Chamber and committees

Couples can attend together for all NHS IVF appointments, subject to local risk assessments and physical distancing requirements, which provide the best protection for patients and staff and ensure that services continue to be provided as the Covid-19 pandemic continues.

The British and Irish Lions rugby match was a flagship event approved by the Scottish Government through an events gateway process. Flagship events are internationally significant events which maintain Scotland’s longer-term profile as a host of major events, with an eye to recovery from the pandemic, and with appropriate Covid-19 mitigations in place.

Decisions about the sale of alcohol was a matter for the Local Authority and was discussed at the City of Edinburgh Council Event Planning & Operations Group Meetings which had Police Scotland in attendance.

We are grateful that the majority of supporters followed the mitigation measures put in place around physical distancing which included extensive messaging around Covid protocols in advance of the match and on the day itself. This included signage (and hand hygiene) at all bars, public address announcements and an additional 150 stewards employed to manage this, however, we are aware that a small number of fans did not always comply. For those reasons, Scottish Rugby took the decision to close the bars earlier than scheduled to avoid a half-time surge. The safety of spectators and employees is, and will always remain, paramount.

The Scottish Government and event organisers will use the knowledge learnt from this to support the wider restart of events across Scotland.

The Scottish Government has established a comprehensive network of testing sites across the country enabling everyone in Scotland to access testing as required. This network includes Regional Testing Sites, Local Testing Sites, Mobile Testing Units, and small-scale test sites operated by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service. Individuals are also able to access both PCR and Lateral Flow Tests at home, although all positive LFDs should be followed by a confirmatory PCR test. We have also established a programme of asymptomatic testing which includes regular testing for health and social care staff and community test sites where local individuals are invited for testing regardless of symptoms.

PCR samples are either processed through NHS Scotland labs, which includes the Regional Hub laboratories, or the UK National Testing Programme Laboratory Network, for which we receive a population based share. We work closely with the UK Government to ensure that the necessary capacity is in place across the laboratory network and that turnaround times are protected.

There have been no discussions with the Scottish Government in regard to homeless people in Scotland being provided with e-cigarette starter packs for a research project led by London South Bank University and UCL.

We maintain an open, yet precautionary, approach to the use of electronic cigarettes and we are aware that many smokers use e-cigarettes to reduce their tobacco intake or to quit altogether. The consensus in Scotland based on current evidence, is e-cigarettes are definitely less harmful than smoking tobacco. However, we recognise that more research is needed to understand the risks and the benefits of e-cigarettes in the long-term.

A joint Scottish statement encourages current smokers to switch to e-cigarettes, health professionals not to dissuade individuals from using them and to discourage children and non-smokers from trying e-cigarettes.

In the Ending Homelessness Together action plan, we have committed to closer working between homelessness and health services, but this is a general commitment rather than specific to tobacco.

The Scottish Government is working to support a whole system change in delivering good family support, support that is flexible and sustained for as long as it is needed, and driven by the needs and voice of families. This will include supporting families with bereavement.

Since 2016 the Scottish Government has funded Cruse Scotland and Child Bereavement UK through the Children, Young People and Families Early Intervention & Adult Learning and Empowering Communities Fund to provide support to individuals and families who have been bereaved.

Additionally, the National Family Support Directory can be accessed by families for information on bereavement help and support.

In March 2020 we awarded a contract to Includem to deliver a childhood bereavement coordinator for two years. This post has strategic oversight of childhood bereavement support services in Scotland and acts as a national champion, aiming to work with partners to develop an action plan and vision for support for those children and young people who have experienced bereavement.

The Scottish Government also fund and support the National Bereavement Care Pathways (NBCP) for 5 types of pregnancy and baby loss, led by SANDS UK, which are currently being piloted in 4 early adopter health boards. The NBCP Core Group will meet later this year to discuss timings for the next wave of boards joining. In addition to this psychological support for families using maternity and neonatal services is being implemented across Scotland as part of a wider £50 million investment in perinatal and infant mental health.

We continue to work with NHS Education for Scotland who support the education and training needs of those who work with the bereaved in Scotland.

The following table shows the number of cases submitted for annual invasive cervical cancer audits in the years from 2014 until 2018, which are the years where full data is available. For the year 2019 five health boards have provided data and 129 cases were reported; in 2020, one health board submitted 16 cases. The audit schedule for the 2019 period was affected by the impact of the Covid-19 pandemic on services as staff were redeployed to Covid duties. A catch-up schedule has been put in place to audit 2019 cases at the same time as 2020 cases and these will be reviewed this year. It is important to note that the cases are assembled annually and reviewed by a multidisciplinary team within each Health Board.

We have provided additional funding to NHS Boards where required to support prioritised care for individuals affected by the incident within the cervical screening programme.

Four Boards have requested funding to provide additional clinics as follows:

• Lanarkshire - £28,000
• Lothian - £8,098
• GGC - £5,000
• Fife: £2,700

No other Boards have requested funding, but we will keep the situation under review and will provide further funding if needed. Additionally, Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust, who are helping support the response with their Helpline, have also received funding from the Scottish Government.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information centrally. Information on how many NHS dental consultations were emergencies is held with the individual dentist. However, the overall number of NHS dental consultations can be found on Public Health Scotland at: https://publichealthscotland.scot/publications/dental-statistics-fees-and-treatments/dental-statistics-fees-and-treatments-statistics-as-at-march-2020/ .

In the first six months of this parliament we will deliver a new 10 year National Strategy for Economic Transformation, setting out the steps we will take to deliver a green economic recovery and support new, good, green jobs, businesses and industries for the future.

We are making investments in key net zero markets including buildings, energy and transport, that will drive demand for good green jobs and increasingly aligning our skills policy, including through the Climate Emergency Skills Action Plan published in December, to support reskilling and retraining to access green jobs now and in the future.

For example we are investing in the transition of our energy sector, including £62m through the Energy Transition Fund to provide a package that will support our energy sector to transition and grow, supporting jobs and regional growth. We are also investing £180m in the Emerging Energy Technology Fund to support innovation in key energy technologies like Carbon Capture Utilisation and Storage and Hydrogen. We are also working with industry to explore the opportunities and challenges for marine energy and to build on the sector’s achievements to date, which have been made possible by the Scottish Government’s substantial level of investment in wave and tidal energy.

We have also published and consulted on a draft Heat in Buildings Strategy which includes a £1.6bn investment over the lifetime of this Parliament to kickstart the transition of Scotland’s buildings towards net-zero. This is a transition which will support jobs and economic opportunity. Overall, we estimate that as investment ramps up towards the late 2020s, as many as 24,000 jobs could be supported each year in Scotland by the roll out of zero emissions heat

Looking forward, the Scottish Government intends to publish a draft refresh of the 2017 Scottish Energy Strategy in Spring 2022, outlining a coordinated vision for Scotland’s energy system including renewables as we move towards net zero by supporting the delivery of a just transition and a green economic recovery from Covid-19.

We do not hold the data centrally to accurately report the proportion of plastics collected for recycling that are recycled.

Data on the materials processed at Materials Recovery Facilities, from sampling undertaken by SEPA, is available here: Recyclate quality | Scotland's environment web

We are continuing to work with local authorities to support high quality recycling, and taking steps to improve the quality of waste data. We are working with the UK Government, other devolved governments, and agencies such as SEPA, to develop and implement an electronic waste tracking system.