Chamber and committees

A wide range of academic evidence is referenced in the consultation paper, available at: https://consult.gov.scot/alcohol-policy/alcohol-advertising-and-promotion/ .

The consultation set out that alcohol advertising and promotion is seen by, and appealing to, large volumes of children and young people in Scotland. International evidence shows that seeing alcohol marketing is associated with an increased likelihood that children and young people will start to drink alcohol or, if they already drink alcohol, drink more. This is harmful to them in both the short and long term.

The consultation cites evidence that those who drink heavily have increased susceptibility to alcohol marketing and that this can translate into drinking behaviours. For those in recovery, alcohol marketing can be a trigger which threatens their recovery and can be responsible for relapse.

Although there is limited research on the impact alcohol marketing has on adults in the general population, it is likely that alcohol marketing also makes alcohol more attractive to adults generally and influences consumption.

In addition to the academic evidence cited, young people in Scotland, as well as people in recovery and their families, have told us directly that they see a lot of alcohol marketing and want us to take action to tackle this.

Scottish Water has completed some works to the front facia elevation of the building and the dome structure as well as some minor roof repairs and replacement of downpipe and guttering. There have also been repairs made to replace vandalised windows. Scottish Water is now progressing work to replace the railings in line with the pumping station’s listed status and this is planned for early 2023 once the required traffic management on Argyle Street/Dumbarton Road is agreed with Glasgow City Council Roads Department.

In addition to this, Scottish Water is in the early design stages for improvements to the roof. This work is likely to be carried out towards the middle to end of 2024 following listed building consent being secured from the relevant authorities. Scottish Water is also planning some maintenance work on equipment integral to the operation and effective running of the pumping station.

Details of the grant allocations and outturns for each council as part of our Area Based Schemes programme since 2013 are published on the Scottish Government website:

Area-based schemes - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

Information about the previous Home Insulation Scheme (HIS) and the Universal Home Insulation Scheme (UHIS) from 2008 to 2013 is available from the Energy Saving Trust website.

Home+Energy+Programmes+Summary+Report+20092013.pdf (energysavingtrust.org.uk)

VoiceAbility has received a total of 673 referrals, leading to 463 people receiving the appropriate advocacy support when accessing and applying for Social Security Scotland benefits. Of those 673 referrals, 23 were directly referred by Social Security Scotland. This figure does not include support provided as a result of indirect referrals or signposting from Social Security Scotland, which cannot be quantified.

The advocacy service is independent from Scottish Government and Social Security Scotland. As such, VoiceAbility offer a number of direct referral routes including self-referral, being referred by a friend or family member or being referred by other support organisations.

The Scottish Government welcomes the UK Supreme Court’s judgment. We are carefully considering the judgment in the Scottish context and remain committed to supporting Gillian Mackay MSP with the development of her member’s bill to safeguard access for women in Scotland to healthcare facilities that provide abortion services, without fear, harassment or intimidation.

Client Advisors from Social Security Scotland are able to directly refer clients to the Independent Advocacy Service via a dedicated secure referral portal. Following referral, VoiceAbility are required to make contact with the client within five working days - in line with the contract.

Scottish Government is a key partner in the Save a Life for Scotland partnership which is delivering the Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest: Strategy 2021 to 2026 .

The strategy includes an aim of increasing the percentage of Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest (OHCA) which have a defibrillator applied before the ambulance service arrive from 8% to 20%. Our focus is to ensure that defibrillators are publicly accessible, registered and to take a data driven approach to supporting their placement in areas where they are most likely to be used.

Scotland’s Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Report 2019-2022 underpins the data driven approach. This shows minor differences in availability or usage of public access defibrillators (PAD) between SIMD quintiles.

However, it remains the case that there are inequalities in OHCA outcomes for people living in more deprived areas. That is why the OHCA strategy includes an aim of targeting work to address known inequalities across the delivery of all actions.

The Scottish Government continues to work closely with COSLA to find a way forward on the introduction of a Scottish Recommended Allowance for foster and kinship carers.

Official Statistics on Scottish Child Payment are published every quarter. The last publication was on 29 November 2022 and provided information on processing times up to 30 September 2022: Scottish Child Payment: high level statistics to 30 September 2022 - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) . The next release of Official Statistics, covering the period to the end of December 2022, is due to be published on 28 February 2023.

Social Security Scotland received a high volume of applications for Scottish Child Payment when it extended to under 16 year olds on 14 November. Initial management information indicates that from Monday 14 November 2022 to Sunday 11 December 2022, the total number of applications received was 123,000.

Social Security Scotland are working hard to process payments as quickly as possible and tens of thousands of eligible of clients will receive their payment before Christmas. The remaining eligible clients will receive payment in early 2023 and have been contacted to make them aware of this so they are able to plan accordingly.

If eligible, all payments will be calculated from the day that the client applied or submitted a change of circumstances to add an extra child, so nobody should lose out financially.

The phasing of the PDR review programme is kept under review to ensure that it reflects – and helps to promote – wider Scottish Government objectives. The stakeholder update which I issued with the Chief Planner in October 2022 confirmed that, in light of the current cost and climate crises, Phase 3 of the review will focus on PDR for domestic and non-domestic renewable energy equipment – and that a consultation will be published early in 2023.