Chamber and committees

The National Care Framework for Huntington’s Disease sets out information on the services and support available to people with Huntington’s Disease by health board area. This includes services provided through NHS Scotland and other aspects such as social care, employability, financial help, carer respite and housing adaptation.

The Scottish Huntington’s Association also maintains a list of HD Clinical Leads by health board on its website: HD Clinical Leads • Scottish Huntington's Association (hdscotland.org).

The Scottish Government remains fully committed to the development of our ports, and the potential for new direct freight and passenger ferry services linking Scotland to Europe.

I have personally engaged with parties interested in introducing new ferry services, and Transport Scotland officials communicate regularly with potential operators and Scotland’s main ports. We have been clear throughout those discussions that UK Subsidy Control rules mean that any new service will be required to be delivered on a commercial basis.

We will continue to engage with port operators and others to explore opportunities for new commercial services, so that Scottish exporters and passengers have more direct routes to Europe. However, this is ultimately a decision for commercial operators.

Scotland’s Action Plan for Rare Diseases (2022) and Progress Report (August 2024) note awareness raising among healthcare professionals as the most important of our priorities, so that professionals are empowered to recognise rarer symptoms and have access to information resources on how to refer patients for appropriate care. Our long term aim is to embed training for rare conditions into the education pathway for healthcare professionals.

Jenni Minto: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-29676 on 18 September 2024. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

The Scottish Government is committed to maximising the economic opportunity for the Scottish supply chain from our offshore wind potential. We expect developers to honour their commitments set out in the Supply Chain Development Statements (SCDS) which were a condition of their being awarded Option Agreements.

The SCDS process has been carefully designed and is managed by Crown Estate Scotland (CES) to ensure focus is maintained on supply chain capacity and capability to develop and deliver offshore wind projects in Scotland.

The ScotWind SCDS were updated within 12 months of signing the Option Agreement, and must be updated at least once every 3 years thereafter. The first updates made in 2023 have resulted in an increase from £1.4 billion to £1.5 billion in projected average spend per project.

Failure by developers to deliver on their commitments can trigger remedies ranging from financial penalties to an inability to progress to a seabed lease.

Clinical geneticists are represented on Scotland’s Rare Disease Implementation Board (RDIB) where issues around the referral and diagnosis of individuals with hEDS and HSD have been discussed. RDIB are responsible for overseeing the implementation of Scotland’s Action Plan for Rare Diseases (2022) and the priorities for the coming year set out in our recent Progress Report (August 2024). Faster diagnosis remains one of these priorities, for all rare conditions.

An Island Communities Impact Assessment has been carried out and will be published on the Scottish Government’s website The Scottish Government - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) by the end of September 2024. The current grant funding provision for the Western Isles Advice Project which is part of the Scottish Legal Aid Board’s Early Resolution and Advice Programme, will continue under the existing criteria for funding until 30 September 2024.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-29676 on 18 September 2024. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-29676 on 18 September 2024. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-29676 on 18 September 2024. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.