Chamber and committees

The Implementation Plan set out the ambition for the Bank to build on the positive foundations laid by the work of the Scottish Government and its agencies. Where activities transition to the Scottish National Investment Bank from Scottish Government directorates, agencies or NDPBs, appropriate arrangements will be put in place to support the transition of staff associated with these. Any transitions will be delivered over appropriate timescales and in line with relevant TUPE or Cabinet Office Statement of Practice (COSoP) requirements.

The Bank Programme Team have been working with the Scottish Government Remuneration Group to agree specific exceptions and adaptations that will allow the Bank to operate within the overall Public Sector Pay Policy envelope, while ensuring it can attract and retain staff with the skills, attributes and experience required to deliver on the Bank’s missions.

In line with other UK development banks and financial services institutions the Scottish National Investment Bank will enrol all new hires in a Defined Contribution pension scheme. Any staff who transfer to the Bank, as part of a TUPE or Cabinet Office Statement of Practice (COSoP) transfer will have their pension rights protected under the “Fair Deal” for Pensions provisions.

Charities play a key role in civil society and we welcome the insight and challenge they bring to public policy. The Scottish Government welcomes this debate and challenge, and see it as an essential part of the democratic process.

Charities can campaign on political issues to advance their charitable purposes, including during electoral periods, as long as the requirements of charity law, and where necessary electoral law, are met.

However, the Charities and Trustee Investment (Scotland) Act 2005 makes clear that a body will not meet the charity test if it is, or one of its purposes is to advance, a political party.

The new Royal Hospital for Children and Young People in Edinburgh is estimated to cost £414.6 million for the design, build and operation over the 25 year lifetime of the contract.

In September, I published the review of governance by KPMG which found that the main issue with ventilation in critical care stemmed from an error in a document produced by NHS Lothian at the tender stage in 2012. It also concludes that opportunities to spot and rectify the error were missed.

I have announced a public inquiry which will be held to examine issues at both the RHCYP and QEUH. The inquiry will determine how vital issues relating to ventilation and other key building systems occurred, and what steps can be taken to prevent this being repeated in future NHS infrastructure projects.

Decisions on working hours are set by individual employers within the public sector.

Our Fair Work Action Plan sets out the range of action we will take to embed fair working practices in Scottish workplaces including flexibility of working hours. While employment law remains reserved to the UK Government, our approach is built on collaboration, engagement, and using our wider powers and policies to exert strategic influence.

We expect public bodies, along with the Scottish Government, to lead the way on Fair Work. The Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Economy and Fair Work wrote to public bodies in August, encouraging them to work with their trade union partners to adopt fair working practices.

We will continue to call for the devolution of employment law. This is the best way to achieve our vision of Scotland being a fair work nation by 2025.

The table containing the answer to this question has placed in The Parliament’s Information Centre (bib number 61177).

The Public Sector Pay Policy is continuing the journey since the 1 per cent cap was lifted, through its progressive focus on fairness, sustainability and value for money.

The Scottish Government’s approach diverges positively from that of the UK Government, ensuring that over 70 per cent of staff covered directly by our Public Sector Pay Policy received an increase of at least three per cent this year, with targeted measures like the £750 cash underpin further narrowing the restoration gap for the very lowest paid.

Looking to next year we are trying to plan the Scottish Budget and Public Sector Pay Policy amidst the uncertainty of Brexit and the cancelled UK Budget, and welcome the close, on-going engagement we have with trade unions to inform our approach.

The award of any contract is a matter for the Health Board concerned, once it has applied due diligence. The Health Board providing the contract determines how it would assure itself, depending on the nature of what is being proposed. An important consideration is the evidence of practice it is in a position to assess, for example previous contacts and experience with existing clinicians, the availability of published papers, etc. In addition, there are a number of details that would need to be clarified prior to any visit, including patient selection, pre-op assessment and imaging, after-care and follow-up, time period, terms and conditions, remuneration, and so on.

The precise detail of any contract, including in the case of Dr Veronikis, will therefore be considered on this basis as for other visiting clinicians.

The Chief Medical Officer has had high-level discussions with clinicians concerning technique. As indicated in answer to S5W-25675 on 8 November 2019, technique forms part of the discussions the Chief Medical Officer and clinicians are undertaking during their trip to the US.

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