Chamber and committees

The Climate Change Plan update provides a pathway to transform farming and food production in Scotland and to optimise land use. In 2021, we are piloting Regional Land Use Partnerships, which aim to facilitate collaboration between local and national government, communities, land owners, land managers and wider stakeholders. They will enable natural capital-led consideration, at a regional level, of how to maximise the contribution that our land can make to addressing the climate and environment crises.

The proposals set out in the Climate Change Plan update for agriculture are founded on a co-development approach and we will work with the industry to consider the complex issues around multi-faceted land use and decisions that impact on them, while we identify the best way to ensure delivery of these outcomes. This partnership working will be continued through the Agriculture Reform Implementation Oversight Board. The Board will carefully consider the recommendations of the Farmer-led Groups, Farming 1.5, WWF Scotland, Just Transition, NFUS, the Climate Change Plan update and Scotland's Climate Assembly's Recommendations for Action Report when devising practical measures for delivery.

The Scottish Government welcomes the Farming for 1.5 report and will consider the recommendations carefully along with the other reports recently received, including the five farming sector farmer-led groups.

We have established the Agriculture Reform Implementation Oversight Board which will contribute to the Scottish Government’s work to implement policy reform, incorporating the relevant recommendations of the farmer-led groups to cut emissions across agriculture, support the production of sustainable, high quality food, and design a new support system and approach.

The Board will create a package of measures, which we will fund, that can be agreed as part of our approach to COP 26. This National Test Programme will include early progress on reducing livestock emissions and the package should be implemented by spring 2022 with recruitment of farmers and crofters expected to begin this autumn. It should also be noted that Mike Robinson, co-chair of Farming 1.5, is a member of the Board.

The material requested includes complex and potentially sensitive information, requiring careful consideration before any release. This is currently being collated and I will write to the member as soon as the information is available. A copy will be placed in the Parliament’s Reference Centre (Bib number 62683).

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-02296 on
‎ 10 September 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 First Minister announced in the Scottish Government’s Programme for Government on 7 September that this Government will carry out scoping work on the remit and powers of a Learning Disability, Autism and Neurodiversity Bill, in this Parliamentary year.

A decision on the timing of a Bill will be taken by Cabinet in the context of setting the content of future legislative programmes. Meantime, the Scottish Government will work closely with stakeholders to consider the issues and how to deliver change quickly and effectively to uphold people’s rights.

The Scottish Government places a high level of importance on providing awareness-raising and suicide prevention training for staff working in frontline public services, to help them identify and support people at risk of mental ill health or suicide. Action 2 of our Suicide Prevention Action Plan (Every Life Matters) sets out our plan to deliver this.

Working with our National Suicide Prevention Leadership Group to deliver the Suicide Prevention Action Plan , the Scottish Government funds Public Health Scotland (PHS) and NHS Education for Scotland (NES) to jointly develop and promote freely-available online learning resources on suicide prevention, mental health, and self-harm for the Scottish workforce, including frontline public service workers. These evidence-based learning resources build organisational capability to effectively respond to mental health issues of people using their services, including suicide risk. The resources can be adapted to meet individual organisation’s needs and many public sector organisations, including Police Scotland and the Scottish Prison Service, are integrating these resources into their existing staff training programmes.

Additionally, the Scottish Government provides funding to PHS to manage the licences and processes to enable delivery of the face-to-face suicide prevention training programmes safeTALK, and ASIST. This training is available to front line public services, and delivered by accredited third-party trainers Face-to-face training of these courses was paused due to the COVID-19 pandemic in line with the licence conditions. However it will recommence in November 2021, with priority access for frontline public service workers.

These programmes and resources complement our wider work under the National Trauma Training Programme, which supports the Scottish Government’s ambition for a trauma-informed and trauma-responsive workforce across Scotland. The National Trauma Training Programme, led by NHS Education for Scotland, provides a suite of freely available, evidence based, trauma training resources and implementation support to help ensure that our services and care are delivered in ways that prevent further harm or re-traumatisation for children, young people or adults affected by psychological trauma.

The Scottish Government does not routinely monitor how many people in frontline public services access suicide prevention training. In relation to Health Boards, the Scottish Government wrote to all Boards in May 2019 to ask that the requirement for NHS staff to undertake mental health and suicide prevention training (as set out in our Suicide Prevention Action Plan) be included as an essential element of Boards’ Workforce Development Plans with immediate effect. We will continue to engage with Health Boards, and the wider public sector, to design, support and evaluate approaches to the delivery of mental health and suicide prevention training.

The Scottish Government aims to carry out scoping work on the remit and powers of a Learning Disability, Autism and Neurodiversity Commissioner in this Parliamentary year.

Following the successful passage of a Learning Disability, Autism and Neurodiversity Bill, a Commissioner would be appointed as soon as possible.

The Scottish Government is not currently introducing on-demand antibody testing.

Immune responses are more complex than the measure of an antibody test. The Chief Medical Officer's advice urges caution around the interpretation of antibody test results, and has advised Health Boards in Scotland to focus on using antibody tests to improve our understanding of COVID-19, and in the clinical management of patients, where appropriate.

Clinicians have the discretion to request an antibody test for an individual if they determine the result will be of benefit to the clinical management of a patient.

We know the vaccine offers significant protection against the virus, and as further research of the immune response to COVID-19 vaccinations in patients with immunosuppressed conditions continues, we would urge those individuals to continue to be cautious to help keep themselves safe.

Research is underway which will help us better understand the immune response to COVID-19, and vaccine efficacy in immunosuppressed groups, and which will be instrumental in helping inform how best to protect immunocompromised individuals from COVID-19 infection in the future.

Our approach to antibody testing is being kept under review.

The Scottish Government does not provide specific funding to local authorities or territorial NHS Boards to carry out suicide prevention training. The Scottish Government provides funding to Public Health Scotland (PHS) to manage the licences and processes to enable delivery of Scottish Mental Health First Aid training and suicide prevention training programmes (safeTALK and ASIST), which are delivered by accredited third-party trainers. This training is available to individuals living in Scotland, including those working in local authorities, NHS boards, third sector organisations and community groups. Between 2018-19 and 2020-21, PHS was allocated a total of £400,000, principally for the management of these training programmes as part of its mental health improvement and suicide prevention work programme.

Through work with our National Suicide Prevention Leadership Group to deliver on our Suicide Prevention Action Plan (Every Life Matters) , the Scottish Government funds PHS and NHS Education for Scotland (NES) to jointly develop and promote freely-available online learning resources on suicide prevention, mental health, and self-harm for the Scottish workforce. These resources are accessible through the NES online training platform. Between 2018-19 and 2020-21, the total allocation to NES and PHS, principally for this work on learning resources, was £495,659.

The information requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government.