Chamber and committees

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-10225 on 30 August 2022. 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 .

To support the installation of solar panels on existing domestic and commercial premises, the Scottish Government has a number of funding schemes.

For domestic properties, Home Energy Scotland provides advice and funding for solar installations of up to £5,000 in interest-free loans. Warmer Homes Scotland, the Scottish Government’s national fuel poverty scheme, provides funding for solar projects for homeowners or private tenants with consenting landlords.

Local authorities can obtain Scottish Government funding for solar installations through our Area Based Scheme. The Social Housing Net Zero Heat Fund also considers funding applications for solar PV within the zero emission heat solutions category.

For communities, our Community and Renewable Energy Scheme (CARES) supports solar renewable projects through advice and loan and grant funding to community groups. Our SME Loan Scheme offers eligible businesses access to interest free loans of up to £100,000 towards the installation of solar PV, as well as free energy efficiency evaluation and advice on potential installations.

£10 million of funding has been directed to support Cancer Waiting Times improvements in our NHS across 2022-23, of which NHS Lanarkshire received a share of £1,229,861. Funding will be targeted towards the most challenged specialties, including colorectal. Significant funds are going towards up-skilling nurses and investment to support extended working days and weekend working to increase capacity and treat patients as timely as possible.

In addition the First Minister announced on 10 October that two new Rapid Cancer Diagnostic Services will be established, one of which will be developed in NHS Lanarkshire within existing infrastructure. The service will provide primary care with access to a new fast-track diagnostic pathway for patients with non-specific symptoms suspicious of cancer, such as weight loss and fatigue.

The figure used for the gigawatt value of ScotWind in the statement that Scotland has over 40GW of potential offshore wind developments in the pipeline, subject to planning and consenting decisions, and finding a route to market, was 27.6 gigawatts. This gigawatt value is based on each of the developers’ proposed project capacity in their applications to Crown Estate Scotland in the ScotWind leasing round.

In addition to extensive stakeholder communications already undertaken, the national marketing campaign for the Young Persons’ Free Bus Travel Scheme was launched in autumn 2022. This has helped to increase awareness and understanding of the scheme and encouraged more young people to apply.

The following table provides the national marketing spend (inclusive of VAT where applicable) broken down by type of marketing activity. This spend includes marketing and PR activity undertaken during COP26 between October and December 2021 in addition to the main campaign.

The Scottish Government does not hold information regarding the reason(s) for the addition of a property to, or removal from, the Valuation Roll. The valuation of all non-domestic properties is a matter for the Scottish Assessors, who are independent of central and local government.

To note in addition, as there are more than 70 days left until the end of the financial year, properties which have not yet met the criteria set out in the Council Tax (Dwellings and Part Residential Subjects) (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2021 may still do so before the end of the financial year.

We made an additional £40 million available to improve Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) last year, with £4.25 million of that specifically dedicated to clearing waiting list backlogs by March 2023.

We are also targeting tailored support towards those Boards with the longest waits, providing access to professional advice, to ensure that they have robust improvement plans in place and are monitoring progress closely.

We have taken positive steps to increase and maximise the available Mental Health Workforce, at all levels across Scotland. We will continue to work with the Royal College of Psychiatrists to explore further potential recruitment and retention opportunities.

The Scottish Government is currently developing the Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy and the Mental Health and Wellbeing Workforce Plan which we will publish in 2023.

There is no specific financial support to assist with the purchase of gluten-free food products. However, people who have been clinically diagnosed with coeliac disease or dermatitis herpetiformis can receive a range of gluten-free food on prescription at no charge.

There is a monthly unit allowance and people may choose to use all or part of that allowance to access gluten-free items through their local community pharmacy if they wish. To help with costs, patients may choose to order their maximum number of units each month.

The Scottish Government received confirmation from the Maritime Coastguard Agency on 20 October 2022 that a UK registered fishing vessel was the cause of damage to the subsea cable affecting telecommunications on Shetland.

The Scottish Government remains committed to undertaking both short life working groups, however we are not currently in a position to confirm start dates for either group. We anticipate writing to Optometry Scotland in the New Year regarding anticipated timescales.