for three supplementaries, and if we have brief questions and answers, I can squeeze all three in supplementary, Ivan McKee. The role of technology has a key role to play in increasing capacity to clear NHS waiting lists. How many NHS operations were carried out last year? How many of those were carried out using robotic surgery? And how the Scottish Government plans to increase that number? We have provided in the region of £20 million to support the introduction of robots, and we now have 16 in operation across NHS Scotland. Last year, there were 230,000 NHS operations, which is data provided by Public Health Scotland. Of those, some 3,180 of those procedures were undertaken by robot assisted surgery. We also have 90 trained surgeons and a variety of different techniques operating across the system to help to make sure that we maximise the potential benefits in terms of clinical outcomes for patients from new technologies such as robot assisted surgery. For children waiting on lists for clinical operations, waiting months can feel like years. So what is the Scottish Government doing to reduce child waiting lists? I recognise that a wait for anyone for an extended period of time is not acceptable, which is why we are investing an additional £100 million in each of the next three years to see sustained reductions in waiting lists across all specialities. That includes where it is children who are waiting for procedures. That allows us to increase the number of procedures by 100,000, and it will see sustained reductions in waiting times where across all the different speciality groups. Regist access to community health facilities and increased pressure and workload placed on community with midwifery teams has led to me being advised in terms of in-person appointments, and I quote that many women do not meet their named midwife until 22 weeks of pregnancy in Ayrshire and Arran. That wait is far too long and is of significant concern. Can the cabinet secretary outline how the Government is working with health boards to eliminate long waits for pregnant women looking to meet in person with their named midwife? Can he advise if the Government has explored asking health boards to formally record the length of those waits per case? I do not want to see expected mothers waiting unduly long periods of time to meet their named midwife. If there are specific issues within Ayrshire and Arran, I am more than happy if the member wants to be provided with the details of that to look into the matter and to try to identify where actions can be taken to address the very concerns that the member has raised. In fact, I have a late entrance here, a supplementary from Craigworth. Thank you, Deputy Presiding Officer. In September, only six in 10 A&E patients in NHS Lothian were seen within four hours. What does the cabinet secretary have to say to those four in 10 patients often waiting in pain for many hours or more than a day? Surely it has to be more than sorry. It is more than sorry and it is the actions that we are taking to try to help to address those issues. As I mentioned earlier on, I am sure that I was here for the earlier part of portfolio questions about expanding hospital at home with an extra £12 million being invested in that, which is on top of the £3.6 million that we announced earlier this year to see an even more rapid expansion of the service and providing an extra £50 million to our ambulance service to increase their capacity to see and treat as part of our winter resilience programme. That concludes portfolio questions on NHS recovery, health and social care. There will be a short pause before we move on to the next item of business to allow front bench teams to change positions, should they wish.