Chamber and committees

Animals protected under the Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006 are defined as those that are: (a) of a kind which is commonly domesticated in the British Islands; (b) under the control of man on a permanent or temporary basis; or (c) not living in a wild state.

The Scottish Government considers that the sheep on St Kilda, for the purposes of welfare legislation, should be regarded in the same way as an unowned and unmanaged population of wild deer or other wild animals. This position was first communicated in correspondence in February 2020, and was the Scottish Government position prior to that date.

From the outset, the Scottish Government’s decision-making on the COVID-19 vaccination programme has been guided by the expert advice provided by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) and senior clinicians.

It is presently anticipated that spring boosters will continue to be offered to those currently eligible according to JCVI guidance until 30 June 2022. On 19 May 2022 the JCVI issued interim advice regarding the autumn 2022 COVID-19 boosters.

Prioritising those most at risk has been our approach from the outset. The JCVI interim advice is to offer the autumn 2022 vaccination to the following individuals:

Residents in a care home for older adults and staff working in care homes for older adults;

Frontline health and social care workers;

All those 65 years of age and over; and

Adults aged 16 to 65 years in a clinical risk group.

This is based on an ongoing review of all the available evidence including infection rates, hospitalisation, mortality data and evidence of vaccine waning.

There is a clinical referral route available for clinicians to refer anyone who they identify as requiring additional dose(s) of vaccine or a different dosing schedule for clinical reasons (in keeping with eligibility as recommended by JCVI), on a case by-case-basis.

This is interim advice and the JCVI will continue its ongoing review and provide the eligibility criteria for the autumn 2022 booster in the near future and we stand ready to implement any further decisions on eligibility made by the JCVI.

All farmed fish, including cleaner fish, are protected by the Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006, which places a duty on fish farms to ensure their needs are met. The Scottish Government’s Fish Health Inspectorate inspects the legally required veterinary and mortality records held by fish farms. Significant cases of poor welfare observed during inspection are reported to the Animal and Plant Health Agency.

The Farmed Fish Health Framework Steering Group, which includes fish vets, regulators, sector representatives and Scottish Government officials, and which is chaired by the Scottish Government Chief Veterinary Officer, provides the appropriate forum within which future policy relating to the health and welfare of farmed fish will be developed.

Currently, there are no plans to introduce further legislation relating to the use of cleaner fish in Scottish aquaculture.

To date, Scottish Ministers have delegated regional marine planning powers to three Marine Planning Partnerships, which are required by the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010 to include in their governance arrangements representatives with an interest in; the protection and enhancement of the region, its use for recreation and its use for commercial purposes.

The Scottish Government will shortly publish its response to the inquiry of the Scottish Parliament’s former Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform Committee into the development and implementation of regional marine plans in Scotland. This response will include recommendations to support partnerships to identify opportunities to improve community representation in regional marine planning and marine licensing decisions.

South of Scotland Enterprise sought to attract applicants with a wide range of interests relating to ‘land-based industries’. Grouping these together was designed to attract applicants with experience of working or advising in industries such as agriculture, farming and forestry or who had experience of contributing to the economy and/or society through their involvement with the land-based sector. The application pack made clear that applicants were not expected to have worked in a management post or at a senior level. Rather, applicants might have a natural aptitude in these areas or they might have gained relevant knowledge and skills by being active in their community.

As this relates to knowledge held by existing members of South of Scotland’s Board, I have asked Professor Russel Griggs, Chair of South of Scotland Enterprise to respond to you directly.

NHS Borders, Fife, Forth Valley, Highland, Lanarkshire, Lothian and Tayside have all been receiving enhanced support to meet the waiting times standard and eliminate long waits by end March 2023.

We will shortly be writing out to all Boards to inform them about our programme of support for the next 6-12 months, including those which will be offered additional support.

From our £120 million Mental Health Recovery and Renewal fund, we have allocated around £40 million to NHS Boards to improve CAMHS. £4.25m of that allocation is directly focussed on offering treatment to those already on their CAMHS waiting lists.

We have also provided an additional £9m to NHS Boards in 2021/22 to address waiting lists for Psychological Therapies with further investment being planned for 2022-23.

There is currently no formal plan to review the labelling requirements within the Honey Regulations (Scotland) 2015. However, as the body with policy responsibility for these regulations, Food Standards Scotland continues to monitor the effectiveness and suitability of the legislation through communication with its stakeholders, such as Local Authorities, businesses and consumers, as well as discussions with other Scottish and UK Government departments.

It should be noted that FSS and the wider Scottish Government have a responsibility to conduct a formal post-implementation review within 10 years of the respective regulations coming into force. With regard to the Honey Regulations this is due to be factored into business planning at a point up to and including 2025.

While there is no evidence that any honey on sale in Scotland or in the UK is unsafe, it is a product that is frequently described as being at risk of fraud.

The volume of blended product required for the honey market and the availability of plausible adulterants (such as sugar syrup), in addition to the price premium associated with higher value honey products, mean that it is a realistic possibility that adulterated or misrepresented honey is present within world honey supplies.

Consumers or businesses who have concerns or suspicions around the authenticity and/or the mis-labelling of honey can report the circumstances to the Scottish Food Crime Hotline in partnership with Crimestoppers at 0800 028 7926, which is a free and anonymous service. They can also speak directly to trained staff at the Scottish Food Crime and Incidents Unit at Food Standards Scotland to discuss their concerns in the strictest of confidence via the [email protected].

The Scottish Government welcomes Coeliac Awareness Week and remains committed to enhancing diagnosis and care for people with coeliac disease in Scotland.

We have developed a new Scottish Coeliac Disease Pathway (2020) in partnership with people living with the condition, the charity Coeliac UK and clinicians. This has been shown to accelerate correct diagnosis and access to appropriate treatment (gluten-free diet and lifestyle) as detailed in the Coeliac Disease Pathway Report . It is our expectation that all Health Boards will fully implement this pathway in order to improve services and ensure that, with dietetic person-centred support, people with coeliac disease take control of their condition and manage its impact on their health and quality of life.

We have also invested £70 million in support of our Endoscopy and Urology Diagnostic Recovery and Renewal Plan . This includes a commitment to promote and implement guidelines for non-biopsy diagnosis for coeliac disease, which is expected to reduce waiting times for diagnosis for this condition.

The new pathway embeds the successful Scottish Gluten-free Food Service, which is unique in the UK. The service provides gluten-free food prescriptions and also annual coeliac disease health checks via community pharmacy. Annual coeliac disease health checks have re-commenced now that COVID-19 restrictions have been lifted. They provide pharmacy, general practice and patients with an efficient and safe means of referral back to coeliac services for dietetic and clinical advice as required.

Primary care teams are further supported through information resources on NHS Inform which have been co-produced by people with coeliac disease, clinicians and Coeliac UK.

The Scottish Government believes that all women have the right to access comprehensive universal healthcare, including abortion services, without fear or intimidation.

The Scottish Government is currently looking at how to tackle protests and vigils that intimidate women as they access healthcare services, and are seeking to make progress as soon as practicable.

In light of the recent protests outside of sexual health clinics, if an individual feels uncomfortable attending an appointment, they should contact the clinic directly to discuss their concerns.