Chamber and committees

The RSM report, published on 29 May 2024, New Model of Neonatal Care – RSM UK Consulting - Report, included data collection and modelling alongside engagement with both operational and strategic stakeholders, to validate data, generate and test planning assumptions.

Activity and capacity data was collected from each of the eight units included within the model scope, as well as Public Health Scotland (PHS) and, Scottish Specialist Transport and Retrieval (ScotSTAR) / Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS). The report has undergone a detailed review by the Perinatal Sub Group (PSG) and has benefited from discussion with the three elected Regional Planners and Chief Executives.

The report to date has been well received and supports the findings of the options appraisal report.

The Scottish Government is proud of its strong housing and homelessness rights. We want to ensure everyone in Scotland has access to a safe, warm and affordable home, whether they are homeowners or tenants in the private or social rented sectors.

People relocate for diverse reasons, including moving closer to relatives, seeking job opportunities and/or escaping difficult situations. Our official statistics capture whether homelessness applications come from households who live in the local area; have a local connection with another area of Scotland; or have no known connection to any authority in Scotland. Of the 34,067 households that were assessed as homeless in 2024-25, the overwhelming majority (94 per cent) already had a connection to the local area or to Scotland.

Modelling maternity capacity is essential to the development of the new model of neonatal care. The RSM report has outlined the maternity modelling in relation to data captured.

The principles underpinning the changes to neonatal intensive care are supported by Scottish Executive Nurse Directors (SEND) and the Midwifery Directors of Scotland (MiDS).

To mitigate any concerns raised about the implications of the change for maternity services, SEND, in support of the MiDS, recommended that the Scottish Government undertake a national-level data collection to better understand the impact of the neonatal care remodelling on maternity services.

This data collection report has now been completed and the additional data and evidence gathered required for maternity services will inform maternity capacity implementation planning.

A full EQIA was carried out covering the implementation of The Best Start as a whole thematically, as some of the individual recommendations are more complex and multi-faceted than others. In this way, implementation of each of the 76 recommendations is considered in a proportionate manner.

• Continuity of carer.
• Person-centred maternity and neonatal care.
• Multi-professional working.
• Safe, high quality and accessible care.
• Re-designing neonatal care and services.
• Supporting the changes.
• Wider implications.

For the implementation of recommendations which were led locally, it is expected that Health Boards will undertake their own Impact Assessments to satisfy their local requirements. This EQIA therefore takes national implementation as its primary focus. The EQIA was commenced in 2020 and remains a live document as implementation of the Best Start continues.

The recommendations for the new neonatal model of care are underpinned by strong clinical evidence that population outcomes for the most premature and sickest babies are improved by delivery and care in units looking after a “critical mass” of these babies.

In February 2019, at the request of the then Cabinet Secretary for Health, in order to enable a better understanding of the processes required to implement the new model of care, it was rolled out first in two sites in Scotland to enable testing of the entire model ahead of wider implementation.

The test sites were announced as University Hospital Crosshouse and Queen Elizabeth University Hospital in the west, and the Victoria Hospital and Edinburgh Royal Infirmary in the east.

The Boards were asked to roll out a range of aspects of the new model of neonatal care, including the new model of neonatal intensive care, to enable better understanding of the implications for patient flow associated with other aspects of the new model.

Outcomes of the testing process can be found within the published Options Appraisal.

The Scottish Government is committed to working in partnership with our recognised trade unions. The decision on the revised hybrid policy was informed by a working group which included trade union representatives. Following a decision being made by the Executive Team, full consultation took place with the recognised trade unions ahead of the revised policy coming into effect, for core Scottish Government directorates, in October 2025. While PCS initially entered into a dispute with regard to the Executive Team decision on hybrid, this dispute was resolved through further detailed consultation and ahead of the new policy coming into effect.

We expect Health Boards to plan for their workforce in conjunction with their responsibilities under the Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act 2019. The Act places duties on Health Boards to ensure that at all times suitably qualified and competent individuals are working in such numbers as are appropriate for the health, wellbeing and safety of patients, the provision of high-quality care and the wellbeing of staff.

On 29 October I announced the establishment of the Scottish Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce. The Scottish Maternity and Neonatal Taskforce will complement the existing audit and inspection system in place in Scotland, and provide support and expertise on implementation of policy, service standards, and improvement activity across NHS Boards. It will be chaired by the Minister for Public Health and Women’s Health.

The Scottish Government is also taking action as part of the Nursing and Midwifery Taskforce (NMT) to drive lasting change to improve retention and attraction into these professions. The NMT recommended actions are designed to have a meaningful and lasting impact on workforce wellbeing. They aim to address key issues such as workload, professional development, and workplace culture—to create a more supportive and sustainable environment for Nurses and Midwives to work.

New figures show that the number of planned and performed operations in Scotland has reached its highest level since January 2020.

Data collected and published by Public Health Scotland (PHS) is unable to be broken down into the cancellation reasons (a) staff shortages, (b) flu outbreaks and (c) bed pressures. This is due to the aggregate nature of the cancellations data collection.

PHS publish cancellation data monthly, and you can find the latest release here.

The use and funding of campus-based officers is a matter for each local authority to decide in line with local needs. It is for individual schools to identify how to provide early intervention and deterrence programmes for young people who are at risk of involvement in crime. They can use a number of approaches, including good behaviour management and behaviour support teams, solution-orientated, nurture and restorative approaches and programmes to help develop social, emotional and behavioural skills.

We also actively work with schools and local authorities to provide both targeted education and programmes for our young people to help tackle violence and disruptive behaviour, including those delivered through our Violence Prevention Framework which we have supported with more than £6 million since 2023.

The Scottish Government commissioned independent research, published on 7 May 2024, which outlined how the delivery of a 90 minute reduction in class contact time could be achieved through a range of scenarios, at that time.

The research can be accessed at: Pupil projections and implications for teacher resourcing needs: education workforce modelling and research.

This report has informed our engagement with partners on the commitment to reduce class contact time for teachers.

We remain committed to working with local government and teacher unions through the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT) to make meaningful progress on reducing teacher class contact time.