Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government does not disclose the nature of any legal advice which it has received.

The privatisation of the Royal Mail was opposed by the majority of Scottish MPs in a vote in the House of Commons. On 15 September 2013 the First Minister called on the UK Government to put in place a moratorium on the privatisation of the Royal Mail. The First Minister announced on 19 September 2013 that with independence this Scottish Government will bring the Royal Mail back into public ownership if it has been privatised. The First Minister also wrote to Labour leader Ed Miliband urging the Labour party to support an approach to renationalisation, a position endorsed by Labour party conference on 25 September 2013. The Scottish Government is in contact with a range of stakeholders over its proposals for the future of the postal service.

The following tables provide information on sickness absence of Care Inspectorate staff since the organisation was established on 1st April 2011.

The sickness absence rate in 2011-12 was 4.2%. The sickness absence rate in 2012-13 was 4.7%.

Care Inspectorate staff sickness absence in 2011-12 by reason for absence

Number of Employees: 571*

Care Inspectorate staff sickness absence in 2012-13 by reason for absence

Number of Employees: 631 *

Notes:

*Number of Employees includes all employees within that year including temporary contracts.

**Number of Employees Absent may include individuals absent on more than one occasion.

The Care Inspectorate invests heavily in developing its workforce. Staff have a wide range of professional backgrounds, including trained social workers, nursing and care staff, medical staff, teachers, and those with a criminal justice and police background. All inspectors have achieved the Regulation of Care Award, an academic and practice-based qualification developed in conjunction with Anglia Ruskin University.

Dedicated development time is built into inspector and other staff caseloads for learning and training, including during two discrete learning weeks. A staff coaching and mentoring scheme is also available to all staff.

An employee development team ensures inspection and support staff have access to continuous professional development, in line with the Care Inspectorate’s needs. Staff are also supported with relevant academic study or, where deemed necessary, advanced professional qualifications.

The following table shows the numbers of inspections completed by the Care Inspectorate in 2011-12, 2012-13 and between 1 April 2013 and 31 August 2013.

The number of inspections completed between 1 April 2013 and 31 August 2013 is not directly comparable with the number of inspections completed between 1 October 2012 and 31 March 2013 as the former covers five months and the latter six months, and in previous years the Care Inspectorate has carried out a higher number of inspections in the second half of the year than in the first half.

The Care Inspectorate, as an executive non-departmental public body, operate within an agreed accountability and governance framework. This includes preparation of a corporate plan which is aligned with the Scottish Government’s National Performance Framework and approved by Scottish Ministers. This allows the Scottish Government to monitor delivery against priorities and enables the Care Inspectorate to report progress against agreed key performance indicators.

Full details of the Care Inspectorate’s performance against Key Performance Indicators is provided in its annual report. The 2011-12 annual report is available from SPICE and the Care Inspectorate website at:

http://www.scswis.com. The 2012-13 annual report will be laid before Parliament by the end of 2013.

The annual reports detail how the Care Inspectorate performed against:

the three outcomes defined in its corporate plan for 2011 to 2014;

the key objectives under each outcome; and

the Key Performance Indicators associated with each outcomes.

Regular monthly and quarterly reporting on progress against objectives, with a particular focus on Key Performance Indicators, provides robust monitoring of progress and allows the organisation to take action where necessary.

The Care Inspectorate was established on 1 April 2011. 571 staff were employed in 2011-12. 631 staff were employed in 2012-13.

The Scottish Government welcomes the constructive discussions taking place between the Care Inspectorate and trade unions to support staff during a period of organisational change and address concerns highlighted in the recent staff survey.

Scottish Government welcomes the Transatlantic Trade and Investment Partnership (TTIP) talks and is maintaining close contact with the negotiations and ensuring that our views are fed into the UK Government Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, which leads the UK input into the council.

Negotiations are at an early stage and EU member states are still considering priorities. We have looked carefully at the initial assessments prepared by the European Commission and the UK Government, which show a considerable net economic benefit for the EU. As the negotiations continue it will be important to consider what benefits can be derived for Scotland.

In England the role of competition in the delivery of healthcare has increased with the private sector having a greater role in providing NHS-funded healthcare. Some commentators suggest that this may open up the NHS to further commercialisation under the TTIP. The position in Scotland is quite different. The Scottish Government has always protected, and will continue to protect, the NHS in Scotland from privatisation. The Scottish Government’s commitment to the people of Scotland is for a publicly funded health service providing care free at the point of delivery.

The UK will remain fully engaged in the negotiations and Scottish Ministers will take a close interest.

A total of four companies that have been awarded contracts by the Scottish Government and its agencies since 2007 have been named, or associated with companies named by the Information Commissioner’s Office, as companies which subscribed to the Consulting Association.