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That's all from Holyrood Live on Tuesday 10 March 2020.

Health Secretary Jeane Freeman told MSPS the total number of cases in Scotland rose to 27, up four from yesterday.

The latest figures show 319 people in the UK are now confirmed to have Covid-19 and six people have died in British hospitals.

Ms Freeman detailed a number of measures being undertaken or considered by the government:

• more than £1 million is being spent on a "rapid scaling up" of NHS facilities for video consultations through the NHS Near Me provision
• the health secretary is also considering how trainee doctors and nurses could be drafted in to help the NHS effort
• recently retired medical professionals being brought back into the NHS is already being considered
• further work is taking place to help NHS 24 cope with an increase in demand for its services

Mental Health Minister Clare Haughey begins saying: "All of us here share the goal of improving access to assessment, care and support for people with visual impairment."

People who are blind or partially sighted should be able to access the information in an accessible format, she adds.

The minister praises RNIB Scotland and its report Communication Failure?, external?.

She says there has been funding of 200 sensory champions, who take their training back to their colleagues.

The minister also highlights See Hear Kit Bags and adds the government has written to all health boards reminding them of their responsibilities in the Patient Rights Act 2011.

Labour MSP Monica Lennon says not accounting for the needs of blind or partially sighted people is not only discriminatory but possibly dangerous.

It's not something that should be happening in 2020 she says.

She offers to work with ministers on what can be done at national level to ensure needs are being met in full.

Hopefully tonight's members debate can be a real turning point she says.

Tory MSP Jeremy Balfour says the report found a lack of recognition of the specific additional needs of those who are blind or partially sighted in accessing NHS information.

Communication Failure? highlights case studies that make depressing reading, including inaccessible formats ,a lack of awareness of NHS staff and people with sight loss being made to feel unworthy he says.

The Tory MSP also expresses disappointment that some NHS boards did not reply to requests for information on these issues.

He urges the health minister to ask health boards across Scotland to consider the recommendations in the report and take a consistent approach to the provision of various formats of NHS information.

Mr Balour calls on health boards to take seriously their duty as outlined in the patient's charter of rights.

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Blind and partially-sighted people can struggle to get healthcare information in a suitable format, a charity says.

The Royal National Institute for the Blind (RNIB) said patients risked missing out on treatments because of the problem.

It warned that relying on others to read documents for them was a breach of medical confidentiality.

The Scottish government said it expected health boards to provide accessible information.

• Read more here
• Read the report Communication Failure? here, external

SNP MSP Stuart McMillan says blind and partially sighted people often do not experience the same confidentiality as other patients, before they often rely on others to get information, diagnosis and advice.

Mr McMillan also highlights many blind and partially sighted people do not feel worth it and therefore do not ask for accessible information.

Private companies are often better as providing accessible information than healthcare providers, he says.

"All health boards really need to up there game," he says, calling for more consistency across Scotland.

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SNP MSP Stuart McMillan leads a member's debate highlighting the RNIB Scotland report Communication Failure?, external which said there were communication failures of NHS boards regarding people with sight loss or visual impairment.

170,000 people in Scotland have significant sight loss and these communication failures can lead to increased ill health.

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MSPs endorse the nomination of Stephen Boyle to Her Majesty The Queen, for appointment as the Auditor General for Scotland.

The Scottish Biometrics Commissioner Bill is passed unanimously.

MSPs approve the Local Government Finance (Scotland) Order 2020 (draft), external, which will distribute £9.9bn of the revenue total of £10.7bn, the public finance minister adds.

88 MSPs back it and 23 agree to it.

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MSPs will now endorse the nomination of Stephen Boyle to Her Majesty The Queen, for appointment as the Auditor General for Scotland.

Mr Boyle will succeed Caroline Gardner whose 8-year term in office ends on 30 June 2020. The Auditor General is an independent officeholder who is responsible for auditing £50 billion of public money.

The Auditor General is an independent officeholder who is responsible for auditing £50 billion of public money.

The position is a full-time, single term appointment for eight years with a salary of £142k per annum.

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Mr Boyle is an Audit Director at Audit Scotland and leads its central government audit work, including audits of the Scottish Government, the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body and the European Agricultural Funds Account.

Mr Boyle is also the appointed auditor of the Scottish Police Authority, the Scottish Public Pension Agency and Registers of Scotland, and has previously audited local authorities and NHS bodies.

Further information on the work of the Auditor General can be found here, external.

Lib Dem MSP Liam McArthur says his party warmly welcomes the bill and will support it at decision time.

The legislation will deliver consistency and clarity on police use of personal data he states.

He says the frameworks and safeguards must remain fit for purpose into the future and he welcomes the support his amendments on this received.

There must be a robust framework on biometric data use and this bill gets us much of the way there he concludes.

Image source, Getty Images

MSPs are to vote on a new law to control the storage of biometric data.

How police deal with personal information including DNA, fingerprints and facial images will be covered in the Scottish Biometrics Commissioner Bill, external.

The bill recommends an independent commissioner is appointed to ensure police investigations are lawful and ethical.

Read more.

John Finnie says the way this bill has progressed and the engagement there has been has been strongly positive and it is stronger as a result.

The Green MSP adds in the last 30 years DNA has been crucial in detecting and prosecuting crimes and the use of biometric data by the police has increased rapidly recently.

The former senior policeman points out: "The Scottish public is under heavy surveillance and it's very important that we get things right."

"I think this is a good piece of legislation and I will support it at decision time."

Labour MSP James Kelly says there have been dramatic advances in technology which means more data can be collected and it can be held more easily.

This brings great advantages to the justice system, he says, but he also says the ethics which underpin their use are robust.

He welcomes the strengthening of the compliance aspects of the bill during the amendment stages, as well as the creation of a complaints process.

Keeping issues under review, including resources, will help to future proof the legislation he adds.

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Tory MSP Liam Kerr says the role of commissioner is important and the bill intends to increase public trust in the use of biometric data.

Mr Kerr stresses the importance of providing the adequate resources and the need for a robust code of practice to allow full scrutiny.

He welcomes the addition of a complaints procedure in the bill, brought about by an amendment from his colleague Margaret Mitchell and further amended today.

The Tory MSP says building in future proofing for the role of the commissioner and scrutiny of the use of biometric data is crucial.

"This is a strong piece of legislation that achieves its aims," he concludes.