Committee
Health, Social Care and Sport Committee 10 March 2026 [Draft]
10 Mar 2026 · S6 · Health, Social Care and Sport Committee
Item of business
Public Health Scotland
Alastair Boyle
Watch on SPTV
I will bring in Nairn Angus-McDonald in a second, but I think that that is exactly the challenge. That is where we are. Early on during Covid, there was an express endeavour to make people understand that a cost of living crisis is a health crisis. We would say to partners that the decisions that they were making would have a health impact that might be far worse not only for the budget but also for people. Healthy life expectancy is continuing to drop, but I am always struck by that figure of the 25-year gap between the richest and poorest. It is not just 25 years in total; it is 25 years longer simply because of where people live, and they are really vulnerable.Part of our job is to put practical tools in the hands of people and to pull the people and the ideas together. Our collaboration for health equity in Scotland—CHES—work with Professor Sir Michael Marmot is starting to really look at not only how we can use the data to inform the current and future picture so that the decisions that are made support good health, but what practical things we can do that do not involve greater investment and will help us to keep that focus on healthy life expectancy. It is about starting to think about those underlying conditions, which Paul Johnston and others have described as being about thriving. That is where our co-sponsored nature, and the input and experience of people such as Nairn and Julie, are really valuable.
In the same item of business
The Convener
SNP
Our second item is an evidence session with representatives from Public Health Scotland. I welcome to the committee Councillor Nairn Angus-McDonald, who is a...
David Torrance (Kirkcaldy) (SNP)
SNP
Good morning, everyone. What is the status of the public health priorities that were published in 2018, and what progress has been made against them?
Paul Johnston (Public Health Scotland)
Thank you for the opportunity to give evidence this morning. I am delighted to be here.The public health priorities were developed as part of the public heal...
David Torrance
SNP
Is there a gap between evidence and practice in public health? Do we lack evidence to help practice?
Paul Johnston
Scotland’s has fantastic evidence about what needs to be done to improve the health of the nation, but that evidence can always be developed further. Public ...
Alastair Boyle (Public Health Scotland)
I will add to that. First, we are very grateful to be here. We are also quite excited, as this it is the first time that Public Health Scotland, as an organi...
David Torrance
SNP
I have no further questions, convener.
Emma Harper (South Scotland) (SNP)
SNP
We have heard at committee that five-year-olds in the United Kingdom are up to 7cm shorter than their counterparts in Europe, although that evidence is being...
Paul Johnston
I am afraid that I do not have the specific details—I cannot tell you how our evidence sits alongside what you have just said about the height of children. I...
Emma Harper
SNP
Height is only one measurement, is it not?
Paul Johnston
Yes, exactly.
Alastair Boyle
We will absolutely get back to you on that. Our organisation is very grounded in the why. I remember young children coming to Scottish Fire and Rescue Servic...
Emma Harper
SNP
The good food nation plan will work alongside the climate change plan, the population health framework and everything else in order to address what we need t...
Paul Johnston
We are working closely with others to support the implementation of the good food nation plan. We absolutely agree that the Scottish Food Commission has an i...
The Convener
SNP
On the theme of national strategy and public health priorities, I note that priority 3 in the “Public Health Priorities for Scotland” is to have a“Scotland w...
Paul Johnston
We do recognise the importance of mental wellbeing. In our Public Health Scotland strategy, which was published in the past few weeks, we set out a vision fo...
The Convener
SNP
Do you recognise that there is a difference between mental wellbeing and mental ill health?
Paul Johnston
Yes, absolutely. We also speak about the importance of connection and of a sense of purpose, which takes us into the importance of communities where individu...
The Convener
SNP
I place on record my entry in the register of members’ interests, which says that I hold a bank nurse contract with NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and that I ...
Elena Whitham (Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley) (SNP)
SNP
Paul Johnston, you have already touched on the theme that I will cover, which concerns the ways in which persistent health inequalities can stall life expect...
Paul Johnston
I am happy to start and am sure that colleagues will want to say more.That is absolutely at the heart of what Public Health Scotland wants to address. Pretty...
Alastair Boyle
In a second, I will bring in board colleagues who are representatives of the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities.As a board, that is exactly where we ar...
Councillor Julie Bell (Public Health Scotland)
The question speaks to the sense and opportunity in that co-sponsorship arrangement with COSLA. Much of the delivery will be down to local authorities, commu...
Elena Whitham
SNP
That leads me to the next question, which I was already starting to formulate. We understand that we can directly link stalling life expectancy and the widen...
Alastair Boyle
I will bring in Nairn Angus-McDonald in a second, but I think that that is exactly the challenge. That is where we are. Early on during Covid, there was an e...
Councillor Nairn Angus-McDonald (Public Health Scotland)
I am mindful that we are before a Scottish parliamentary committee with former ministers and shadow ministers, but I think that if we are to tackle Scotland’...
Elena Whitham
SNP
When resources are definitely tighter, the fact that we will not see the benefits until perhaps a decade later makes the argument difficult.Paul Johnston sai...
Paul Johnston
That is a great question, and it shows why evidence is so important. We must proceed on the basis of the clear evidence about what will work, and not on the ...
Elena Whitham
SNP
Maybe we should be looking at the Marmot principles and the Christie principles together when we make any decisions across all public services. Thank you.
Brian Whittle (South Scotland) (Con)
Con
Good morning. I have been listening intently to what the witnesses have been saying. I am looking at prevention. After hearing about the causes of good healt...