Chamber and committees

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Interim Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

The SPS awarded the pre-construction services contract for the HMP Highland project to Balfour Beatty in September 2021.

The SPS are working with Balfour Beatty to further develop the design of HMP Highland, prior to the award of a stage two contract that will deliver the construction element of the project.

Estimated spend on dementia by each Integration Joint Board in each year since 2016 is as follows:-

The National Services Division (NSD) in NHS National Services Scotland (NSS) have commissioning responsibility for the Scottish Genetic Laboratories. NSD are currently conducting a review of NHS Scotland’s genomics services which includes reviewing the Scottish genomic test directory and genomics infrastructure. The review is expected to be completed by the end of the 2021-2022 financial year.

The outcomes from the review will be considered by the Scottish Genomics Leadership Group, chaired jointly by Professor David Crossman, Chief Scientist for Health for the Scottish Government, and Susan Buchanan, NSD Director. This Group are supporting the Scottish Government in ensuring appropriate planning and robust decision-making processes are in place for genetic testing availability in Scotland.

Should the review highlight an inequity of access for Scottish patients for specific genetic tests, NSD will work with the Scottish Genomics Leadership Group to resolve the matter as soon as possible.

The National Services Division (NSD) in NHS National Services Scotland (NSS) have commissioning responsibility for the Scottish Genetic Laboratories. NSD are currently conducting a review of NHS Scotland’s genomic services which includes a review of the Scottish genomic test directory and genomics infrastructure. The review is expected to be completed by the end of the 2021-2022 financial year.

The outcomes from the review will be considered by the Scottish Genomics Leadership Group (SGLG), chaired jointly by Professor David Crossman, Chief Scientist for Health for the Scottish Government, and Susan Buchanan, NSD Director, who are supporting the Scottish Government in ensuring appropriate planning and robust decision-making processes are in place for genetic testing availability in Scotland.

In addition, the SGLG and NSD are working closely with the Scottish Genetics Laboratory Consortium and the Scottish Medicines Consortium to understand the laboratory capacity requirements for current and future medicines requiring a companion diagnostic test.

The Scottish Government’s draft Heat in Buildings Strategy proposed that any regulations requiring the installation of zero emissions heating systems would be phased in, with all building owners being required to comply by 2045.

The draft Strategy specified that it may be appropriate to require earlier compliance from, for example, those using high emissions fuels like heating oil or coal (which are more prevalent in off-gas grid areas).

The draft Strategy was subject to consultation from 5 February to 30 April 2021, and questions 48 and 49 specifically asked for views on the regulatory actions and timescales proposed.

An analysis of the consultation responses can be found at: https://www.gov.scot/isbn/9781802014464 .

As set out in our final Heat in Buildings Strategy, published on 7 October 2021, the Scottish Government will consult in further detail on our commitment to phase out the installation of fossil fuel heating systems during 2022.

The Committee on Climate Change (CCC) is the statutory advisory body to the Scottish Ministers in respect of meeting their duties under climate change legislation.

The CCC has stated that, with respect to the decarbonisation of heat, our short-term priorities should be a reduction in demand through improved energy efficiency and the installation of renewable heating systems in off-gas buildings where the carbon intensity of displaced fuel is greater than on-gas areas.

This advice is set out in the CCC’s ‘Next Steps for UK Heat Policy’ publication, which can be found at: https://www.theccc.org.uk/publication/next-steps-for-uk-heat-policy/ . This advice has informed our proposed approach to heat decarbonisation set out in our final Heat in Buildings Strategy, published on 7 October 2021.

ScotRail, when proposing the May 2022 timetable, has examined in detail previous, current and expected passenger demand. ScotRail has developed a proposed timetable that offers an increase in the number of services compared to current service levels as well as service patterns that meet demand, with scope for growth, while recognising the need for financial and environmental sustainability as we work towards Net Zero.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-03384 on 27 October 2021. 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 has met all four Rail unions on a number of occasions recently, but union representatives have not chosen to use those meetings to discuss ScotRail’s Fit for the Future document.

We are taking forward a number of recommendations made by the Short Life Working Group on Ventilation in order to improve airflow in settings where transmission of Covid-19 is most likely to occur. As the First Minister stated when she announced this £25 million package of funding, the support will focus on the hospitality and leisure sectors although the specific sectors and premises that will be eligible for financial support through this fund is still being determined and community halls are being actively considered as part of this process.