Chamber and committees

As outlined in response to S6W-18910, the R100 commitment comprises of three strands of activity - the R100 contracts, the R100 Scottish Broadband Voucher Scheme (R100 SBVS) and continued commercial build.

The R100 Central and South contracts were awarded in December 2020 with the R100 North contract awarded in December 2021. As a result, build did not commence through the R100 contracts until 2021. The table below provides the number of connections built in each year since 2020 through the R100 contracts.

Organisations providing first aid at events must comply with their responsibilities under general health and safety legislation, which is reserved.

The Health and Safety Executive (HSE) provides guidance on how to manage events safely Events health and safety (hse.gov.uk) .

The HSE confirmed that an amendment in 2013 to the Health and safety (First – Aid) Regulations 1981 removed the responsibility of the HSE to approve first aid training providers and qualifications. The (Health and Safety) regulations now require employers to assess the needs for their workplace and ensure that they provide adequate and appropriate first aid to employees who are injured or become ill at work.

The regulations apply to employees only, but are accompanied by guidance strongly recommending that non employees are considered when employers decide on the first aid cover necessary for their workplace.

The Scottish Government has promoted the use of the UK Government and National Counter Terrorism Security Office (NaCTSO) website, “Protect UK”, to all relevant Scottish stakeholders. This website includes guidance on First Aid preparedness for organisations. This was in response to the recommendation outlined in Volume 1 of the Manchester Arena Inquiry to create a central library for guidance and advice that organisations and members of the public could access.

Scottish Government officials are currently undertaking further work and engagement with stakeholders to scope the potential extent of issues raised by unregulated private first aid companies and consider the most appropriate and proportionate next steps.

The Scottish Government is supporting a wider range of broadband providers through the R100 Scottish Broadband Voucher Scheme (R100 SBVS). We are also supporting full fibre providers by enabling access to rates relief on newly laid and lit fibre up until March 2034 – the longest period of fibre rates relief anywhere in the UK.

The R100 programme has not frozen funding, with the R100 SBVS continuing to offer vouchers for up to £5,000 per premises to deliver connections to eligible properties. While the Scottish Government is using the levers available in order to support suppliers, as telecoms is a matter wholly reserved to Westminster, it is for the UK Government to ensure that a supplier of last resort mechanism is in place to protect customers affected by any financial issues a supplier may face.

Of course, our substantial investment in the R100 and S4GI digital infrastructure programmes, as well as the UK Government’s Project Gigabit and the cross-administration Shared Rural Network programme will also ensure that those affected by such issues in future remain able to access high-quality digital connectivity.

There is no register of authorised first aid providers however, the Health and Safety Executive (HSE) provides guidance which sets out steps an employer should take to ensure the training their first aiders receive is adequate and appropriate for the needs of their workplace. The guidance gives examples of the types of training provider the employer might select: Selecting a first-aid training provider: A guide for employers GEIS3 (hse.gov.uk) .

Under Health and Safety legislation, which is reserved, it is the responsibility of the employer to satisfy themselves of the competence of first aiders. HSE provides relevant guidance on first aid provision and on event safety Events health and safety (hse.gov.uk) . The Events Industry Forum’s ‘ purple guide ’ includes example first-aid and medical assessments for an audience at an event.

The Scottish Government will publish the final Purpose and Principles for post-school education, research and skills [the week commencing 26 June DATE TBC].

The majority of funding allocated to the Drug Deaths Taskforce was dispersed via Alcohol and Drug Partnerships (ADPs) and The Corra Foundation. The Taskforce also funded the Digital Inclusion Project.

Alcohol and Drug Partnerships received additional funding in 2020-2021 and
‎ 2021-2022 from the Drug Deaths Taskforce.In order to receive funding ADPs were required to submit a proposal, clearly setting out how they would use this funding to address gaps in delivering the Taskforce’s six evidence-based strategies to help reduce drug-related deaths. Funding allocated to Alcohol and Drug Partnerships is subject to Scottish Government’s robust grant management process, outlined in the Scottish Public Finance Manual (SPFM). The SPFM provides guidance on the proper handling and reporting of public funds.

Through The Corra Foundation, a Research Programme Fund and an Innovation Fund was developed by the Drug Deaths Taskforce. The Corra Foundation facilitated review panels with members from a wide range of backgrounds, including those with lived experience, to review and consider applications made to both the Research Programme Fund and the Innovation Fund. The funds were created to contribute to the evidence base to inform future actions.

Monitoring of the projects was managed by The Corra Foundation. Monitoring and evaluation were a critical element in obtaining funding. When funding was awarded, each grantee signed grant offer paperwork which contained several conditions. These included conditions around payment and reporting. The content of the grant offer letters (including the conditions) were agreed with Scottish Government for each round and new conditions added as required. Additionally, a thematic evaluation was funded by the Taskforce through the Corra Foundation.

The independent Drug Deaths Taskforce concluded in July 2022 after publishing its final report, Changing Lives . The Scottish Government then responded to the recommendations and actions put forward by the Taskforce within the Drug Deaths Taskforce response: cross government approach .

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-18902 on 22 June 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

The R100 programme is expected to be completed by March 2028 when the final connections in the R100 North contract are delivered.

Around 99% of the connections being delivered through the R100 contracts are full-fibre, capable of delivering speeds of 1,000 Megabits per second (Mbps) – more than 30 times faster than our original superfast commitment.

The Additional Support for Learning Act places duties on education authorities to identify, provide for and review the additional support needs of their pupils. It is for individual authorities to determine the training required for all staff to ensure pupils reach their full potential.

All initial teacher education programmes must align with the General Teaching Council for Scotland’s Standard for Provisional Registration. The Standard sets out that student teachers are required to demonstrate knowledge and understanding of additional support needs and to take account of learners with such needs.

The Scottish Government is working closely with local government partners to improve the experience of children and young people with additional support needs at school, implementing the recommendations of the 2020 additional support for learning review, including those relating to the professional learning of school staff. In November 2022, we published an updated action plan and a second progress report . A further update is due to be published in May 2024.

Of the 26 new buses that have space for transporting bikes there are 13 planned to operate on routes in Aberdeenshire.