• Scottish Tory leader Douglas Ross raises the issue of "underworked and undervalued" frontline police officers and accuses the first minister of not having policing as a priority
• This after the Scottish Police Federation announced that its police officer members were going to withdraw "all goodwill" following what it says is a "derisory" £565 pay rise offer
• The first minister insists she understands the pressures of the police service. Pay negotiations under way and she adds that there are plans to increase recruitment

• Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar raises the issue of the record level of cancer waiting times and says the wait for diagnostic testing has risen by more than 70% in the last year
• The FM says Mr Sarwar "forgets" that there has been three further waves of Covid since last year, with subsequent staff absences

That concludes our coverage of first minister's questions today. FMQs will return after the summer break.

Background

The head of Scotland's state-owned ferry network has admitted the service is getting worse.

Most islands in the west of Scotland rely on services from Caledonian MacBrayne, which operates 34 vessels - the largest fleet in the UK.

CalMac boss Robbie Drummond told the BBC that rising passenger numbers, more intense storms and a failure to launch new vessels had led to problems.

He said passengers' experience of the ferries was worse than in the past.

Last month,the island of Arran lost the 29-year-old MV Caledonian Isles for nearly a fortnight because of an engine problem.

Then the 33-year-old MV Lord of the Isles, which serves South Uist, was withdrawn from service for maintenance, and the MV Hebrides, which connects Skye, North Uist and Harris in the "Uig triangle", was damaged when it struck a pier.

Read more here.

Image source, Getty Images

Scottish Conservative MSP Jamie Greene asks what action is being taken to reduce breakdowns on ferry services to the Scottish islands. He says that over half the CalMac fleet is over its 25-year life expectancy and that the cost of ageing vehicles is £84m in repairs.

He insists it is not two new vessels CalMac needs, it is two dozen and says Scotland has one of the worst public ferry services in the world.

Mr Greene asks if the two new vessels still under construction at Ferguson Marine in Port Glasgow might be sailing before 10 October 2023.

Ms Sturgeon says she understands frustrations and is committed to support for lifeline services.

She says the completion timetable for the two ferries is in the public domain.

The FM agrees the ferry fleet is ageing and says this is the point of the resilience fund established in 2018 and the infrastructure investment plan.

Jackie Baillie says the Lancet has reported on the crisis at the Beatson West of Scotland Cancer Centre and a system stretched to breaking point.

The Scottish Labour MSP asks the first minister why the £10m allocated for cancer waiting times has been cut to just £1.5m.

The first minister tells the chamber NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde has confirmed that there will be no detrimental impact on patients.

Ms Sturgeon says, since the SNP took office, there has been more than a 90% increase in consultant oncologists working in the NHS in Scotland.

Image source, Getty Images

Mr Sarwar attacks the first minister, saying a year ago "Pandemic Nicola" promised cancer care was a focus of her government.

He says that after the worst cancer waiting times on record, she is now spending "seven days a week, and it sometimes feels like 24 hours a day, focusing on what she cares about - breaking op our country and dividing our people, not rebuilding it".

Ms Sturgeon says Mr Sarwar has forgotten there have been three further waves of a pandemic and staff absences.

She says NHS staffing is up by 23.5% with higher staffing than NHS England and that Scotland has the best-performing A&E in the whole of the UK with better-paid staff.

Finally, she says the worst thing that can happen to the NHS is continued Conservative governments cutting the budgets of the Scottish Parliament.

Image source, Getty Images

Mr Sarwar answers his own question, saying 3,057 patients had not been treated within the 62-day standard. He says in the eight years of Ms Sturgeon's tenure as first minister, the target has never been met.

He brings up claims that the Beatson Cancer Centre in Glasgow considered rationing chemotherapy and asks how many people have been waiting more than six weeks for diagnostic tests.

Ms Sturgeon concedes there are many people waiting longer than six weeks. She adds that at the end of May, 155,000 people were waiting for one particular diagnostic test but says she is investing heavily in diagnostics.

The FM recognises the pressure NHS staff are under but says there has been a 95% increase in consultant oncologists and a 63% increase in consultant radiologists.

Image source, Getty Images

Background

NHS staff are increasingly having to apologise for "system-wide failings" which are letting patients down, a leading doctor has claimed.

The outgoing chairman of BMA Scotland, Dr Lewis Morrison, urged ministers to "stop asking doctors to say sorry and give them the tools to make things better".

The Scottish government said it was spending £1bn on its NHS Recovery Plan.

• Read more here
• Doctors are exhausted, says BMA chief
• Cancer waiting times performance at record low
• A&E waiting times match worst level on record

Image source, Getty Images

Background

Almost a quarter of people being referred with urgent suspicion of cancer are waiting longer than the 62-day target for their first treatment.

New figures from Public Health Scotland show performance against the target fell to 76.9% in the first three months of 2022.

The rate was the lowest since records began a decade ago.

The Scottish government said meeting the target "remains challenging" and more must be done to improve waits.

The Public Health Scotland report, external looks at two key cancer waiting targets.

Read more here.

Scottish Labour leader Anas Sarwar uses his first question to ask about cancer waiting times and Tuesday's figures which he says showed the worst cancer waiting times on record.

Mr Sarwar asks how many patients have missed the 62-day standard for starting treatment.

Ms Sturgeon says there are two key waitin time standards - 31 days from a decision to treat to first treatment, which she says is being met.

She adds that the 62-day pathway is not being met but, in the most recent quarter, the NHS increased the number of patients treated by 4% on 2019 figures. She says referrals are increasing and once a decision to treat is made, patients wait an average of four days to start treatment.

Mr Ross tells MSPs: "The first minister is on a different planet."

The Scottish Tory leader accuses Ms Sturgeon of taking her eye of the ball again and leading a distracted government.

Ms Sturgeon explains the SPF action is an operational matter for the chief constable and constructive pay negotiations are ongoing.

Image source, Getty Images

The Scottish Tory leader tells the chamber the first minister is not facing the "reality outwith your bubble in Bute House".

Police officer numbers are at their lowest level since 2008, he continues.

The Scottish Police Federation describes the current pay offer as "derisory", says Mr Ross

The first minister says police officers are suffering from the cost of living crisis "exacerbated by the Tory government".

Ms Sturgeon insists there is a higher value attached to public sector workers in Scotland - and again defends the police budget, saying officers are paid more here than in the rest of the UK.

Mr Ross says the first minister has just ignored a "dire warning" from the chief constable.

The Scottish Tory leader says: "Look at the issues here in Scotland right now."

He says a police officer told him this morning that "staffing is horrendous" and officers are over-worked and under-valued.

The first minister accepts the pressure frontline officers are under.

She says the total number of officers in Scotland now is higher than the situation the SNP inherited, which compares with 20,000 fewer in England.

Ms Sturgeon turns to pay and explains the negotiations are ongoing and she points out a new police constable earns more than in England

"Policing is very clearly a priority for this government," replies Nicola Sturgeon.

The first minister insists in Scotland there are 32 police officers per 10,000 people, whereas in England there are just 23 per 10,000.

She says the policing budget is being increased by £40.5m.

Ms Sturgeon adds that if Douglas Ross wants more cash for the police, he might want to have a word with "his boss at Westminster".

Image source, Getty Images

Background

Police officers in Scotland will withdraw "all goodwill" after they were offered a "derisory" £565 pay rise, the force's chief constable has been told.

The Scottish Police Federation said members would claim payment for any overtime they were ordered to work.

"The many thousands of police hours that are currently provided for nothing will simply come to an end," its general secretary told BBC Scotland.

By law, police officers cannot take industrial action.

• Read more here
• Scottish police officers reject £565 pay increase
• Police consider action over 'derisory' pay deal

Douglas Ross is on his feet and FMQs is under way.

The Scottish Conservative leader says that last week the chief constable, Iain Livingstone, said policing was clearly not one of the Scottish government's priorities.

Image source, Getty Images

Background

If there's one topic you can be sure will be mentioned during today's FMQs it's indyref2.

Nicola Sturgeon has proposed 19 October 2023 as the date for another referendum on independence.

The first minister said the question would be the same as in the last referendum in 2014: "Should Scotland be an independent country?".

Ms Sturgeon has written to Prime Minister Boris Johnson to ask for formal consent for the vote to be held.

She said she would press on with her plan if this was not granted by the UK government.

• How will indyref2 compare to 2014?
• BBC iPlayer - Independence: Why Scotland could vote again
• Is indyref2 Nicola Sturgeon's biggest political gamble?

Welcome to our live coverage of the last First Minister's Questions before the summer recess, on Thursday 30 June 2022.

Nicola Sturgeon will face questions from opposition party leaders and backbench MSPs.

We'll bring you reporting and analysis of the major stories that come up during the weekly political jousting.

Just click on the tabs above to watch or listen with us.