Meeting of the Parliament Wednesday 27 November 2019 Session 5 © Parliamentary copyright. Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body Information on the Scottish Parliament’s copyright policy can be found on the website - www.parliament.scot or by contacting Public Information on 0131 348 5000 Wednesday 27 November 2019 CONTENTS Col. PORTFOLIO QUESTION TIME ............................................................................................................................... 1 COMMUNITIES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENT ........................................................................................................... 1 Homelessness .............................................................................................................................................. 1 Fire Performance of Cladding Systems ........................................................................................................ 3 Community Empowerment ........................................................................................................................... 4 Waste Collection and Disposal (Dumfries and Galloway Council) ............................................................... 6 Rough Sleepers (Glasgow City Council) ...................................................................................................... 6 SOCIAL SECURITY AND OLDER PEOPLE .............................................................................................................. 9 Loneliness (Older People) ............................................................................................................................ 9 Loneliness among Older People (South Scotland) .................................................................................... 10 Independent Living (Older People) ............................................................................................................. 11 Support for Older People (Cold Weather) .................................................................................................. 12 Emergency Food Parcels (Fife) .................................................................................................................. 13 In-work Poverty ........................................................................................................................................... 14 Scottish Child Payment (North Ayrshire) .................................................................................................... 15 MENTAL HEALTH ............................................................................................................................................. 17 Motion moved—[Willie Rennie]. Amendment moved—[Joe FitzPatrick]. Amendment moved—[Annie Wells]. Amendment moved—[Mary Fee]. Willie Rennie (North East Fife) (LD) ........................................................................................................... 17 The Minister for Public Health, Sport and Wellbeing (Joe FitzPatrick) ....................................................... 21 Annie Wells (Glasgow) (Con) ..................................................................................................................... 25 Mary Fee (West Scotland) (Lab) ................................................................................................................ 27 Alison Johnstone (Lothian) (Green)............................................................................................................ 30 Liam McArthur (Orkney Islands) (LD) ......................................................................................................... 32 James Dornan (Glasgow Cathcart) (SNP) ................................................................................................. 34 Brian Whittle (South Scotland) (Con) ......................................................................................................... 37 Jenny Gilruth (Mid Fife and Glenrothes) (SNP) .......................................................................................... 40 Neil Findlay (Lothian) (Lab) ........................................................................................................................ 43 Mark McDonald (Aberdeen Donside) (Ind) ................................................................................................. 45 Beatrice Wishart (Shetland Islands) (LD) ................................................................................................... 48 Keith Brown (Clackmannanshire and Dunblane) (SNP) ............................................................................ 50 Jeremy Balfour (Lothian) (Con) .................................................................................................................. 53 Joan McAlpine (South Scotland) (SNP) ..................................................................................................... 54 Lewis Macdonald (North East Scotland) (Lab) ........................................................................................... 56 John Mason (Glasgow Shettleston) (SNP) ................................................................................................. 59 Monica Lennon (Central Scotland) (Lab) ................................................................................................... 61 Miles Briggs (Lothian) (Con) ....................................................................................................................... 63 The Cabinet Secretary for Health and Sport (Jeane Freeman) ................................................................. 66 Alex Cole-Hamilton (Edinburgh Western) (LD) .......................................................................................... 69 BUSINESS MOTION ........................................................................................................................................... 72 Motion moved—[Graeme Dey]—and agreed to. PARLIAMENTARY BUREAU MOTIONS ................................................................................................................. 74 Motions moved—[Graeme Dey]. DECISION TIME ................................................................................................................................................ 75 GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE ............................................................................................................................... 82 Motion debated—[Rona Mackay]. Rona Mackay (Strathkelvin and Bearsden) (SNP) ..................................................................................... 82 Claudia Beamish (South Scotland) (Lab) ................................................................................................... 85 Emma Harper (South Scotland) (SNP) ...................................................................................................... 86 Margaret Mitchell (Central Scotland) (Con) ................................................................................................ 88 Joan McAlpine (South Scotland) (SNP) ..................................................................................................... 90 Rhoda Grant (Highlands and Islands) (Lab) ............................................................................................... 93 John Finnie (Highlands and Islands) (Green) ............................................................................................. 94 Beatrice Wishart (Shetland Islands) (LD) ................................................................................................... 95 Ruth Maguire (Cunninghame South) (SNP) ............................................................................................... 97 Sarah Boyack (Lothian) (Lab) ..................................................................................................................... 98 James Dornan (Glasgow Cathcart) (SNP) ............................................................................................... 100 Jackie Baillie (Dumbarton) (Lab) .............................................................................................................. 101 The Minister for Older People and Equalities (Christina McKelvie) ......................................................... 102 1 27 NOVEMBER 2019 2 difficulty paying rent and mental health issues. Scottish Parliament Now, local authorities have the flexibility to investigate, which will mean that people can get Wednesday 27 November 2019 the individual support that they need when they need it most. [The Presiding Officer opened the meeting at Sarah Boyack (Lothian) (Lab): I thank the 14:00] minister for his answer. Portfolio Question Time One of the issues that has come up in my casework is that people are homeless, or cannot get the right accommodation, because of a lack of Communities and Local Government suitable housing for them. How will the rapid transition housing approach lead to permanent Homelessness accommodation for people who have been 1. Angus MacDonald (Falkirk East) (SNP): To homeless, or whom we are trying to prevent from ask the Scottish Government how homeless becoming homeless? people might be assisted this winter by the Kevin Stewart: If Ms Boyack wants to highlight removal of the requirement to be found to me any such cases that she has come across, I unintentionally homeless being a precondition of will be more than willing to look at them. receiving local authority accommodation. (S5O- 03815) Key to the approach is a person-centred approach;