Meeting of the Parliament (Hybrid) 03 February 2021
I am grateful for the opportunity to make a few brief remarks in the debate. I join Mark Ruskell and colleagues from across the chamber in thanking our front-line health and social care workers, particularly those who are working, in some cases, around the clock to roll out the vaccine programme.
I agree with a huge amount of the Green Party’s motion and, instinctively, I favour universality in the delivery of benefits. I qualify what I am about to say with that statement. A challenge that we face in relation to the fiscal support that we offer in Scotland is that we have to operate within the limited resources that we have at our disposal. When we have to manage an unpredictable crisis, there is a strong case for ensuring that we target every resource at where it is most needed, but I certainly want to move towards universality if we know that that will be fiscally sustainable.
Mark Ruskell and Alex Cole-Hamilton made the important point about being cognisant that we will be living with Covid for the long term. We should ensure that the test and protect system is robust, because Covid will be with us for some time, and we should put in place measures to support people who have to self-isolate. Covid will not be a passing issue; it will occupy the attention of members for much of the next parliamentary session, just as it has occupied all of our attention over the past 12 months.
Several members commented on the link between the prevalence of the virus and poverty, deprivation and low income. Members who have been forensically examining Public Health Scotland’s Covid maps daily will be aware that the areas in their constituencies or regions with the highest concentration of people who have tested positive are very often areas in which lower incomes are more prevalent and areas of increased multiple deprivation, so I completely agree with Mark Ruskell about the need to target those groups and ensure that support is available in order to achieve elimination.
Some members touched on the vaccination programme. The way in which that issue has been politicised is deeply regrettable. Across these islands, we have to be rooting for one another. The failure of one part of the UK is a failure for all of us in our fight against the virus. The Scottish Government has said that, initially, the focus has been on depth rather than breadth, to use the First Minister’s terms. However, the figures from yesterday and today show that the pace of vaccination is picking up considerably, and it is likely that that pace will accelerate. In the weeks preceding an election campaign, I understand the temptation to look for a wedge issue.