To ask the Scottish Government when it last met with Renfrewshire health and social care partnership. (S6O-03381)

Scottish Government officials last met Renfrewshire health and social care partnership officers on Thursday 4 April 2024.

I welcomed the news on Tuesday that the integration joint board in Renfrewshire has abandoned the proposals to close or merge the Milldale and Mirin day centres for people with additional support needs. I congratulate all service users and their families on their tireless campaign to save those services. However, it should not have taken such intense efforts or legal action to change the proposal.

Other services are not being spared, such as Montrose care home in Paisley. The underlying problem remains that the Government is chronically underfunding HSCPs and slashing their budgets. When will the minister deliver for people in Renfrewshire—especially the most vulnerable—with proper funding to avoid cuts and by taking action to end residential care charges and bring people who have a learning disability home to their areas, as has been promised by the Government for years?

First, we do not want to see the closure of good-quality care homes and other important care services. We absolutely understand the concern that that can cause for supported people and their families. However, decisions on how to deliver local services are for integration authorities to make—in this case, the Renfrewshire integration joint board. The Scottish Government expects those decisions to be made in consultation with the people who use the services and in full awareness of the potential impact on them.

On funding, the Scottish Government has invested more than £2 billion in health and social care integration under the 2024-25 budget. That delivers on our commitment to increase social care spending by 25 per cent over the parliamentary session and does so two years ahead of our original target.

I know that discussions about a national care service are on-going, but the creation of that service is our proposal for rising to meet some of the challenges. Members of Parliament and the public want to hold ministers accountable and responsible, and the national care service proposal will enable that to happen.