Meeting of the Parliament 09 January 2024
I would like to use my time to put across the Government’s point of view, if that is okay with Stephen Kerr.
I am lucky enough to have the Ullapool harbour changing places toilet not only in my constituency, but in the village that I live in in the rural north-west Highlands, and I know just how vital such facilities are to people throughout Scotland. That is just one of a number of examples from across Scotland that make the case for how such facilities can make a real difference to disabled people and their families by enabling them to go out and do things that others might take for granted, such as travelling to the islands or going on day trips. In the Highlands, we love to welcome visitors, and we are delighted that we can do so because of that facility.
Last September, I was pleased to confirm to the Scottish Parliament that we would make the £10 million changing places toilets fund available across the financial years 2024-25 and 2025-26. The Scottish Government’s policy position on changing places toilets is absolutely straightforward. In our manifesto, we committed to investing £10 million over the parliamentary session, and we are doing that. We understand how important it is to invest in increasing the number of changing places toilets. We also committed to supporting mobile changing places toilets to enable disabled people to access events and outdoor venues, and the Scottish Government looks forward to that commitment being delivered, too.