Chamber and committees

Official Statistics on Scottish greenhouse gas emissions are published annually ( Scottish Greenhouse Gas statistics: 1990-2019 ) and are based on a disaggregation of the UK Greenhouse Gas Inventory, overseen by the UK Government Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS).

At the time of writing, the UK Inventory does not allow for the isolation of data for emissions from incineration as opposed to other energy-related emissions. Such decisions are a matter for BEIS and are informed by the UK National Inventory Steering Committee of which the Scottish Government is a member. If in future, data from energy-related emissions in the UK Inventory is disaggregated to show emissions from incineration separately, we would expect this to also then be reflected in the Scottish Greenhouse Gas Statistics publication.

The Scottish Government did not set the ScotWind seabed lease Option Agreement fees. The advisory note prepared for the Scottish Government recommends that any new, higher, levels be appropriately justified. Crown Estate Scotland (“CES”) proceeded to satisfy those requirements through, in this case, appropriate consideration of externally procured advice. CES explained to SG the rationale for the pricing structure adopted. No further information is held relating to that recommendation.

Crown Estate Scotland (CES) is responsible for the ScotWind seabed leasing process and undertook the review following the Round 4 announcements. The Scottish Government was informed of options under consideration by CES and of the review’s conclusions, which it supports. Annual fees were considered by CES but ultimately not selected as a preferred option, before or after review.

Furthermore, once projects have secured seabed leases and wind farms are generating energy annual rental payments will be made.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that all people living in Scotland with epilepsy are able to access the best possible care and support, and benefit from healthcare services that are safe, effective and put people at the centre of their care.

Decisions on local staffing requirements are the responsibility of individual NHS Boards, such as NHS Western Isles which is reviewing its method of delivery for all people with neurological conditions, including epilepsy, across the island groups.

The Scottish Government and COSLA recently published a National Workforce Strategy on 11 March 2022. The Strategy commits to publishing new workforce projections in the autumn, once we have had the opportunity to consider Health Board and Health and Social Care Partnerships' three year workforce plans. The staffing needs for services and professional specialties across NHS Scotland will be, in partnership with stakeholders, factored into the development of those projections.

In 2019 we published a Neurological Care and Support – National Framework for Action 2020-25 , which sets out a vision to ensure everyone with a neurological condition, including epilepsy, can access the care and support they need to live well, on their own terms. Since October 2020, we have invested £324,500 in funding via the Framework to projects which specifically improve the health and wellbeing of people with epilepsy in Scotland.

We are carefully considering the recommendations of the Independent Review of the Role of Incineration in Scotland’s Waste Hierarchy. We will set out our initial response to the recommendations in June 2022.

The Scottish Government and Public Health Scotland (PHS) continue to work with Health Boards to support their planning and the safe delivery of immunisation services.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, HPV and teenage booster programmes were delayed due to school closures. Pupils who were not offered their vaccines or who missed the immunisation sessions at their school, were offered the vaccine during catch-up sessions arranged by their Health Board. Health Boards have confirmed that these catch-up sessions have now been fully completed.

Therefore, all Health Boards have returned to a routine vaccination schedule for HPV and teenage boosters for the 2021-22 academic year.

Public Health Scotland collate data on the HPV vaccination programme for the previous school year every autumn. Data for school year 2021-22 will be collated in autumn 2022 and published in December 2022.

The most recent PHS publications can be found online: Publications - Public Health Scotland

The Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021 must be implemented effectively so that, once in force, it offers robust protections to victims. The Scottish Government is working closely with justice partners to agree a suitable commencement date for the Act.

To complement the implementation of the Act, we are developing a new hate crime strategy for publication later this year, which will help to guide how we successfully tackle hatred and prejudice in Scotland.

To support this, I chaired the inaugural meeting of the Hate Crime Strategic Partnership Group on 28 April. This group will provide a collaborative, multi-agency approach to the Strategy’s development.

The Scottish Government is open to considering all interventions that can be demonstrated to improve access to and engagement with hepatitis C testing and treatment.

People who are at risk as a result of their drug use often experience a range of health and social issues. That’s why eliminating Hepatitis C from Scotland requires a person-centred approach. NHS Tayside became the first region in the world to achieve elimination by using a person centred approach, leading to better engagement and more successful treatment.

A range of work is under way in partnership with the Scottish Health Protection Network Hepatitis C group to embed this learning more widely; In the meantime, we have funded pilots, such as the Cocoon Project, which is specifically focused on those who inject drugs. The pilot will be evaluated in due course and any learning will be shared to enable a system-wide improvement across Scotland.

Following an independent expert review process, 9 projects were funded through the CSO's Long-term effects of COVID-19 call Long Covid Call – Chief Scientist Office (scot.nhs.uk)

CSO funded research project start dates are confirmed through submission by the corresponding host institution of a completed start certificate ( Form7-Start-Certificate.docx (live.com) )

The following table shows the confirmed start dates and derived end dates for the 9 projects funded through the Long-term effects of COVID-19 call

The Scottish Government recognises that there are potential risks associated with playing instant win games. Instant win games can have some of the characteristics of commercial gambling products such as increased speed of play and instant gratification which are associated with higher risk of harm. Instant access to these activities through online methods can also create more continuous-play formats which are the most highly associated with harms.

The Scottish Government understands that the Gambling Commission, the body responsible for the regulation of the National Lottery, has recently investigated the National Lottery £10 instant win games. These have now been withdrawn due to the possible link between higher priced games and problem gambling. The new operators of the National Lottery are obligated to ensure that those at risk from gambling harms are protected from them. The Scottish Government would therefore expect the new operators to take the appropriate measures to protect people from harm.