Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government greatly values the work of Scotland’s offshore workers and have been in regular discussions with Oil and Gas UK throughout this pandemic. Scottish Government appreciates and values the work that offshore workers are doing in what can be difficult circumstances.

The order in which people will be offered the vaccine in Scotland is based on advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI). The Scottish Government is vaccinating in line JCVI priority as quickly as supply allows us to do so.

Decisions to prioritise one population group over another are not taken lightly, nor are they straightforward. That is why prioritisation decisions are guided by the independent expert advice from the JCVI. Currently there is a mass vaccination centre open at the P&J Live at TECA in Aberdeen. If any offshore worker cannot attend their appointment, they should contact the helpline to reschedule.

We recognise the importance to sustainable aquaculture of high fish health and welfare standards. We will therefore consider the EU’s Strategic Guidelines on Sustainable Aquaculture alongside other sources of advice such as the UK Animal Welfare Committee, the British Veterinary Association and the Scottish Animal Welfare Commission.

The contracts for the Central and South lots of the Reaching 100% (R100) programme were signed on 16 December 2019. Contract signature for the North lot was completed on 11 December 2020, following dismissal of a legal challenge which had delayed contract signature.

As outlined in the response to S6W-00008 on 24 May 2021, the Scottish Government provided Openreach with a finalised speed and coverage template (or SCT) for the R100 North lot contract at the end of March 2021, which covers both the Highlands and the north east of Scotland. The remodelling exercise to finalise their coverage footprint is ongoing and will be subject to rigorous review through Scottish Government governance and assurance structures, and those of Building Digital UK (BDUK). The full picture across the R100 North lot contract area is expected to be available by Summer 2021.

The roll-out of R100 build in the North lot – and the associated survey work – will be completed in phases, and build plans will be reflected in our online checker at scotlandsuperfast.com.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

The Young Person’s Guarantee, launched in November 2020, has the ambition that, within two years, every person aged between 16 and 24 will have the opportunity to study; take up an apprenticeship, job or work experience; or participate in formal volunteering. It aims to give all young people the chance to succeed despite the economic impacts of Covid-19, while also ensuring employers continue to benefit from the fresh talent and new perspectives that young people bring to workplaces across Scotland.

Through our additional investment of £60 million in 2020-21, funding has been provided for around 18,000 new and enhanced opportunities to support young people in Scotland. These opportunities include up to:

• 11,000 opportunities through local authorities;
• 5,000 places in colleges;
• 1,400 new apprentice pathways; and
• Support for 1,300 vulnerable 16 and 17 year olds through third sector provision from Inspiring Scotland and the Princes Trust/Barnardo’s/Action for Children consortium which provides support for care experienced young people.

The early success of the Guarantee will be maintained during 2021-22. Additional investment of £125 million will go towards the Guarantee, the National Transition Training Fund, and other initiatives, ensuring the future workforce has the skills needed for a green recovery and supporting those at risk of long term unemployment. This includes personalised employment support and retraining for those who have been made unemployed or are at risk of redundancy due to the pandemic. This is in addition to our already significant investment in Education, Employability and Skills and also builds on DWP investment in Kickstart.

The £70 million for the Young Person’s Guarantee will provide:

• an additional £45 million for local partnerships to provide training and employer recruitment incentives
• a further £10 million for colleges to deliver around 5,000 more short, industry-focussed courses
• £10 million to continue to support the roll-out of new school coordinators as part of the internationally recognised youth employment strategy - Developing the Young Workforce
• £5 million for a new graduate internship scheme, increased volunteering capacity and third sector programmes

These new additional opportunities will complement our existing provision through schools, universities and colleges, our person-centered employability services Fair Start Scotland, No One Left Behind and the Employability Fund, and third sector support such as Discovering Your Potential, Our Future Now and Community Jobs Scotland.

As restrictions begin to ease, we are continuing to work closely with our delivery partners to maximise the number of young people being supported into these opportunities and to enable local partnerships to respond flexibly to meet the needs of young people during this challenging time.

The Scottish Government has been working with the university sector to explore what measures can be put in place for students returning to Scotland after an education exchange programme, who may be subject to managed isolation arrangements.

These students can apply for financial hardship support from the £22 million Higher Education Coronavirus Discretionary Fund and £3m Further Education Coronavirus Discretionary Fund. These funds were allocated to the universities and colleges in February. Institutions' assessments and awards are based on the individual circumstances involved. However, the eligible scenarios can include costs associated with travel to and from Scotland if their travel is essential and in line with current travel restrictions / exemptions, and they are in financial hardship and can demonstrate this through the institution's hardship assessment process.

We are committed to strengthening residents’ rights in adult residential settings as part of a rights-based approach to care. This will include working quickly to assess what the most effective way, or ways, would be of giving effect to Anne’s law, where residents can access their nominated relatives or friends to partner in their care or support have increased access to care homes.

The funding previously associated with providing home fee funded places for EU and associated students will remain in the college and university sectors for the next academic year 2021-22.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-00023 on 24 May 2021. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers .

The Scottish Government was deeply concerned to learn that Pladis (McVitie’s) is entering into a consultation with its workforce over the potential closure of its Tollcross site. The Scottish Government has engaged with Pladis, as well as unions (GMB and Unite the Union), Glasgow City Council and local partners with a firm commitment to exploring all possible options.

An Action Group has now been convened and will be co-chaired by the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy alongside Councillor Susan Aitken, Glasgow City Council. Other members of the Action group will include Trade Unions and Scottish Enterprise. The Action Group will work with the company during the consultation period to assess options for the site and support the workforce. We will pursue every opportunity to secure a viable future for the site, and we are seeking commitment from Pladis that it will be engaged in this process.

The Scottish Government has been exploring with the university sector how student accommodation could be used for the purposes of managed isolation for students returning to Scotland after a period of study abroad.

Restrictions around international travel are in place to limit the risk of importing new cases and variants to Scotland. Currently, only students arriving back in Scotland from studying abroad in a ‘red-list’ country need to go into managed isolation in a hotel. Students arriving from amber list countries can complete their period of self-isolation at their home address.