Chamber
Meeting of the Parliament 11 December 2025
11 Dec 2025 · S6 · Meeting of the Parliament
Item of business
Neurodevelopmental Conditions (Support)
I do accept that, and that view is adopted in the standardised approach. It is shared care if the person continues to see the private practitioner, but the NHS GP does the prescribing. However, we do need standardisation, pragmatism and, above all else, clarity.
To the minister, I say that we should have the numbers so that we can understand how many people are waiting; we should have clear standardised approaches; and we must have a plan to clear the backlog, because, behind it, tens of thousands of people are in crisis.
12:59In the same item of business
The Deputy Presiding Officer (Annabelle Ewing)
SNP
The next item of business is a members’ business debate on motion S6M-19319, in the name of Daniel Johnson, on welcoming the report by the Royal College of P...
Daniel Johnson (Edinburgh Southern) (Lab)
Lab
I thank members from across the parties who have supported my motion to enable this debate to take place. The debate is important for a number of reasons, no...
Sandesh Gulhane (Glasgow) (Con)
Con
Will the member give way?
Daniel Johnson
Lab
I am very happy to give way to Sandesh Gulhane, but he will have to be brief.
Sandesh Gulhane
Con
I declare an interest as a practising NHS GP. I would just note that, when someone gets a private diagnosis, it is no longer shared care, as they will no lo...
Daniel Johnson
Lab
I do accept that, and that view is adopted in the standardised approach. It is shared care if the person continues to see the private practitioner, but the N...
Paul McLennan (East Lothian) (SNP)
SNP
I thank Daniel Johnson for securing the debate. Daniel and I have had a couple of chats about this issue over the past couple of months, and we are all aware...
Sandesh Gulhane (Glasgow) (Con)
Con
The RCP’s report lays out in clear and evidence-based terms what many of us have been warning of for years. Demand has soared. As of March 2025, more than 42...
Daniel Johnson
Lab
Does Sandesh Gulhane agree that it is confusing when health boards say that they cannot report data but they can say how long people are going to wait? They ...
Sandesh Gulhane
Con
It absolutely does confuse me. What health boards say to their patients about waiting times and what they publish are completely separate. We have seen that ...
Carol Mochan (South Scotland) (Lab)
Lab
I thank Daniel Johnson for bringing this important debate to the chamber. Working with other members across parties, Daniel Johnson has been a real champion ...
Pauline McNeill (Glasgow) (Lab)
Lab
Is the member aware and does she agree that, historically, ADHD has been underdiagnosed in girls and women as a result of differences in the presentation of ...
Carol Mochan
Lab
I thank the member for that important intervention; I have had that issue raised with me in casework. I believe that colleagues in the chamber have heard ve...
Stuart McMillan (Greenock and Inverclyde) (SNP)
SNP
I congratulate Daniel Johnson on securing this important debate. Mr Johnson and I co-hosted an event in October: the RCP report was launched in the morning, ...
Brian Whittle (South Scotland) (Con)
Con
I thank my friend and colleague Daniel Johnson for bringing the debate to the chamber. I applaud his continuing drive to deliver a better pathway for those w...
Daniel Johnson
Lab
Will Brian Whittle take a brief intervention?
Brian Whittle
Con
I will.
Daniel Johnson
Lab
As I often say to people, beyond medication, the other critical factors are good sleep, hygiene and exercise. I emphasise that access to sport is critical in...
Brian Whittle
Con
I thank Daniel Johnson for finishing my speech for me. Laughter. I was going to say that I witnessed young people flourishing and developing in a training en...
Michelle Thomson (Falkirk East) (SNP)
SNP
I, too, thank Daniel Johnson for bringing the debate to the Parliament. I also thank him for his bravery in being so vocal about some of the challenges that ...
Daniel Johnson
Lab
Will Michelle Thomson take an intervention?
The Deputy Presiding Officer
SNP
It would need to be brief, as the member is about to conclude.
Michelle Thomson
SNP
I am indeed. I was coming to my last sentence. Without sex-specific data, we risk designing services that fail half the population. That is not a technical ...
The Minister for Social Care and Mental Wellbeing (Tom Arthur)
SNP
I thank members from across the chamber for what has been a thoughtful and constructive set of contributions. The strength of feeling that we have heard on b...
Brian Whittle
Con
I have listened intently to what the minister has said. I agree with much of it, but I caveat that getting a diagnosis involves an element of relief for many...
Tom Arthur
SNP
I appreciate the problems. In emphasising the importance of a needs-based approach, I want to be absolutely crystal clear that I recognise the importance tha...
Tom Arthur
SNP
Before I take an intervention from Daniel Johnson, I will say that work is already under way with health boards and local authorities to understand that data...
Daniel Johnson
Lab
I am grateful to the minister for giving way. The point about data is important. However, I will ask him about pathways, because there are clear and specific...
Tom Arthur
SNP
All the issues that Mr Johnson has related are part of the wider considerations. As was touched on, a summit is coming up on Monday at which we will have an ...
Tom Arthur
SNP
I was intending to conclude, but I am happy to take an intervention.