Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government is committed to investing in Changing Places Toilets during this parliamentary term, in order to increase the number of these facilities across the country and to support mobile Changing Places Toilets to allow people easier access to events and outdoor venues.

I refer you to written submission PE2027/A I provided in response to a petition published on 18 May 2023.

https://www.parliament.scot/get-involved/petitions/view-petitions/pe2027-launch-the-changing-places-toilet-fund.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-19512 on 17 July 2023. 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

Official statistics on poverty rates in Scotland come from the Family Resources Survey. This is a sample survey which does not allow breakdowns at a sub-Scotland level.

However, the Department for Work and Pensions publish children in low income families local area statistics which are available at local authority level. These statistics are based on linked DWP/HMRC data on benefits and tax credits and are before housing costs. There are also estimates published by the End Child Poverty Coalition which model the impacts of housing costs on the child poverty rates produced by DWP. On both these measures for 2021-22, Aberdeen City is among the 10 local authorities with the lowest proportion of children in low income families.

There are a range of assessments made using various data sources to inform local and regional economic development and funding, as well as action to alleviate poverty. For instance, the Scottish Government established an independent Advisory Group on Economic Recovery in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The group’s report covered a wide range of indicators at local authority level including the business base, existing deprivation and income levels, digital connectivity and productivity.

Subsequently, the Scottish Government published the Wellbeing Economy Monitor which brings together a range of indicators to provide a baseline for assessing progress towards the development of a wellbeing economy in Scotland. A wellbeing economy toolkit has been developed to support decision making and prioritisation of economic interventions and facilitate the transition to local and regional wellbeing economies, including a local authority level wellbeing economy monitor. This includes child poverty estimates, along with other social, environmental and economic indicators.

The National Endoscopy Training Programme (NETP) offers a range of training packages to improve the quality of endoscopy care for patients in Scotland, helping to provide the clinical capacity needed to reduce Endoscopy and Cancer waiting times. This includes:

• Immersion Training
• Basic Endoscopy Skills Courses
• Train the Trainer Course
• Upskilling for Colonoscopy
• Endoscopy Non-Technical Skills (ENTS)
• National Assistant Practitioner Programme
  

As of 31 May 2023, over 380 staff have participated in NETP programmes, helping to develop the endoscopy workforce in a coordinated ‘Once for Scotland’ approach.

On 28 June 2023, the Scottish Government published its response to the Scottish Mental Health Law Review and set out initial views on the proposals. We have taken time to carefully consider Lord Scott’s recommendations and will now establish a new Mental Health and Capacity Reform Programme. Over the summer we will be designing the Programme, working with people who have experienced the mental health system, to reach decisions about the changes that are needed in the short, medium and long-term and how to put them into practice.

One of the high-level priorities for this Reform Programme is to consider whether there are changes that can be made over the shorter term to improve the current operation of the Mental Health Act and to strengthen safeguards when it is considered necessary to provide non-consensual care or treatment. This could include the consideration of improvements to provisions around named persons.

The Office of the Public Guardian (OPG) is part of the Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service (SCTS). SCTS is an independent body corporate and does not answer directly to the Scottish Government (SG). Instead, it is directly answerable to its board, chaired by the Lord President.

OPG advise that they continue to fund a dedicated taskforce to reduce the time taken to process PoA applications. They have commenced a programme to develop a new case management system, which will provide greater online capability and greater effectiveness in PoA registrations.

Professor Britton’s 2018 Investigative Review gave 46 recommendations regarding the process of establishing, managing and supporting Independent Reviews in Scotland.

We accepted and agreed with the vast majority of her conclusions and recommendations. The recommendations have already been reflected in a number of inquiries and reviews established in recent years. We are also developing guidance to support inquires and reviews that will build upon Professor Britton’s recommendations and hope to publish that shortly.

The Scottish Government is prioritising investment in a range of support available both pre and post diagnosis.

Our new £1 million Autism Support Fund will soon be launched by Inspiring Scotland. Individual funding awards will be announced following a fair and open application and assessment process based on set criteria. Where these criteria are met through projects already underway, funding can be backdated to 1 April 2023.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-19460 on 17 July 2023. 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

Scotland continues to have the most comprehensive universal free school meal provision anywhere in the UK. We are in regular contact with local authority representatives regarding our free school meal expansion programme.