Chamber and committees

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The core principles of dignity, respect and fairness will be at the heart of delivery of the social security system in Scotland. The Social Security (Scotland) Bill embeds these principles, including a commitment to a human-rights based approach.

Over 2,000 people with recent experience of benefits have volunteered to join our Experience Panels. They will help us design, build and improve the new system including the application process and the language we use. We are also consulting our ill-health and disability stakeholder groups on the use of inclusive language.

We have heard from individuals and organisations that there is too much focus on physical disability within the current system. We are committed to taking a different approach to social security in Scotland. We are designing our new social security system with the help of the Disability and Carers Benefits Expert Advisory Group, our reference groups and our Experience Panels, which involve over 2,400 people with recent experience of benefits and with their assistance will ensure that both mental and physical disabilities are treated equally. This includes the assessment of disability benefits from application all the way through to final decision.

We are investing up to £5 million from the cancer strategy to tackle inequalities in access to screening, and work is now underway to set up an Inequalities Network to develop innovative strategies and share learning to increase uptake amongst those least likely to participate in the cervical screening programme.

Officials work closely with Cervical Screening Coordinators from all NHS Boards to develop initiatives to improve uptake for all women and to promote cervical screening services by communicating effectively with a range of audiences. Recent local initiatives to increase cervical screening coverage include drop in clinics for women from disadvantaged backgrounds, dedicated staff working with women with learning difficulties to facilitate cervical screening and assist during appointments, and clinics engaging with homeless women and those seeking help for drug and alcohol use.

We encourage all women between the ages of 25 and 64 to take up their invitation for cervical cancer screening. It saves around 5,000 lives in the UK every year and prevents 8 out of 10 cervical cancers from developing. We are working towards increasing participation in the cervical screening programme and are investing up to £5 million from the cancer strategy to reduce inequalities in access to screening.

We also know that almost all cervical cancer is caused by HPV. Uptake rates for the HPV vaccination programme in Scotland continue to exceed 80% and we will continue our efforts to ensure that Scottish girls benefit from this vaccine, which will save lives.

Whilst the HPV vaccine offers protection against the most common causes of cervical cancer it does not protect against all types of HPV that cause cervical cancer. Therefore, the combination of the vaccination and attending cervical screening from 25 years of age will offer the best possible protection against cervical cancer.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring equitable, coordinated access to mental health provision for families throughout pregnancy and during the postnatal period including those whose babies require a stay in neonatal care. We will continue to work with NHS boards to ensure that families receive the support they need.

A Programme board, Chaired by Jane Grant, has been established and are currently considering approaches to implementing the recommendations within The Best Start.

Work to establish the managed clinical network on perinatal metal health has already started, with a Lead Clinician now appointed. The Perinatal MCN will be appointing clinical expertise from infant mental health perspective. We are looking forward to the Network becoming operational over the course of this year.

Scotland has a low incidence of respiratory tuberculosis (TB). A total of 315 cases of TB were reported to the Enhanced Surveillance of Mycobacterial Infections (ESMI) scheme in 2015, representing an annual incidence of 5.9 cases per 100,000 population. This was a decrease of 10% in the number of cases and 9.2% in the annual incidence when compared with 2014.

This represents a fifth consecutive decrease in numbers and incidence of TB cases reported since 2010 and is the lowest number of cases and incidence reported since enhanced surveillance began in 2000. In addition, accepted indicators of both recent and ongoing TB transmission also decreased in 2015, suggesting that TB transmission may be reducing in Scotland.

The Scottish Health Protection Network Respiratory Infections Group comprising the SG, HPS and a range of experts from across Scotland are working to ensure the implementation of the recommendations of the 2011 A TB Action Plan for Scotland to further reduce incidence rates.

In December 2016, the Scottish Government launched A Fairer Scotland for Disabled People—Our Delivery Plan to 2021 for the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, which includes £3 million of funding for the active and independent living improvement programme. That programme helps to ensure that those who develop health conditions such as arthritis while in employment can find the support that they need to stay in work. From April this year, we have been using devolved employability powers to provide Scottish employment services for disabled people and people with long-term health conditions to help them to find work and to stay in work. We have also committed to exploring new ways of integrating health, disability and employment support in Scotland to ensure that people can find their way quickly to the tailored and person-centred support that they need.

As part of our disability action plan published in December last year we have committed to run a disability employment media campaign. This was launched on 6^th July 2017 and is specifically targeted at Small and Medium-sized Enterprises. The campaign highlights the benefits of employing disabled people, and signposts employers, as well as potential employees, to the Employability in Scotland website where they can find advice, guidance and support, as well as information of which organisations provide this, and where employers can find financial support to employ someone with a disability. The campaign will include new video materials to promote these messages, as well as a radio campaign and other media including social media.

In our action plan we also committed to holding a major congress on disability employment, which is likely to take place early in 2018. We will work closely with partners to deliver this, and that will include also employers and employer trade organisations and bodies. We will also work with trade unions, disabled people and organisations supporting disabled people.

The Scottish Government funds the Scottish Centre for Healthy Working Lives, part of NHS Health Scotland, to provide information and advice on workplace health and wellbeing. The Centre, and the network of advisers in territorial NHS Boards, offer free and confidential advice on a wide range of issues relating to health and safety in the workplace. This includes promoting wellbeing in the workplace, managing sickness absence and supporting employees to return to work.

The Centre's advice includes how employers can meet their obligations under the Equality Act and how they can make reasonable adjustments to support employees with long term, limiting health conditions and disabilities.

You may remember that we published Going Further - Scotland’s Accessible Travel Framework on 21 September last year, which was designed in co-production with disabled people, transport providers and government to ensure that people who work in public transport understand the needs and wishes of disabled people, have the knowledge to help disabled travellers and are accredited with disability and equality awareness training. This drive for increased knowledge and training adds to the already established Scottish Government commitment for disability awareness training being an essential part of the procurement tender process.