Chamber and committees

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-14754 on 27 February 2018. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx .

Third sector organisations who represent patient views were involved in shaping the design of the funding programme. The assessment panel also included representatives from the NHS and third sector.

Carer’s Allowance is a taxable benefit and therefore Carer’s Allowance Supplement will be taxable, as the legal definition of income for tax purposes remains reserved to the UK Government. The Scottish Government does not have the power to change this as set out in the Fiscal Framework, which states at section 89: Any new benefits or discretionary payments introduced by the Scottish Government will not be deemed to be income for tax purposes, unless topping up a benefit which is deemed taxable such as Carer’s Allowance. Any changes to reserved taxation legislation require to be made by the UK Government.

Post Mortem examination is a necessary step in the investigation of suspicious deaths. In law, the Defence have a right to instruct a defence post mortem examination to properly test the evidence against an accused person. Failure to recognise this right would potentially jeopardise any subsequent criminal proceedings against an accused person in relation to the death.

In consultation with the Law Society of Scotland, the Faculty of Advocates, and Forensic Pathologists, the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service is reviewing post mortem examination protocols to enable more effective consultation between pathologists instructed by the Crown and Defence. Effective consultation would support an informed defence decision as to whether a second physical post mortem examination was required and may reduce not only the number of required defence examinations but also delays in the return of deceased persons to their families, reflecting the views of families.

The liquidation of Carillion has been a massive blow to the UK construction industry. The work on the contract will continue through the 2 remaining construction partners, namely Balfour Beatty and Galliford Try. However, we are continuing to work closely with Aberdeen Roads Limited to identify and assess any impacts on delivery following Carillion’s announcement.

The intention remains to open the project roads in the coming months. This is in line with the initial timescale announced by Ministers in 2012. Notwithstanding the Carillion announcement, this target remains challenging and will depend upon many factors including favourable weather.

We continue to work closely with the official receiver and their special managers PWC to obtain accurate numbers of jobs supported by Carillion in Scotland.

Carillion’s corporate structure and systems are making it difficult for the Official Receiver to determine a definitive number of Scottish employees.

Nonetheless, we are working with UK government to press the Official Receiver and their Special Managers PWC to gain clarity as soon as possible on the total number of jobs that might be affected.

For those working on the AWPR Aberdeen Roads Limited, the project contractor, has been able to confirm that there are 76 Carillion staff directly employed working on the project. We also understand that a further 101 staff and 90 operatives are engaged through a labour only sub-contract through a Carillion subsidiary.

We understand that public sector contingency plans for the collapse of Carillion largely involve the engagement of existing sub-contractors. We expect, therefore, that relatively few sub-contractors will be adversely affected.

For those that are affected, we have set up helplines which apprentices, employees and companies in the supply chain offering support and advice. Should it be necessary, we stand ready to support any affected employees through our Partnership Action for Continuing Employment (PACE) initiative which aims to minimise the time individuals affected by redundancy are out of work. In addition, the Construction Industry Training Board has committed to putting support in place to help affected apprentices and Skills Development Scotland has contingencies in place to help modern apprentices in a potential redundancy situation.

The Scottish Government has been liaising with Cabinet Office, the Official Receiver and PricewaterhouseCoopers to ensure that information on support through our initiative for responding to redundancy situations, Partnership Action for Continuing Employment (PACE) is available for Scottish based employees affected by developments at Carillion.

By providing a range of support, PACE aims to minimise the time individuals affected by redundancy are out of work. The package of support is tailored and includes one to one counselling, information on rights and entitlements, financial advice, skills development and help with job search.

On 16 February 2018 I visited the construction site to speak with the contractors staff involved with the project and to see the progress of the works for myself.

Since the announcement of Carillion’s insolvency, we have been working closely with Aberdeen Roads Limited to understand and assess any impacts on the delivery of the Aberdeen Western Peripheral Route. The Carillion element of the Aberdeen Roads Limited consortium currently remains solvent, however the construction joint venture has been affected. We will now work with both Aberdeen Roads Limited and the remaining parts of the construction joint venture to identify whether any additional sections of the project roads can be opened ahead of the full project opening, delivering earlier benefits to the North East.

The budget for the AWPR will remain the same and there will be no increase in costs to the public purse as a result of Carillion’s liquidation. The contract for this project contained a number of provisions to ensure that each construction partner of Aberdeen Roads Limited is joint and severally liable for the delivery of the contract. As is standard in contracts of this nature, the contractor gets paid when sections of road become available for use. No additional costs are due to the contractor as a result of this insolvency.