Seòmar agus comataidhean

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-14838 on 9 March 2023. 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 Best Start North review was commissioned jointly by NHS Grampian, NHS Highland, NHS Shetland, NHS Orkney and NHS Western Isles and is led by those NHS Boards. The Scottish Government understands that a group has now been set up with representation from the most senior Midwives from all six Boards in the North of Scotland, now including NHS Tayside.

The Scottish Government understands that the focus of this NHS Board-led work for 2023/24 is on collaboration to improve services in the north, support the effective implementation of the recommendations in The Best Start and to work together to improve midwifery workforce and education, training as well as taking forward joint improvement work. The groups will work within the existing regional planning partnership to shape and implement this work, under the sponsorship of the Board Chief Executives.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-14838 on 9 March 2023. 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 .

Women already move across NHS Board boundaries across Scotland, including from the islands to specialist centres, where this best meets the needs of women and their babies. The Scottish Government understands that, should specific improvement work be identified through the Best Start North group, this would be considered by the group.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-14838 on 9 March 2023. 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 producer registration remains open for producers to register ( https://circularityscotland.com/producers/registration/ ).

Any producers who have not yet registered are encouraged to do so and can upload product details as part of the registration process.

Producers who have already completed the registration process will be able to add or amend product details using a self-service portal which will be available late Spring, well in advance of the scheme start date. This portal will remain open to allow producers to amend product details going forward.

The Scottish Government does not expect to receive Barnett consequential funding in connection with this UK Government scheme.

Scottish Government is a key partner in the Save a Life for Scotland partnership which delivers the Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest Strategy 2021 – 2026. A key aim of this strategy is to increase the percentage of Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest incidents which have a defibrillator applied before the ambulance service arrives from 8% to 20%.

This is not only about increasing the number of defibrillators in public places but also about building the evidence base to support defibrillator guardians to make strategic decisions about the placement of their defibrillators, to encourage their registration with Scottish Ambulance Service and to increase public confidence and knowledge around defibrillation. We are working as part of the Save a Life Scotland partnership to deliver on these aims.

The Best Start North review was commissioned jointly by NHS Grampian, NHS Highland, NHS Shetland, NHS Orkney and NHS Western Isles. NHS Tayside now also participates in this work. The Best Start North review was commissioned jointly by the original five participating NHS Boards and is led by those NHS Boards. The Scottish Government understands that the primary focus of this work is collaboration towards continuous improvement of services in the North, support for the effective implementation of the recommendations in The Best Start and to work together on midwifery workforce and education. This work sits within the existing regional planning partnership, under the sponsorship of NHS Board Chief Executives, and was both established and operates at the regional level. You may therefore wish to direct specific queries regarding the work of the Best Start North group to the Nurse Director at NHS Shetland and Chair of the Best Start North group and the Director of Midwifery at NHS Highland.

The Scottish Government has provided funding of over £520,000, over the past four years, to support the establishment of an FASD Hub in Scotland with the aim of providing support, training and advice to families, carers and professionals supporting children affected by FASD. This is the first national FASD Hub of its kind within the UK.  

There are no current studies on the prevalence of fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) in Scotland. We have provided funding of over £1 million, over the past four years, to the FAAST team at Edinburgh University to support research, evidence and training for professionals, including diagnostic training. As well as improving supports, this work may have contributed to an increase in the reported number of people with FASD who were not previously known to services.

The Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill was passed by an overwhelming majority of the Scottish Parliament, with support from members of all parties. The UK Government's use of section 35 of the Scotland Act 1998 to prevent the Bill proceeding to Royal Assent represents an unprecedented challenge to the Scottish Parliament's ability to legislate on devolved matters.

The Scottish Government has provided detailed responses to questions from the Equalities, Human Rights and Civil Justice Committee in a letter of 5 February, is now considering the reasons given by the UK Government for its use of the section 35 power, and will update Parliament on next steps in due course.

We note the Committee has expressed disappointment that the Secretary of State for Scotland made little attempt to answer directly any of the questions it raised.