Scottish Parliament e-Brief

Issue 114, 13^th May 2002

SECTION 1 - BUSINESS THIS WEEK

THE CHAMBER

IN COMMITTEE

The main items of business in the Committee Rooms this week are:

• Rural Development meets in Lochgilphead to take evidence for its Integrated Rural Development Inquiry;
• Equal Opportunities takes evidence from Social Justice Minister, Margaret Curran, on race issues;
• Subordinate Legislation considers the delegated powers provisions in the School Meals Bill.
• Audit receives a briefing from the Auditor General on his overview of Further Education Colleges.
• Education continues taking evidence on the School Meals Bill.
• Local Government begins taking evidence on Renewing Local Democracy.
• Enterprise and Lifelong Learning considers a number of ongoing issues including the Lifelong Learning report.
• Justice 1 takes evidence on the Prison Estates Review.
• Scottish Parliamentary Standards Commissioner Bill Committee begins stage 2 of the Bill.
• Social Justice begins preparing for stage 1 of the Debt Arrangement and Attachment Bill.

SECTION 2 - NEWS

EUROPE'S FIRST FAMILY HEALTH NURSES
The first 11 qualified Family Health Nurses, the first of their kind in Europe, have joined the NHS.

Health Minister, Malcolm Chisholm, said they will have a vital role to play in meeting future health needs and improving health.

The Family Health Nurse programme is a two year pilot scheme which has been established at Stirling University as part of NHS Scotland’s participation in the World Health Organisation HEALTH21 strategy, aimed at improving healthcare across Europe. Nurses from the Highlands, Western Isles and Orkney have taken part.

A family health nurse will be a skilled nursing generalist, similar to the approach that a GP takes. This differs from the current system of specialist community nurses who focus on particular age groups or types of need, such as the elderly, young families or the mentally ill.

The programme, although based around rural needs at present, has the potential to be rolled out more widely in communities across Scotland.

Family health nurses will:

• Act as a point of contact for the public;
• Have a real breadth of knowledge about their community and the health issues important to the people who live there;
• Act as a health resource for families and their members at all stages of life; and
• Combine the care of family members who are ill with health protection and promotion for the whole family.

A further 20 students from Highland, Orkney, Western Isles and Lomond and Argyll Primary Care Trusts commenced the Family Health Nurse programme in February 2002.

Full Story

ACTION AGAINST CHILD PROSTITUTION
Every child has a right to grow up safe from abuse and harm, Minister for Education and Young People, Cathy Jamieson, said as she opened Barnardo's "No Child of Ours" conference in Glasgow last week.

The aim of the conference was to support vulnerable children and young people by highlighting the impact of sexual exploitation and demonstrating its unacceptability in modern Scotland.

The Minister outlined action the Executive is taking to combat child prostitution and child abuse, including a fund of £20 million has been made available this year through the Children’s Services Development Fund that is aimed at prioritising service development for vulnerable children and young people.

Ms Jamieson said:

"It is of particular concern that children and young people who are looked after by the local authority are being targeted for sexual exploitation through prostitution. These children and young people are particularly vulnerable and have often been placed in corporate care to protect them from abuse. It is shocking that exploiters prey on their vulnerability. We are committed to working with local authorities to improve the level and quality of the care to ensure that care provided offers much needed stability and integrated support.

"We must all work together to put an end to the scandal of sexual exploitation of children and send out a message to the perpetrators that their behaviour will not be tolerated in Scotland today."

A working group has been set up to develop national guidance on young runaways and child prostitution. At the moment work is being developed together as some of the issues and agencies overlap. The first meeting was held in January 2002, when it was agreed to expand the group to include professionals involved in delivering services for these vulnerable children and young people.

A multi-disciplinary review of Child Protection was announced in March 2001 and aims to promote reduction of abuse or neglect of children & to improve services for children who experience abuse or neglect. This Group has also looked at the issue of child prostitution. The group is due to report next month.

Full Story

SECTION 3 - NOTES ON THIS WEEK’S CHAMBER BUSINESS

The main business on WEDNESDAY is an Executive debate on the Scottish Fire Service of the Future. While the motion has not yet been published, it is likely that it will focus on the recent Executive policy paper of the same name.

Published on 29^th April 200, the document heralds a major change in the Fire Service’s approach. It recognises that in dealing with road accidents, severe weather incidents and other non-related fire incidents, the fire service has already expanded its traditional role. It also places a renewed emphasis on prevention through work with business and community.

The paper, recommending the first substantial policy changes since 1947, covers all aspects of the modern fire service including recommendations on:

Prevention

• Working with local authorities, the police and others in Community safety partnerships to promote fire safety, good health and road safety;
• Enforcing fire safety through ensuring that workplace risks are minimal and are enforced by employers;
• Strengthening the powers of the fire service in areas of fire investigation and recommendations on the best way to deal with arson; and
• Managing fire risk management in the community by analysing accurate and up-to-date information.

Working in partnership with the community

• Working with young people through the fire cadet scheme;
• Working with the private sector on fire safety issues; and
• Opening up the fire stations to act as the focal point of communities and engaging in a wide range of community activities.

The changing role of the fire service

• Dealing with road traffic accidents, severe weather incidents and other non fire related incidents; and
• New technology and training.

There is a three month consultation period on the paper and a number of the recommendations will be delivered through the introduction of a Scottish Fire Services Bill.

Click here to read the paper in full

The day concludes with a Member's Business debate from the SNP's Michael Russell on the Scottish Criminal Records Office.

THURSDAY morning is dedicated to an Executive debate on Investment and Reform in Health and Community Care.

While, at the time of writing, the motion has not been published, it is expected that the debate may concentrate on how the additional funding for the NHS, announced following the budget, will be spent and on what reforms will accompany it. (Click here for more information)

Whether or not this is the case, of course, will be determined when the full text of the motion is published in the Business Bulletin. As always, the full transcript will be available from the Official Report at 08:00 on Friday morning.

In the afternoon, after Question Time and First Minister's Question Time, a motion marking The Queen's Golden Jubilee will be taken.

This is followed by a short Executive debate on the National Waste Strategy.

In February this year, it was announced that a high-level advisory group was to be set up to oversee the integration of local area plans into a national strategy. Such a national strategy - scheduled to be ready by the Autumn - will include mandatory recycling and waste reduction targets for every local authority.

Plans were also announced to amend the Environment Protection Act to give Ministers the power to set targets and to place a duty on councils to have their own integrated waste management plans which will be required to meet them.

While the motion has not yet been published, it is likely that the debate will focus on what progress is being made towards this. As always, the full text of the motion will be published in the Business Bulletin shortly and the full transcript will be available from the Official Report at 08:00 on Friday morning.

Rounding off the day is a Member's Business debate from Marilyn Livingstone (LAB) on Cross-Party Support for a Review of the Construction Industry in Scotland.

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