Chamber and committees

Public Health Scotland (PHS) publishes national measles case numbers on a weekly basis. Further information is available in the latest Immunisation and Vaccine Preventable Diseases Quarterly Report, which currently covers the period to March 2026. The next quarterly report, covering the period to the end of June 2026, will be published on 1 September 2026. A summary of trends is also provided in the annual publication Protecting the population of Scotland from vaccine preventable diseases: Vaccination and Immunisation Report - Publications - Public Health Scotland.

Scotland continues to experience relatively low levels of measles. While this is welcome, the small number of cases means that publishing more detailed information, such as NHS Board-level case numbers, hospital admissions, or whether infections were imported or locally acquired, could risk identifying individuals. For this reason, such breakdowns are not routinely published.

Information on MMR and MMRV vaccine uptake is published through the PHS Vaccination Surveillance Dashboard. Although uptake remains high in Scotland, there have been long-term declines, consistent with trends seen elsewhere. Work is ongoing at both national and local levels to improve uptake and reduce inequalities. For example, the five-year Scottish Vaccination and Immunisation Programme Framework sets out priorities to improve vaccine uptake and reduce vaccine-preventable disease, while bi-monthly liaison meetings between PHS and NHS Boards provide opportunities to review local data and address operational challenges.

The Scottish Government's approach to media buying is to ensure that channel selection is driven by evidence of what most effectively reaches and engages target audiences, rather than by specifying particular media channels within contracts.

I refer the member to the answer to question S7W-02200 on 31 August 2026. 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/written-questions-and-answers.

The Scottish Government is working with Public Health Scotland and NHS Boards, including NHS Tayside and NHS Grampian, to improve childhood vaccination uptake. Nationally, the five-year Scottish Vaccination and Immunisation Programme (SVIP) Framework sets out priorities to increase uptake, reduce inequalities and minimise the burden of vaccine-preventable disease. Public Health Scotland also holds regular liaison meetings with NHS Boards to review local data, share learning and discuss quality improvement activity. Boards continue to implement measures based on local need, including reminder and recall arrangements, flexible appointments and community-based delivery, supported through existing national improvement arrangements.

Long-term declines in uptake are seen across immunisations across the UK 4-nations and beyond, with Scotland comparing favourably. The reasons are multifaceted and include attitudinal and behavioural, as well as structural, and are described here: Understanding and Addressing Declines in Childhood Immunisations - Understanding and Addressing Declines in Childhood Immunisations - Publications - Public Health Scotland

Immunisation uptake varies by NHS Board, local authority and a range of demographic factors, including deprivation, ethnicity, sex and urban-rurality, reflecting a range of interrelated demographic, behavioural and structural factors. In January 2026, the second MMR dose was brought forward from 3 years 4 months to 18 months, creating more opportunities for vaccination before school age. Ongoing improvement activity includes implementation of the five-year Scottish Vaccination and Immunisation Programme (SVIP) framework and regular engagement between Public Health Scotland and NHS Boards.

Public Services Delivery Scotland GP IT Business As Usual Service Management team monitor all adverse events that occur from GP systems. Of the 8 adverse events that have occurred since OneAdvanced have acquired the Vision software, there have been no reported incidents that have impacted clinical safety for patients.

Scotland’s NHS genomic laboratory service underpins the delivery of genomic medicine in Scotland and is critical to the delivery of the Genomics in Scotland strategy.

NHS National Services Directorate (NSD), the commissioner of NHS genomic testing in Scotland, leads a programme of laboratory transformation with funding from Scottish Government. Significant progress has been made in standardising best practice, data collection and laboratory costings, and through the implementation of new cancer testing as part of national end-to-end patient pathways.

NSD have produced a report and recommendations for the next phase of service reform for review by Board Chief Executives, which will be considered as part of our long-term approach to deliver bold and ambitious action to reform and renew our health and care systems in Scotland within a fiscal position that remains extremely challenging.

Throughout this process, we recognise the work of healthcare scientists working above and beyond in our NHS to provide critical services to the people of Scotland. We want to retain and nurture our existing workforce throughout any service redesign as we continue to work alongside NHS partners to make our laboratory service a more sustainable and innovative place to work.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information centrally. Public Health Scotland (PHS) also does not hold or publish information on the number of MMR or MMRV catch-up vaccination invitations issued, subsequent vaccination following invitation or local uptake targets. NHS Boards will use local management information to support operation planning in their area but this not routinely collected or published at a national level.

The 5-year Scottish Vaccination and Immunisation Programme (SVIP) framework sets out priorities to improve uptake, reduce inequalities and reduce disease burden. To support the delivery of this, national indicators are under development. Bi-monthly Board liaison calls between PHS and NHS Boards provide an opportunity to discuss local data and operational issues.

No financial penalties, contractual remedies or performance improvement notices have been issued to OneAdvanced in relation to the performance of the Vision GP IT system.

In March 2022, Vision successfully met all Tranche 1 accreditation requirements. Functional and non-functional testing was undertaken covering security, hosting arrangements, clinical safety, support arrangements and training provision, with Health Board subject matter experts contributing to the assessment process.

User feedback from GPs, practice managers and other primary care staff who have migrated to the new Vision system has been collected by Public Services Delivery Scotland through an ongoing lessons learned exercise. There is also continued engagement with stakeholders including GP representative groups including the Royal College of GPs and the Scottish GP Council.