Chamber and committees

My officials are in regular contact with Skills Development Scotland although, as I understand it, there are no immediate, live concerns around Scotland’s ability to meet future demand for seafarers, but I agree this is something that would be important to keep under review.

The Scottish Offshore Wind Energy Council’s (SOWEC) Skills Group is led by Jim Brown, Director of Energy Skills Partnership, who has a wealth of expertise and invaluable knowledge of the key skills specific issues in Scotland. One of the Skills Group’s areas of focus at SOWEC meetings has been, and will undoubtedly continue to be, understanding the Skills demand in Scotland and, moreover, how colleges and the sector-at-large can best meet this demand. Energy Skills Partnership is also a member of the Energy Skills Alliance and the Offshore Wind Industry Council’s Investment in Talent Group.

I am aware that the Energy Skills Partnership has established a Marine and Maritime Training Network to consider this issue and I would encourage the sector to engage with our Skills Agencies and SOWEC to ensure that it receives appropriate coverage.

The last meeting of the FIAG was held on 17 October 2019. No further meetings have been held due to the focus remaining on the response to COVID, although we continue to engage closely with key stakeholders

Membership, Terms of Reference and minutes of meetings, including papers discussed, are published on the Transport Scotland Website:

https://www.transport.gov.scot/public-transport/ferries/ferry-industry-advisory-group/

Transport Scotland does not routinely publish correspondence, however on review Transport Scotland can find no such correspondence from members on these specific topics affecting Scottish ferry workers in their FIAG role. There is of course ongoing correspondence between Group members including between Transport Scotland, CMAL and CalMac on a variety of policy matters, albeit in their own capacity rather than in relation to their FIAG roles; that correspondence would not be routinely published.

We have other channels for dialogue on issues affecting Scottish ferry workers. For example, we continue to engage quarterly with trade unions on matters affecting Scottish ferry workers, the delivery of ferry services in Scotland and the deployment of fair work principles in procurement decisions. Those discussions continue to be valuable and constructive.

While the Scottish Government seeks to promote our Fair Work Framework and fair work principles in respect of all ferry services for which we are responsible, we have not held specific, recent discussions with the UK Government regarding employment conditions for merchant seafarers working on ferry routes between Scotland and Northern Ireland, although we are aware, due to ongoing engagement with trade unions, of concerns that unions have on these matters.

Shipping safety, seafarer welfare and employment conditions are matters reserved to the UK Government. The Maritime Labour Convention came into force in the UK on 7 August 2014. It sets out the minimum working and living rights for seafarers with the onus on operators. The Maritime and Coastguard Agency, which is accountable to UK Ministers, is responsible for auditing vessels to ensure compliance.

The Scottish Government expects the highest shipping safety and crew welfare and employment conditions and for these to be applied in the case of those vessels and personnel accessing Scotland’s ports and coastal areas.

The Island Connectivity Plan will not include procurement policy for future ferry service contracts. It’s focus will be upon establishing the transport connectivity needs of our island communities and how these needs can be met as well as providing greater travel integration across the transport network.

The performance and management fees due to Abellio ScotRail and Serco Caledonian Sleepers Limited under the Emergency Measures Agreements (EMA) in place from April to September have been determined following a full financial reconciliation at the end of 2020. These payments form part of the current EMA payments which will be published on the Transport Scotland website in April 2021 after the current EMAs come to an end.

It is a matter of record that both Abellio and Serco have incurred significant losses from these franchises which remain far larger in scale than any possible management / performance payments.

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-36192 on 23 March 2021 . In addition, Transport Scotland is aware of the ongoing recovery works as a result of land slips in the Largs area which Network Rail advise are progressing well and to programme.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx

As planning and consenting authorities we regularly engage with counterparts in the UK Government and The Crown Estate. We have recently liaised with them on offshore wind and the leasing process managed both by The Crown Estate and by Crown Estate Scotland.

We engage with trade union partners on matters affecting the supply chain and workforce through a number of routes, including in specific discussions focused on supply chain and jobs in the sector.

Although the Scottish Offshore Wind Energy Council's (SOWEC) Terms of Reference does not make explicit reference to trade unions, it is committed to engaging with stakeholders across the offshore wind sector in Scotland, including representatives of trade unions, to achieve its Vision and Strategic Goals and tackle the challenges that offshore wind projects in Scotland face.

Nevertheless, this is a an area where I have suggested we would benefit from better engagement with trade unions and I recognise that it would be beneficial for the Council to set out in clear terms its willingness to engage with trade unions in an appropriate way. We will liaise with the members of SOWEC to amend its Terms of Reference to reflect this objective.

Independent Prescriber (IP) community optometrists, as with all community optometry practice staff, are a key and valued part of the frontline NHS workforce and have significantly contributed to the safe management of patients during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Twenty five percent of community optometrists now hold the IP qualification, meaning that they can prescribe and manage a wide range of eye conditions within their practices. Their role prevents the need for patients to access care and/or treatment elsewhere and supports the role of optometry as the first port of call for eye conditions within the community.

Sixteen IP optometrists in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, NHS Lothian, NHS Fife and NHS Grampian have just been accredited to manage lower risk glaucoma and treated ocular hypertension patients discharged from hospital, and this number will increase further as this service is rolled out across Scotland.

With unprecedented waiting times pressures in hospital eye services, the Scottish Government will work with stakeholders to consider further options to utilise IP optometrists to manage more patients in the community.

Railway Safety is a matter reserved to the UK Government, and regulated by the UK Office of Rail and Road. The Scottish Government has funded the determination of the ORR for the current regulatory control period. The determination provides an increase in 21% in the funding available to Network Rail for the safe operation, maintenance and renewal of the Scottish Railway network.

Transport Scotland has not been provided with detailed information regarding particular asset inspections or impacts associated with weather related impacts as Network Rail is responsible for maintaining and renewing the rail network in Scotland, with railway safety being a reserved matter.

Following the Stonehaven rail accident on 12 August 2020 Transport Scotland received a copy of the Network Rail Interim Report in September 2020 and continues to press Network Rail in terms of improving resilience relating to climate change.