Chamber and committees

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-29926 on 16 June 2020. 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 .

The Scottish Government was clear that if a point of sustained community transmission for COVID-19 was reached, we would rely less on contact tracing and focus instead on providing the best care to those who had developed the disease, delay and reduce the spread and protect those who are most vulnerable.

Utilisation of contact tracing for Covid-19 came to an end when the Scottish Government announced it was moving to the delay phase on Thursday 12 March, at which point contact tracing was stopped.

As a result, those who displayed symptoms of a new continuous cough and/or a high temperature, regardless of their travel history or contact with confirmed cases, were asked to self-isolate.

On 4 May 2020, the First Minister set out our approach to Test Trace Isolate and Support.

The first set of data from week one of the coronavirus (COVID-19) Test and Protect system has been published.

The data, which will be published weekly, shows:

• the number of positive index cases from 28 May to 7 June
• the number of index cases where contact tracing has been completed
• the number of contact traces

Since Test and Protect was launched, 681 cases have tested positive with 741 contacts traced.

The data may be found here: https://beta.isdscotland.org/find-publications-and-data/population-health/covid-19/covid-19-statistical-report/

This data is not held by the Scottish Government. Care homes are required to notify the Care Inspectorate of the death of any of their residents. In line with new statutory reporting requirements, the Care Inspectorate now provide a weekly report on the total number of death notifications they receive from adult care homes to the Scottish Government, which is laid before Parliament and also published on the Scottish Government website. https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-additional-data-about-adult-care-homes-in-scotland/ .

Teachers will play a vital role in the economic recovery in Scotland as we emerge from Covid-19.

We are currently working with local authorities and the General Teaching Council for Scotland to support the recruitment of skilled teachers for the education recovery phase through the Covid19 Education Recovery Group. We are committed to supplementing the existing workforce in schools where required, and we are currently working with local authorities to establish what additional staff might be needed. Once we know the requirement, we will take steps to meet that demand.

Colleges and universities and their staff will play a vital role in economic recovery in Scotland as we emerge from the Covid-19 pandemic. However, staffing matters, including recruitment, are the responsibility of individual colleges and universities, and it is for institutions themselves to make decisions on future staffing levels.

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-29837 on 24 June 2020. 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 .

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Interim Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

Work on the provision of ‘virtual visits’ across the entire Scottish prison estate has been underway since 24 April 2020 and significant progress has been made in delivering this project.

The first virtual visits took place in 3 establishments on 15 June 2020, with a further 5 establishments ‘going live’ by 19 June 2020. The system is being rolled out across the prison estate and it is anticipated that all sites will be operational by the end of the month.

The Scottish Government had no role in deciding the game should go ahead. This was an operational matter for the organisers of the Six Nations Championships and Scottish Rugby who ensured that relevant Public Health measures were adhered to.

The Scottish Government is not aware of any Covid-19 incidents centred on the event on 8 th March. It should be noted that symptoms of Covid -19 typically take several days to emerge and anyone displaying symptoms after 12 March were asked to self-isolate.

NRS published additional analysis on COVID-19 deaths by deprivation on 13 May and updated their analysis on 17 June. Their reports are available here . Public Health Scotland also include some deprivation analysis as part of their weekly publication on COVID-19 statistics.

We know that COVID-19 - like many other illnesses – disproportionally affects those from poorer backgrounds. We are also aware that underlying health conditions which can increase the risk of coronavirus, including heart disease and obesity, are more prevalent in poorer communities.

As we emerge from this outbreak, we will act to mitigate these underlying health and social inequalities while ensuring that services are provided in a way that is proportionate to need. This work will be guided by our “ Re-mobilise, Recover, Re-design: The Framework for NHS Scotland ”, published on 31 May 2020, which focuses on how to best support those that are most vulnerable - socially and clinically - in our society.

More generally, in terms of action and investment so far, we are already providing a range of benefits for people on low incomes and those who are struggling the most – which offer a higher level of support than the equivalent DWP benefits, and to a wider range of people. We have also confirmed £27.6 million of new funding for local authorities. This is in addition to our £350 million package of communities funding which already supporting people most affected by the pandemic – including more than doubling the Scottish Welfare Fund.

We are acutely aware of the damaging impacts that living in poverty can cause. That is why we are committed to building back better and creating a fairer and more prosperous Scotland for everyone.

The Scottish Government ordered 904 ventilators from a wide range of manufacturers in March. This number was reduced in May as a result of suppliers de-committing and to bring in line with our maximum ICU surge capacity of over 700 beds, plus additional capacity if needed. As at 11 June, we have received 149 ventilators from Scottish procurement and 98 ventilators from the joint UK procurement exercise. We expect more deliveries to arrive over the coming weeks.

These additional ventilators in conjunction with the repurposed anaesthetic machines has meant that, at no point to date in the outbreak, has the NHS had insufficient critical care capacity to deal with COVID-19 and emergency demand. Further, NHS Scotland is well positioned should cases of the virus start to rise again. This is confirmed in the Scottish Intensive Care Society Audit Group (SICSAG) report, published on 3 June which shows that there has been more than enough ICU capacity to deal with the impact of the crisis.

The Scottish Government is actively working with the college sector and its agencies to respond to the skills needs of those affected by Covid-19 and is pursuing all routes to secure additional funding and flexibility for the college sector.

This includes the provision of additional hardship funding for existing Further Education (FE) learners; an investment of £5m for our most vulnerable families to tackle issues of digital access and connectivity; the launch of free to access online learning materials linked to a new helpline provided by Skills Development Scotland (SDS) for those furloughed or unemployed.

SDS has also launched its training provider relief grant for MA and EF training providers which the college sector can access.

The Flexible Workforce Development Fund (FWDF) will also continue as an important skills intervention as we look to respond to Covid 19. The expansion of the FWDF to £20m will not only provide more employers’ with the opportunity to upskill and reskill their existing workforce, it creates an opportunity to consider how the offer can be repurposed and reprioritised to continue to meet employer demand and deliver new priorities for the Fund, such as remote/online training provision. The college sector has played an important role in delivering the Fund and we will continue to work with the sector as we respond to the impacts of COVID and the skills needs of those effected.

We are also keen to ensure that no student should face financial hardship over the summer as a result of Covid-19, so we are providing a package of new measures to support students until the start of the next academic year. We have brought forward early access to £11.4 million of Higher Education (HE) discretionary funds to support college and university students most in need over the summer. The Scottish Funding Council (SFC)has also given colleges flexibility to offer Further Education (FE) discretionary funds to bridge the timing gap between bursary payments ending in June and Universal Credit payments starting. This package builds on our £5 million support plan for FE and HE students announced in April.

All routes to secure additional capital and resource funding for the colleges sector are being investigated.

You will, however, be aware of the financial challenges the COVID-19 crisis has placed on the Scottish budget, as well as the lack of support, to date, from the UK Government’.