 Felly gyd, rydw i'w gael eu ffiterwyddr o gael eu gael eu gael iawn o'r wych yn ei gwyllideg, ond i'w gael i'w gael ei gael eu gael eich sylwyd i'w pethon o'ch cyffrand â'i drafodaeth a'u cyffrand o'r wych yn ymateb yn ddefnyddir yng Nghymru neu Llywodraeth Llywodraeth escwylentio ar gyfer 2023. Aelian Martin will open the debate for around about 7 minutes. It is my great pleasure to open the Members' debate on Marey Cammurri and the Great Daffodil to recognise the work that Mareku-Rae does and give her support throughout Scotland and the work that it does for our constituents. Thank you to everyone who is speaking today and to the people from Mareku-Rae and beyond who are going to be joining us in the public gallery today. On Tuesday this week, it was, again, my privilege to host Mareku-Rae Great Daffodil appeal launch in Parliament. I want to say a huge thank you to the Mae'r sgwrdd maen nhw'n gwyllus o MSPs. Mae'n rhan o'r gwaith i'w ddweud, ac rydw i ddim yn gwych ymddangosol. A i gael i ddweud o'r ffaith o'r organisau ar y cyfrifolau i gael i gael i'r ffaith, a i gael i'r ffaith o'r cyfrifolau i gael i'r parlymyniadau i gael i'r ffaith i'r gweithiau. The thing is though, when things got really tough for Hailey and Matt, Hailey didn't know about the support that she could have got, and she works actually in the field of palliative care for children. She works for CHAS, we care for children with terminal illness and she's wondered how someone who had no connection, if she didn't know about the care that she could get, how someone no connection to that sector would ever find out. After her brave and beautiful speech on Tuesday night, I spoke to Hailey and I'm sure that she won't mind me sharing what she said to me, because it really struck me. She said, when you get pregnant, a system kicks in and a plan is made for a good birth, but when you get a diagnosis of terminal illness, no plan kicks in for a good death. I know that work has been done to rectify this, and I look forward to hearing from the minister telling us about the Government's work in this area to improve it. Maricuri has been providing invaluable care and support to people living with terminal illnesses and their families for over 70 years, delivering vital services to people and their families at one of the most difficult times in their lives. Having first started in 1986, the Great Daffodil appeal runs each year throughout the month of March. Next Thursday, on 23 March, Maricuri will also be holding a national day of reflection. Like last year, when I led the debate, my hope is that all my MSP colleagues, whether they are speaking or listening, or whether they came along on Tuesday, will prominently raise the appeal in their constituents and regions that they represent. Maricuri is a household name, but I am asking that my colleagues raise further awareness of the work that they do. The sport from Maricuri comes in many forms. They provide care to patients in their own home, helping people to manage their symptoms, maintain their independence, as well as emotional and practical support to families. There is an enormous level of work that has been done to ensure that people can die with the dignity and comfort that we all deserve. Although a lot of people do not realise about Maricuri, they do an enormous amount of research that is geared towards improving care for a huge number of conditions, and a cursory look at their website, their funded programmes and a massive amount of reports that are published there will absolutely astonish you. However, the cost of delivering all this incredible work is around £250,000 per week to cover their front-line services, and the need for end-of-life care is set to increase. By 2040, an estimated 10,000 more people will be dying with palliative care needs each year. In the context of our ageing population, dementia has been a leading cause of death for a number of years. By 2040, the number of people dying from dementia is set to increase threefold. While many families have a positive experience of hospital deaths, relatives can often struggle with the cost and time constraints of travelling to and from the hospital. The fact of the matter is that a lot of terminally ill people prefer to die at home, surrounded by familiar comforts, and Maricuri, through its hard work and generosity of many of its staff and volunteers, makes that possible. Last year, Maricuri supported 8,660 people affected by terminal illness in Scotland. Let's support them and encourage each other to back the great daffodil appeal by making a donation, wearing a daffodil pin that I see that everyone is today, taking up one of Maricuri's public collections, even shopping in one of their charity shops. Maybe, if you are making your will, you might want to add Maricuri in that well as well, but spreading awareness of the phenomenal work that they do, because that's what they want us to do most, is to let people know that they exist and what they can offer. Together, we can help Maricuri to reach more families in need in the way that Hailey was when she and Matt were going through the worst of their times alone. I look forward to hearing my college speeches and I thank everyone for their continued support of the great daffodil appeal. Thank you very much. Ms Martin, we move to the open debate. I call first, Ross McCall to be followed by Bob Doris around four minutes, Ms McCall. Thank you, Presiding Officer, and great thanks to Gillian Martin for leading and bringing this debate to coincide with Maricuri's great daffodil appeal 2023. This debate gives us the opportunity to once again acknowledge the invaluable work undertaken by Maricuri nurses, staff and volunteers on behalf of everyone who has received their assistance, including people who are living with terminal illness, their families and loved ones. However, just as importantly, it gives us a chance to highlight some of the challenges faced by Maricuri and I hope to touch on a couple of those in my contribution. As highlighted in the motion, the scale of the challenges faced by Maricuri during the pandemic was magnified by it. Across Scotland, Maricuri cared for 8,660 people with terminal illnesses in 2021-22. That was only slightly less than the over 9,000 figure for 2021, which was the highest number of patients cared for in a single year since the charity was established 70 years ago. As is my usual, I want to put a face to the statistics. My father was one of those over 9,000 people receiving end-of-life care in 2020. Circumstances in these times are often harrowing. Watching a loved one slowly dissolve in front of your eyes is hard enough, but given the additional pressure applied by lockdown restrictions, the feeling of isolation added to the hopelessness. I am going to use the C-word, cancer. That awful disease, where time is of the essence, the speedy access to treatment turns diagnosis despair into hope. Conversely, delayed action allows the disease to spread, resulting in an all-too-certain outcome. On a side note, too many people are waiting to vert cancer treatment right now and we can never lose sight of that, regardless of how distracted the Cabinet Secretary for Health may be. My father had a softable cancer that had migrated to his liver. Liver, liver, life-giver, the organ that purifies your system, such an important part of keeping the other organs working to optimum level. Once your liver can no longer do that cleansing job, the decline is rapid. I want to particularly mention the last night of my father's life when Marie Curie nurse was obviously there for my dad, but the support given to my mum was above and beyond. My mum still refers to them as angels and who can argue with that. In mid-Scotland and Fife region, Marie Curie's small team of just 25 nurses across Fife, Forth Valley and Perth and Conross have seen over 700 individual patients and have made a staggering 4,054 visits in the year 21 to 22. This end-of-life care is important as any other aspect of our health and social care system, and thanks to the work of those nurses and volunteers in my region, the 95 per cent of patients supported by Marie Curie in NHS Fife, 96 in NHS Forth Valley and 93 per cent in NHS Tayside have been able to die with dignity in the place of their choice. This is a phenomenal statistic, but there is still so much more that needs done. In Scotland, by 2040, there will be over 62,000 people dying with pallidive care need. Comorbidities will have increased by 80 per cent, and two thirds of deaths will happen in community settings. Despite that, the widespread recognition for the work of Marie Curie the fact is that each year, one in four people in Scotland will die without end-of-life care. In mid Scotland in Fife alone, out of the 8,095 people who die each year, 7,285 have a pallidive care requirement. The numbers themselves are overwhelming and I haven't even broached the subject of numerous groups who still receive less pallidive care than others with comparable need. Groups including older people, black, Asian and minority ethnic groups, LGBT people, people living in deprived areas and people who have mental health conditions, if only I had more time and I'm already over. I extend my best wishes to everyone across Scotland who is involved in providing pallidive care for their invaluable support. On a personal note, thank you can be an inadequate phrase, but I say it from my heart. Bob Doris, to be followed by Paul Sweeney around four minutes, Mr Doris. First of all, thank you to Gillian Martin for bringing this debate before us this afternoon. It's a critically important one and I have a great interest in the work of Marie Curie. There's a wonderful hospice at Springburn to stop hill in my constituency, as well as an extensive amount of wider support that they provide to the communities I'm privileged to serve across Glasgow, Maryhill and Springburn. That support, of course, includes supporting individuals, families and carers as they'll have one's approach to the end of life, but there's a wider support offered, pallidive support, extensive loads with longer-term, life-limiting and other various terminal conditions. Marie Curie is an asset and we should cherish and support them. In that context, the Great Daft Hill appeal is vital to supporting the wide range of services that it offers our communities, as Marie Curie needs to raise £250,000 per week to support its activities and services across Scotland. I have mentioned already some of the work that they do, but it also enables the charter car out important research, as we've heard earlier, which can shape public policy and improve practice across wider pallidive and the end-of-life care sector. That is something that I know very well as chair of the Parliament's cross-party group on pallidive care. I am sure that Marie Curie and the wider pallidive care sector will play a valued role in helping to shape the forthcoming refreshed Scottish Government pallidive and end-of-life care strategy. Indeed, I recognise the work of Marie Curie research, which projects, for instance, that 10,000 more people in Scotland will be dying with pallidive care needs by 2040. It is clear that Marie Curie and the wider sector will have an essential growing and central role in helping to meet the pallidive and bereavement needs of society going forward. That involves placing the sector on a stable financial footing to allow them to invest and to expand. I know that that is something that the Scottish Government is up for, and they are aware of current headwinds in relation to the sector's energy costs and in relation to staffing pressures and staffing costs following the very welcome and successful NHS pay deal for nurses, but it has placed pressures on the sector. Just today, I had an encouraging update from Hospice UK, which gives me great confidence that the Scottish Government is engaging seriously with the sector in order to tackle both the short-term pressures and, importantly, the longer-term strategy. Following that meeting with the cabinet secretary and minister, the minister commented to me that it was a very constructive meeting for the Scottish Government to recognise the contribution of hospices and the pressures being faced by the sector. It agreed to the need for a national funding framework to address current inequities and put hospices on a stable and sustainable financial footing and the vast officials to start looking at what options could be available. That is key partnership work. I want to finish by returning to the great Daffodil appeal. It is an inspiring example from Marie Curie as to exactly how the charter hospice sector can draw funds that would otherwise not be available to all our efforts to provide a love, care, compassion, dignity and support. They all want to extend to everyone and would all like to receive as a society when we have got life-limiting conditions or to be approached at the end of life. I wish the campaign every success and I thank the wider part of sector for the love and support that they have shown my parents when they passed away. For my dad, who died at St Margaret's Hospice in Clydebank in 2016, and my mum, who died in the Vale of Leungan hospital in 2015, an example is that an NHS hospital still has to provide good quality part of support at the end of life for many. Both those institutions were exemplary in supporting my mum and my dad and they have my heart felt but, moving forward, we will need Marie Curie and the wider charter sector more than ever before to support society with their quality of life and the quality of our death in the years ahead. Finally, my thanks to Marie Curie for all that they continue to do for the communities that I serve and for communities right across Scotland. I thank the member for Aberdeenshire East for bringing forward the motion today for debate on Marie Curie's great daffodil appeal. Everyone here today, both in the chamber and in the public gallery, will have had some experience with the vital work of Marie Curie at some point in their life. I am pleased to have had the opportunity to discuss the importance of this care this afternoon. Just last week, I had the privilege of visiting the Marie Curie Hospice in the grounds of Stalbill Hospital in Glasgow. I remember fundraising for the hospice as a pupil at nearby Turnbull High School some years ago, but this was actually the first time I had the chance to see inside the new facility, which opened in 2010. I was struck in my visit not just by the impressive nature of the facility itself but by the peaceful environment that the staff and volunteers have created for those visiting often under very difficult and distressing circumstances. The exceptional team there stressed the importance of making patients and their families feel welcome and at ease. They shared their hope that local people around the hospice use the facility as a community space, stopping in for coffee or lunch instead of seeing it as some sort of daunting or strictly medicalised facility. I thought that that was very important and insightful. I was born at Stalbill Hospital in my gran. I remember my gran passing away there in the hospital in 1995. It was quite interesting to reflect on the contrast in which we treat the start of life with the end of life. It is something that will be a universal truth for us all. We still, as a society, have a dread of and a fear of talking about it. It was interesting to be confronted in quite a stark way at the hospice and it left me with some significant things to reflect on. I was also privileged enough to meet some of the patients receiving palliative care in the hospice, and one of the patients has not been far from my mind since my visit last Friday. The patient had dealt with various challenges throughout the course of her life. She told me about those challenges, but she was even more keen to tell me about the positive path she had paved for herself after surviving that trauma prior to her cancer diagnosis. Her two boys had grown up healthily. She had moved into her own home and she was enjoying quality time with loved ones. She said, I was listening to myself speak to people knowing that it was the real me and I liked the real me. Then I was diagnosed with cancer. Sadly, I was informed this morning that she had passed away last night, but I know that the care of Marie Curie in her final days brought her comfort and dignity and that was something that was incredibly important to her. I made a deep impression even in the few minutes that I spent with her. Her story sums up one of the many cruel aspects of cancer. That disease does not care how old you are or if you are an exciting or positive juncture in your life. We have no control over when cancer throws people's lives into disrepair or chaos, as we heard powerfully from Haley at the reception in Parliament this week, as mentioned by the member for Aberdeenshire East. It was a deeply moving testimony. What we do have control over, however, is the quality of care that people receive in the wake of a cancer diagnosis. Hospices such as Marie Curie and others need our sustained support to guarantee that care. Newspapers this month indicate that hospice leaders in Scotland expect a £12 million increase in wage bills if they are to remain competitive with NHS and retain staff are really quite troubling to hear. The reality is that they are most reliant on donations to meet those costs. Marie Curie needs to raise £250,000 per week just to fund the services in Scotland, and for children's hospices across Scotland approximately 70 per cent of their funding comes from fundraising alone. In the case of the Accord hospice in Paisley, 60 per cent of their income depends on donations, while their costs have risen by £300,000. Fundraising, which can often be hard to predict in yearly reviews of what funding is sustainable, makes forward planning and responding to local need a challenge for hospices and a deeply distressing one at that. I would urge the Scottish Government therefore to provide urgent support for palliative care providers to provide assurance to staff salaries that are competitive with the national health service and to commit to establishing a national partnership with hospices in the longer term so that the sector can deliver sustained and universal palliative care options in line with the needs of local communities. That is a no-brainer. It will save the NHS money and it will deliver better dignity to all of our citizens who are facing the end of life at that point in their lives. It is important that we look at the appropriate settings for people that they are not dying inappropriately in acute hospitals. As I mentioned earlier, cancer is a disease that, in many ways, we cannot control and has been mentioned movingly by others. That is even more reason why we should commit to improving the aspects that we can. David Torrance again, around four minutes, Mr Torrance. I would like to thank Gillian Martin for securing his debate in the chamber today. Welcome to the great Daffodil appeal, Marie Curie's biggest annual fundraising campaign. I have always been impressed by the work of Marie Curie and her commitment to helping people to get the vital care that we urgently need. Of course, none of this would be possible without the tireless dedication of her fantastic fundraising groups. Last year, these amazing groups of people raised over £3 million of funding for people living with terminal illness and their families. The place is an important role by organising fundraising events and activities within the local community. Actiners and ambassadors help to spread the word about the work of a charity. All across the country, groups of volunteers meet regularly to organise and support fundraising activities to help to 2,000 Marie Curie registered nurses or senior healthcare assistants who care for and support people with terminal illnesses, as well as emotional support for families, friends and wider community. Many volunteer activities were put in hold by a pandemic, but volunteers are a vital part of Marie Curie's five services by offering companionship and emotional support, providing practical help such as aiding patients with small tasks, spending time with a patient to allow their families and carers a break and helping people and their families to find further support and services that are ready accessible and available to them locally. Without volunteers, Marie Curie would not be able to deliver a range of services and support would do. The charity had made immense contributions to Scotland as it was founded in 1948, the same year as the NHS was established. The work started with the opening of a home for cancer patients in 1952 in the hill of Tarver in Cuperfife. More homes were opened, medical research started and the day and night services were provided. Since 1986, the daffodil pill has raised over £80 million that has contributed to giving people a better quality of life. With almost 75 years of experience, not only does Marie Curie offer nurses that provide hands-on care and hospitals that offer a friendly environment, but they also help everyone affected by terminal illness, get the information and support that they need through the research that they carry out to help to improve care and support. Last year, the money raised helped to support around 46,000 people in their homes and in care homes each year. Several years ago, the Marie Curie Fife Hospice at home model pilot, a fully funded integrated care pilot in NHS Fife, which complemented existing services and initiatives that were developed by the existing Marie Curie services for the generalist part of care, proved that providing community-based care with a local team is meaningful. The model included registered nurses, healthcare assistants, health and professional care assistants and trained volunteers. The results showed that a large number of patient of care has benefited from its approach, offering them a choice about the level of services they wanted and where they wanted to receive them, with a vast majority being able to die in the place of their choice. Further patients supported by hospice at home model care experienced 40 per cent of the fewer hospital admissions, 68 per cent fewer visits to accident emergency, and they were two and a half times more likely to die at home. The project also saw that reduced hospital costs for end-of-life care by 182,000 by reducing avoidable hospital admissions. That has informed the future service delivery in Fife and the end-of-life services working alongside all other part-of-care organisations. Professionals include part-of-care outreach, community nursing, acute health services and Marie Curie. The 23 March marks the third national day of reflection. On this day, we all have the opportunity to remember our loved ones who have died, supported each other and to be there for the people who are grieving. Marie Curie launched the national day of reflection in 2021, as a day to remember those who died during the pandemic, and the support for those who grieve was affected by lockdown. It's the day where anyone who has been bereaved, no matter how long ago, or the cause, will come together and remember loved ones who have died. In conclusion, I would like to once again thank Gillian Martin for securing his debate. The demand for part-of-care and end-of-life care is rising rapidly, and this is a trend that is expected to continue as our population ages. During the month of March, I would encourage everyone to wear a daffodil pin, to raise awareness of a great daffodil appeal and to show support for an individual service provided by Marie Curie nursing staff and hospice staff. Thank you very much, Mr Torrance. I now invite Marie Todd to respond to the debate, Minister, around seven minutes, please. I thank Gillian Martin for raising the motion for this debate and to those in the chamber for their contributions. On Tuesday evening, like many others in the chamber today, I attended the Marie Curie great daffodil appeal reception. It was absolutely inspiring to meet with people from a wide range of roles devoted to helping people affected by terminal illness, their families and their carers. On behalf of myself and all those who have experienced or been affected by terminal illness and bereavement, I would like to say thank you to Marie Curie volunteers and staff for all that you do. I would agree with Gillian Martin and others that Hailey Smith's testimony was incredibly powerful. It would be wonderful if each and every one of us could ensure that everyone hears her story so that people know what care is on offer if they find themselves in her shoes. The Scottish Government is proud to be working with Marie Curie and the hospice sector across Scotland to build a new palliative and end-of-life care strategy. There is a huge commitment and dedication across all sectors and partners who work to deliver palliative and end-of-life care and I absolutely welcome Marie Curie's support. We are agreed that we want to see equitable and timely access to palliative care, needed by each person of any age with any illness and in all care settings, including in their own home, and that we want to take a personalised approach that gets it right for everyone based on what matters to each person and their families and carers. We want Scotland to be a place where people and communities can come together to support and care for each other and to talk openly about planning ahead for when our health changes and about dying and bereavement. Talking about dying needs to be something that we can do with our family, friends, carers and health and social care staff. One way to start having those conversations is through anticipatory care planning, which involves enabling people to talk with health and care professionals about what matters to them. The conversations are recorded and shared as a plan so that the care and support that they subsequently receive honours that plan. We are prioritising work on anticipatory care planning looking at what information is available, the systems that are in place and what can be done to promote the use of planning across Scotland. No terminally ill person or their family should have to worry about their finances at such a difficult time. The Scottish Government provides grant support to families on a low income who are raising disabled or seriously ill children and young people through the family fund. This year, we have committed a further £2.974 million of funding to the family fund's grant scheme, which is expected to provide financial support to over 6,000 families in Scotland. We shared our draft carer support payment regulations with the Scottish Commission on Social Security on 3 March. That is an important milestone towards rolling out our new benefit from the end of this year, with national launch in spring 2024. I am acutely aware that energy consumers, and especially those who receive treatment at home, are feeling the impacts of recent price hikes, and I appreciate the stress that that is causing. The significant cut by the UK Government in support for non-domestic consumers with their energy costs caused by on March is very concerning, particularly for more vulnerable sectors. The Scottish ministers wrote to the UK Government at the end of last year to express our disappointment at the lack of opportunity that we had to engage in the review of the energy bills relief scheme and to stress that any continued support should be aimed at those businesses and sectors that need it the most. We have pledged almost £3 billion in this financial year alone that will contribute towards helping families and households facing the increased cost of living, and that includes the provision of fit services and financial support not available elsewhere in the UK that is helping to reduce everyday costs and increase incomes. During First Minister's questions on 2 February 2023, a commitment was given to meet with Jeremy Balfour MSP to discuss the important matter of the reimbursement of energy costs for people using at home life-saving medical equipment. I absolutely understand the financial pressures that hospices are currently facing too, and the Cabinet Secretary and myself met with representatives from the hospice sector, including Mary Curie, on Tuesday. It was a really constructive meeting, and we will follow up on all of the issues that have been brought to our attention in the coming weeks. We are committed to ensuring provision of high-quality child palliative care, regardless of location, supported by sustainable funding of at least £7 million a year through children's hospices across Scotland, known widely as CHAS. We are also engaging in discussions with CHAS, along with health boards, to consider options to plan, fund and review CHAS services with their focus on improving sustainability and oversight. The experience of losing someone important is one of the most difficult challenges that any of us will face. Getting the right care and support during bereavement is absolutely crucial for our health and wellbeing. For many people, support and comfort needs will be met by family and friends, but some of us will need wider support. We are undertaking work across Scottish Government to improve bereavement care and support available, as well as ensuring that it is woven into the palliative and end-of-life care strategy. Last May, in partnership with NHS Inform, Scottish Government launched the Mind to Mind website to give people access to wellbeing information and signposts to relevant organisations that can help. Bereavement support is a priority within our 15 million communities mental health and wellbeing fund, recognising that poor or mental wellbeing, loneliness and social isolation often follow bereavement. The fund gives local groups and organisations the support that they need to ensure that people make social connections and look after their mental health. Support with bereavement is an integral part of palliative and end-of-life care, and we are supporting public health responses to talk about dying and death through our funding. We provide core funding to the Scottish partnership for palliative care to support their work, including bereavement, and their work on good life, good death and good grief. We also fund their end-of-life aid skills for everyone's ease and approach to enable people to be more comfortable and confident in supporting family and community members with issues that they face during death, dying and bereavement. Thanks again to all those people who work and volunteer for Marie Curie and all palliative and end-of-life care services across Scotland.