Chamber and committees

On 1 April, The Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014 (Modification) (No. 2) Revocation Order 2020 was approved by the Scottish Parliament. The order revoked the change to the 2014 Children and Young People’s Act that requires education authorities to secure 1140 hours of ELC provision for all eligible children from August 2020, rather than 600 hours. It effectively meant that there would be no statutory duty to provide 1140 hours from August 2020.

In these exceptional circumstances it was not realistic for capital projects to be completed or for recruitment activity to take place in time for August, nor was it know what restrictions would be in place on services reopening. This decision was a practical decision, taken in light of the direct impact of the pandemic on service models, and to allow local authorities to reprioritise their staff, services and commitments and respond effectively to COVID-19.

On 30 March 2020, the Minister for Children and Young People and COSLA spokesperson for Children and Young People issued a joint statement about the early learning and childcare expansion.

We are working closely with Local Authorities and providers to assess impact of the pandemic on the timetable for delivering the expansion to 1140 hours, and to assess the appropriate time to reinstate the statutory duty. The date of reintroduction of the statutory duty to provide 1140 hours should be jointly agreed through the Joint Delivery Board (JDB), Chaired by the Minister for Children and Young People and COSLA spokesperson for Children and Young People. The JDB will make an initial assessment of readiness for reintroduction of the duty by the end of this calendar year to inform that agreement, based on the progress in recovery, as well as operational and financial implications.

In the meantime, local authorities are continuing to offer expanded hours where they can, and to progress expansion plans ahead of setting a new statutory date, to ensure that as many children and families can benefit from the expanded offer as soon as possible. At present:

• 13 Councils are delivering 1140 hours of funded ELC to all families
• 18 Councils are delivering at least 600 hours of funded ELC to all families, and 1140 to some or most families; and
• 1 Council is delivering at least 600 hours of funded ELC to all families, and expanded hours to some or most families.

The Scottish Government and local authorities remain fully committed to delivering the expansion, and to making sure our children have access to the best support and opportunities for development in their early years.

The Scottish Government is committed to upholding the human rights of those wishing to peacefully demonstrate. The unprecedented health risks posed by Covid-19 means that we have been strongly encouraging all of those wishing to demonstrate to consider whether they can find alternative ways to hold their events, such as through social media. Anyone participating in a peaceful protest should be mindful of the relevant local restrictions; and should do all they can to protect themselves and the communities that they are gathering in by following the latest health guidance on physical distancing, wearing face coverings and minimising the chance of transmission from person to person, which can be found at: https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-phase-3-staying-safe-and-protecting-others/pages/overview/ .

While the day to day operation of the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service is a matter for the Lord President, regular discussions take place around the practical implications of public health policy and guidance in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. This includes an important focus on the health and wellbeing of potential participating jurors, and their ability to travel to Court. SCTS regularly update their information sheet for jurors, which makes clear that potential jurors should speak to a member of their staff if they are concerned about travel arrangements.

It is not the case that extra-curricular sports at schools, such as football, are unable to resume.

The Guidance on preparing for the start of the new school term in August 2020 emphasises the importance of the provision of activities and clubs outside the usual school timetable for wider health and development of children and young people and states that: “they can be conducted subject to following the guidance set out in this note, and guidance for the general public where applicable. Schools should consider the need for out of hours cleaning when scheduling activities”.

Since the publication of the 2017 Independent Review of Targets and Indicators in Health and Social Care there have been new developments, including the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and the Data Protection Act (2018), which would make it extremely challenging to implement a national information system and protocol management of cases in a way that ensures that it is compliant with the laws of confidentiality, human rights and data protection. As a result, the Scottish Government does not plan to establish an information system to identify exposure to adverse childhood experiences. Instead, as part of the Getting It Right For Every Child (GIRFEC) National Practice Model, services working with children and young people currently consider and assess wellbeing needs based on eight indicators of wellbeing. This National Practice Model provides the framework to guide assessment of the risks and effect of adversity on a child or young person and it also supports planning to resolve and mitigate such risks and adverse effects.

The Scottish Government “Staying Safe and Protecting Others” guidance on extended households sets out the circumstances in which we advise extended households could be formed. There is a section in this guidance entitled “Couples who do not live together”, where more information on forming an extended household in these circumstances can be found.

The regulations do not provide an additional exemption which would allow non-cohabiting couples to meet unless complying with the restrictions on public and private gatherings. Currently, non-cohabiting couples, who have not formed an extended household, can meet outdoors or in public indoor settings such as cafes but cannot meet inside private dwellings.

The Private Housing (Tenancies) (Scotland) Act 2016 introduced the most significant changes to private renting in over 30 years, including the new Private Residential Tenancy (PRT) which modernised the way landlords can recover possession of their properties. The new tenancy came into place on 1 December 2017 and a key part of understanding it’s impact on both landlords and tenants, will be to undertake effective monitoring and evaluation activity.

We are therefore participating in a research project, funded by the Nationwide Foundation, that seeks to understand the impacts on the sector of the new tenancy regime. The project – running over a three year period from 2019 to 2022 – aims to examine the impact of the changes on perceived and actual security of tenure, access to justice, affordability, landlord and tenant conduct, tenants on low incomes and tenants in housing need. This research is complimented by a wider monitoring and evaluation framework for the new tenancy regime being taken forward by the Scottish Government.

Furthermore, during the passage of the Private Housing Tenancies (Scotland) Bill through Parliament, the then Minister for Housing and Welfare, Margaret Burgess MSP, gave a commitment to review the grounds for repossession after the private residential tenancy had been in operation for 5 years (December 2022). To support this work, we are closely monitoring the eviction case decisions published by the First-tier Tribunal (Housing and Property Chamber).

You will be aware that the Scottish Government put in place a number of additional protections for renters in response to the Covid-19 pandemic, including extending the notice period a landlord has to give before initiating eviction action and to introduce temporary pre-action requirements. We are also closely monitoring the impact of these measures to help inform further policy development within the private rented sector.

There is no specific restriction on students taking a driving test. They should have reference, however, to up to date guidance and any local restrictions that may apply.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that rail fares are affordable for passengers and taxpayers across Scotland. Therefore, we have taken action to minimise the impact on passengers by capping increases for regulated ScotRail peak fares at the level of the Retail Price Index (RPI), and ScotRail’s regulated off-peak fare increases are capped at one percent lower than inflation. This means, in Scotland, average fares increases are lower than England.

Given the current COVID-19 pandemic, Transport Scotland, with the rail industry, is in the process of considering the options regarding future fares and tickets.

The supply of medicines is reserved to the UK Government and we continue to work closely with them and individual manufacturers to resolve supply issues and minimise any disruption to patients.

On 6 October 2020, the Competitions and Marketing Authority (CMA) announced that it had opened an investigation into possible abuse by Essential Pharma of a dominant position in the supply of lithium-based medicines used for bipolar disorder. Subsequently, Essential Pharma withdrew its Discontinuation Notice for Priadel ® and has agreed to continue to supply the medicine in the UK.

A Medicine Supply Alert Notice, MSAN (2020)100, issued on 15 October, provides an update to NHS Scotland prescribers, advising them that there is no longer a need to implement switching of patients from Priadel ® to an alternative lithium carbonate preparation until further notice.