Chamber and committees

Family or household members living with someone on the shielding list were not advised not to go into work during the first lockdown. The Chief Medical Officer’s letter of 26 March 2020 did ask people to minimise time spent with others in their household and to keep 2 metres apart where possible.

Scottish Government advice remains that everyone should work from home if they possibly can.Stay at home regulations came into effect on 5 January 2021 which placed a duty on employers to take all reasonable steps to minimise the spread of coronavirus. This included supporting staff to work from home for those roles that can be undertaken remotely. If staff were working from home during the first lockdown in March 2020 they should be working from home now.

New Coronavirus (COVID-19): guidance on working from home was published on‎ 19 January 2021. This guidance is intended to support employers and the self-employed to continue to facilitate working from home in line with the stay at home regulations. This guidance can be applied across any sector or role where working from home is possible. Organisations should make every reasonable effort to make working from home the default position. Where a worker can perform their work from home, they should continue to do so.

As set out in this guidance, all employers and employees should discuss their working arrangements, and employers should take every possible step to facilitate their employees working from home, including providing suitable IT and equipment to enable remote working.

Family members from the same household should also work from home where possible. However, if this is not possible, they can still go into the workplace. It is the employers responsibility to make sure the workplace and duties are Covid-safe. We advise that household members should discuss their concerns with their employer (especially if this is causing anxiety), explaining that they live with a family member who has health concerns and is on the shielding list.

We are asking people to stringently follow and observe the FACTS guidance for a safer Scotland in order to reduce transmission of Covid-19.

Some employers may offer additional financial support for employees who are off work for caring or coronavirus-related reasons.

Employers can also, at their discretion, furlough people through the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme which has now been extended until April 2021. They may also be able to furlough people in the event that they have caring responsibilities resulting from covid-19.

In the absence of employment powers, we strongly encourage all employers to apply Fair Work principles, and a flexible approach to dealing with the impacts of COVID-19 on workers and workplaces, to protect the health and wellbeing of their workforce.

Structural Funds have been key to Scotland’s economic development over the past 40 years, investing more than £5.6 billion into a wide range of projects. As the United Kingdom crashes out of the EU at the end of next month so Scotland will no longer have access to such funds.

Since the UK Government announced its intention to establish a UK Shared Prosperity Fund (UKSPF) to replace these funds in 2018, it has failed to engage meaningfully with the devolved nations, providing no detail on how such a fund might work, how much funding will be available and what it will fund in future. Scottish Ministers and officials continue to try to engage with the UK Government to secure the information needed to plan for the future. However, the Scottish Government has also sought to develop a position on future funding priorities to ensure Scotland’s distinctive needs and priorities are met.

Today the Scottish Government is publishing its proposals for a Scottish Shared Prosperity Fund. They can be found at https://www.gov.scot/isbn/9781800043312 .

This paper has been produced following 12 months of extensive consultation with stakeholders around Scotland and with the support of an expert Steering Group, co-chaired by Professor David Bell of University of Stirling and Professor John Bachtler of University of Strathclyde. I want to thank Professors Bell and Bachtler and all the members of the Steering Group wholeheartedly for giving so generously of their time and expertise. Their work has significantly informed the development of these proposals.

The Scottish Shared Prosperity Fund will aim to address and reduce economic and social disparity within and between places and people in Scotland through a partnership approach, It will focus on four key areas of investment – empowering places, reducing poverty, enhancing wellbeing, and increasing skills, growing business and jobs. These will be underpinned by two horizontal themes – wellbeing and climate change - which will be integrated in all activity delivered through the fund, thus ensuring this funding works to help achieve inclusive growth and meet the commitments to address climate change and achieve net zero emissions.

Work is now underway to develop policy around the practicalities of operating the Fund and Scottish Ministers will keep Parliament updated of progress. Scotland’s stakeholders will play a central role in the approach that we propose to take and its wider development. Local Authorities, our enterprise agencies and community groups will be integral to our plans and we will build on their expertise when we roll out this programme.

Scottish Ministers and officials will continue to press the UK Government for full replacement of all lost EU structural funds. The UK Government may announce details of the UKSPF as part of the forthcoming Comprehensive Spending Review. It is essential that Scotland doesn’t lose out financially going forward and must receive at least £1.283 billion for a replacement 7 year programme for 2021 – 2027 to replace the EU Structural Funds, the European Territorial Cooperation and LEADER Programmes; equivalent to £183 million each year. The Scottish Government will also expect full control over replacement funding being given to Scotland. Ongoing attempts by the UK Government to undermine the devolution settlement in relation to powers and funding in this area will continue to be resisted vigorously.

A Clinical and Scientific review of the Scottish Governments COVID-19 Testing Strategy published on 23 October 2020 has been carried out in light of the latest evidence of the state of the epidemic in Scotland and understanding of testing capacity and demand forecasts in the next three months.

The consensus clinical view of the prioritisation of capacity, over and above that required to meet symptomatic demand, clinical care requirements and existing commitments, is that the focus in any extension of routine regular asymptomatic testing should be on protecting those most vulnerable to severe harm. Further details on the review can be found here: https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-review-of-testing-strategy-october-2020/ .

As set out in our Strategic Framework for the pandemic, also published on 23 October 2020, as testing capacity builds over the next three months, this will include considering how best to extend routine testing to staff who provide care at home for those most vulnerable to harm. Further details on the Framework can be found here: https://www.gov.scot/publications/covid-19-scotlands-strategic-framework/ .

We recognise that routine testing of people who do not have symptoms has an important role to play in protecting the vulnerable and preventing outbreaks in high risk settings. It must however be seen alongside a strong emphasis on symptomatic social care staff immediately self-isolating and arranging testing, use of appropriate PPE, physical distancing, environmental optimisation and decontamination and good social hygiene.

Transport Scotland liaises closely with Midlothian Council on a daily basis to discuss and mitigate any concerns highlighted as a result of the landslide or local impacts around the affected area. Public transport operates in a deregulated market where individual bus operators use their commercial judgement to decide provision of services. Additionally, local authorities have a duty to subsidise services that they deem to be socially necessary and that would otherwise not be provided commercially. Notwithstanding this, Transport Scotland will continue to support the local authority to mitigate the impact of affected public transport and liaise with transport operators as required.