Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government issued updated guidance on choosing a care home on discharge from hospital in December 2013 (CEL 32 (2013). The guidance recommends that people identify up to three preferred homes of choice, suitable to meet the assessed needs of the individual. Where a choice is not readily available then an interim move to a suitable, available home should be arranged.

The guidance does not provide explicit advice on how far care home placements should be from the person’s home address, however, the Scottish Government expects placements to be as close as is reasonably possible. There will be occasions when the person’s assessed need, and availability of local services, will affect the choice of suitable care homes.

The budget for the Strategic Timber Transport fund in each of the last five years is set out in the following table.

Any claim for damages in relation to works undertaken at Queen Street station is a matter between the parties involved.

The total amounts set aside in the draft budget for 2020-21 to support active travel, by level 4 budget line, is summarised in the following table along with the totals for 2018-19 and 2019-20.

The Abellio ScotRail and Serco Caledonian Sleeper forecasted payments for next year are in line with both current franchise agreements, these are contracted amounts between the Scottish Government and franchisees. The amounts are in line with the contract and are commercially sensitive.

Details of payments made to date to ScotRail and Caledonian that can be made public can be found via Companies House.

While staffing is an operational matter for ScotRail, Transport Scotland holds them to account within the terms of the Franchise Agreement. Financial penalties can and do apply where the impact of reduced staffing means ScotRail fall below the service levels set out in the franchise agreement, for example station opening hours.

Following a robust challenge from Transport Scotland, through the SQUIRE regime, staffing recruitment and retention issues were identified as a recurrent issue and it was demanded ScotRail addresses this. A subsequent recruitment drive for additional staff has delivered significant improvements both at stations and on trains.

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-27433 on 28 February 2020. 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

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-27433 on 28 February 2020. 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

Figures for the financial year 2020-2021 are currently budget forecasts and as such are commercially sensitive. Figures for the financial year 2019-2020, once audited are due to be published in October 2020.

Figures for the financial year 2018-2019, as published in Transport Scotland’s Annual Accounts, confirm of the £415 million rail franchise programme expenditure (a) Abellio ScotRail was allocated £390 million including Fixed Track Access Charges of £260 million and (b) Serco Caledonian Sleeper was allocated £25 million.

A question seeking views on the shift to zero or ultra-low emission city centres by 2030 was included in the consultation on low emission zones (LEZ), which closed on 24 February. Over 300 responses have been received which are now being analysed. The analysis report will be published by the end of April.

Further engagement and consultation will follow with partners and key stakeholders to assess the broad range of system-wide opportunities and challenges. This will include workshops with city councils this Spring.