Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government is responsible for setting the overall policy direction of mental health services, and for working with and funding NHS Health Boards and local authorities to ensure they plan and deliver appropriate local services. The design and management of these services is for local NHS Boards and local authorities to decide, and each will have their own arrangements in place.

CAMHS is a specialist mental health service and is not the correct service for children seeking a diagnosis for a neurodevelopmental condition, unless they have a co-existing mental health condition. For many young people, it is more likely that a neurodevelopmental pathway will ensure that the right help and support is provided. This approach is intended to ensure that young people who need support for their mental health from CAMHS are able to receive it in a timely manner, and also that specialist neurodevelopmental support is available whenever needed

The Scottish Government fully recognises the need for improved access to detoxification services. This is an issue we are keen to see addressed through our strategy. Improving access to effective detoxification services is essential to ensure people can access help to reduce or stop drinking safely, avoiding acute withdrawal.

We are seeing more residential rehabilitation providers being able to offer in-house detox to prepare people for rehabilitation.

We are working with providers and other partners to discuss a wider set of residential harm reduction support – this includes stabilisation, crisis care, detox and long-term care for issues such as alcohol-related brain damage.

Our forthcoming National Specification for alcohol services will emphasise the requirement to provide a full range of services, including detox.

The Scottish Government is constantly working to ensure that local services fully assess local needs to identify unmet need. Some hospitals run alcohol care teams already but there is a need for wider coverage .

This approach has been shown to improve outcomes for people and so we are encouraging local areas to establish teams like these wherever appropriate.

The publication of the UK Clinical Guidelines for Alcohol Treatment later this year will provide local areas with clear guidance to ensure appropriate pathways and treatment services are available for those who need support.

The guidance is expected to be published before summer recess.

Statutory responsibility for decisions about the learning estate, including mothballing, rest with local authorities. The Scottish Government issues guidance to support local authorities’ implementation of their statutory responsibilities.

As the First Minister stated on 24 April, we are reviewing current guidance on the mothballing of schools and nurseries to provide greater clarity on whether it is an appropriate action to take. Scottish Government officials have regular engagement with local authorities and their representative bodies on a range of issues, including mothballing, and Ministers are considering a range of local government and stakeholder views on mothballing through the review process.

We will update Parliament further on this work in due course. While the review is underway, the existing guidance on mothballing (which is included in the Statutory Guidance on the Schools Consultation (Scotland) Act 200) remains in place.

Due to the UK General Data Protection Regulation and the privacy policy agreed by applicants to the LEZ Support Fund, we are unable to disclose personal details of the funds recipients.

However, I can advise that in the Aberdeen area 197 households received grants with a total value of £464,688, 65 microbusinesses in the area received a further £140,000 for the disposal of a non-compliant vehicle and 2 microbusinesses received grants totalling £14,066 to retrofit vehicles to meet LEZ standards.

In the Dundee area 247 households received grants with a total value of £562,471 and 49 microbusinesses in the area received a total of £107,500 for the disposal of a non-compliant vehicle. No retrofit grants have been issued in the Dundee area.

In the Edinburgh area 794 households received grants with a total value of £1,879,604, 412 microbusinesses in the area received a total of £948,631 for the disposal of a non-compliant vehicle and 142 microbusinesses received grants totalling £1,118,852 to retrofit vehicles to meet LEZ standards.

In the Glasgow area 2048 households received grants with a total value of £4,777,931, 708 microbusinesses in the area received a further £1,597,350 for the disposal of a non-compliant vehicle and 411 microbusinesses received grants totalling £3,345,089 to retrofit vehicles to meet LEZ standards.

The Tobacco and Vapes Bill has now entered into committee stage in the House of Lords. Following the conclusion of the Bill’s passage through Westminster, we expect to consult on the extension of restrictions on smoke-free places.

I refer the member to the answer to the question S6W-37322 on 19 May 2025. 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

No meetings were held with organisations or stakeholders to discuss the case of For Women Scotland Ltd v The Scottish Ministers prior to the Supreme Court judgment as it is not appropriate for the Scottish Government to comment on live legal proceedings.

Following the Supreme Court ruling on 16th April, the Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice spoke with Scottish Women’s Aid, Rape Crisis Scotland and Engender on 17 April and the Women’s Rights Network on 22 April to discuss the judgment. The Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice also offered a meeting to For Women Scotland on 17 April, but they declined the invite. Subsequently, a new invite has issued and both organisations are in discussion regards a date to meet.

This question relates to operational matters that are the responsibility of the Scottish Court and Tribunals Service (SCTS) corporate body. The question has been passed to the Chief Executive of the SCTS who reply in writing within 20 days.