Meeting of the Parliament 03 June 2026 [Draft]
I would, and I will come to that point.
Thirty minutes is generally considered by a lot of campaigners to be a reasonable amount of time for a visit, and the issue was discussed in the Westminster Parliament in 2014. However, that is just one example.
Many, if not all, local authorities in Scotland are in severe financial difficulty, which is cited as the reason for the decline in many health and social care services. Will the cabinet secretary review the formula for health and social care funding, with a view to better match the funding to the service demands in local areas?
In many areas across Scotland, there is a higher proportion of people claiming adult disability payment than there is in other parts of Scotland. That includes areas where, historically, there have been large blocks of industry. An easy example is the constituencies around the Clyde area, where there is a higher proportion of people claiming adult disability payment due to shipbuilding. That leads to increased funding demands, and councils in those areas are the ones that are struggling the most.
Last October, I had the privilege of being invited to the carers parliament, which was held just up the road at the Apex hotel on the Grassmarket. Such events are incredibly beneficial, because they bring together unpaid carers from all over Scotland to speak about and debate health and social care issues. Many people attended and bravely shared their stories and experiences. It would be inappropriate for me to repeat any of them now, but I will share what many considered to be the broad consensuses of the day.
First, carers do not want platitudes. They do not want to hear from us that we sympathise and they are doing a great job but that they should just carry on. They have heard that all before, and they have been hearing it for far too long. They demand action.
Secondly, many believe that there is actually enough money in the system but that it is being spent poorly. I believe that too, but I was surprised to hear that on the day from other people at the event. A few people even said that we should introduce some sort of trial system in social care to identify wasteful spending.
The final point that I took away from the event is that many believe that the problem with the whole system is that, for far too long, although the Scottish Government has introduced policies that sound amazing, there is never a plan and there is never enough money to fund the policies.
We all have a shared responsibility to get this right, and we are willing to work with all parties to ensure that that happens.