Chamber and committees

In December 2019 we published a Neurological Care and Support – a National Framework for Action . Over five years we will invest £4.5 million to implement the Framework’s commitments, including the development of sustainable workforce models.

The Scottish Shape of Training Transition Group makes recommendations to Ministers annually on training numbers across all medical specialties. The group undertakes an annual assessment of the medical trainee establishment and the factors influencing recruitment fill rates. This process aligns with medical workforce modelling and is intended to achieve a planned and sustainable medical workforce. In each year since 2016,100% of advertised Neurology posts have been filled, indicating that new trainee doctors already consider a career in neurology to be an attractive one.

Work is being taken forward on education and training opportunities for Clinical Nurse Specialists in Neurology (and MS specifically) by a group including Scottish Government, NHS Education Scotland, MS Clinical Nurse Specialists representatives and the NHS Centre for Sustainability Delivery. It will support Health Boards in recruiting and succession planning regarding these roles. The Scottish Government provides £2.4 million to enhance clinical nurse specialist provision and care.

Analysis published by Public Health England (PHE) showed high effectiveness of COVID-19 vaccinations against hospitalisation after 2 doses. The Pfizer vaccine is 96% effective against hospitalisation after 2 doses, with the AstraZeneca vaccine being 92% effective against hospitalisation after 2 doses. These are comparable with vaccine effectiveness against hospitalisation from the Alpha variant.

A study published by PHE on 22 May demonstrated high effectiveness levels of 2 doses of both Pfizer and AstraZeneca vaccines against the Delta variant. 2 doses offer protection levels of 88% and 60% for Pfizer and AstraZeneca respectively after 2 weeks.

A single dose of either vaccine offers protection of 33% against Delta variant after 3 weeks, compared to 50% against the Alpha variant.

Booster doses can be offered any time at least 6 months after the second dose and help to reduce the risk of hospitalisation due to coronavirus over the autumn/winter period. The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) advice on boosters indicates that booster doses of COVID-19 vaccines provide a substantial increase in vaccine-induced immune responses.

Further information on vaccine efficacy and effectiveness is available online at:

Overview - COVID-19 vaccine information and resources - COVID-19 vaccinations - COVID-19 - Our areas of work - Public Health Scotland

Greenbook COVID-19 chapter 14a (publishing.service.gov.uk)

Scottish Government representatives last met with oncologists in Tayside linked with the HIS report in July 2020, where all independent reviews of the service were discussed, as well the ongoing delivery of the breast cancer services in Tayside. During the work of the Independent Advisory Group (Tayside Breast Cancer) which reported in August 2019, there was also discussion with the same oncologists as part of the group’s evidence gathering.

Police Scotland have advised there are currently over 250 body worn cameras in use within North East Division. In addition, Police Scotland also equipped all armed police officers across Scotland who were deployed at COP26. A consultation on a wider roll-out of body worn cameras to all front line operational officers and staff closed in September and work is ongoing to consider a national introduction.

For 2021-22, the Scottish Government increased the policing budget by £75.5m to over £1.3bn and provided one off funding of £0.5m in 2021-22 to the SPA, to support the use of body-worn cameras. The allocation of resources is a matter for the SPA and the Chief Constable.

Funding for the policing budget for 2022-23 will be set out at the Scottish budget on 9 December.

The following table summarises how many applications to the (a) Less Favoured Area Support Scheme in each year since 2015 that were not approved have been appealed, and how many appeals (i) have been upheld and (ii) are awaiting a decision.

Please note the LFASS claims received in 2021 are still being assessed for approval.

We continue to monitor and assess the pandemic closely and carefully. The Scottish Government develops a range of epidemic scenarios to provide the best public health advice to Ministers. These are presented in the Modelling the Epidemic report published by Scottish Government. These models consider a range of influences on the epidemic, of which COP26 is one. The Scottish Government will continue to assess the impact of COVID-19 on the NHS in the next few weeks in terms of estimated number of infections, hospital bed demand, and ICU bed demand. The scenarios within the Modelling the Epidemic report account for the start of the COP26 conference beginning in Glasgow on 31 October.

Based on current results, we do not have any concerns about COVID rates among Blue Zone passholders. As of 13 November, the cumulative test positivity for Blue Zone passholders, based on lateral flow tests, was 0.08%.

The Scottish Government continues to explore all options for how it will respond to the evolving pandemic and we will not hesitate to strengthen the protective measures in place if it proves necessary to do so. Given the uncertainty and risk we face as winter progresses, it would not be responsible to rule anything out at this stage.

Our Health and Social Care Winter Overview published in October outlines a package of over £300 million of investment in NHS and care services this winter to help address these pressures. This is shaped by our four key principles: maximising capacity; supporting staff wellbeing; supporting effective system flow, and improving outcomes.

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Interim Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

The following table details the total number of violent incidents in each Scottish prison, during the reporting period of 1 November 2020 to 31 October 2021:

The Scottish Government are undertaking a range of measures to support disabled young people to access positive post-school destinations, including introducing Scotland’s first National Transitions to Adulthood Strategy in this Parliamentary Term. The Strategy is jointly led by the Minister for Equalities & Older People and the Minister for Children and Young People, to focus on supporting our disabled young people. As part of our commitment to improving transitions for young people, the Scottish Government has been working in partnership with ARC (Association for Real Change) Scotland to develop and deliver the Principles into Practice trial programme, a trial of ARC’s transitions framework.

In addition, we are implementing the independent Morgan Review recommendations for Additional Support for Learning, to ensure improvements are being made to effectively implement legislation and policy across Scotland. On 1 November we launched the Getting It Right For Every Child guidance refresh consultation, which includes the role of the Lead Professional. This refresh will include developing practice guidance on planning for children.

The Young Person’s Guarantee also has an important role in supporting young disabled people into education, training and employment, including supported employment. Since the Guarantee’s launch in November 2020 we have provided additional funding of up to £130 million, with the aim of supporting at least 24,000 new and enhanced opportunities. This includes over 11,000 employability and training opportunities for young people through Local Employability Partnerships (LEPs).

LEPs are prioritising support for disabled young people through employer recruitment incentives and specialist programmes, with some offering targeted support for those with complex additional support needs. Many partnerships are working with specialist organisations such as Project Search and Penumbra.

Through Developing the Young Workforce and Enable Works, Young Person’s Guarantee funding is also connecting over 1,000 disabled young people to fair work, education and opportunities designed to ensure a successful transition into adult life and work.

The Scottish Government and Skills Development Scotland recognise that disabled people can face additional challenges in their career journeys, therefore enhanced contribution rates are available for Modern Apprentices up to the age of 29 who self-identify as disabled. SAAS administer the Disabled Students’ Allowance to support disabled students and those with additional learning needs and may have extra costs because of their impairment. Furthermore, many colleges and universities provide support to disabled young people while they are studying.

The Young Person’s Guarantee is part of a basket of interventions designed to support disabled young people that will contribute to the refresh of A Fairer Scotland for Disabled People – Employment Action Plan , due for publication next Spring.

The following table summarises how many applications to the (a) Less Favoured Area Support Scheme there have been in each year since 2015, and how many (i) were approved and (ii) are awaiting a decision.

Please note the LFASS claims received in 2021 are still being assessed for approval.

The Scottish Government remains committed to improving the educational experiences of young people with complex additional support needs.

Students with disabilities or additional support needs can access a variety of support to assist their access to Further Education and Higher Education. The Additional Support Needs for Learners Allowance in Further Education and the Disabled Students Allowance (DSA) in Higher Education, provide financial assistance which can be used to facilitate support which is individual to the student’s needs.

Student Awards Agency Scotland (SAAS) are currently leading a project on behalf of the Scottish Government, reviewing the disability related student support element, encompassing both Further Education and Higher Education.

The project aims to deliver a suite of recommendations which will seek to improve the provision of support and increase parity across the sector. This will include improvements to the Higher Education Disabled Students Allowance (DSA) administered by SAAS and the Additional Support Needs for Learners Allowance which is available to students in Further Education.

The Scottish Funding Council (SFC) Outcome Agreement Guidance for 2021-22 sets out that SFC expect institutions to comply with their legal duties including setting and delivering equality outcomes.