The SPCB strongly advises that all Members and their staff, whether paid or voluntary, complete GDPR training. Each Member, as the data controller, is ultimately responsible for their staff's compliance with UK GDPR and the SPCB provide a variety of resources to help ensure Members are well placed to meet their responsibilities.

The Scottish Government remains committed to expanding the national thrombectomy service, and ensuring access to this treatment is as equitable as possible.

Through the National Thrombectomy Programme Board, and Thrombectomy Advisory Group, work is being undertaken to drive expansion of the thrombectomy service.

Planning is ongoing to establish how the £16 million funding announced in the Scottish budget, once scrutinised by the Scottish Parliament, will be best used to maximise the number of patients able to benefit from thrombectomy.

This information is not held centrally by the Scottish Government.

The Scottish Government is committed to addressing patient concerns about data privacy in the sharing of medical records across healthcare providers. We provide clear guidance on privacy and confidentiality, promote robust information governance practices, and support the NHS and healthcare providers in implementing appropriate processes to safeguard patient data.

The responsibility for developing data sharing agreements and publishing privacy notices is down to each individual Board. However, NHS Inform provides patients with supportive information to ensure they have an understanding of the holistic approach to data privacy NHS Scotland take. This information can be found here https://www.nhsinform.scot/care-support-and-rights/health-rights/confidentiality-and-data-protection/how-the-nhs-handles-your-personal-health-information/.

In addition to the guidance on Inform, Privacy by design is at the core of the National Information Governance Programme, forming a key part of our Data Strategy to ensure that digital and data-driven practices are developed with privacy safeguards embedded from the outset.

The Scottish Government also engages regularly with patients, the ICO, and citizen interest groups to ensure data-sharing practices respect patients' rights and expectations

Health data is shared, typically in an aggregated and anonymised format, with trusted third parties through trusted research environments known as ‘Safe Havens’. These Safe Havens comprise of a national Safe Haven within Public Health Scotland and four regional Safe Havens associated with NHS Grampian, Greater Glasgow and Clyde, Lothian, and Tayside.

Safe Havens play a crucial role in protecting personal data, providing a secure space, and supporting the secure use of NHS data for researchers to access and analyse healthcare data without compromising individual privacy. Within Safe Havens researchers can work with anonymised or pseudonymised data, reducing the risk of re-identification of individuals. By implementing robust security measures and access controls, Safe Havens ensure that only authorised individuals can interact with the data, and that they can only access the level of data that is appropriate and proportionate.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-18931 on 21 June 2023. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/questions-and-answers

The existing Scottish Government Records Management Health and Social Care Code of Practice (Scotland) 2024 has guidance on managing health records of people who identify as transgender. This links to guidance from the Medical and Dental Defence Union of Scotland, the General Medical Council and NHS National Services Scotland (NSS). It was recognised in 2020 that it was an area under development, and subsequently the Scottish Government's Chief Statistician issued guidance for public bodies on the collection of data on sex and gender in 2021. The Records Management Code of Practice for Health and Social Care 2024 incorporates the Chief Statistician's guidance along with feedback from stakeholders, providing further guidance to NHS Boards.

Social media management involves the management of Scottish Government social media accounts across platforms, and the directly related services comprise organic content production and outreach to secure content from creators and influencers.

The Scottish Government plans to launch a formal public consultation on a potential local authority cruise ship levy in Scotland in February this year.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-33304 on 24 January 2025. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/questions-and-answers