Chamber and committees

If you write to me directly, I will be happy to look into the circumstances of that case. As you will know, the Scottish Government has a number of funding streams to support dentistry services, including grants to set up new practices or to employ additional people. Those are dealt with at health board level, but I will be happy to look into the case if you care to write to me about it.

I have learned while working in my portfolio that we can never be fully confident that we have eradicated a condition or disease. I have regular meetings with officials who work on various diseases and conditions. We have not spoken specifically about rickets, so I will ensure that we do that at our next meeting.

That is a fair question. When I was visiting a school in my constituency, a teacher came out with eight brightly coloured vapes in her hand.

I absolutely agree that we are in a very difficult situation. As you have rightly pointed out, it is already illegal to sell vapes to under-18s. We have discussed that with our local authorities to ensure that they recognise that. However, as I mentioned to Ms Mackay, the tobacco action plan is coming out this year.

I was in Elgin during the summer, which was the first place where I had come across the daily mile. People at the health centre there spoke about the importance of exercise, which is just as important as what we eat. Staff at the health centre explained how they are supporting families, and not only with the daily mile. People aged from eight months to 80 are attending the health centre to get support with fitness, whether through the daily mile or something more physical such as swimming or weight training. That is really important.

I also visited a pharmacy, in Ellon, and saw similar pieces of improved technology to those that you saw in the one that you visited. I was really struck with the importance in the community of community pharmacies. I do not think that a minute went by without somebody in the pharmacy.

The discussion broadened out to some of the areas on which you have touched in your question. I am speaking to officials about ways in which we can work with and support community pharmacies. It goes without saying that the work that they did throughout the pandemic really helped local communities. That work is continuing and it gives people in those communities the opportunity of a much closer, and sometimes more relaxed, interaction with healthcare, which is incredibly important.

That is a really important question that was highlighted to me yesterday when I heard from a mother whose son had been described as “fat” and “obese,” which had given him a dreadful lack of confidence.

You are absolutely right that language is incredibly important, as is how we work with local authorities, schools and other public bodies to ensure that the message is spread across our services. One example is the good food nation plan, which talks about ensuring that children have the opportunity to eat good healthy food. I saw that in operation last week at a primary school in Edinburgh, where they were talking about breakfast and healthy foods, such as Weetabix and fresh fruit. There is a whole conversation to be had around language, which is important in education centres as well as across the general public. We are very cognisant of that.

Stage 3 of the bill is coming up in the next couple of weeks. That will provide an opportunity for us to take cognisance of what you have said and to look at how we incorporate it in the debate. I am sure that Ms Mochan will cover the issue in the contributions that she makes in that debate.

I had a lot of discussions on such issues with my officials over the summer. We will do a consultation in the autumn on foods that are high in fat, sugar or salt, and we are consulting on which foods to concentrate on—crisps, confectionery, cakes and other foods. We will probably also consult on promotions, including meal deals, unlimited refills and location of products in stores. We will consider all those things. Over the summer when I was shopping, at the end of my shopping I got a voucher for a cake, and I thought, “Why didn’t I have the option of a voucher for a banana?” We are thinking about things such as that.

Emma Harper commented on the fact that rather than introduce a bill, we are producing regulations. We believe that that will allow us to move swiftly and efficiently. Circumstances changed, which allowed us to bring in regulations as opposed to a bill, and we are working at pace on the timescales.

I know the two publications on ultraprocessed foods that Emma Harper mentioned. There have also been a number of articles in newspapers on the topic, and there are a number of podcasts about ultraprocessed foods. I was in a meeting last week with Food Standards Scotland and Public Health Scotland at which I raised the issue as something on which I would like to get more information. We look at evidence from the scientific advisory committee on nutrition, but there is currently no specific evidence on ultraprocessed foods. The Scottish Government bases decisions and policies on evidence. We need to carry out further engagement and consultation on ultraprocessed foods. I have asked my officials to look at that.

As you will know, the tobacco action plan will come out this autumn, and it absolutely will consider vapes and where they are in shops. As you have, I have heard stories about the experiences of mothers in supermarkets, where vapes are at eye level for children and have bright colours that attract them. We are very aware of that situation, and it will be covered in the tobacco action plan.

No pressure has been put on us by other organisations not to introduce a bill, then an act, on the issue. A change in circumstances and evidence from England has allowed us to introduce measures using regulations.

When we bring in any food regulations, there must be proper and robust consultation, which is what we are doing now to ensure that we bring in the right policies, based on evidence, to improve people’s ability to buy the right food.