Chamber and committees

We continually keep our COVID-19 Status Certification scheme under review and consider a range of evidence, data, and information which is already published. Information such as the “ trends in daily data ”; the weekly report on the “ state of the epidemic ”, and the anticipated pressures on our public services. Following that consideration Ministers then report to parliament, detailing the outcome of their review every 3 weeks.

To date, the Scottish Government has spent £722,580.08 on media promotions relating to COP26 within domestic and international campaigns. The purpose of the domestic campaign is to encourage individual behaviour change to reduce carbon emissions and to increase awareness of the urgency to do so in tandem with hosting the COP26 summit. Internationally the aim is to promote Scotland as a global leader on climate change to maximise opportunities from being the host nation of COP26 and promote Scotland as an ideal place to live, work, invest, visit and study. The campaigns are still in progress and were planned in relation to the summit and feature messaging about COP26. Final costs will be published at the end of the financial year, when full billing and financial reconciliation has taken place.

Unaccompanied Asylum-seeking children are able to access GP and NHS dental services on the same basis as domiciled residents.

GP practices receive a share of overall general practice funding from the Scottish Government based upon their estimated workload. This would reflect any unaccompanied asylum-seeking children registering with a GP practice.

Dentists are paid a range of fees and other payments by the Scottish Government for providing care and treatment to NHS patients.

The Emerging Energy Technologies Fund (EETF) is a £180m package of funding over five years that will provide capital support to accelerate low-carbon infrastructure projects that will be essential to deliver net zero. The Fund will make £100 million available to support renewable hydrogen projects in line with our Hydrogen Policy Statement.

Policy officials are finalising the eligibility and project assessment criteria for the EETF, and have invited views on this from stakeholders by 19 January 2022.

Views can be provided at https://consult.gov.scot/energy-and-climate-change-directorate/hydrogen-action-plan/ .

Further details on the Fund and its eligibility criteria will be provided in early 2022 alongside a call for projects.

On 22 November Child Disability Payment was launched across Scotland. This has followed an initial pilot, whereby families of children and young people with a disability living in Dundee City, Perth & Kinross and Western Isles council areas, could apply for the benefit.

We have received positive anecdotal feedback throughout the pilot. Both parents and support workers have said that the application process has been easier and less daunting, and that the support offered by Social Security Scotland has been helpful and caring.

The first high level statistics covering the first 5 weeks of the pilot were published on 18 October 2021 and are available at gov.scot . The next set of Child Disability Payment statistics are due to be published in January 2022. This will cover the period from 26 July to 21 November 2021, and will provide us with the data that will allow us to carry out a more detailed evaluation.

We have also been inviting clients, staff and stakeholders to take part in research to share feedback and help us learn from their experience of the service during the pilot phase. This will be published in Spring 2022. Research will continue beyond national launch as we continue to look for ways to improve and enhance the service for the people of Scotland.

As set out in Evaluating the Devolution of Disability Benefits , we will begin a thematic evaluation of the policy changes that are being implemented with the roll-out of the disability benefits, including use of supporting information, client consultations and supporting information.

During 2021-22 the main focus will be to define the size, scope and research questions, and assessing the potential methods and data sources available. In addition, we have commissioned the evaluation of Child Winter Heating Assistance to report in Summer 2022.

The Scottish Government will, over the next five years, continue to create a supportive policy environment which, alongside private investment, will enable the creation of a network of renewable and low-carbon regional hydrogen production hubs near demand centres across Scotland.

The development of regional hydrogen energy hubs will be strategically supported through the Emerging Energy Technologies Fund (EETF) – a £180m package of funding over five years that will provide capital support to accelerate low-carbon infrastructure projects that will be essential to deliver net zero. The EETF will make £100 million available to support renewable hydrogen projects.

Policy officials are finalising the eligibility and project assessment criteria for the EETF, and have invited views on this from stakeholders by the 19 January 2022.

Views can be provided at https://consult.gov.scot/energy-and-climate-change-directorate/hydrogen-action-plan/ .

Further details on the Fund and its eligibility criteria will be provided in early 2022 alongside a call for projects.

I refer the member to the answer to questions S6W-04212 and S6W-04213 on 25 November 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 .

Stopping smoking at any time is one of the best things you can do for your health, and the health of those around you.

We work alongside YoungScot, schools and further education institutions when developing our campaigns to ensure young people are aware of the dangers of smoking and the importance of making healthy life choices.

NHS Inform has information around smoking and weight gain, 'Myths' which can be used to address individual’s concerns over this issue.

www.nhsinform.scot/healthy-living/stopping-smoking/when-you-stop/myths

Any future anti-smoking campaigns will address these concerns to ensure that individuals are supported to stop smoking.

Our enterprise and skills agencies provide funding and specialist advice and support for small and medium sized businesses (SMEs) to help them better transition to a low carbon economy, with the majority of services advertised through the Find Business Support website. Tailored support includes advice on the low carbon opportunities available to SMEs in the net zero supply chain.

The Scottish Government has committed over £2 billion of capital funding over the next parliament to deliver low carbon and natural infrastructure. This includes our Green Jobs Fund, which is a five year, £100 million fund offering capital investment to businesses to help them create green employment through investment in improved green products and services and related research and development.

I refer the member to the answer to questions S6W-03671 and S6W-03672 on 17 November 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 .