Chamber and committees

A friend of mine had a position in NHS Highland to go to, but after three months of searching, they could not find suitable accommodation. I have strong connections to Aviemore, where the residents welcome the new community hospital. However, once again, there is no accommodation, unless you want to pay £600 a week for a holiday let.

In your opening statement, you mentioned that the University of the Highlands and Islands had increased the number of its places by 33 per cent. Will we not lose people from such areas if there is no accommodation? Is lack of affordable accommodation the biggest barrier to recruitment and retention of staff, and how can we fix it?

Perhaps Dr Smith can give us more information—possibly later in writing—on the use of public libraries. They are community buildings that are well used and are usually central to communities, so I am interested in hearing about that aspect.

Thank you for that, cabinet secretary. Will you provide specific examples of how a preventative and proactive care programme has informed spending decisions? You have given some examples, but how important has that been in making those decisions?

Good afternoon. Cabinet secretary, is it realistic to expect a shift towards preventative spend when the immediate pressures and demands on healthcare are so great?

Considering all that we heard from you just now and the fact that the Scottish Government is engaging and consulting on the development of a national strategy on ending intimate and sexual violence against men and boys, which will complement the equally safe strategy, along with all the evidence that we have been given, I am happy to close the petition under rule 15.7 of standing orders. I genuinely do not think that the committee can take the petition anywhere.

Once we have taken evidence from coroners and pathologists, I wonder whether we could invite the relevant minister to come before us to give evidence.

Could we also write to NatureScot to seek details on the membership and skills of its board?

If some golden eagles cannot fly in their natural habitat because they might take a mountain hare, how can an owner of such a bird allow it to fly, given the threat of prosecution?

Minister, you said that NatureScot is advising you. Stan Whitaker admitted earlier that NatureScot has no idea how many mountain hares are taken by golden eagles or buzzards. How could the Government take such advice, if NatureScot has no idea about what is happening?

The final report of the Scottish Mental Health Law Review was published in September 2022 and made more than 200 recommendations. Can the cabinet secretary provide an update on when we can expect the Government’s response to that report?