Chamber and committees

Thank you very much.

I take it that a lot of people are volunteers.

Item 2 is the second in a series of scrutiny sessions with national health service boards from across Scotland. I welcome Pamela Dudek, the chief executive of NHS Highland; Jane Grant, the chief executive of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde; and Gordon James, the chief executive of NHS Golden Jubilee National Hospital.

I will move straight to questions. I have been asking all health boards about their financial situation. Obviously, demand on all health boards across Scotland has increased. There are also the pressures of heating and operating, because rises in fuel costs and inflation are affecting our public bodies just as they affect the whole country. That puts pressure on health boards to manage budgets, while health problems in the population at large may be increasing because people are feeling the pressure.

I want to ask each of you in turn how you are managing that. What impact is it having and can you see how you might reach break-even?

If I may interrupt your questioning, Stephanie, I hear loud and clear that Mairi Stark is from a rural area where people have access to green space on their doorstep. However, Rona, in urban areas you must see that that is just not the case for a lot of children.

Thank you. We move on to an issue that I know we have touched on a lot this morning: progress with the recovery plan. The questions will be led by Stephanie Callaghan.

Do you mean a fourth question? Other members want to come in, so please make it quick.

Emma Harper wants to come in.

A number of colleagues want to ask about culture.

Colleagues might want to pick up on that.

Highland is probably the most fuel-poor area of the whole United Kingdom and this has been a very difficult winter for many people. Are you seeing the impact of that in the level of need that your patients display?