Chamber and committees

Recorded Police Warnings are an alternative disposal option that are available to police officers that allow them to deal more quickly and efficiently with a range of offences which already commonly result in non-court disposals, including for small quantities of specified controlled drugs. The types of crime covered by the Recorded Police Warning scheme are a matter for the Lord Advocate as part of her independent role as head of the system of prosecution therefore it would not be appropriate for the Scottish Government to comment on this.

Whilst Covid-19 has change the way the NHS works, the Scottish Government has been clear since the start of the pandemic that NHS remains open and those with health concerns should be able to access the care they need safely and quickly. In a life-threatening emergency, 999 and A&E services will always be available.

A National Door Drop to all households in Scotland in January 2021 - “ A Guide to NHS Scotland Services ” - included information about the different healthcare services the public can seek advice from. This information can be accessed on an ongoing basis on the “ Your Community Health Care Services ” page on NHS Inform. To assist NHS Health Boards with local messaging, the Scottish Government has also produced the Primary Care Digital Communications Toolkit , which provides resources for primary care providers to utilise when communicating with the public on how to access healthcare services.

The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulator has approved the Oxford-AstraZeneca vaccine to be given in Scotland, and across the UK. This vaccine also complies with European Medicines Agency requirements and is shown on the record of vaccination as Vaxzevria - EU/1/21/1529.

Individuals travelling abroad will still need to meet the requirements for their destination country when travelling. For example, a negative pre-departure test etc. if stipulated by the respective country.

Detailed workforce planning, in partnership with NHS Scotland health boards is underway to enable delivery of the next stage of COVID-19 vaccinations, alongside the seasonal influenza vaccination programme. On 05 July 2021, we provided health boards with the latest available planning assumptions and advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation. This included workforce deployment requirements, broken down by health board, alongside planning information to enable health boards to continue to work towards building a sustainable vaccinations workforce. We will share further workforce planning information with MSPs shortly on the plans for the delivery of Covid-19 and seasonal influenza vaccinations across NHS Scotland this coming autumn.

We are committed to ensuring that all children and young people get the additional support that they need to reach their full learning potential.

The Additional Support for Learning Act places duties on education authorities to identify, provide for and review the additional support needs of their pupils, including those with autism and Asperger’s syndrome. We provide free professional learning opportunities for practitioners in order to support education authorities to meet their duties under the Additional Support for Learning Act. This includes the Autism Toolbox and Inclusive Practice online professional learning modules.

We published our joint response to the independently chaired review of implementation of additional support for learning in October 2020. Angela Morgan’s report sets a clear direction in how we can continue to build on progress in this area. The joint action plan and governance arrangements are available from Additional support for learning: action plan - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

In addition, we published our Autism Action Plan in December 2020, setting out the actions we will take to improve the support to children and young people with autism in Scotland’s schools. We have made significant progress in implementing these actions and will formally report our progress in December 2021. Our work on supporting young people with Autism and Asperger’s syndrome in mainstream schools is also supported by our guidance on the presumption of mainstream education.

Our skills agency Skills Development Scotland (SDS), who have operational responsibility for the delivery of our apprenticeships programmes, have taken a range of measures to improve uptake of apprenticeships for individuals who have Asperger’s syndrome or autism.

Since 2015, SDS have produced an annual Apprenticeship Equality Action Plan outlining their approach to support individuals from a range of backgrounds to access apprenticeship opportunities and achieve equitable outcomes. They have introduced enhanced funding contributions rates for apprentices with disabilities up to the age of 29 from 2017-18 onwards. Apprentices with disabilities may also be able to access funding via Access to Work, and SDS have hosted specialist calls focusing on support and resources such as Access to Work for neurodiverse young people.

SDS support Learning Providers in their capacity to recruit and support diverse apprentices. Needs Assessor training is provided along with the opportunity for learning providers and employers to meet with local equality organisations who can offer advice and support when recruiting. SDS additionally offers an all-age Careers Information and Guidance (CIAG) service, where careers advisors support young people with autism and Asperger’s syndrome on potential career paths, including apprenticeships.

The OECD did not take formal written submissions for their independent Review of Curriculum for Excellence. This was the OECD’s position from the outset of the review and conforms with their ‘Implementing Policies: Supporting Change in Education Framework’. This was outlined in the Scottish Government’s answers to S5W-35079 on 18 February 2021 and S5W-35292 on 25 February 2021 and made clear in the remit for the OECD’s review which was published on 26 February 2020.

The OECD uses this framework to provide tailored support to individual countries and education systems to analyse and support the development and implementation of education policies. This methodology has been used by the OECD in previous reviews, and set a very clear framework for their work in Scotland.

The OECD were clear that it was not feasible for them to consider more information than they specifically requested, nor was the purpose of the Review to generate new written submissions or replace what would otherwise be a national consultation. They advised that should any additional information be required at a later date, they would request this.

In terms of the OECD’s approach to evidence gathering on this Review, the OECD established a team of core OECD staff and international experts with experience in curriculum and assessment implementation. The process included:

• A comprehensive desk-based analysis of policy documents, evidence and research on CfE implementation, which included, amongst other documents, the initial evidence base provided by the Scottish Government in July 2020, papers published as part of the Education & Skills Committee’s Inquiry on Subject Choice and published academic articles and research.
• Compilation of information from key stakeholders’ websites and think tank publications.
• A series of interviews and virtual school visits plus focus groups to gather primary data. These included discussions with the Scottish Parliament’s Education and Skills Committee, Scottish Government officials, national agencies, local government representatives, college and university bodies, employer groups, academics, teachers and head teachers, parents, young people, Gaelic and subject specific interest groups, and members of Scotland’s education governance groups.

This represented a significant and comprehensive amount of documentation, with many different perspectives informing the review.

The Scottish Attainment Challenge Programme, including the Pupil Equity Fund, has a vital role to play in building upon the progress being made to close the poverty related attainment gap.

In 2021 to 2022, over £215 million of targeted funding will be invested to help close the poverty related attainment gap. It marks the first year of record investment in an expanded £1 billion Attainment Scotland Fund which will be provided over the new Parliamentary term after an investment of over £750 million in the previous Parliamentary term.

As a part of this, in 2021-22 Headteachers will receive almost £147 million of Pupil Equity Funding (PEF) which they will decide how best to invest to support disadvantaged pupils. This includes a top up PEF Premium payment of up to £20 million, recognising the new and additional challenges schools face as a result of the pandemic.

Closing the poverty-related attainment gap and ensuring every young person has the chance to fulfil their potential remains central to this Government’s work. Our ambition is a long-term one and we know that the challenges presented by the pandemic mean our efforts to deliver equity in education are more vital than ever.

The international travel restrictions in Scotland currently apply to people arriving into or returning to Scotland. Anyone travelling to another country should make sure they comply with the relevant procedures where they are visiting. Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office advice on travel to Norway can be found online at https://www.gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice/norway .

Independent Licensing Boards are responsible for the day to day administration of the alcohol licensing regime within the legislative framework set out in the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 (“the 2005 Act”). The 2005 Act includes 5 high level licensing objectives, one of which is “protecting and improving public health”, which Boards must have regard to in carrying out their functions under the legislation. The 2005 Act places a duty on Boards to make an assessment of overprovision and include a statement regarding this in their licensing policy statement. Boards are empowered to consider the unique circumstances of their area and decide whether, based on local needs, it is appropriate to restrict access to alcohol through limits on new licences, licences of a particular type, or variations of existing licences. In light of this the Scottish Government has no plans to adopt the “surrender provision” which operates in Northern Ireland.

The total cost of the National Concessionary Travel Scheme for Older and Disabled People and Young Persons is £223,097,800.

This cost is for financial year 2020-21, and includes free bus and ferry travel and the Covid-19 Support Grant payments for the Older and Disabled People scheme, and bus, rail and ferry travel for young people aged 16-18 and volunteers up to age 25.