Question reference: S6W-15615
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
- Date lodged: 3 March 2023
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Current status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 17 March 2023
Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether its work to prepare Scotland for any future pandemics is conducted (a) across Scottish Government portfolios and (b) alongside the work of other governments in the rest of the UK.
Answer
Preparation for outbreaks of infectious disease is an ongoing part of health protection. That work is led by the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care but the breadth of response required to respond to pandemic events is laid out in the 2022 Strategic Framework Update for COVID-19 and the four-harms approach to decision-making used by the Scottish Government for the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Scottish Government regularly engages with the UK Government and the other Devolved Administrations on a range of risks including pandemic preparedness. The Scottish Government works closely with the cross-government Pandemic Disease Capabilities Board to keep Scotland’s readiness up to date.