The Public Health Scotland final MUP evaluation report (published 27 June 2023) concluded that the evidence on the impact of the post MUP changes in price and sales on revenues of retailers and producers is mixed. The section on “The alcoholic drinks industry in Scotland” in the report by Scottish Ministers on the operation and effect of minimum unit pricing of alcohol (published on 20 September 2023) sets out the impact that minimum unit pricing (MUP) has had on retailers of alcoholic drinks (including large retailers), producers and wholesalers. The report by Scottish Ministers states:

“According to the final evaluation report:

Quantitative analysis of sales data shows an overall increase in the monetary value of off-trade alcohol sales, with increases in sale price compensating for declines in sale volumes for retailers, while the effect on producers’ revenues was negative, but was considered by some, but not all, interviewees to be small. While no participants in the qualitative interviews reported any changes in employment or facilities owing to MUP some reported that individual retailers had been affected adversely, with at least some of the variation likely to be due to the extent to which the products made/sold were affected by MUP. Large retailers did not report any change in revenue or profits due to MUP, but convenience stores were more likely to have noted a decrease in revenue and profits, particularly if they previously relied on high-strength, low-cost alcohol products. There was limited evidence that any potential increase in revenue for retailers had been passed on to producers. While the sales data show an overall increase in revenue from alcohol, it was not possible to determine the impact on profit. Analysis of quantitative data finds little evidence of MUP having material impacts on five key metrics of business performance [the number of enterprises and business units; employment; turnover; gross value added (GVA); and output value] on any of the main sectors of the industry in Scotland. (PHS 2023: 56)”

The report by Scottish Ministers on the operation and effect of minimum unit pricing of alcohol during its first five years was laid before the Scottish Parliament on 20 September 2023 and is available at Alcohol (Minimum Pricing) (Scotland) Act 2012 - operation and effect 2018 to 2023: report - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) .

Since its launch in 2008, the Dormant Assets Scheme has released £892 million, around £75 million of which has been received in Scotland.

This money is distributed by the National Lottery Community Fund through their Young Start programme which provides funding to create opportunities for children and young people aged between 8 and 24, aimed at helping to realise their potential.

Following review and consultation by the UK Government, the Dormant Assets Act 2022 provides for the expansion of the scheme from bank and building society accounts to include additional assets across the insurance, pensions, investment, wealth management and securities sectors.

It is expected that this will lead to an increase in the funding that Scotland receives from the scheme although the extent and timing of this are still unknown.

Scottish Government officials are engaging regularly with counterparts in the UK Government and the National Lottery Community Fund on and the implications of the scheme’s expansion on the distribution of associated assets in Scotland. Further update will be provided when available.

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

This information is not held centrally. NHS Boards and Health and Social Care Partnerships are the experts on their communities and are responsible for providing sexual health services that meet local needs. This can sometimes include changing clinic operating times to best match capacity with demand.

The Scottish Government aims to publish our new palliative and end of life care strategy for consultation in spring 2024.

The Scottish Government is committed to improving the quality, frequency and usage of a number of datasets, including emergency presentation data, across cancer types.

Blood cancers often present in different ways. A wide range of data on blood cancers are regularly published by Public Health Scotland, including Incidence, Quality Performance Indicators (QPIs), Mortality, and Survival. We will continue to work with key partners to identify any gaps in understanding and inequity in data availability, to drive improvements.

For example, we expect to review cancer types measured and reported on with regards to time to first treatment as part of the clinical review of Cancer Waiting Time standards ahead of 2026.

Due to the scope and timeframe of the question, the information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost as this data is not available from a single source. However, the Scottish Government has responded to FOI requests seeking information in relation to working groups in September 2021 and September 2023 which may be helpful. Links to those FOI responses can be found below:

Various questions relating to Scottish Government working groups: FOI release - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

Breakdown of Scottish Government groups: FOI release - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) ”

Scottish Ministers are advised by Food Standards Scotland (FSS) on matters of food safety, standards and labelling. FSS met with Sight Scotland, Disability Equality Scotland and the Oban and District Access Panel on 1 March 2023 to discuss braille labelling on foods. FSS have also discussed this issue with policy officials in the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) and the Food Standards Agency (FSA) in Wales and Northern Ireland, lead departments for food labelling in the rest of the UK, as development of any policy proposals would need to be considered on a four-nation basis under the UK Food Compositional Standards and Labelling Common Framework. The Scottish Government is aware this issue is being considered by the Scottish Parliament Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee, details of which can be found here: PE1997: Introduce mandatory braille labelling for food products sold in Scotland.

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.