Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government deemed that the most sensitive way of investigating previous post-mortem practice in Scotland was the Independent Review Group on the Retention of Organs at Post Mortem Examination which was established in September 2000 by the then Scottish Executive. The final report was published in November 2001.

In addition, Audit Scotland was instructed by the then Auditor General for Scotland to undertake an exercise to validate the information provided to the Review Group by NHS trusts (now known as NHS boards). The Audit Scotland report summarises the findings from the validation exercise and the systems review undertaken during the period November 2001 to January 2002.

The Scottish Government wants to ensure that women are having informed and empowered conversations with their GP in order to support the diagnosis process for endometriosis. We continue to explore new ways and approaches to support people to seek advice in a way that best meets their needs, whilst also ensuring access to face-to-face appointments where required.

We recognise the benefits that virtual treatment tools like Near Me could bring to many of those suffering with endometriosis and the potential impact they could have on diagnosis delays. Near Me is a confidential and secure service that allows people to attend a pre-arranged appointment using a video call, rather than attending in person. However, we are clear that where clinically necessary, face-to-face consultations will be available to those who need them.

The COVID-19 pandemic necessitated the imposition of Infection Prevention Control (IPC) measures in order to contain its spread. These IPC measures, which have recently been deescalated, changed the way GPs see their patients. The Scottish Government wants to see greater availability of face-to-face appointments and is working with the British Medical Association (BMA) and Royal College of General Practitioners (RCGP) to ensure this happens as quickly as possible.

We will continue to support the health and care system through what is anticipated to be an extremely challenging winter, including supporting GPs to offer an appropriate mix of pre-booked, same day, face to face and remote appointments. Additionally, the NHS Inform pages on endometriosis have recently been reviewed and updated, in collaboration with endometriosis specialists and those with lived experience, to ensure that people across Scotland are able to access accurate and up-to-date information on endometriosis in a range of languages and formats.

An evidence based approach is central to the development of our policy to restrict promotions on less healthy food and drink.

We are using a wide range of evidence and data sources to consider the potential impacts of restricting promotions, ensuring we have a robust and balanced evidence base to inform policy making.

Evidence gathering remains ongoing and we continue to add to our evidence base and engage with a range of stakeholders. We are undertaking analysis to inform a suite of impact assessments in order to assess whether the proposed measures are proportionate as well as to consider their impact on health inequalities. These impact assessments will be published upon introduction to Parliament of the Public Health (Restriction of Promotions) Bill.

Since 1 st April 2017 £143,918 has been invested in safety improvement on the A90 between Ellon and Peterhead, and £347,392 invested in safety improvement on the A90 between Ellon and Fraserburgh. Note that this second figure of £347,392 includes the value of £143,913.

At the time when issues were raised in relation to organ retention, a package of work was completed. This included the work completed by the Independent Review Group on the Retention of Organs at Post Mortem Examination, which was established in September 2000 by the then Scottish Executive. The final report was published in November 2001.

And the Audit Scotland validation exercise, which was instructed by the then Auditor General for Scotland to undertake an exercise to validate the information provided to the Review Group by NHS trusts (now known as NHS boards).

Standards for the management of hospital post-mortem examinations were developed and subsequently updated in 2016 by Healthcare Improvement Scotland. The standards apply to NHS boards and staff involved in hospital post-mortem examinations, including the process for authorisation. This includes, but is not limited to, pathologists, anatomical pathology technologists, mortuary technicians, medical and nursing staff, staff involved in transportation of the deceased, and staff involved with bereavement care and support.

As well as this package of work, the Scottish Government created and implemented the Human Tissue (Scotland) Act 2006 which updated the legislation around post-mortem examinations. This ensured that for hospital post-mortem examinations authorisation was required for a post-mortem to take place.

We are aware of the distress to families affected by tissue and organ retention at post mortem. We are further aware that while the majority of families have been reunited with their loved ones’ remains, there are a few cases in which this has not been possible.

The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) and NHS boards have responsibility for facilitating the reunion of families with their loved ones’ remains. In cases where COPFS has been made aware of historic retained organs, it has worked with Police Scotland to identify and contact families and facilitate their wishes. However, where the Scottish Government is made aware of such situations we will liaise with the COPFS or NHS boards to try to reunite those affected by organ retention with their loved ones’ remains.

It is now rare for an organ to be retained to establish cause of death. In any case where retention of an organ is considered a realistic possibility, the Procurator Fiscal will ensure that the nearest relative is made aware at the earliest opportunity, preferably by someone already known to them (such as a Victim Information and Advice officer or police Family Liaison Officer).

The Procurator Fiscal will also ensure that the options for how that organ is dealt with following analysis are explained to the family and that, where they wish to discuss and express a view, their request is followed if possible. In certain circumstances, the organ may be retained for research or education but only where the pathologist believes there would be value in doing so and only with the clear authorisation of the nearest relative and the consent of the Procurator Fiscal.

COPFS works with families affected by retention of organs and follows their well-established procedures following a procurator fiscal arranged post-mortem. The retention of tissues and organs following post mortem examination must also follow guidelines produced by the Royal College of Pathologists.

In addition, COPFS maintains a record of all retained organs and carries a monthly reconciliation with pathology providers to ensure that all organs that have been retained are known about and that affected families have been made aware.

An evidence based approach is central to the development of our policy to restrict promotions on less healthy food and drink.

Further to our 2018/19 consultation , we recently consulted again on our proposals on restricting the promotions for foods high in fat, sugar or salt to further inform the evidence base and development of this policy. As part of this we have engaged with a range of industry organisations, including manufacturers and food producers, to seek views on our proposals. Responses to this consultation are now being analysed and will help to inform development of this policy.

We continue to engage with a range of stakeholders and update our wider evidence base to inform a suite of impact assessments in order to assess whether the proposed measures are proportionate as well as to consider their impact on health inequalities. This includes engagement with businesses to inform a Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment that will set out the anticipated costs and benefits of these measures. These impact assessments will be published upon introduction to Parliament of the Public Health (Restriction of Promotions) Bill.

The last meeting between the Scottish Government and the UK Government Department for Transport to specifically discuss the Union Connectivity Review’s recommendation for investment in the A75 was on 16 June 2022.

The Union Connectivity Review made no recommendations on upgrading the A77. Discussions between Scottish and UK Government officials have therefore focused solely on the A75. In March 2022, Transport Scotland officials had an initial discussion with UK Government Department for Transport (DfT) counterparts, on the A75. Follow up was undertaken by DfT officials and TS officials on a number of specific clarification questions, with a further meeting held on 16 June.

A subsequent discussion is scheduled for 31 October which will cover UCR recommendations and associated proposed funding for the A75.

The next meeting with the UK Government Department for Transport is scheduled for 31 October 2022. Discussions will cover proposed investment for the A75 only as the Final Union Connectivity Review Report, published in November 2021, did not recommended that the UK Government commit funding to support the upgrade of the A77. To date, the UK Government has committed no funding to upgrading the A75.