Chamber and committees

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-24682 on 29 January 2024. 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

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-24682 on 29 January 2024 . 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 awarded £11,698 to MND Scotland in July 2019. The funding was to support the core staffing, volunteer and training costs of MND Scotland staff operating the charity’s Scottish Communication Aid Loan Service. The funding aimed to support the provision of timely access throughout Scotland for people with MND who require specialised Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) services.

The Scottish Government’s Chief Scientist Office provided a total of £83,495 to MND Scotland towards co-funding a three-year Clinical Academic Fellowship undertaken between 2019-20 and 2021-22 at the University of Edinburgh. The following sums were paid:

At the start of 2023 the Scottish Government (SG) completed a package of signage works at Victoria Quay, this work included tactile floor maps, accessible wayfinding signs and meeting room door signs which all incorporated braille. Victoria Quay was selected for this work on the basis of its high usage for public events and driven by the recommendations as set out by British standard BS8300-2 : 2018 Design of an accessible and inclusive built environment. Our aim is to roll out further braille signage where it is required as part of future refurbishment works within the SG core estate.

As set out in my response to the question S6W-22545, the contents of the report are now being considered by Transport Scotland. The report will be published once that process has been completed.

Our block grant funding for this Budget is derived from the UK Government's spending decisions and has fallen by 1.2% in real terms since 2022-23 – a real terms drop of £0.5 billion. The reality is that the amount Scotland has available to spend is still largely driven by the block grant set by successive UK Governments whose constraint of public expenditure prolongs the austerity felt by public services. The Scottish Government has had to prioritise and align Justice portfolio budget decisions with the Vision for Justice. While there is significant pressure across all Scottish Government budgets in 2024/25, officials are continuing to engage portfolios across government to try and identify budgets whose objectives may be more clearly aligned to the Mark Scott Awards. We will provide an update to the Outward Bound Trust about the Mark Scott Awards when this process is complete.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-24402 on‎ 19 January 2024. 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 NorthTick project is part of the 'Interreg IV' programme, in which future participation is a reserved matter for the UK Government.

Our vision is that all disabled people can travel with the same freedom, choice, dignity and opportunity as other citizens.

Whilst staffing levels are an operational matter for ScotRail, the importance of staff being deployed appropriately in stations and on trains to enhance the passengers’ experience, including accessibility, is clear.

We are dedicated to tackling inequalities in maternity experience and outcomes. That is why we asked NHS Boards to prioritise the roll-out of continuity of carer in maternity care, that underpins The Best Start programme leading to improved outcomes, for women from Black and minority ethnic backgrounds, as well as for women experiencing multiple social complexity.

In January 2023, we launched a programme of work with a focus on racialised inequalities in maternity, informed by data and evidence from reports, including MBRRACE-UK (Mothers and Babies: Reducing Risk through Audits and Confidential Enquiries across the UK) confidential enquiries, audit reports, and third sector reports on the lived experiences of service users. We have established a short-life working group, bringing together third sector organisations, healthcare professionals, professional bodies and national networks to identify and take evidence-based actions addressing inequalities, with the voice of those with lived experience at the centre.