Chamber and committees

It is not possible to provide the percentage of individuals admitted to NHS Scotland who are assessed for venous thromboembolism (VTE) as this data is not routinely recorded.

The General/Acute and Inpatient Day case Dataset (SMR01) contains records where pulmonary embolism and phlebitis and thrombophlebitis of the lower extremities are listed as the primary diagnosis.

These conditions are usually recorded in an inpatient setting, on the SMR01. The structure of the International Classification of Disease and Related Health Problems 10 revision (ICD10) does not allow for easy identification of Venous Thromboembolism.

The Scottish Government has been working with the other members of our Bus Decarbonisation Taskforce over the past year to co-design a pathway to zero emission buses. The Pathway will be published tomorrow, 10 August, alongside case studies of good practice in decarbonising bus fleets. The pathway sets out a shared approach between Transport Scotland and the key sectors represented on the taskforce (bus operating, manufacturing, energy, finance and public sector), that, by working together, we will achieve a future where all buses in Scotland are zero-emission buses; people enjoy travelling on buses knowing that doing so is one of the most sustainable travel and climate friendly choices they can make; there is an even stronger and diverse domestic manufacturing sector and supply-chain comprised of high-quality skilled jobs; and that after an important period of support, the Government has ceased subsidising zero-emission buses.

Since December 2020, over the lifetime of the Taskforce, Scottish Government has invested £113 million capital (and committed £21 million resource subsidy over a 5 year period), and leveraged in a similar sum from the private sector, to acquire 548 new battery electric buses and associated charging infrastructure for operation in Scotland. Those companies that have taken the lead can rightly be proud of their ambition and achievements. Our clear signal of high aspiration, given in the 2021 Programme for Government, has been successful in driving progress, as the proportion of zero emission buses in Scotland is approximately 3 times higher than those in England. As with every other part of the economy and society, delivery of further progress has been slowed by the pandemic, and Brexit is also causing supply chain issues and delays in investment decisions. The Taskforce also identified the need to adapt the approach to ensure that smaller operators can benefit and participate in the decarbonisation programme.

To enable delivery of the Pathway, the Scottish Government is also announcing today a second phase of the Scottish Zero Emission Bus Challenge Fund in 2023. Ahead of that, to support SME and rural bus operators be in the best possible position to benefit from that funding, a new £500,000 Zero Emission Bus Market Transition Scheme will open on 10 August.

The Zero Emission Bus Market Transition Scheme will fund:

a) Small bus operators, to assess which zero-emission technology is best for them and how it can be implemented;

b) development of collaborations across the operating, manufacturing, energy and finance sectors to bring scaled up, innovative bids to ScotZEB Phase 2 that will alter the market and bring in more private financing;

c) demonstration of the potential role that repowering of older diesel buses can play in the transition, recognising that repowering may be a more cost-effective option for SME operators, and may create additional green jobs in Scotland.

In a further positive development, eligibility for the Transition Scheme and ScotZEB Phase 2 will be expanded to support providers of home-to-school, community-to-healthcare, community bus services, and SME coach operators, in addition to public service bus operators. This will help ensure that those least able to pay for the transition to net-zero are supported, and benefit from the transition and that we progress faster and further to decarbonising bus and coach travel in Scotland and ensure that buses play a key role in providing sustainable, net zero travel in the future.

The guidelines for the diagnosis of thrombosis and similar artery and vein clot conditions are provided by the Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN), specifically SIGN 122 for the prevention and management of venous thromboembolism.

The Diagnostics in Scotland Strategic Group (DiSSG) is the national group that holds responsibility for ensuring the continued coherent development and delivery of high quality diagnostic services in Scotland. The DiSSG acts as an advisory board including providing strategic direction and advice on new diagnostic tests.

The NHS Recovery Plan commits to innovation in diagnostic procedures and an increase in capacity over the next 5 years of 90,000 procedures by 2025-26, including diagnostics of thrombosis and similar artery and vein clot conditions.

Case transfer is a joint programme between the Scottish Government and the Department for Work and Pensions. We aim to have safely and securely transferred the awards of everyone living in Scotland in receipt of devolved disability and carer benefits currently delivered by the Department of Work and Pensions to Social Security Scotland by the end of 2025.

From 29 August 2022, adults in Scotland in receipt of Disability Living Allowance will have their awards moved to Adult Disability Payment if they would otherwise have been asked by the Department for Work and Pensions to apply for Personal Independence Payment. Final policy is still being developed on moving the awards of all other adults currently in receipt of Disability Living Allowance.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-08833 on 14 June 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 .

Since May 2021 the Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Veterans has taken a number of meetings and attended events at which victims/survivors have been present. As people will not always disclose or wish to mention the nature of their experiences, or want these recorded, it is not possible to provide a definitive answer. However, at least 14 meetings and events over the period where victims/survivors have been present have been identified.

Potential extension of the Waverley line, to Carlisle via Langholm, and other route variations, was appraised as part of the second Strategic Transport Projects Review (STPR2). Whilst the outcome was that the extension of the line was not included within the 45 draft recommendations, there does remain a path for regional or local rail projects to come forward, and Transport Scotland will consider these subject to a strong business case being developed in accordance with Scottish Transport Appraisal Guidance (STAG) and suitable funding being available. The Scottish Government have committed up to £5 million through the Borderlands Inclusive Growth Deal to enable regional partners to assess the benefits and challenges of extending the Borders Railway, and continue to work with partners to implement that commitment.

Through the Borderlands Inclusive Deal the Scottish Government have allocated up to £5 million to assess the benefits and challenges of extending the Borders Railway. That funding will be released on the achievement of agreed milestones, in line with the usual business case and governance processes that apply to all growth deal projects. As this is a joint funding commitment, the Scottish Government are currently awaiting the outcome of internal UK Government discussions on governance procedures to be able to align advice to partners and move things forward.

The Scottish Government has recently announced a new set of ambitious targets to eliminate long waits, with an initial focus on long waits over two years for new outpatients by August 2022 and for inpatients and day case procedures by September 2022.

We have recently stepped down the Clinical Prioritisation Framework that was in place since November 2020 to help Boards prioritise waiting lists throughout the Covid-19 pandemic.

This move is a return to pre-pandemic approach of treating patients on an urgent and routine basis, giving Health Boards and clinicians full flexibility to manage waiting lists with a focus on eliminating long waits, as well as continuing to treat the most clinically urgent patients.

There have been four Gateway Reviews of Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme. Regular Gateway Reviews are a standard part of the Scottish Government’s project management framework, there is no requirement to notify the Scottish Parliament in advance when a Gateway Review is commissioned.