Chamber and committees

Scottish Government Officials meet regularly with NHS Lothian to discuss a wide range of issues.

I carried out the Annual Review of NHS Lothian on 8 September 2008 and last met the chair of NHS Lothian at a regular monthly meeting of NHS Chairs on 27 October 2008.

The Scottish Government has been considering responses it received during a public consultation this summer on draft guidance to support the implementation of housing renewal areas, and other powers, under the 2006 act. Copies of all non-confidential responses to the consultation are available on request from the Scottish Government library.

Officials are working to revise the guidance and expect to publish it in early 2009. Further information will be provided via the housing pages of the Scottish Government website in due course.

Local authorities take a wide range of approaches in addressing the health and support needs of homeless households. As such, there will be a number of indicators which local authorities would see as contributing to the support needs of homeless people with alcohol dependency. Each local authority single outcome agreement is published and available on the Improvement Service Website www.improvementservice.org.uk.

Local authorities take a wide range of approaches in addressing the health and support needs of homeless households. As such, there will be a number of indicators which local authorities would see as contributing to the support needs of homeless people with mental ill health. Each local authority single outcome agreement is published and available on the Improvement Service Website www.improvementservice.org.uk.

The Scottish Government is taking forward the action set out in Scotland''s Veterans'' and Forces'' Communities: Meeting our Commitment, which was published in July this year. This can be found on the Scottish Government''s website at:

www.scotland.gov.uk/Publications/2008/07/CommitmentsPaper2008.

Scottish Government officials also run regular advice sessions for members of the armed forces, providing guidance on housing options for when they leave the services.

The allocation of the 2009-10 Affordable Housing Investment Programme (AHIP) which includes support to first-time buyers will be announced nearer the time.

At the end of June 2008 we announced a package of major reforms which included £25 million between 2008-10 to support the Homeowners Support Fund. £10 million has already been allocated in 2008-09 for Mortgage to Rent. The balance of the £25 million announced will be made available in 2009-10.

The underlying philosophy of Business Improvement Districts is that they are self-sustaining. The BID levy is intended to ensure each BID Company has a stable and viable financial base. But it is open to them to supplement this in other ways and I understand that the Enterprising Bathgate BID Company is already succeeding in doing so.

Through the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007, the Scottish Government is implementing a strengthened and robust vetting and barring scheme that will ensure that those who have contact with vulnerable groups through the workplace do not have a history of abusive behaviour and deliver a fair and consistent system that will be quick and easy for people to use and end the need for multiple, written disclosure checks.

A date for the PVG scheme to go live is still to be determined and will be announced well in advance of commencement to allow organisations and groups who work with vulnerable groups adequate time to prepare. Implementation activity is well underway and work is currently ongoing on developing infrastructure, IT systems and information flows, preparing guidance and training materials and on ensuring that the Scottish scheme dovetails with the scheme being developed for the rest of the UK. In addition, Ministers are currently considering the detailed analysis (published on 27 June 2008) of the consultation on policy proposals for secondary legislation and expect to publish a response after the summer recess.

The Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007 will significantly reduce the need for employees (paid and unpaid) to complete multiple disclosure applications. It introduces a membership scheme that people working with vulnerable groups will join. They will need to complete a full application when first joining the scheme. Scheme records will then be kept updated, so that any subsequent checks, for example when an individual changes jobs, will be quicker, easier and, in most cases, cheaper to handle.