 Good afternoon. Today's first item of business is the portfolio questions, and we start with question one on Mary Evans. To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what is being done to tackle mental health stigma and discrimination in the workplace. Minister, Maureen Watt. The Scottish Government provides one million per year, along with half a million from comic relief, to fund SE's Scotland. It will be a national programme to end stigma ac discrimination that can be associated with mental illness. CME delivers a CME in work programme to support and enable employers in Scotland to create a mental health friendly workplace where staff feel safe and able to talk openly about mental health and support employees experiencing mental health issues to access their rights. The Scottish Government also provides funding to NHS Health Scotland to provide programmes specifically targeted at workplace settings, including healthy working lives and work positive. Workplaces sign up to those programmes. Between April 2016 and November 2016, mentally health workplace, one day courses were delivered to 418 people and 221 businesses. Between April and November 2016, 7,921 people have accessed this online resource. This was the first year that this online course has been actively promoted to employers. There has been mentally health workplace training for trainers courses to 34 trainers and 16 businesses, which qualify those attending to deliver the mental health at work course at local or business level. Work positive courses were delivered to 113 people, 80 businesses, to allow them to use the work positive resource in their businesses and identify the work related issues that are causing stress to staff. Mary Evans? I thank the minister for that response and I asked that question because I have had a number of cases recently where people who are taking antidepressants, for example, have either been prevented from entering into other sectors of employment or progressing in their own careers. I think that that is a very important issue. Further to that, a study by the Mental Health Foundation last year found that one in six adults had reported symptoms of a mental health condition in the period from 2012 to 2015. Further to that, 20 per cent of adults reported symptoms of depression in 2014 and 2015. Statistics in that report also show a link between deprivation and depression. While the statistics are alarmingly high, what can be done to encourage those who are afraid by the perceived stigma attached to mental health issues to speak up and to seek health? I would say to Mary Evans and to anyone in the chamber that we should all encourage people to talk openly about how they are feeling and to any person who is experiencing depression or any other mental health problem to come forward and seek support, for example, from their GP. GP's are well placed to advise and guide patients regarding appropriate treatment or management of symptoms. Out of our support is also available from NHS 24 through breathing space or from the Samaritans. Regarding stigma associated with mental health, as I said in my first answer, we fund the CME programme. We are already seeing the benefit of tackling stigma and discrimination with record numbers of people coming forward for support. There are other awareness raising actions that we have taken to break down stigma, but our new mental health strategy will include ways in which we can further have parity, esteem and continue to reduce stigma. The minister will know that Scottish Conservatives have been urging more businesses to introduce workplace mental health champions. Is this something that the Scottish Government will look to take forward in the new mental health strategy? Can the minister confirm to Parliament when that new mental health strategy will be published? To answer Miles Briggs's second question first, the mental health strategy will be published in the coming weeks in terms of working with businesses. I am engaged with businesses. I think that in the coming weeks I have got an event out at Gougarburn with RBS, and I am sure that a number of businesses, not just RBS, will be at that event. I am looking forward to engage further with businesses and workplaces as the mental health strategy is published and taken forward. To ask the Scottish Government what action is being taken to ensure that social prescribing enables GP practices to refer obese patients and people with type 2 diabetes and other medical conditions to third sector support services. The Scottish Government funds a list programme through the Health and Social Care Alliance Scotland. The online service enables GP practices to connect people to sources of support in the community across the full range of health and care services, including support services for diabetes and weight management. We also fund the linked worker programme, which is on the front line of the battle against health inequalities. The programme provides a dedicated individual working in GP surgeries to provide one-to-one support to people to address issues such as poverty, debt and isolation, which are making them unwell. Over the next five years, we will increase the number of linked workers in disadvantaged areas to 250. I thank the cabinet secretary for her answer. She will be aware that organisations such as Jog Scotland are being used by GPs to help our most vulnerable patients. So how does she feel that those third sector organisations can continue to operate when they are having their budgets slashed by the Scottish Government? The member will be aware that, through the funding from the Scottish Government through organisations such as Sport Scotland, a number of organisations are funded to ensure that their social needs and their needs in terms of physical activity and sport are taken forward. Obviously, in the difficult financial climate, difficult decisions are being made around the funding to particular organisations. However, those discussions will continue to make sure that there is a broad range of organisations out there that people can be referred to. I think that where there is scope for improvement is for third sector organisations to come together with community health organisations to have a multidisciplinary team approach. It is not just about health professionals, but about third sector organisations, whether they are sporting organisations or any others, that have the ability to offer something to patients who come through the door. The signposting and the coquiesiveness of that is improved so that patients coming through the door of community health services can be posted to the right organisation, whatever that organisation is. Can I ask the Scottish Government what treatment and support is available to chronic pain patients in the NHS Grampian area? It is the role of the Scottish Government to provide policies, frameworks and the resources to NHS boards so that they can deliver services that meet the needs of their local populations. In that context, it is a matter for NHS Grampian to plan, budget for and deliver the services that are required to meet the assessed needs of its resident population, including chronic pain patients. In NHS Grampian, we are seeing improvement in patient way in times with patients across the region receiving treatment at a pain clinic within 18 weeks, rising from 68 per cent in September to nearly 77 per cent in the most recently published figures. We will continue to support all boards as they continue to work to improve pain services. Richard Lochhead I thank the minister for her answer. I am sure that, like me, she cannot begin to imagine what it is like to suffer from chronic pain, but there has been some good news that she may be aware of that a pain clinic was recently reinstated at Dr Grace hospital in Elgin in my constituency during no small part to the patients group that was set up a couple of years ago, AFACER, aptly named, which has been a very effective group for patients in Murray and beyond. However, unfortunately, it is still the case that many chronic patients, pain patients, are unable to have procedures at Dr Grace, such as pain relieving injections or other treatments, and they have to travel to Aberdeen, which, with that particular condition, the minister will be aware is particularly problematic and inconvenient. Would the minister be willing to look at this issue to ensure that the chronic pain patients in Murray have access to the treatment that they need, hopefully closer to their own doorstep at Dr Grace, and we should accept an invitation to come and meet the AFACER group in Murray at some point in the near future? I thank the member for raising this issue. My officials have made an offer to meet AFACER in the first instance to be clear on the issues and concerns that they have, and while I do not think that that offer has yet been taken up, I too am happy to meet the group. I will also instruct my officials to fully look at the issues that the member raises, because while the ISD figures are encouraging and show that there has been improvement around waiting times, Richard Lochhead is absolutely right to raise these local concerns, and my officials, along with the group, to work together to identify where further improvement can be made. I am happy to engage with the member on the issue and to keep an eye on progress. There are challenges with chronic pain patients, not just in Grampian, but across the whole of Scotland. NHS Grampian is one of six health boards that is failing to meet the 18-week referral to treatment time. Last year alone, 3,227 patients failed to meet the basic standard, half of whom came from Glasgow, despite the Government's decision to close the ICC in Glasgow. How can this be an acceptable situation for any patient in a chronic pain situation? What specific action will the minister be taking? I note that the cabinet secretary says that it is misleading. I can reassure that the only misleading happening is from the cabinet secretary herself. I think that we need to correct a number of inaccurate assertions that are made by Anna Sarworth. The centre is not closed at all. In fact, facilities and therapies are still being provided by the Centre for Integrative Care, which are all delivered during usual business hours. He said that I understand that what he said or what he tried to imply was that the centre was closed, and that is not accurate. I am just for the record, making sure that the rest of the chamber absolutely understands that. We are the only part of the UK to routinely publish waiting times data on chronic pain. Although there is always need to be complacent on that, there has been improvement made. I set out where improvement has been made in NHS Grampian. There is also national improvement as well. We have given 100,000 to the university of Dundee to look to capture the data better, so that we can make sure that that story is full. We understand where we can make further improvement. The Deputy Chief Medical Officer will also be overseeing and monitoring waiting times to make sure that we can provide that much needed help to people who are suffering from chronic pain, recognising the real stress and strain that that puts on their lives. I hope that that gives reassurance to Anna Sarworth, who seems to be a wee bit unaware of some of the facts. To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what action it is taking to ensure that physical activity and sport are available to all irrespective of background or personal circumstance. The Scottish Government is committed to increasing rates of physical activity. The Active Scotland Outcomes Framework sets out our ambitions for a more active Scotland and is underpinned by a commitment to equality. For example, there are now better and more opportunities for people of all ages and abilities to participate in sport and physical activity right across Scotland with 157 community sports hubs up and running, increasing to 200 by 2020. Over the past year, Sport Scotland has worked with five local authority partners to provide additional support to identify hubs within the bottom 5 per cent of the Scottish index of multiple deprivation areas. Sport Scotland plans to expand the support to eight partners. Brian Whittle I thank the minister for that answer. The minister and our Government talk about their desire to close the health inequality gap and focus on preventable health, yet it is by their actions that they should be judged. Jog Scotland, free to participate for all, 40,000 people per week and growing, 80 per cent of the women, 70 per cent of whom were previously inactive, has now had its funding withdrawn by this Government. Then we find out that it is deemed so important to the prevention and treatment of mental health issues that Sam H is prepared to pick up some of the tab to keep it going. They understand that it is far more effective, both treatment-wise and cost-wise, to engage sufferers and potential sufferers in this way. If a mental health charity recognises the importance of this approach to the prevention agenda, why is it the minister and her Government refuse to learn this lesson? Sport Scotland has provided Scottish athletics with a win-off payment of £65,000 to help Jog Scotland. I hope that the member recognises that. We will continue to look to see where we can further enhance the offer around the country to ensure that more people become more active. Brian Whittle has come repeatedly to the chamber weekly and is critical of this Government holding us to account. That is the right thing to do and that is part of the normal democratic process. However, when he comes repeatedly to this Parliament representing the Tories and asking us to do more to help with equality and to help the vulnerable, I think that sometimes it always sounds a wee bit hollow, because it is this Government that is having to also—it is this Government that continues to have to mitigate and soften the blows brought about by his Government—their approach to austerity, their approach to welfare reform—and on top of that, we have as a Government—so on top of all that work that we have had to do to mitigate the welfare reforms, the austerity measures that his Government continually do to punish the most vulnerable in our country. On top of all that spending, this Government since 2009 has invested over £800 million in sport and activity, so we will continue to work hard and work on our record of providing opportunity to increase and encourage activity for everybody across the country, and we will take absolutely no lessons from the Tories on this. As to the Scottish Government, what progress has been made on the implementation of the SNP manifesto commitment to a network of regional sports centres? I thank the member for the question. I do appreciate the question that Ivan McKee has raised, because he is absolutely right to raise our SNP commitment to a network of regional sports centres. It is important to recognise that sports facilities right across this country have the best that they have ever been due to the collaborative approach that they have taken right across the whole sporting system. I hear a lot of the members trying to heckle me while I am speaking, but it would be appropriate for them to listen to the answer to some of the points that I am trying to make. Sports Scotland will be committed to working with its partners in developing a network of national and regional facilities where people can get involved in sport, whether that is in school, in education, club or community, or performance environments. We have already seen the Oriam, the national performance centre for sport, which opened its doors in August last year. The national para sport centre will be opening shortly, and the new national curling academy at the peak in Stirling is well under way and due for completion later on this year. I hope that that gives a bit more of a flavour about the continued effort to ensure that our facilities in Scotland continue to be among the best. 5. Jamie Greene To ask the Scottish Government what its responses to the recent Samaritans report which recorded a disparity in suicide rates across all local authorities. Presiding Officer, any death by suicide is a tragedy. Sadly, the link between deprivation and risk of suicide is well known, as is the variability of suicide rates from one locality to another. We will take the report's recommendations into account, including placing emphasis on inequalities as we develop a new suicide prevention strategy for publication early next year. In Scotland, although suicide rates are higher than average in the most deprived areas, it is important to recognise that this inequality gap has narrowed over the past decade. Scotland's overall suicide rate has fallen by 18 per cent over the last decade or so, and the number of deaths by suicide in 2015 was the lowest in a single year since 1974. From our discussions with a range of stakeholders, including Samaritans, it is clear that there is a perceived need to refresh and invigorate local suicide prevention action. That will vary from area to area depending on local circumstances and local needs. That is something to which we will pay particular attention in the development of a new suicide prevention strategy. The Samaritans report highlighted that a person living in a deprived area was three times more likely to commit suicide than someone living in an affluent area. In my region, Inverclyde has the highest rate of suicides in any local authority in Scotland, but the causes and reasons for suicide are varied. For example, figures that were released by the Thai campaign last year showed that a quarter of our LGBTI community had attempted suicide at least once, a statistic that shocks and deeply saddens me. What actions will action take to better identify and improve outreach with people in high-risk areas but also in high-risk categories? I thank Jamie Greene for his question. He raises a very important part that a suicide prevention strategy should take into account all those different activities and the different problems in each and every area, not just in terms of the area but also in terms of local groups, including the LGBTI community, in which we know suffer from particular mental health problems, an issue that will be addressed in the mental health strategy but will also be taken forward in the suicide prevention strategy. The minister will know that I raised this report with the Deputy First Minister during First Minister's questions last week, and I am grateful that my suggestion of an evaluation of the previous strategy will be considered. I look forward to a further reply from the minister in due course on that. The Samaritans report also stresses that cross-governmental, cross-department co-operation is required in approaches to suicide prevention, and that development of all welfare housing and employment policies should include an evaluation of potential unintended impacts on mental health and suicidal behaviour. Is that something that the minister will consider in the next suicide prevention strategy? What assurances can she give that her office is working in co-ordination with other Government departments to tackle and prevent mental health challenges? I can assure the member that this Government works across portfolios on all aspects of Government. I am very well aware that in terms of improving the health and the mental health of the nation, it is not just down to the minister for mental health or my colleagues in the health portfolio, but obviously in terms of housing and communities ministers and education and many others, including the environment, for example. We are all in this together. To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to encourage more women to regularly participate in sport. The Scottish Government is committed to increasing rates of physical activity for everyone in Scotland and our ambitions for a more active Scotland are underpinned by a commitment to equality. My strategic guidance letter to Sport Scotland emphasises the importance the Scottish Government attaches to equalities and our programme for government included a number of commitments that are being taken forward. Those include a £300,000 supporting equality fund, aimed at increasing the number of women and girls participating in sport in Scotland, of which details will be announced shortly. The Scottish Government bodies of sport are doing good work on the equality standard for sport, cricket, snow sport and karate are excellent case studies of governing bodies taking steps to increase diversity on their boards, create increased opportunities for participation for women and support for coaches and role models. I am delighted that Sport Scotland is the latest public body to achieve gender equality on its board following the appointment of five new members last month. Jeremy Balfour I am sure that the minister will be aware of the findings of a survey carried out by the Health and Sport Committee as part of its inquiry, which is a sport for everyone. It shows that non-participation in regular sport and physical activity is higher among females than males across all-age categories. I therefore urge the minister to focus on barriers to sport in participation uncovered in the survey, including caring for women and family commitments, feeling of self-consciousness and negative experiences at PE at school. What considerations will she give to how more women can get involved regularly in sport? Jeremy Balfour is absolutely right to raise the issue. It is one of the issues and areas that continue to be a challenge about how we get women and girls more active, and non-participation, as he rightly points out, is higher among those cohorts. He is right to point out the potential barriers that we need to work hard to try to pick and understand and to overcome. Sport Scotland has identified equalities and inclusion as a key priority in its corporate plan. Our programme for government commitment is also establishing a quality and sport and physical activity forum to take forward the recommendations on broader equality issues in the equality and sport research. He is right to raise the issue and to continue to put pressure on it. That is why my strategic guidance letter also emphasises the importance that we attach to our qualities. Can the minister tell the chamber what an impact she anticipates, particularly in women's sporting participation, and not least in para-sports participation? From the £12 million that is invested in the unique new state of the art sports facilities, Sport Scotland's national centre, which we both recently visited. The national centre will be the first for Scotland and across the UK. We should all feel very proud about it. It was good to get an opportunity to visit, along with the constituency member in Largs, and to see how much attention to detail has been placed on ensuring that that can be a facility for absolutely everybody, regardless of their physical abilities. We should feel very proud that it will be opening soon, and I hope that it will increase activity for disabled people who have an interest in sport and activity. It is also very much determined to be a community asset and a community resource and to provide opportunity for girls, boys, men and women, young and old, across North Ayrshire and beyond. 7. Ruth Maguire To ask the Scottish Government when it last met NHS Ayrshire and Arran and what issues were discussed. Ministers and Scottish Government officials regularly meet with representatives of all health boards, including NHS Ayrshire and Arran, to discuss matters of importance to local people. I thank the cabinet secretary for that answer. Since the publication of the Scottish Government's national drug strategy, The Road to Recovery, in 2008, the Government has taken a strongly recovery-focused approach to the problematic drug and alcohol use. In my constituency, the North Ayrshire alcohol and drug partnership has cemented its reputation as a leader when it comes to recovery with countless local successes, including Caffe Solis and the Funky Films project. I welcome the Scottish Government's new partnership for action on drugs in Scotland, launched in January of this year. One of those top three priorities was listed as building communities focused on recovery and tackling stigma. Could the cabinet secretary provide an update on the work of the partnership, in particular the development of the priorities and work plan through the themed groups? I can tell the member that good progress is being made by the partnership for action on drugs in Scotland pads and its subgroups in tackling problem drug use through reducing harm, embedding quality and consistent services, and developing recovery-centred communities. The Minister for Public Health and Sport attended the pads meeting on 8 March, which focused on two of its priorities, the Harry Burns review and children affected by parental substance misuse. The Scottish Recovery Consortium, funded by the Scottish Government, is working alongside pads to ensure recovery and lived experiences at the heart of its work. North Ayrshire is a leading ADP that continues to exceed the national LDP waiting-time target and has implemented a number of recovery-focused initiatives, including two recovery community cafes, with a third site due to open shortly, and nine smart recovery meetings embedded across North Ayrshire. I pay tribute to the work that they are doing. Colin Smyth Thank you, Presiding Officer. In November last year, the cabinet secretary promised the parents of six babies who tragically died at Crosshouse Hospital in Ayrshire from 2008 and whose deaths were deemed unnecessary. They would be a full official review into their children's deaths. Given that promise, can the cabinet secretary explain why five out of six of those families have discovered that the review by Health Improvement Scotland will not look at their children's cases in detail as their deaths occurred before the end of 2013? Will the cabinet secretary intervene in this matter and ensure that the cases of all six families, including those babies who died between 2008 and the end of 2013, will be given the same full and official review that they were promised and deserve? Colin Smyth That is an important matter. I should also say that his review is independent. His have said that they have met all the families who wanted to be involved, but the member draws attention to the December 2013 date, which, of course, was put in place by his because of the terms of reference for the review, which was to focus on whether Ayrshire and Arran had adhered to the national framework in dealing with significant adverse event reports, given the previous review that looked into cases prior to December 2013. That was the rationale for December 2013 and looking at cases beyond that date, because those cases before that date had already been looked into through the previous review. However, what is important is in taking forward the review that his families are able to have further engagement with the families, and I encourage them to do so to try to address their concerns. However, we must not lose sight of the review that was established for a specific reason. That was to look at whether Ayrshire and Arran had adhered to the national guidance in dealing with significant adverse event reports since the previous review. However, I have encouraged his to have further engagement with the families to, hopefully, address some of their concerns. To ask the Scottish Government what support is in place to assist people who have had a stroke with their recovery and in becoming as independent as possible. Stroke remains a clinical priority for the NHS in Scotland and the Scottish Government. The Scottish Government recognises the importance of recovery from stroke. The Scottish Government's stroke improvement plan, which was published in August 2014, includes priorities in supporting self-management and rehabilitation. It is up to individual NHS boards to deliver the level of stroke services that are required in the area, depending on local and individual needs. Boards are responsible for delivering stroke care services via their stroke managed clinical networks. The Scottish stroke improvement team supports managed clinical networks to implement local action plans to improve the delivery of stroke care stroke across Scotland. Charity, chest, heart and stroke Scotland have raised concerns that NHS provision of rehabilitation for people recovering from strokes and a long-term condition often end far too soon. Returning home, people are left without vital, on-going support. What will the Scottish Government do to ensure that across Scotland there is a consistent pathway of rehabilitation available from the NHS through to community support? We are seeing improvements across the country, but we are always taking licence where people and organisations and groups have concerns. We have started to collect data on rehabilitation. From November 2015 to January 2016, a rehabilitation sprint audit was conducted and a second pilot is planned for Monday 23 January to Sunday 2 April 2017. There is on-going analysis and data capture to see where we can make improvements. That is also related to ensuring that we have the full integration of health and social care to ensure that the right care packages are in place to ensure that people who have suffered a stroke can get the right help that they can need in the right way at the right time. To ask the Scottish Government how the NHS tackles health issues resulting from cold homes and fuel poverty. Cabinet secretary. We know that health inequality is closely linked to income inequality, and that is why the Scottish Government is committed to tackling poverty, including fuel poverty, as a priority. We recently published a fairer Scotland action plan that sets out 50 concrete actions that will take over the course of this Parliament to tackle inequality, such as developing referral pathways between NHS services and local services to maximise the income of patients, tackling the poverty premium and delivering at least 50,000 affordable homes over the parliamentary term. We have allocated more than £650 million to tackle fuel poverty since 2009, and, as was announced in the programme for government, we will make available £0.5 billion over the next four years, meaning that more than £1 billion will be committed by 2021 to tackle fuel poverty and improve energy efficiency. Pauline McNeill The minister will be aware that world health organisations say that 30 per cent of excess winter deaths are caused by cold homes and that a preventative approach could save £80 million for the national health service. The national institute of clinical excellence and homes alliance Scotland have recently recommended that the energy performance of properties, where there are fuel-poor households, be improved to a minimal acceptable standard of EPC band C rating, but ideally band B rating. Does the Scottish Government support bringing all properties into band C by 2025? Will the minister appreciate that this is a matter that goes beyond her portfolio? Will the minister give a commitment to agree to discuss targeting the poorest households to ensure that they reach the rating of EPC, which will prevent them from living in a cold home, to eradicate the scourge of living in a cold home? I will certainly get the cabinet secretary to write to Pauline McNeill with some of the specifics that she raises, because she is slightly out with my portfolio, but nonetheless very important issues. What I can say to her, and I shall be well aware of this, is that we are consulting on a new long-term fuel poverty strategy, including proposals for a new overarching target in autumn 2017, and that is going to feed into the development of a new warm homes bill that we plan to introduce in 2018. I suspect that that will be a further opportunity for Pauline McNeill to raise some of those issues and proposals around the targeting that she has raised here today. However, what I will ensure is that a more detailed response is sent to Pauline McNeill in due course. Shelter Scotland estimates that one in 10 households in Scotland are affected by dampness or condensation, which the existing homes alliance says can aggravate conditions such as heart disease, strokes and flu, and increase the risk of mental health problems. What action is the Scottish Government taking to ensure fewer homes are affected by conditions such as dampness or condensation? Further to what I said to Pauline McNeill, as recommended by the Scottish Fuel Poverty Strategic Working Group, we have established an independent panel of experts to review the definition of fuel poverty. The review due to be completed late summer will look at whether changes are needed to help us to better target our efforts to eradicate fuel poverty in the forthcoming warm homes bill. I am sure that the issues that the Dorough Cameron raises will be able to be explored in tackling dampness and other issues. However, I have to take the opportunity to remind the member that some of the reasons that people struggle with their household bills—I am paying some of their household bills—is due to the welfare reforms. The Tories might not like to hear the truth, but if you cut people's household budgets through welfare reforms and cuts to tax credits so that people who are in work are poorer, it is hardly rocket science to establish that they are going to struggle to pay their fuel bills. The Tories can give up all they like, but there is a direct correlation between welfare reform and people's ability to pay their bills and, therefore, the consequences of fuel poverty. We can shake your head all you like. Everybody else knows that to be the truth. Presiding Officer, to ask the Scottish Government whether NHS Ayrshire and Arran is reported under recruitment of 30 consultants will adversely affect on its ability to safely operate the combined assessment unit at Ayr hospital when it opens in May 2017. NHS boards across Scotland, including NHS Ayrshire and Arran, have a statutory responsibility to carry out workforce planning and must make every effort to fill existing gaps to ensure that services continue to be delivered safely. The Scottish Government works closely with boards to give them the tools that they need to improve workforce planning. Under this Government, the number of consultants in NHS Ayrshire and Arran has increased by 62 per cent to more than 290 whole-time equivalent. Additionally, in spring of this year, we will publish our national and regional workforce plan, which will improve workforce planning practice to make it clearer what should be planned at a national, regional and local level. I thank the cabinet secretary for her answer, but she will be aware that the welcome opening of the new combined assessment unit will, in all probability, result in increased admissions to Ayr hospital. If experience elsewhere is a guide, how does she envisage such an additional workload being dealt with by already overstretched staff at Ayr hospital specifically and NHS Ayrshire and Arran generally when waiting times for first appointments for many disciplines are already among the longest in Scotland? I know that John Scott has raised those issues before, and quite rightly so. It is important that the Scottish Government supports boards like Ayrshire and Arran to ensure that they have the correct staff in place to deliver the services that local people need. As I said, there has been an increase in the number of consultants and indeed other staff, but we know that demand has also grown. What is important in workforce planning, whether it is for the combined assessment unit or the rest of Ayrshire and Arran's services, is that they get the right configuration of staff. We will continue to support Ayrshire and Arran to recruit. There are some opportunities with looking at the recruitment of clinicians to network positions, for example, where clinicians are really hard to recruit and are specialist in nature and are able to be recruited to work across more than one site, because it makes those posts more attractive. I am happy to continue to talk to John Scott about those matters, as we take that forward. If he wants a meeting to discuss in more detail, I will be happy to provide that. To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to claims that return patients who require regular treatment are not counted in chronic pain waiting times and what action it is taking to address the reported excessive delays that some face before receiving treatment. Scotland is the only nation in the UK to routinely publish the chronic pain waiting times. That is a clear sign of this Government's commitment to making improvements for people living with chronic pain. Chronic pain waiting times data, published on 14 March by NHS information service division, showed an improvement in the number of patients seen within 18 weeks, rising from 60.4 per cent to 64.5 per cent during the last quarter ending December 2016. I recognise, however, that there is more progress to be made and this Government will continue to support NHS boards to ensure that chronic pain patients get swift access to the care that they need. With regard to return patients, such appointments will always be subject to individual clinical assessment. I thank the minister for that response. However, she did not answer my specific question about return patients not being recorded. She will be aware of reports last week that thousands of chronic pain patients are suffering in what has been described as a hidden national scandal. It would seem that the new chronic pain patients are given priority in a bid to meet the Scottish Government's target of 18 weeks referral to first treatment, but return patients needing regular treatment are not counted. Will she consider including that in future reports? One return patient who has commented on this is Chris Bridgeford, a pain sufferer from forests who founded the Murray-based aphephair group, which was mentioned earlier. He has quoted as saying, we have people despairing of their lives due to the huge delays in treatment. What more can be done to ensure chronic pain patients who require regular treatment in Murray and across Scotland get this treatment when and where they need it? Given the minister's earlier answer about meeting with aphephair, could she include all MSPs who cover the Murray area in that meeting so that we can continue with the cross-party work that has been so successful locally? In a previous answer, I set out how there had been clear improvements across NHS Grampian, and that is because we have chosen to be the only country in the UK to publish those waiting times. That indicates that there is a clear commitment there. Of course, there are other ways that we need to make sure that we fully understand the picture, which is why I mentioned in my response to Richard Lochhead that we have given 100,000 to the University of Dundee to look at how we can better capture the data and drive forward improvement. That is why the Deputy Chief Medical Officer will also be overseeing and monitoring waiting times and making sure that we get a very full picture about how we can help better people suffering from chronic pain. I said that I would meet aphephair, but my officials have instructed them to meet them first, and to do some work to look at the situation in Grampian. We will be sure to make sure that the member gets an update on that.