Chamber and committees

The funding allocation is made on the basis of the anticipated level of need to support these processes in each Local Authority. Scottish Government Communities Analysis division have provided forecast estimates for the number of requests for supporting information that each Local Authority may receive.

The estimates for supporting information requests have been created by using actual volumes of applications in Scotland for the DWP equivalent benefit, Disability Living Allowance for Children (DLAC) over the past 5 years as the basis. This data was combined with statistics from the Department for Communities (DfC) which provided a percentage breakdown of cases where additional supporting information was required. This percentage was applied to the Scottish application projections and ratified by Health and Social Care practitioners in Social Security Scotland.

Working with COSLA and the Local Authorities who supported the Child Disability Payment Pilot, the Social Security Programme agreed an appropriate level of funding to support Perth and Kinross Council as a medium sized authority with a mixed urban/rural demographic to act as a median. The funding allocated to all other Local Authorities was based proportionately upon the volume of Supporting Information requests they are expected to receive against the base level of funding agreed for Perth and Kinross Council.

Using this methodology Island Authorities were thought to be unfairly disadvantaged due to the small number of requests they are likely to receive. As such an Island Uprating was agreed to ensure that all organisations received at least £29,000 per annum to adequately resource this new burden. The methodology for funding allocation was approved through the Settlement and Distribution Group and the COSLA Leaders meeting in Autumn 2021.

In addition to taking forward a National Conversation on rail, we will be consulting specifically on women’s safety when using public transport.

The specific means by which we carry out this engagement are yet to be determined and will be informed by initial discussions with groups representing women and Transport Scotland Officials. A range of options will be presented for how this engagement takes place. It is envisaged that these will include options for engagement that is open to all, focussed on specific groups or combines elements of both.

This is a matter for individual Health Boards. We do not hold this specific information centrally.

Since 2018-19, as part of our annual staff governance monitoring exercise, Boards advise us of the number of formal bullying and harassment cases raised locally each year. This information was not requested in 2019-20 due to the pandemic.

The information we hold does not separate out the number of cases that relate to bullying, sexual harassment or other forms of harassment. We also do not hold information on the outcome of these cases or level of compensation if paid.

The Boards have reported the following information to us (please note where numbers of cases are less than 5, we cannot give specific figures for reasons of maintaining anonymity):

? NHS Ayrshire & Arran reported less than 5 formal complaints of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and 19 in 2020-2021.

? NHS Borders reported 6 formal complaints of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and 7 in 2020-2021.

? NHS Dumfries & Galloway reported 8 formal complaints of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and 7 in 2020-2021.

? NHS Fife reported 17 formal complaints of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and 9 in 2020-2021.

? NHS Forth Valley reported 12 formal complaints of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and less than 5 in 2020-2021.

? NHS Grampian reported 14 formal complaints of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and 8 in 2020-2021.

? NHS Greater Glasgow & Clyde reported 21 formal complaints of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and 10 in 2020-2021.

? NHS Highland reported 14 formal complaints of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and 38 in 2020-2021.

? NHS Lanarkshire reported 27 formal complaints of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and 7 in 2020-2021.

? NHS Lothian reported 41 formal complaints of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and 36 in 2020-2021.

? NHS Orkney reported less than 5 formal complaint of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and less than 5 in 2020-2021.

? NHS Shetland reported less than 5 formal complaints of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and less than 5 in 2020-2021.

? NHS Tayside reported 6 formal complaints of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and 13 in 2020-2021.

? NHS Western Isles reported less than 5 formal complaints of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and 6 in 2020-2021.

? NHS Education for Scotland reported no formal complaints in 2018-2019 and less than 5 in 2020-2021.

? NHS Golden Jubilee Foundation reported less than 5 formal complaints of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and 5 in 2020-2021.

? NHS Healthcare Improvement Scotland reported less than 5 formal complaint of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and no cases in 2020-2021.

? NHS Health Scotland - Public Health Scotland reported no formal complaints in 2018-2019 and less than 5 in 2020-2021.

? NHS National Services Scotland reported 16 formal complaints of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and 6 in 2020-2021.

? NHS State Hospital reported less than 5 formal complaints of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and less than 5 in 2020-2021.

? NHS 24 reported 12 formal complaints of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and less than 5 in 2020-2021.

? NHS Scottish Ambulance Service reported 24 formal complaints of bullying and harassment in 2018-2019 and 7 in 2020-2021.

There is currently no publicly available data regarding how patients with venous thromboembolism (VTE) are managed following an initial episode.

The health and wellbeing of everyone in Scotland, including those who are immunosuppressed or immuno-compromised, is paramount as we transition out of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Following the success of the initial vaccination programme, the Scottish Government recently announced that a spring booster dose will be offered to everyone aged 12 and over who is immunosuppressed, in line with the JCVI recommendations.

Immunosuppressed individuals are also eligible for new treatments to minimise the impact of Covid-19, should they contract it, and have priority access to testing to ensure they receive these as quickly as possible. We will continue to respond to scientific and clinical advice regarding COVID treatments, making sure that those who we know will benefit most from them are able to access them.

We will continue to provide advice and information for people on the Highest Risk List in the meantime, including how to get help to re-connect with people and things they were doing before the pandemic, and we will continue to look at ways to identify people who may be at higher risk and ask them to follow the individualised advice from their GP or clinician who knows their circumstances and health condition best.

We currently have three Early Cancer Diagnostic Centres (EDCD) live in NHS Ayrshire and Arran, NHS Dumfries and Galloway and NHS Fife. The Centre in NHS Dumfries and Galloway has been operational since 17 th May, NHS Fife since 6 th June, and NHS Ayrshire and Arran since 21 st June 2021.

The University of Strathclyde has been contracted to undertake independent evaluation of the ECDCs, to help inform wider roll-out across Scotland. The full evaluation will cover a two-year period (this is in line with wider UK nations’ evaluation of similar rapid diagnostic centre models), and will report in September 2023. Additionally, an interim report will be provided in September 2022.

In addition to taking forward a National Conversation on rail, we will be consulting specifically on women’s safety when using public transport.

(a) Specific timescales will be outlined following the discussion underway with relevant representative groups on the preferred approach for carrying out this engagement.

(b) With regard to the groups we will engage with, we have already made initial contact with Engender. We will also engage with groups who represent women working on our public transport network to capture the views of female staff.

As we recover from the pandemic ScotRail Trains Limited will adapt its rail services to meet passenger demand and travel patterns, the latter of which is likely to be markedly different to that experienced previously.

Though there has not been a specific date nor target level set for the increased revenue Transport Scotland will continue to monitor the revenue situation as it is reported on a period by period basis so as to enable Ministers to make informed decisions at all times.

Encouragingly, patronage levels on our railway are improving. In the middle of last year (week ended Saturday 3July), reported demand stood at about 831,000 journeys. By the week ended Saturday 5 March 2022, reported demand had increased to 1,183,000 journeys.

I welcome Audit Scotland’s review into drug and alcohol services and their recommendations. We agree that more can be done to improve the accessibility and transparency of funding and how it is used.

Currently information on funding allocation is available through various publications including published budgets and I also report to Parliament regularly outlining our progress and funding decisions. We have also recently agreed on eight recommendations with COSLA to implement the Partnership Delivery Framework which underpins the governance of Alcohol and Drug Partnerships, this includes a recommendation requiring Health and Social Care Partnership Chief Finance Officers to be represented at the ADP and provide assurance regarding funding for alcohol and drug services including clear financial reporting. In addition, Public Health Scotland have been tasked with introducing new monitoring to track both the number of and investment in residential rehab placements by ADPs.

The governance body of a Green Freeport, which will need to be approved by the Scottish and UK Governments, will be required to maintain a record of all businesses operating, or applying to operate, within the tax site. That record must be kept up-to-date, contain information about the beneficial owner of the business, and be readily accessible to law enforcement agencies, including HMRC and the National Crime Agency. Law enforcement will use this information to carry out checks on the businesses and their beneficial owners before businesses are authorised to operate within the tax site.