Chamber and committees

I will go back to John Mason’s point about the roll-out of the booster vaccinations. Is it likely that we will all have booster vaccinations every six months? Is there any concern about vaccine supply?

Before the meeting started in public, we had a fascinating briefing with our advisers. Professor Donnelly from the University of St Andrews said that, although it might seem that nothing worse than the Covid pandemic could hit us, one thing that might be worse would be a digital technology blackout. Is the Scottish Government doing any work on ensuring digital preparedness and security?

My last question is on the spread of vaccine misinformation, especially on social media, which ranges from claims that the Red Cross has banned blood donations from vaccinated people to the claim that deaths from vaccines have overtaken Covid deaths. What is the Scottish Government doing to counter such misinformation?

Our next item of business is the taking of evidence on the vaccination programme and on pandemic preparedness. I welcome Humza Yousaf, Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care, who is supported remotely by his officials from the Scottish Government: Derek Grieve, head of the operational vaccines division; Professor Nicola Steedman, deputy chief medical officer; Karen Duffy, deputy director, Covid vaccination delivery; and Jonathan Cameron, interim director of the digital health and care directorate. Thank you for your attendance.

Cabinet Secretary, would you like to make any remarks before we move to questions?

Thank you, Professor Steedman.

We have been joined by Graham Simpson MSP, who is not a member of the committee but is attending due to an interest in our proceedings. I welcome him to the meeting and invite him to declare any interests.

Thank you. I call Murdo Fraser.

Thank you. I am conscious of time, and I remind the committee that we have only 15 minutes before one of our witnesses has to leave.

Thank you.

The committee has received correspondence from a member of the public who was a volunteer participant in the stage 3 Novavax trial in Aberdeen that took place in December last year. He claims that NHS England has registered all 13,000 volunteers but that no participants have been registered in Scotland. First, do you recognise those figures? Secondly, what contact has the Scottish Government had with the vaccine trial participants to hear and address their concerns?

I go back to Graham Simpson’s point and ask the Deputy First Minister, with the agreement of the committee, whether it would be possible for all members, not just those on the committee, to receive a briefing on the new app.