Chamber and committees

Scottish Ministers announced their finalised position of no support for unconventional oil and gas, commonly known as fracking, in 2019 having concluded that it is incompatible with our policies on climate change, energy transition and the decarbonisation of our economy. This means that no unconventional oil and gas activity, including fracking, can take place in Scotland, including within Green Freeports.

As set out in the answer to question S6W-30423 on 22 October 2023, the Civil Aviation Authority has made a series of safety recommendations regarding hospital helicopter landing sites following a tragic accident in Plymouth, in 2022. The safety recommendations apply across the UK and those that are applicable to Scottish sites are being acted on by NHS Boards, with support from NHS Assure.

While this work is ongoing, Search and Rescue helicopters will land at alternative sites where this is required for safety reasons. Scottish Air Ambulance and charity air ambulances can continue to land at NHS Scotland helipads.

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.

In order for businesses to utilise Green Freeport customs sites they must first be designated by HMRC. Both Green Freeports are currently at full business case stage and working towards customs site designation.

The Scottish Government is aware of the concerns raised by the Coroner in respect of this unfortunate case. We will await the responses of the recipients named in the report to help inform any future actions that may be applicable to Scotland, and will continue to work with stakeholders across the UK on matters of national scale.

The Anaesthesia Associates and Physician Associates Order 2024 was passed by the Scottish Parliament on 31 January 2024. It will bring the roles into statutory regulation for the first time when it comes into force on 13 December of this year, addressing one of the key concerns of the Coroner.

In the meantime, extant Scottish Government guidance to NHS Scotland Boards makes clear that all Physician Associates must be registered on the appropriate managed voluntary register. That guidance also recognises the importance of ensuring that patients are properly advised that they are being treated by a Physician Associate and not a doctor.

Building on the above, the Scottish Government will continue to work with partners through its Medical Associate Professionals (MAPs) Programme Board to consider appropriate utilisation of the role within NHS Scotland, taking into account developments over the coming months.

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

Scottish Prison Service do not hold this information in the format requested.

Whilst we recognise the profound impact that experience of care can have on a person, SPS aims to support those in our care with care, compassion and in a consistent manner that recognises avenues for potential trauma.

SPS rely on those individuals coming into our care to either self-report that they are a care leaver, which will be annotated on Prisoner Records (PR2)) or anonymously report via the bi-annual Prisoner Survey.

The Civil Aviation Authority has made a series of safety recommendations regarding hospital helicopter landing sites following a tragic accident in Plymouth, in 2022. The safety recommendations apply across the UK and those that are applicable to Scottish sites are being acted on by NHS Boards, with support from NHS Assure.

While this work is ongoing, Search and Rescue helicopters will land at alternative sites where this is required for safety reasons. Scottish Air Ambulance and charity air ambulances can continue to land at NHS Scotland helipads.

The Stroke Engagement Forum met for the first time on 2 October 2024. The agenda included items on acute stroke care and research involvement and involved the sharing of local practices and approaches to shared challenges. The next meeting of the group will be in early 2025.

The membership of the Stroke Engagement Forum comprises stroke clinicians, stroke managers, Scottish Government officials and third sector representatives. Members are invited as a representative of their NHS Board or organisation. Members are expected to consult with their professional groups, networks and other stakeholders as appropriate. This forum is to facilitate operational improvement and the sharing of best practice. It is not a public forum and the Scottish Government will not be publishing the names of the attendees.

Stroke service delivery continues to be measured via the Scottish Stroke Care Audit and the Board reviews conducted as part of the Scottish Stroke Improvement Programme.

Public Health Scotland (PHS) records all tumours using the ICD-O3 classification and is therefore able to routinely report on blood cancers in many different ways. This includes a variety of benchmarks such as incidence rates, quality performance indicators and survival.

The proportion, expressed as a percentage, of the area of the inshore out to the six nautical mile limit is covered by a year-round prohibition on the use of mobile or active gear to (a) dredge for scallops and (b) trawl for nephrops norvegicus under any legal instrument as of April 2024 is estimated to be 7.68%.

The Scottish Government has been working with NHS boards to carefully scale up the Family Nurse Partnership (FNP) programme across Scotland, ensuring implementation models are sustainable and delivered with quality.

Under this phased rollout of the programme (a) FNP is not yet offered in Island Boards and (b) we are still in the process of scaling up across NHS Highland areas, noting we began delivering the programme in Argyll and Bute earlier this year.

We want to ensure every eligible mother can access this support, that is why we are testing a number of options to support delivery in remote and rural contexts. The learning will be used to build a sustainable model that could expand the FNP programme to these areas in the future.