Chamber and committees

While the Scottish Government has overall responsibility for health and social care policy in Scotland, it is for the regional health & social care partnerships to determine the level of services that are required to meet local needs and to arrange an appropriate and suitable range of services to meet these local needs, as mandated under statute in the Public Bodies (Joint Working) (Scotland) Act.

Local Authorities are distinct corporate bodies whose powers are set out in statute and as such are entirely separate from the Scottish Government, however it is the expectation of the Scottish Government that Local Public Bodies will engage with autistic people and children, including their families where appropriate, in relation to decisions regarding the allocation of funding for autism services.

In addition, the Scottish Government works closely with COSLA and HSCPs in relation to the aims and objectives of our national autism strategies. Those strategies and the delivery of them is shared jointly between the Scottish Government and COSLA. We are currently looking at monitoring and engagement arrangements for the “Towards Transformation” plan involving a range of key stakeholders, including people with learning disabilities and autistic people.

The Scottish Government continues to be committed to improving the lives of autistic people in Scotland. We work closely with autism organisations in the third sector and the public sector and actively seek the views of people with lived experience on autism services. This is reflected in our “Towards Transformation” plan and in specific pieces of nationally funded work, such as the National Post Diagnostic Support pilot for Autistic People.

While the Scottish Government has overall responsibility for health and social care policy in Scotland, it is for the regional health & social care partnerships to determine the level of services that are required to meet local needs and to arrange an appropriate and suitable range of services to meet these local needs, as mandated under statute in the Public Bodies (Joint Working) (Scotland) Act.

Local Authorities are distinct corporate bodies whose powers are set out in statute and as such are entirely separate from the Scottish Government, however it is also the expectation of the Scottish Government that Local Public Bodies will engage with the third sector regarding local autism services.

The Scottish Government recognises the severe impact the Covid-19 pandemic has had on performing arts and venues, with the necessary restrictions meaning that many activities have had to be suspended. The effects of these restrictions on the performing arts sector has been considered in the various Business and Regulatory Impact Assessments (BRIA) in relation to the impact of the pandemic. These BRIAs have been informed by engagement with relevant businesses.

The latest BRIA , agreed by Ministers on 24 June, considered the available evidence and presented reasonable views of likely costs, benefits and impacts of the measures set out in the regulations and guidance. It was recognised that the limitations on performing arts venues are part of an overall system to balance suppression of the virus while minimising wider harm to Scotland’s health and wellbeing, as well as minimising the wider social and economic harms associated with the measures.

The Scottish Government has recently provided an additional £25 million to businesses in the culture sector, via a second round of the Culture Organisations and Venues Recovery Fund and the Performing Arts Venues Relief Fund, to help mitigate the impact of these necessary restrictions.

Independent Licensing Boards are responsible for the day to day administration of the alcohol licensing regime within the legislative framework set out in the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 (“the 2005 Act”). The 2005 Act includes 5 high level licensing objectives, one of which is “protecting and improving public health”, which Boards must have regard to in carrying out their functions under the legislation. The 2005 Act places a duty on Boards to make an assessment of overprovision and include a statement regarding this in their licensing policy statement. Boards are empowered to consider the unique circumstances of their area and decide whether, based on local needs, it is appropriate to restrict access to alcohol through limits on new licences, licences of a particular type, or variations of existing licences. In light of this the Scottish Government has no plans to adopt the “surrender provision” which operates in Northern Ireland.

Transport Scotland has recently attended a meeting with Glasgow City Council on 26 May to discuss the maintenance and financing of the repairs for the Clyde Tunnel. My officials are willing to continue to engage with the Council on this matter in order to aid them in trying to find a solution, however maintenance of the local road network is the responsibility of local authorities.

The vast majority of funding to local authorities from the Scottish Government is provided via a block grant and we do not stipulate how local authorities should utilise their individual allocations. It is therefore the responsibility of each local authority to manage their own budget and to allocate the financial resources available to them on the basis of local needs and priorities, having first fulfilled their statutory obligations and the jointly agreed set of national and local priorities.

Glasgow City Council will receive a total funding package of almost £1.5 billion in 2021-22 to support local services, which includes an extra £29.8 million to support vital day to day services, equivalent to an increase of 2.2 per cent compared to 2020-21.

To date, the council has been allocated an additional £221.7 million to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, through the local government settlement - over and above their regular grant payments.

The Scottish Government has recently announced a suite of measures to continue to support NHS dentistry, including a vital funding package of up to £5M for improved ventilation in dental premises, and an extension of free PPE for the dental sector, which from this month has increased by up to 50%. This builds on the continued phased remobilisation of NHS dental services, ensuring that as many patients can be seen within the current set of infection, protection and control measures required for the safe operation of dental treatment.

NHS dental services are largely provided by independent dental contractors. Information on appointments is held by each individual dental practice.

The removal of all dental charges for NHS dental treatment is a Scottish Government manifesto commitment and more detail will be published in due course. These changes will take place in the lifetime of this parliament and the processes are currently underway.

The Scottish Government takes seriously the responsibility to ensure those going through the criminal justice system with mental health issues are appropriately supported, treated and cared for, while ensuring their rights are being maintained

This is an important report that contains a number of recommendations which are being given careful consideration. The Scottish Government continues to work closely with the Scottish Prison Service and other partners to ensure that frontline staff are properly supported and that the recommendations from the Mental Welfare Commission’s report are being given a collaborative response. Current progress includes the development of a new custodial estate for women in Scotland, scheduled to open in 2022. We have also created over 41 whole time equivalent mental health roles which are located across the prison estate, including the female estate.

Our Mental Health Transition & Recovery Plan published last year made clear our commitment to continue to work with partners to seek better support for those with mental ill health within the criminal justice system. The Plan is further supported with £120m from a Recovery & Renewal Fund and focusses on the specific mental health needs of women and girls to support better outcomes across a range of settings .

Autistic children and young people are supported through local Getting it Right Pathways and processes to have needs identified early and individualised plans in place. Support should be in place before, during or after diagnosis according to need and not diagnosis. All health boards have an autism or neurodevelopmental pathway, with a local plan for ‘post diagnostic support and information’.

The Children and Young People’s Mental Health and Wellbeing Joint Delivery Board has recently agreed the final version of the National Neurodevelopmental Principles and Standards of Care. The Principles and Standards of Care is for those children and young people who have neurodevelopmental profiles and support needs, including those with autism, and require more support than is currently available. The National Neurodevelopmental Principles and Standards will be published shortly.

The Additional Support for Learning Act places duties on education authorities to identify, provide for and review the additional support needs of their pupils, including those with autism. We provide free professional learning opportunities for practitioners, including the Autism Toolbox and Inclusive Practice online professional learning modules.

In addition, we published our Autism Action Plan in December 2020, setting out the actions we will take to improve the support to children and young people with autism in Scotland’s schools. We have made significant progress in implementing these actions and will formally report our progress in December 2021. Our work on supporting young people with Autism in mainstream schools is also supported by our setting/"> guidance on the presumption of mainstream education.

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Over the course of the last Parliamentary session, Scottish Ministers and government officials have engaged with industry representatives on priority issues for their sector, including planning for and supporting the transition to net zero. Additionally, sectoral engagement is regularly undertaken through forums including the Oil and Gas and Energy Transition Strategic Leadership Group, the Construction Industry Training Board and the Climate Emergency Skills Action Plan Implementation Steering Group.

As set out by the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy in July, the Scottish Government is developing a 10 Year National Strategy for Economic Transformation. This strategy will prioritise investment in the industries of the future and deliver new, good and green jobs, therefore, co-production with industry will be key.

In March this year, I attended the first meeting of the Climate Emergency Skills Action Plan Implementation Steering Group and continue to liaise with industry representatives such as The Construction Industry Training Board - most recently in July - on the importance of training and skills as we transition to net zero.

In addition, the former Energy Minister met with key stakeholders regularly to understand the specific challenges and barriers to the sector but also wider energy transition opportunities, with a key forum being the Oil and Gas and Energy Transition Strategic Leadership Group (SLG). The SLG held two focused meetings on workforce retention, skills and training challenges and opportunities and is representative of industry, OPITO, Skills Development Scotland and offshore unions.