Chamber and committees

On 28 November 2014, the twenty third meeting of the British-Irish Council was held in Douglas, Isle of Man. The summit was attended by ministers from all eight member administrations. The Scottish Government was represented by the First Minister and myself.

The British Irish Council remains an important forum and provides an opportunity for members to meet and discuss the future direction of change in these islands. Scotland’s relations with the other members becomes even more important as the powers of the Scottish Parliament and the Scottish Government increase.

The meeting began with a significant discussion on the economy where the First Minister informed the Council that the economic picture in Scotland is increasingly positive. Scotland’s economy has grown continually for two years, GDP is above pre-recession levels and the economic outlook is the strongest it has been in the post-crisis period. Against a back drop of events like the Commonwealth Games and the Ryder Cup, this year has been a remarkable one for the Scottish economy, showcasing Scotland to the world. The First Minister also advised the council of the improving picture in the labour market in Scotland, but stressed that challenges remain. Many Scottish jobs depend upon our membership of the EU and the uncertainty of a possible EU exit is causing widespread concern.

The council also had a very interesting discussion on digital inclusion, during which all Members agreed the importance of ensuring that everyone has the opportunity to share in the benefits of technology and the internet. I informed the council about Scotland’s Digital Participation Strategy called ‘A National Framework for Local Action’ highlighting some of the projects where we have made important progress including £300k for wifi in public libraries and £1.5 million for free wifi in key public buildings.

The communiqué that was issued by the British-Irish Council, after the meeting, can be found on the website at: http://www.britishirishcouncil.org/. I am also arranging for a copy the document to be placed in SPICe (BIB number 56500).

Scotland’s Winter Festivals, which include St Andrew’s Day, Christmas, Hogmanay and Burns Night, celebrate Scotland’s unique culture and creativity.

The 2013-14 Winter Festivals programme was a great success attracting over 250,000 people to events the length and breadth of the country and generating significant media interest around the world.

Participation in Scotland’s Winter Festivals is growing year on year. For example, in 2013-14 we saw a 19% comparative increase in footfall at funded events and a 26% increase in footfall at Historic Scotland events. Over the course of the 2013-14 campaign we also saw an estimated 62,000 visitors take part in St Andrew’s Day Out events, delivered by 137 private sector partner organisations offering free or discounted entry. Encouragingly, the number of private sector partner organisations taking part in the St Andrews Day out celebration increased by 140% between 2012-13 and 2013-14.

On 26 September 2014 I was also delighted to announce that the Scottish Government is providing £315,000 to support 16 events across the country as part of the 2014-15 Winter Festival’s programme. These events, alongside the many other partner activities, initiatives and attractions which make up the wider Winter Festival’s programme, offer something for everyone and the marketing effort supported by the Scottish Government will be used to encourage the people of Scotland, visitors, attractions and businesses to join in the coming celebration.

Scotland’s Population 2013: the Registrar General’s Annual Review of Demographic Trends has been published today. The review contains information about births, deaths and marriages during the year, together with other demographic information.

A copy is available in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 55946), or from the National Records of Scotland website: www.nrscotland.gov.uk.

The Glasgow 2014 Cultural Programme is the most ambitious cultural celebration that has ever taken place in Scotland. It is a national programme of new work with two strands: ‘Culture 2014’ which is the Scotland wide programme and ‘Festival 2014’ the Games Time celebration that will run alongside the sporting action in Glasgow.

Culture 2014 is already underway, including almost 200 projects and exhibitions and delivering over 800 events across Scotland. Many of these events are taking place along the route of the Queen’s Baton Relay and it will continue beyond the Games until 31 August 2014.

Festival 2014 will transform Glasgow during Games time, and will run from 19 July to 3 August 2014. There will be more than 1000 performances in 100 venues across the city. ‘Live zones’ in Glasgow Green, Merchant City and Kelvingrove Bandstand as well as BBC at the Quay, will be a key focus of activity throughout each day.

Details about events can be found in the programme guides:

Culture 2014 Programme Guide provides an overview of the nationwide programme of activity taking place in the run up to, during and beyond Games Time.

http://www.creativescotland.com/resources/our-publications/marketing/culture-2014-programme-guide

Festival 2014 Guide includes details of the full range of Games Time activity taking place in Glasgow, including details of sites at live zones

http://publications.glasgowlife.org.uk/arts/2014-Festival-Brochure/

I would encourage as many people as possible to take part in this once in a lifetime cultural celebration.

The Scottish Government is grateful to Dr Ian Laing and his expert review group for their very thorough investigation and report. Whilst the report was a rigorous study of local procedures and practices, the investigation was very sensitively handled by Dr Laing and his team, and fully recognised the tragic circumstances for the families affected. Ministers want to join with Dr Laing in thanking the parents for the brave and important contribution they have made to this report.

The independent report highlights a highly professional and dedicated workforce at the neonatal unit at Wishaw General Hospital; delivering high quality, compassionate care. The review team concluded that all three babies were cared for to a high clinical standard, and that the neonatal unit met required staffing levels. The report is also clear that the infection control precautions and hygiene measures of staff were of a high quality.

However, when it comes to the care of such precious and vulnerable babies we must always look at how we can improve the care that is offered. NHS Lanarkshire are committed to effectively addressing the recommendations of the independent report and we will keep progress under close review.

While NHS Lanarkshire are increasing numbers of staff, in line with recruitment happening across Scotland, we will do all we can to assist the health board with solutions for staffing required related to sickness or leave - including through supporting the creation of specialist regional nurse banks. Our innovative nursing workforce planning tool will also help to ensure that the health board has the right staff, with the right skills in the right place at all times.

We are sharing the report with the management teams of every neonatal intensive care unit in Scotland so they too can learn any appropriate lessons from it.

The government would reiterate our thanks to the parents who shared their personal stories about the care their families received in the unit, and would also like to pay tribute to the staff who work tirelessly to care for every sick baby and to support bereaved families when the worst happens.