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Tory MSP Liz Smith says her party was willing to work with John Swinney on the Education Bill which then disappeared.

Now Mr Swinney says the bill might come back if improvements on empowerment in schools are not sufficient.

Ms Smith says: "That is not a credible state of affairs when it comes to the SNP's stewardship of education."

She says parents want more teachers, more improvements in numeracy and literacy, and more choices in subjects and under this government they are not getting them.

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SNP MSP Alex Neil says there are two themes that run across Labour benches: firstly they are empty; and secondly Labour are "hopeless, they are helpless and they are heading for oblivion".

He moves the level of child poverty, saying it is "unacceptable".

Mr Neil insists child poverty must be tackled as a top priority.

He says: "The cost of preventing child poverty is a lot lower, in the long run, than dealing with the dire consequences."

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Education Secretary John Swinney has insisted the government is "committed" to assessments for P1 pupils despite fresh opposition calls to scrap them.

The tests were introduced a year ago in a bid to collect more data on pupils to help inform teachers about progress.

All of Holyrood's opposition parties oppose tests for the youngest pupils, and want to put this to a vote.

But Mr Swinney said the tests were "vital" in making sure issues pupils might have were addressed "pronto".

• Look back on Mr Swinney's statement on Holyrood Live
• Parents urged to boycott P1 tests
• Changes to P1 school tests announced

Labour MSP Iain Gray labels the programme for government an "interminable managerial list" of "reheated" policies.

However, he welcomes the announcements on the UN Rights for the Child and school-based counselling.

Turning to education, Mr Gray welcomes the scrapping of the Education Bill which he claims sought to take away powers from local authorities.

He goes on to criticise the high number of teacher vacancies, issues around pay and education spending which he says has been cut by £0.5bn per year.

Satisfaction with schools in this country has plummeted, Mr Gray says, and there is nothing in the programme for government which seeks to change this he argues.

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Mr Briggs says the crisis affecting young people and families, as shown in the worst CAMHS waiting times on record, has been caused by a lack of investment from the government.

He insists the Tories will continue to scrutinise the government and continue the work of looking for the fresh thinking to improve the health service.

The Tory MSP concludes saying the government must focus on improving the NHS and not on separation.

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Drug deaths in Scotland hit a new record high in 2017, having more than doubled in a decade.

New figures from the National Records of Scotland showed that 934 drug-related deaths were recorded in 2017.

This is the largest number since the figures started being collated in 1996, and more than double the 2007 total.

The Scottish government is drawing up a new drugs strategy, saying that "each of these untimely deaths is a tragedy".

Read more here.

Tory MSP Miles Briggs says there are far too many example of things getting worse in the NHS under the SNP.

He points to A&E and cancer waiting times, the doubling of drug related deaths and rising delayed discharge.

Ms Freeman says the government has accepted there are areas of improvement before highlighting that nine in ten A&E patients are seen within the target time.

Mr Briggs says the NHS staffing "crisis shows no sign of abating", and urges the new health secretary to prioritise this.

This Scottish government is part of the problem, not part of the solution, he argues.

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Ms Freeman will set out the additional work to focus on improving waiting times in a couple of weeks from now.

The health secretary explains this year is the 70th anniversary of our NHS, but celebration does not mean complacency.

She concludes saying the programme for government is an opportunity for Scotland to flourish.

Health Secretary Jeane Freeman opens the debate by highlighting public services as central to the health and wellbeing of people of Scotland.

Brexit makes meeting the challenge of improving wellbeing harder, she argues.

The minister confirms Frank's Law - free personal care to under 65s - will be delivered by April next year.

Turning to mental health, the health secretary recognises services must improve.

Our programme for government sets out a comprehensive package of investment and reform, backed by £250m.

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First Minister Nicola Sturgeon has pledged an extra £250m for mental health services as she announced her plans for the coming year at Holyrood.

Ms Sturgeon set out details of 12 new bills in her "programme for government" as MSPs returned from summer recess.

Mental health support for young people and increased capital investment were among the key measures announced.

Opposition parties said the government was being too timid, and had failed to follow through on previous promises.

• What new laws are the Scottish government planning?
• Brian Taylor: An outbreak of body language
• Back to the day job for MSPs
• Look back on the speech on Holyrood Live
• Read more here

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MSPs will now continue to debate Nicola Sturgeon's programme for government 2019-20, for the third and final time.

Image source, Scottish government

MSPs will continue to debate Nicola Sturgeon's programme for government, with the focus this afternoon being on public services.

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Mr Yousaf pledges to improve the information that is available and given to families.

The SPS will look and reflect on how the families of victims' issues can be addressed, he reiterates.

Mr Yousaf says there are conditions that can be put on prisoners when they are released.

He accepts the powers are there and Mr Yousaf pledges to look at using the powers more.

Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf recalls his meeting with the Stewart family, saying it affected him deeply.

He describes the family as inspirational for using such a tragedy to call for real change.

Mr Yousaf says he guarantees concrete action on the asks of the Michelle's Law campaign.

A consultation will be held before the end of the year on the handling of parole, he confirms, adding he will try to bring it about as speedily as possible.

The justice secretary commits to ensuring victim's right and the rights of their families are taken into consideration when temporary release is being considered.

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Labour MSP Daniel Johnson welcomes the opportunity to consider transparency in the parole system as part of this debate.

"The system can only be strengthened through open discussion of these issues."

Mr Johnson suggests victims are often only an afterthought in dialogue on the justice system.

The way we report on sentencing does not lead to proper understanding of sentencing, the Labour MSP says, and calls for more clarity on when people can be released.

The rights of victims and families must be balance with the hope for rehabilitation, he concludes.