Chamber and committees

Parents and carers are encouraged to talk to their ELC setting about their child’s needs, and this may involve wider discussions with health professionals. We have written to local authorities to encourage them to review local processes and communications to reflect the change in legislation. Parents and carers already have the legal right to defer their child’s entry to primary school if they are not yet 5 years old at the beginning of the school year and this is not affected by the upcoming change in legislation.

Reduced prevalence and hospitalisation rates has resulted in an easing of the previous infection and prevention control measures which has contributed, in turn, to a reduction in expenditure levels.

There are no plans to reduce COVID-19 testing in health and social care settings as a result of the Emergency Budget Review. In line with the Test and Protect transition plan, testing remains in place to support patient treatment and care, protect those in highest risk settings, monitor prevalence and the risk of new variants, and respond to outbreaks. Testing policy and protocols are kept under regular clinical review.

Similarly, PPE provision continues to be informed by infection prevention and control guidance. NHS NSS currently hold sufficient pandemic PPE stock to supply NHS Scotland well into 2023-24 based on current usage rates. Social Care PPE provision continues to be available in case of emergency PPE being required and for unpaid carers and personal assistants.

Two Scottish cities are currently twinned with Ukraine. Our respective capital cities Edinburgh and Kyiv, have been twinned since 1989, and Newport-on-Tay entered into a twinning relationship with Zolotarevo in 2002. Twinning enables local communities to formalise friendships, create cultural and educational bonds as well as work on shared local issues.

COSLA is the twinning coordinator for local authorities in Scotland. The Scottish Government encourages any Local Authority, seeking to establish a twinning relationship with Ukraine to discuss this further with COSLA. I have previously met COSLA and the Lord Provost of Edinburgh, to discuss my support for their twinning relationship and to explore how further Scottish Local Authorities can support Ukraine.

The Scottish Government’s drive to boost productivity and innovation is set out in the third programme of the National Strategy for Economic Transformation (NSET) . Our approach to expanding international opportunities is set out in NSET’s fifth programme “New Markets”, which is in turn driven by our Trade and Investment plans, Shaping Scotland's Economy: inward investment plan and A Trading Nation: a plan for growing Scotland's exports .

The inward investment plan, which was published in October 2020, takes a targeted approach to attract high quality inward investment into nine opportunity areas where Scotland’s strengths meet international demand, that fall within the overarching areas of Net Zero, Digital and High Value Manufacturing. The export plan refocuses the enterprise agencies’ export support activities to the markets with the international opportunities that best match our strengths, and to support the companies most able to service these opportunities.

Evidence suggests that foreign owned firms make a disproportionate impact to our economic performance and productivity. Just 3% of business in Scotland are foreign owned but account for over a third of jobs, almost half of GVA, just under two thirds of business research & development spending and three quarters of exports.

Progress to date on both the export growth and inward investment plans was set out in detail in A Trading Nation: progress review 2022 and Shaping Scotland's Economy - progress report 2022 .

Funding decisions relating to Early Learning and Childcare (ELC), which includes implementation of the legislative commitment on deferrals, will be taken through the usual Scottish Government Budget process for 2023-24.

The ELC Finance Working Group, a joint Scottish Government/COSLA group which includes representation from SOLACE, CIPFA Directors of Finance and ADES Resources, plays an important role in informing funding decisions relating to the 1140 programme and deferrals policy.

The Scottish Government conducted an Island Communities Impact Assessment into the Deposit Return Scheme which was published on 16 March 2020. You can access it here: Deposit return scheme for Scotland: islands communities impact assessment - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) .

Further to the answer to question S6W-11628, answered on 7 November 2022, I refer the member to the answer to questions S6W-11493 on 26 October 2022, and S6T-00915 on 25 October 2022. The administration process is still ongoing, but I would like to assure the member that the Scottish Government is continuing to engage with key partners in relation to this matter, including Creative Scotland.

The answer to Topical Question S6T-00915 can be found here: https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/official-report/search-what-was-said-in-parliament/meeting-of-parliament-25-10-2022?meeting=13939&iob=126317#16180

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

Parents and carers are encouraged to talk to their ELC setting about their child’s needs, and ELC practitioners will be able to discuss options for children who may benefit from an additional year of funded ELC. Local authorities are responsible for school enrolments in their area and this includes supporting parents and carers who cannot access online resources.

The Scottish Government recognised the unprecedented nature of the changes required in the Emergency Budget Review and also published analysis of the equality and fairness impacts of the most substantive in-year adjustments. Given the exceptional circumstances and time constraints under which the Review was undertaken, the summary evidence was necessarily presented at a high level and focused on the most substantial changes.

In the case of the £116m reduction in Covid-related spending, this covers a range of actions on vaccinations, test and protect, PPE and additional capacity to drive down additional costs. It is important to note that the spending reduction is a consequence of reduced prevalence and hospitalisation rates resulted in evidence-based easing of infection prevention and control measures.

However, the impact on inequalities continues to be a focus, and includes measures to ensure uptake rates and activity aimed at reducing vaccine inequalities are not negatively affected.

We will continue to develop equality evidence, as well as mitigations wherever possible for negative impacts, including building on the evidence on inequalities in relation to COVID vaccination, testing and surveillance, for example as set out in the equality impact assessment for the Coronavirus (COVID-19): Strategic Framework update (February 2022).

The default position for new public bodies is that they will be subject to the Scottish Government’s Public Sector Pay Policy (PSPP). However, the decision was taken that David MacBrayne Ltd (DML), the public body which owns CalMac Ferries Limited (CFL), be excluded from the Policy. This was to enable CFL to operate in a similar commercial environment and on a level basis with other operators in tendering for future ferry service contracts.