Chamber and committees

In establishing the Drug Research Network Scotland (DRNS) in 2017 the intention was to provide seed funding through the Scottish Funding Council to allow the network to develop and become self-sufficient through developing other income streams with associated research co-ordination fees. Initially this was agreed for a period of 3 years and was then extended for a further 3 years.

Whilst Scottish Government recognise that a model of full self-sufficiency is not a viable option for the network, officials worked with DRNS to explore a number of funding options. Within the context of a challenging economic situation, it was considered that the DRNS was now an established network and could therefore focus on knowledge exchange and capacity building within the drug research community whilst continuing to develop and maintain connections across the research community.

The aims of the DRNS are not to carry out research but to to develop a Scottish drugs research strategy to build capacity, maximise research investment and deliver robust, high-quality research evidence to inform policy and practice relevant to problem drug use and recovery in Scotland. As well as facilitating collaboration across Scotland, they also develop links with leading researchers elsewhere in the UK and in other countries.

We recognise the value of this work which is why we have continued to support them beyond their initial seed funding stage.

Academic year 2021-22 saw increases in enrolments, student headcount and full-time equivalent (FTE) places on the previous year; as well as increased numbers upskilling and reskilling on short courses, and increased opportunities for those furthest from the workplace.

Colleges continue to evolve their offer, whether full-time, part-time or a tailored mix, taking account of the diverse needs of learners; while continuing to respond flexibly to the social and economic needs of the regions they serve through the delivery of short courses aimed at upskilling and reskilling.

The Medicines Act 1986 is governed by the UK Parliament. This means that any legislative changes in relation to the act are fully reserved to the UK Government and its ministers.

However, continuing the work done to make naloxone more widely available during the COVID-19 pandemic, Scottish Government officials are engaged with both COPFS and colleagues in the UK Office for Health Improvement and Disparities to ensure that those changes remain in place in Scotland. Following the 2021 consultation carried out by the UK Government into expanding the access to naloxone, Scottish Government officials are working with UK Government colleagues to push for amendments in current legislation at a UK level to ensure those changes introduced in Scotland are made permanent.

Further to the recommendation of the Drug Death Taskforce we are continuing to work with the UK Government and other devolved administrations regarding the expansion of access to drug paraphernalia.

This includes the provision of smoking inhalation devices which have been seen as an essential harm reduction tool for those smoking crack cocaine. The distribution of these devices would require an amendment to the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971. As this legislation is reserved, such an amendment is not within the competence of the Scottish Parliament.

There is no recommended minimum distance between onshore wind turbines and residential properties. Policy 11 of National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) makes clear that potential impacts on communities, nature and other receptors will be important considerations in the decision-making process. Additionally, the policy requires that project design and mitigation will demonstrate how impacts on communities and individual dwellings, including residential amenity, visual impact, noise and shadow flicker will be addressed. All applications are subject to site-specific assessments.

The 2022-23 Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza (HPAI) outbreak season started on 1 Oct 2022. HPAI H5N1 has since been confirmed (as 15 August) in 197 premises in the UK: 30 in Scotland, 8 in Wales, 1 in Northern Ireland and 158 in England. Of the 30 infected premises in Scotland 18 have been in commercial premises, 9 in backyard flocks and 3 captive bird premises. 16 of the cases have been in the North East of which 11 were in commercial premises, 3 in back yard flocks and 2 in captive bird premises.

One case of Low Pathogenic Avian Influenza (LPAI) H7N3 has also been confirmed in premises in Scotland this season.

APHA carries out year-round avian influenza surveillance of dead wild birds submitted via public reports and warden patrols across Great Britain on behalf of Scottish Government, Defra and Welsh Government. It is not designed to provide how wild birds are impacted by the disease but provide an indicator of the presence of disease in a specific area to help establish background risk levels to poultry and other captive birds. This information helps support how Scottish Government responds to changing disease risk. From 1 October 2022, the GB Dead Wild Bird Surveillance Scheme has identified 1,552 wild birds infected with HPAI H5N1, with 326 findings of HPAI H5N1 in Scotland. The surveillance scheme is designed to detect the presence of avian influenza.

NatureScot’s Wild Bird Mortality Surveillance Network, set up to provide early intelligence on the spread of the outbreak on wild birds and to give an indication of the impacts on different species, has received reports of a total of 10,087 dead and sick wild birds since 17 October 2022. Just under half of these (4,244) have been reported from NE Scotland (Aberdeenshire, Angus, Moray). This data is provided from key areas selected for monitoring and does not represent total wild bird deaths which will be much higher and may not all be solely attributable to HPAI H5N1. On 11 August Ministers launched the Wild Bird HPAI Response Plan that sets out how the Scottish Government and its partners will respond to any further outbreaks of HPAI in wild birds in Scotland.

However, this recent spike in wild bird occurrences has not translated into a corresponding spike in cases amongst poultry and captive birds. Although Scotland has confirmed 30 poultry and captive bird premises infected with H5N1 since October 2022, only 9 cases have occurred since 1 April 2023.

Scotland’s Chief Vet and officials continue to monitor the situation closely and remain in daily contact with other UK administrations to discuss policy options, control measures and future strategies for the control of avian influenza. The Scottish Government will continue to review the range of potential proportionate responses available. Together the three nations of Great Britain have an agreed notifiable avian disease control strategy which underpins our collective response to the disease.

An underlying principle of the new National Strategy for Palliative and End of Life Care for Scotland will be equitable and timely access to general and specialist palliative care as needed by each person of any age, living with any illnesses, in all places.

As part of this work we are reviewing the information and evidence we have, and need, to develop the strategy. This includes gathering data on current and projected needs for palliative care at a population level, mapping services and support across Scotland, and building on our understanding of people’s experiences of palliative and end of life care.

The outputs of this work will give us a clearer picture of the delivery and accessibility of palliative care across Scotland, including in remote rural and island communities, and will allow us to develop evidence-based actions to ensure that people have equitable access to general and specialist palliative care if and when they need it, regardless of where they live.

Official Statistics published by the Scottish Funding Council in their annual College Statistics release show that in 2021-22 there were 69,036 full-time Higher (HE) and Further Education (FE) college enrolments in total. Although this is a decrease of around 10,000 on 2012-13, part-time HE and FE enrolments have increased by nearly 35,000 in total over the same period (from 218,616 in 2012-13 to 253,296 in 2021-22).

Academic year 2021-22 saw increases in enrolments, headcount and full-time equivalent places on the previous year; as well as increased numbers upskilling and reskilling on short courses, and increased opportunities for those furthest from the workplace.

Colleges continue to evolve their offer, whether full-time, part-time or a tailored mix, taking account of the diverse needs of learners; while continuing to respond flexibly to the social and economic needs of the regions they serve through the delivery of short courses aimed at upskilling and reskilling.