Chamber and committees

We welcome the contribution voluntary bodies make to coronary heart disease (CHD) and stroke care, especially rehabilitation. We are directly supporting two projects, one in the Borders, the other in Forth Valley. Strengthening the role of patients in service planning is central to our CHD and Stroke Strategy which we launched last week.

In addition to services provided by the NHS and local authorities, the Executive provides financial support to a range of voluntary organisations, many of which provide support to those with mental health problems, including those at risk of suicide, and their families. Overall, £1.2 million will be provided for 2002-03 under section 10 of the Social Work (Scotland) Act 1968 and section 16B of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978 to voluntary bodies in the mental health field. A further £19 million will be disbursed through Mental Illness Specific Grant which goes via local authorities to 400 small-scale projects at local level throughout Scotland. These projects provide a range of support including drop-in centres, day services, counselling services, information and advice, education and employment schemes, advocacy and befriending services.

The Scottish Executive is pleased to consider applications from voluntary organisations for financial support under existing grant schemes. Applications for grant under section 16B of the National Health Service (Scotland) Act 1978 for 2003-04 are currently being considered. It is open to Facilitate (Scotland) to apply for grant under section 16B for that year, and they have been made aware of the information which should accompany an application.

The National Programme for Improving the Mental Health and Well-being of the Scottish Population, established in October 2001 and overseen by a National Advisory Group, (NAG) which I chair, is developing a range of initiatives to address mental health as part of our health improvement agenda. The programme's main objectives include raising awareness of mental health issues, promoting positive mental health, and the effective prevention of mental health problems. The programme links into initiatives both within and outwith the Executive, for example in the social justice, education and employment fields, to maximise the potential for mental health gain. As one element of this programme, the Scottish Executive is preparing a Framework for the Reduction of Suicide and Self-harm to be published later this year, and has consulted widely on the draft version. The framework will include an action plan, which will identify the actions which can be taken at both local and national levels to address the increase in suicide in Scotland.Other initiatives include a National Anti-Stigma Campaign to be launched in October; the Breathing Space Helpline for people with low mood and depression, especially among young men, and a public attitude survey on mental health. A magazine Well? describing the aims of the overall programme has been issued widely, and a copy has been placed in the Parliament's Reference Centre (Bib. number 24027).

The Scottish Executive has been in contact with the Association of Chief Police Officers in Scotland both in the lead up to, and following, the Home Secretary's announcement on 10 July that cannabis is to be reclassified.The policing of drug offences is an operational matter for individual chief constables. Cannabis will remain a controlled drug subject to criminal regulation, and the Scottish police service will continue to report alleged offences under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 to the Procurator Fiscal. Procurators fiscal are, however, not obliged to prosecute such cases and a range of alternatives is available.

The DPHS did not originally apply to the Scottish Executive for core funding this year. In the past three years we have provided funding of £55,775, £31,176 and £57,500 and the DPHS also received project grant funding from Scottish Homes.The budget for the housing and voluntary sector is now allocated and the Scottish Executive is in discussion with the DPHS about the future of advice and information services for disabled people.

I refer the member to the answer given to his question S1W-29811 today. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_wa.

The Executive is committed to improving the access to, and quality of, health information for patients and is investing £3 million over the next three years to deliver this as part of the Patient Focus and Public Involvement programme of work. A number of initiatives are in place to support this commitment; NHS 24 and a comprehensive patient information package to replace the Patient's Charter will be central to this.In addition, a "Patient Information Initiative" will be developed which will:assure the quality of patient information, based on a range of evidence;involve and engage with other sources of expertise such as expert patients;make information accessible and available in a variety of formats, andlink to future developments (e.g. NHS 24 online).Citizens Advice Scotland has already established a number of local advice centres in primary health care settings in Scotland. Following a meeting with their Chief Executive in May, Citizens Advice Scotland have been invited to submit a proposal to the Scottish Executive Health Department for developing an initiative along the lines of "Good Advice: Good Health".

I refer the member to the answer given to questions S1W-26734 on June 2002 and S1W-25969 on 6 June 2002. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/webapp/search_wa As part of these developments, the Executive is piloting a single core application form for voluntary organisations applying for funding from the Executive this year and aims to roll out their introduction across the Executive in the next financial year. A consultation paper on lottery distribution policy, Review of Lottery Funding was published jointly by the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, the Scottish Executive, the National Assembly for Wales and the Northern Ireland Assembly on 29 July for consultation until 30 October 2002. Section 3 of the consultation paper sets out issues involved in applications, single application forms, electronic application forms and one-stop shops. The Scottish Executive is playing a full part in the review of lottery funding which aims to look at how the lottery can be developed and enhanced for the future and build on the success achieved so far.

The Scottish Executive is content with the structure of the New Opportunities Fund (NOF) as a UK distributor. It has ensured that the programme of NOF fully reflect Scottish priorities and that it fully consults and works in partnership with all relevant bodies in Scotland.