Meeting of the Parliament 05 March 2026 [Draft]
I thank Jeremy Balfour for bringing the debate to the chamber. I take the opportunity to thank Jeremy Balfour for all his work and contributions in the area. The member is a champion of the cause and is very vocal about these issues, and I mean that in the best possible way. He also has practical ideas on how we break down barriers, engage with disabled constituents and fully include people in decision making, and I thank him for that work.
Over the five years that I have been in the Scottish Parliament, I have been pleased and encouraged by members’ engagement with the disabled community, including those from a range of backgrounds and with a range of disabilities. However, as has been mentioned by others, that does not mean that we are doing enough or doing things in the right way.
While researching for this debate, I read about the history of the slogan “Nothing about us without us”, which Jeremy Balfour mentioned. It relies on the principle of participation and has been used by disabled people’s organisations throughout the years as part of the global movement to achieve the full participation and equalisation of opportunities for, by and with disabled people. We can all agree that we have made advances, but that we have not yet achieved all of the slogan’s aims. We should understand that that is part of how we move forward.
I really wanted to speak in this debate, because I was lucky enough to attend the second Scottish Parliament disability summit, which was held here with a large number of groups representing disabled people, young people with disabilities and young people caring for loved ones with disability. The chamber was packed with so many people. The summit took place on 21 February, in person at the Scottish Parliament and online, and brought together disabled people, carers, advocates and allies to reflect on the progress and, importantly, to look at the future. As Scotland heads towards the next election, it is so important to ensure that disabled people are part of the conversation.
The summit offered an opportunity to invite disabled people in Scotland and their organisations to discuss ideas for change. What would they like there to be in place to help the Parliament to achieve or create a more inclusive society? Questions were asked about the progress they wanted to see in relation to transport, social care, inclusive education, social security and, importantly, voting.
I was lucky enough to co-chair a group with a fantastic young woman, Eilidh Henderson, who generously shared her experience and that of her family during our session on social care. Eilidh took the lead on the first online breakout session, which was a first for the summit. I note that Eilidh would be happy for me to say that, after a couple of technical problems, the session went very well. It was facilitated technically by the Parliament staff. Eilidh and I made sure that an extra breakout was added because we recognised that being on screen for such long periods of time can be difficult and exhausting for people.
All the feedback so far has suggested that the online option helped allow others to be in that breakout session and that the experience overall was positive. People mainly talked about their experiences, but one thing that they mentioned that the Parliament will need to look at is self-directed support—the expectations for it and where it has failed people.
I am aware of the time. Before I close, I add that I was lucky enough on that day to have not only Eilidh but a young woman from Cumnock called Emma McEwan who was with me observing. Emma hopes to work with young people. She found it fascinating to be around people in a situation where disabled people were in control of the narrative and the agenda. Emma reported back that that gave her a better understanding of everyday life for people with disabilities and the barriers that they encounter. We must make sure that that happens more in the future.