Chamber and committees

At present, no assessment has been made of the effectiveness of NHS weight management services in preventing and reversing type 2 diabetes. However, it is encouraging that increases in referrals to weight management services has been reported in the latest statistics.

Prior to 2019, there was a lack of standardised information collected by NHS Boards to enable tracking of provision of weight management services. Approved by the Scottish Type 2 Diabetes Prevention Framework Oversight Group, a core dataset was developed in collaboration with Scottish Government, Public Health Scotland (PHS) and NHS Boards. The core dataset ensures consistency and comparability in the data being collected.

Data on referrals to weight management and type 2 diabetes prevention services was first published by PHS in May 2021 and the latest data was published March 2024 . The publication is currently classed as Official Statistics in development. The core dataset and reporting provides health boards with insight and direction as to future planning of type 2 diabetes prevention and weight management services.

We will continue to improve data collection and monitoring to assess the impact of NHS weight management services in Scotland.

I can confirm that NHS Boards have received financial and policy support to implement the Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act 2019. This support has been ongoing since the Bill was enacted. Each NHS Board has been provided with funding for Workforce Leads (proportionate to the size of the Board) to support preparations for the commencement of the Act. This funding has been extended for an additional year to cover the financial year 2024-2025.

In addition to this, the Scottish Government has produced statutory guidance, in collaboration with Health Boards and other key stakeholders, which has offered clarity and better understanding of each duty within the Act. The Scottish Government has engaged extensively with Health Boards over the past two years through in-person and online events and quarterly reporting.

Healthcare Improvement Scotland has been commissioned by the Scottish Government to support NHS Boards, and its Healthcare Staffing Programme has provided support, including an advisor who works closely with each Board and hosting a network of meetings where Board representatives can come together and share learning.

NHS Lanarkshire is responsible for the delivery of primary care services in Lanarkshire.

The headcount of GPs in Scotland is now sitting consistently at over 5,000, with an increase of 271 additional GPs since 2017 towards our 800 target. Training new GPs is key to our approach, and this takes time. We have expanded GP Specialty Training, adding 35 places this academic year and a further 35 places next year. As a result there are currently just over 1,200 trainee GPs in Scotland.

GP training programmes in Scotland have been filling at a very high level since 2019, with 99% posts filled in 2022 and 100% filled in 2023. 2023 is the first year in which GPST has filled at 100% in Scotland, with all 343 posts having filled.

We also invest over £1m per annum in a range of recruitment and retention initiatives so that becoming a GP remains an attractive career choice.

The most recent Scottish Health Service cost book data published by Public Health Scotland for 2022-23 show that NHS Board spend on Mental Health is over £1.3bn and we expect this will continue in future years.The source of this funding is mainly from NHS Health Boards’ baseline budgets which are provided on an annual basis. Boards are responsible for determining how they utilise that funding to meet the needs and priorities of their local population.

Since the New Deal for Business Group published its implementation plan in October 2023, there have been a number of achievements, including re-instating the establishment of the Regulatory Review Group (RRG). The RRG is now beginning to deliver strong engagement across a range of policies, from Circular Economy and Heat in Buildings to public health policy, including Minimum Unit Pricing, and vaping. A flexible work plan has been created and the RRG have been meeting regularly since October 2023.

On 14 March 2024 I co-chaired the first quarterly meeting of the New Deal for Business Group in its revised role of governance and delivery assurance. The New Deal is a project which will take time and the Group continues to oversee ongoing delivery of outcomes that drive an economy that is fair, green and growing.

The Scottish Government continues to decarbonise faster than the UK average and is absolutely committed to reaching net zero by 2045 – five years ahead of the UK. The Scottish Government has no intention of delaying our net zero target date of 2045, in recognition that tackling climate change is the fight of our lifetime and must be addressed at the earliest possible date.

The Scottish Government acknowledges this report which serves as a clear message that trans young people in Scotland are experiencing difficult and tangible challenges in their day to day lives.

Trans people continue to suffer poorer outcomes relative to the wider population, and this needs to change.

The Scottish Government are providing funding of over £1.1 million to LGBTQI+ organisations in 2024-25 to enable them to take forward a range of activities to advance equality and tackle discrimination.

We are taking forward our commitment to introduce legislation to end conversion practices in Scotland and responses to the public consultation, which closed on the 2 April, will be analysed and considered to inform the Bill the Scottish Government will introduce into Parliament. We have also funded a dedicated conversion practices helpline and are continuing to develop non-legislative measures to support victims and survivors of conversion practices.

We have published a Non-Binary Equality Action Plan to improve equality and wellbeing for non-binary people, established and funded organisations dedicated to stopping LGBTI-related bullying and discrimination, and published a new Hate Crime Strategy for Scotland, which sets out a vision for a Scotland that lives free from hatred and prejudice and where our communities are empowered, inclusive and safe.

It is essential that we continue to listen to people with lived experience and continue to strive for equality and inclusion to improve the lives of LGBTQI+ people in Scotland.

The NHS Scotland National Access Policy provides that whilst the vast majority of patients are seen within their local area, services may also be delivered through another Health Board or suitable alternative provider.

We have commissioned NHS National Services Scotland to establish a National Strategic Network for long COVID. This brings together representatives from Health Boards across NHS Scotland to provide a forum for the exchange of learning and best practice in delivering support and services for people with long COVID.

Our Emerging Energy Technologies Fund supports the development of CCUS and negative-emissions technologies and has been offered to support the Scottish Cluster Carbon Capture Project accelerate its effort to help Scotland’s just transition to net zero. We remain committed to supporting this development.

Due to UK Government still not confirming the award of the Acorn Project and also which emitter sites will form the Scottish Cluster, it has not yet been possible to deploy this funding support. Only when we, the Acorn Project and the Scottish Cluster are provided with a final decision will it be possible to assess how we can utilise this funding to best support the deployment of CCUS.

The Scottish Government does not hold the full level of information requested.

Each FIF partner was distinct in terms of their delivery and approach, which was often demand-driven through referral partner networks. We agreed an approach to monitoring and evaluation of support provided by delivery partners which sought to avoid excessive demands for data gathering and reporting, yet provides a level of robust quantitative and qualitative data, which ensured the FIF could be distributed to those most in need.

The Scottish Federation of Housing Associations (SFHA) support included funding for Registered Social Landlords and cooperatives, covering distribution across the 32 local authorities as set out in the following table: