Chamber and committees

As we see children return to school after summer I understand how important it is for families to feel involved, especially where children are attending school for the first time. However, as we monitor the impact of important changes to self-isolation policies amongst children and young people, it is also important that we continue to minimise the risks of infection and transmission in the school environment.

Updated guidance, published on 3 August, makes clear that visitors to schools should be agreed in advance and arrangements appropriately risk-assessed. Parents/carers may accompany children onto school premises where this is agreed with the school and strictly necessary to support children and young people, for example where there are concerns about individual children making a successful transition from Early Learning and Childcare to P1. Otherwise, where virtual arrangements for parental engagement are already in place and working well, these should continue to be used.

The updated guidance is available at the following link: https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-on-reducing-the-risks-in-schools/ . These arrangements will be kept under careful review, and are expected to be in place for up to six weeks at the start of the new term.

The following table provides information on gross revenue expenditure in Scotland per primary school pupil.

Table 1: Gross revenue expenditure per primary school pupil across Scottish Local Authorities in 2019-20

Our thoughts and condolences are with the families and loved ones of those who have recently lost their lives in water-related incidents.

Ensuring that every child learns to swim is a priority for both Scottish Swimming and the Scottish Government. The National Learn to Swim Framework, which is supported by Scottish Water and delivered by aquatic partners every week, already helps children to become safe, competent, and confident swimmers and these water safety themed lessons are an essential part of the Framework to help educate on water safety.

Within schools, Curriculum for Excellence’s flexible guidelines allow teachers to decide upon the content of lessons that best meets the local needs and circumstances of all children and young people in attendance. However, we are working with stakeholders consider the greater opportunities for children and young people to engage in community swimming lessons.

The primary responsibility for the prevention and investigation of theft lies with Police Scotland. The Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012 stipulates that the Chief Constable of Police Scotland is responsible for the policing of Scotland, and is accountable to the Scottish Police Authority for this, rather than to Scottish Ministers directly.

The Scottish Government assists Police Scotland by supporting in any legislative requirements they identify as necessary in their efforts to prevent and detect theft. The Microchipping of Dogs (Scotland) Regulations 2016 came into force on 29 January 2016, making it a statutory requirement for all dogs over the age of 8 weeks to be identifiable with an implanted microchip which is registered on a database from which Police and local authority officers can request information on owners.

We recognise the importance of ensuring that support is available to people leaving custody, including those who have served a period on remand, to enable their reintegration. We know that short periods of imprisonment are not effective and don't address the underlying causes of offending and that is why this Government is committed to reducing the use of short sentences and remand.

For those individuals who do serve a period of remand, the Scottish Prison Service have a range of measures in place to support them during their time in custody and on release. This includes an initial induction process which assesses needs including general welfare, mental health and addiction so that support can be put in place for them during their time in custody. This is further supplemented by support for family contact, provision of housing advice (where needed), access to work and wage earning where appropriate and possible and access to social services through prison Links Centres to deal with immediate concerns regarding social issues.

It is recognised that circumstances where individuals are liberated from a period on remand straight from court can be challenging in terms of linking with local services. To support this, SPS have agreed with GEOAmey that they will provide liberation packs to those released at courts (including those who have been held on remand). These information packs are specific to the local area within which the individual is being liberated.

Specifically for women held on remand, the Shine PSP, funded by Scottish Government, provides support in the lead up to their liberation and beyond.

We will continue to work with partners to explore how we can improve support for people leaving remand.

confirmed on 11 June 2021 that all international students in Scotland will be included in the national coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccination programme. Universities and colleges are already encouraging students to get vaccinated as soon as possible so they will be fully vaccinated before arriving on campus. We have also agreed with Health Boards, universities and colleges to appoint single points of contact in universities and colleges who will support the delivery of the vaccination to students, including international students across Scotland, including through the use of on-campus vaccination clinics.

All vaccinations will take place in line with guidelines from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). We have provided information on vaccines for international students on the NHS Inform website and have published an FAQ document on vaccines for international students on the Student Information Scotland website.

Scottish Government support for film production since 2007 has been included in grant-in-aid channelled, and not disaggregated, through Creative Scotland and, prior to the establishment of Creative Scotland in 2011, through one of its predecessor bodies, Scottish Screen. Creative Scotland includes the dedicated screen partnership, Screen Scotland, since it was launched in August 2018. Creative Scotland operates on an arms-length principle whereby Ministers do not intervene in individual funding decisions. Since Scottish Government does not hold the detailed information requested I asked Creative Scotland to provide me with the detail required for me to respond fully.

Screen Scotland currently supports the production in Scotland of films intended for theatrical release through two funds, the Film Development and Production Fund and the Production Growth Fund. Funding awarded via Screen Scotland through these funds comes from both the Scottish Government and National Lottery funding

The Film Development and Production Fund aims to support the production of distinctive and high-quality feature films that promote Scotland’s culture, creativity and diversity, and that have the potential to engage and entertain audiences in Scotland, the UK and internationally”. It offers development and production funding for feature length films and documentaries being made by filmmakers based in Scotland. Its 2021/22 budget is £4 million.

The Production Growth Fund aims to help grow Scotland’s screen production sector, creating employment opportunities for Scottish crews, encouraging the use of production facilities, providing significant opportunities for the professional development of producers and freelance crew based in Scotland and delivering a direct and significant economic benefit to Scotland. It seeks to do this by attracting large scale productions into the country, and maximising spend in Scotland. Its 2021/22 budget is £2 million.

As almost all films produced in the UK are produced via a “special project vehicle” or SPV, a company formed in the UK as the legal entity responsible for the film’s production, including the making of applications to Screen Scotland, the most efficient way to distinguish between domestic UK productions and those made for international production companies in Scotland is to look at the two distinct funding routes.

The Production Growth Fund awards funding to high-end TV productions as well as film production companies. The fund has been running since 2015 and £9.9 million in total has been awarded, which is estimated to have generated an economic benefit to Scotland of more than £140 million. Of the total awarded, £5.8 million has been to film production companies with an estimated economic benefit to Scotland in excess of £75 million.

Since 2012, the Film Development and Production Fund, together with its precursors operated by Creative Scotland, has awarded £37 million in aggregate towards the development and production of feature films (including feature length documentaries) by production companies and filmmakers based in Scotland. Before 2012, the systems used were those of Creative Scotland's predecessor bodies Scottish Screen and the Scottish Arts Council and data regarding the origin of applicants is not currently available. However, £19.4 million was awarded via equivalent production and content funding routes between 2007 and 2011.

Screen Scotland’s Screen Commission also offers specialist support to a wider range of international productions than those that secure funding, for instance with recce funding, which helps projects understand the quality and range of locations, infrastructure and crew available in Scotland.

The draft Heat in Buildings Strategy sets out that the Scottish Government will legislate to require the installation of zero emissions heating systems in existing buildings, subject to the Scottish Parliament having devolved competence to do so.

The draft Strategy proposes that such legislation would begin to take effect from 2025, with the intention that all building owners are regulated to meet the requirement for zero emissions heating by 2045.

The exact phasing and operation of the proposed regulations is still to be determined, but as set out in the draft Strategy, and where within competence , could include requiring certain buildings to install zero emissions heating systems earlier than 2045. This may include those buildings using high emissions fuels (which are more prevalent in off-gas grid areas), or those buildings which reach a natural trigger point (such as the replacement of an existing fossil fuel heating system).

The Scottish Government plans to consult on detailed proposals on this issue in 2022.

Statistics on the number of patients waiting for reconstructive surgery following treatment for breast cancer are not held centrally by Public Health Scotland (PHS). In the case of patients waiting for inpatient or day case treatment the national Waiting Time data collection is designed to identify the procedure that the patient is waiting for. However, not all Boards submit this information consistently and so it is incomplete. In addition, no information is collected on the diagnoses or conditions that relate to the planned procedure.

Statistics relating to the waits patients experience for inpatient or day case admissions, at specialty level are published up to 31 March 2021 using the link below.

https://publichealthscotland.scot/media/8036/ipdc_may21.xlsx

As a general principle, home owners are responsible for work to their own homes to ensure they meet housing standards. However, recognising that some home owners - particularly older and disabled owners on low incomes - may face difficulty in meeting the new standard, we are considering what additional support is required and we will announce our next steps in due course.