Chamber and committees

The Finance Secretary wrote to the Treasury on 31 October seeking urgent clarification on the increase to employer national insurance contributions.

We are clear that this change must be fully funded so that there is no impact on our frontline services. Clarity must be provided before we set our budget in just a few weeks’ time. We also need clarity on whether funding will cover the full extent of organisations delivering public services.

We will continue to work with the hospice sector to consider opportunities to deliver pay parity with Agenda for Change for independent hospices.

The total Resource (RDEL) Block Grant funding received by the Scottish Government (SG) in 2024-25 is currently £39.8 billion. For 2025-26 the Spending Review confirms a resource block grant of £41.1 billion, £1.3 billion higher than 2024-25.

The following table shows the real terms calculations.

Scottish Government has no imminent plans to introduce at-home testing for hepatitis C.

Testing for hepatitis C is currently available through a range of routes, with a particular focus on settings which are most likely to be accessed by people at highest risk of infection, such as drugs services and prison healthcare. In addition, anyone who has concerns about exposure to hepatitis C can speak to their GP practice about getting a test, which would allow them to be referred into treatment and services rapidly if required.

The Scottish Government continues to take significant steps to tackle alcohol harm as a public health priority.

The National Mission focuses on actions and initiatives to address the harms associated with drugs, but these can and do support people affected by all substances including alcohol. For example, through an increase in residential rehabilitation places; initiatives to tackle the stigma and support the workforce and an increased understanding of the co-occurring nature of problem substance use and mental health issues.

This Government’s work to continue and increase the world leading Minimum Unit Pricing policy is an example of our approach to take concrete action to reduce alcohol harms. It is estimated that our world-leading policy has saved hundreds of lives, likely averted hundreds of alcohol-attributable hospital admissions and contributed to tackling health inequalities.

However, we have been clear that Minimum Unit Pricing is not a silver bullet – but one of the ways in which we are tackling alcohol harm including our investment in treatment and work to consider alcohol marketing restrictions.

The Scottish Government remains committed to progressing work on protecting children and young people from exposure to alcohol marketing. Public Health Scotland (PHS) are being commissioned to carry out a review of the evidence for the range of options that are available to the Scottish Government under devolved powers and will bring focused proposals forward should the evidence support it.

The 2023 Scottish Health Survey shows that among those aged 16-24 vape use is 22%.

The Smoking and Vaping Among Scottish Adolescents Key findings - Vaping and smoking among Scottish adolescents - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) (2024) showed that 19% of those aged 11-17 had tried vaping even once. Amongst ever vapers, 75% of young people aged 11-17 stated that they used disposable vapes.

While we do not disaggregate data down to specific kind of vape used, high puff-count vapes are more likely to be single use.

The Environmental Protection (Single-use Vapes) (Scotland) Regulations 2024 set out that in order for a vape to be considered reusable, it must be both refillable and rechargeable.

High puff-count vapes are typically designed to include a USB charging port to allow for the battery to be recharged. Many of these devices contain an extra 10ml container of e-liquid as well as the standard 2ml already built inside the vape.

However, if they do not allow for the coil to be replaced or for the replacement or refilling of the e-liquid container by the user, they remain single-use in practice.

We will continue to work with Trading Standards to monitor developments in vape design to ensure that the definition is fit for purpose and that manufacturers comply with the ban on single-use vapes.

The Scottish Government remains committed to progressing work on protecting children and young people from exposure to alcohol marketing. It was clear from our earlier public consultation that there was a wide range of views on alcohol marketing proposals, including uncertainty about the existing evidence base for many proposals.

Public Health Scotland (PHS) are being commissioned to carry out a review of the evidence for the range of options that are available to the Scottish Government under devolved powers. This will ensure that our work is evidence based and will deliver clear public health outcomes. We will consider PHS’ findings, and consider where the evidence supports further action or consultation on alcohol marketing restrictions.

If the evidence supports it, the Scottish Government will return with a further consultation on a range of targeted proposals. Ensuring public health policy is based on clear evidence is vital in delivering progress on alcohol harm and ensuring that the right balance is struck between improving population health and the potential impacts and effects on the economy, business and industry.

The Scottish Government welcomes the UK Government’s commitment in the Autumn budget to introduce a duty on vapes from 2026 and renew the tobacco duty escalator. Our Tobacco and Vaping Framework recognises that price can be a critical factor in people’s decisions on starting to smoke and vape. Increases in the price of tobacco have helped reduce the number of young children smoking, so we know this type of policy is effective. We are pleased that the UK Government have also stated that the price differential between tobacco and vapes will be maintained, this is essential as it can encourage smokers to quit smoking using vaping as a cessation tool. As of 14 November 2024 the Scottish Government has not had any engagement with the UK Government regarding the possibility of bringing forward the implementation of excise duty on vapes from 2026 to 2025.

Increases to tobacco duty and vaping duty are reserved and will apply in Scotland.

A refreshed cross-government and cross-sectoral approach to population health - focused on prevention - is being progressed. Increasing healthy life expectancy and reducing health inequalities across Scotland remains a clear ambition for this Government. It is clear the reform of health and care services alone will not be enough to stem the current tide of population health decline in Scotland.

The Population Health Framework is being developed jointly by the Scottish Government & COSLA and in collaboration with Public Health Scotland, Directors of Public Health and key local, regional and national partners. The Framework will consider a broad range of population health drivers, including alcohol harm prevention. The Scottish Government continues to work with partners to identify what actions we, and they, can take to reduce inequalities and to improve the health of people in Scotland over the next decade.

Within the Scottish Government, funding for Health and Care Research comes under the policy remit of the Chief Scientist Office (CSO)

Officials from CSO met with representatives from MND Scotland on 9th February 2023 to discuss the possibility of co-funding a Clinical Academic Fellowship. Funding arrangements were agreed and a joint call for applications launched on 1 August 2023

Details of the funded fellowship are available on the CSO website

CAF/24/13 - Identifying early theragnostic targets for MND

Ms Kristine Roberts - University of Aberdeen

CAF2413abstract.pdf (scot.nhs.uk)

As the Cabinet Secretary set out to Parliament, Public Health Scotland (PHS) are being commissioned to carry out a review of the evidence for the range of options that are available to the Scottish Government under devolved powers. This important step will ensure that our work is evidence based and will deliver clear public health outcomes.

The final commission will be published in due course, and will set out the timelines for that review activity. The Scottish Government will consider PHS’ findings, and consider where the evidence supports further action or consultation on alcohol marketing restrictions. Once the evidence review is concluded the Scottish Government will consider any areas where evidence supports further consultation. No decisions have been taken yet on what these areas may be.