Chamber and committees

There are no plans to renegotiate the Public Dental Service contract.

National Records of Scotland (NRS) publish deaths by cause in their vital events reference tables, including stroke, available under cerebrovascular disease, table 6.04: https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/statistics-and-data/statistics/statistics-by-theme/vital-events/general-publications/vital-events-reference-tables

Background information on how NRS record deaths can be found at:

Deaths - Background Information | National Records of Scotland (nrscotland.gov.uk)

Deaths with an underlying cause of stroke (identified as ICD-10 codes I61, I63 and I64), by location of death, showed that in 2018, 698 deaths occurred in a non-hospital setting, in 2019, this figure was 682, and in 2020 it was 847. This includes deaths which are categorised as taking place in a Care Home, Home /non-institution or Other institution.

The previous International Travel Regulations were due to expire on 20 September 2021 but were instead revoked and replaced with new, consolidated regulations that came into force on that date. We have reviewed the border health measures closely over the last 28 days and have assessed that there continues to be a requirement for the regulations to remain in place to reduce the risk of imported transmission and safeguard public health in Scotland. The regulations continue to be an important and proportionate part of the Scottish Government response to managing the pandemic. As we have done throughout the pandemic, we will continue discussions with UK Government and the other devolved administrations and continue to seek to take a four-nations approach to future changes to regulations and the travel regime.

The Scottish Government recognises vaccines approved for use in the UK regardless of where they were administered to determine whether a person has completed their primary dose or whether they require additional doses to be fully vaccinated.

Those who have been vaccinated out-with the Common Travel Area (CTA) should obtain proof of their vaccination status from the country they received their vaccination. For domestic certification purposes, we will accept proof of vaccination from across the UK and Crown Dependencies as well as from members of the EU Digital Covid Certificate Scheme.

For those who have proof of vaccination status from out with the CTA and the EU, domestic certification rules for international visitors will align with current border rules. Visitors from international countries out-with the CTA and EU scheme will require to provide the same proof of vaccination status that is accepted for entry to the UK.

Those who have received a final dose of a UK approved vaccine in Canada at least 14 days before travel are currently recognised as fully vaccinated and can use their proof of vaccination for domestic certification purposes. More information on this can be found at: Coronavirus (COVID-19): international travel and managed isolation (quarantine) - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) .

We recognise the extreme pressure facing the Scottish Ambulance Service due to the Covid-19 pandemic, and our thanks go out to the paramedics, technicians and wider ambulance staff for the continued work they are doing in exceptionally challenging circumstances.

Last month, the Scottish Government announced an additional package of support for the Scottish Ambulance Service, backed by an additional £20 million, which will help increase capacity and improve response times and staff wellbeing.

On 7 September 2021, the Scottish Government published the 2021/22 Programme for Government which confirmed that the Scottish Government will start work on a detailed prospectus for an independent Scotland. The Scottish Government is now determining how this work will proceed and the resourcing it requires, as we do for delivering all commitments in the Programme for Government. It is the role of the civil service to support delivery across the full range of Government commitments.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-03321 on
‎ 18 October 2021. 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

The Scottish Government advises anyone who has experienced domestic abuse to report crimes committed against them. Domestic abuse is a heinous crime and we remain absolutely committed to working with justice partners to ensure that they have the most effective tools at their disposal to ensure that perpetrators receive a robust response and are held to account for their actions.

The Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act 2018 (the ‘Act’) came into effect in April 2019 and provides the police with additional powers to take action against those who abuse their partner or ex-partner. As highlighted in the publication, in 2020-21, 1,581 charges were reported under the Act, with 95 percent resulting in court proceedings being raised.

Lastly, as part of the Programme for Government, we will invest £100 million over the next three years to support frontline services so that women and children can safely access the support they need and to focus on prevention of violence against women and girls from school onwards.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-03321 on
‎ 18 October 2021. 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

The requested level of data on individuals who Do Not Attend (DNA) vaccination appointments is not currently held. While we can show the number of people who did not attend a scheduled appointment, or who have cancelled or rescheduled, we don’t know all the reasons why they may have done so.

The Public Health Scotland COVID-19 Statistical Report published on 16 June 2021 contains information on DNAs from 1 Feb to 6 June 20201.

We remain on track to increase the number of GPs working in Scotland by at least 800 by 2027. We have taken a number of actions, including increasing the number of medical places at universities, and taking steps to encourage medical graduates to choose general practice. To that end, between 2015-16 and 2021-22 the Scottish Government will have increased the annual intake of medical places in Scottish universities from 848 to 1117 (269 places, a 32% increase). The majority of these new places are focused on general practice.

By increasing the amount of undergraduate curriculum that is delivered in general practice to 25%. We are confident increased exposure to general practice will encourage more students to train as GPs. With an increase of 89 GPs in 2019/20 we are now confident we are starting to see the positive impact of these actions.

Number of GPs working in Scotland since 2017