Seòmar agus comataidhean

We are working closely with NatureScot and Scottish Forestry in exploring the best approach to developing a new National Register of Ancient Woodlands. A new National Register of Ancient Woodlands is part of a suite of initiatives that will be underpinned by a new biodiversity strategy which we recently consulted on this summer.

The Scottish Government’s Chief Scientist Office invests through NHS Research Scotland in research infrastructure in Health Boards that allows them to host and participate in clinical research studies and trials. Health Boards make individual decisions about participating in the trials that are offered to them, subject to the trials that are already being supported within each Health Board, and the research expertise and capacity available to take on additional trials. Scottish Health Boards are continuing to participate in a number of trials of medicines for the prevention or treatment of COVID-19 disease, providing opportunities for their patient populations to enrol in these studies, although none currently include Evusheld. Should a trial sponsor organisation approach Scottish Health Boards about participating in a trial of Evusheld, participation would be considered by Health Boards with participation subject to the research expertise and capacity available.

As at 1 st October 2021, there were 922 GP Practices. This data was published on 14 th December 2021 – ( GP Workforce and practice list sizes 2011 - 2021 - Publications - Public Health Scotland ).

The Scottish Government does not hold figures for how many GP Practices have closed. However, the slight decrease in practice numbers shown in the report is largely driven by practice mergers and a trend towards larger practices with more GPs serving a larger number of patients.

Information setting out the requested methodology is in the public domain: Heat in building strategy modelling: EIR release - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) .

We are committed to delivering a just and fair transition to net zero, where the distribution of costs and impacts protects those in the most vulnerable circumstances while also optimising benefits for everyone. This means continuing to take account of changes in the external environment so that our modelling of funding and support remains appropriate. We are currently reviewing our cost estimates to deliver the heat transition on this basis, and will provide a further update in due course.

The majority ofthis budget is directly allocated to Health Boards to support international recruitment and domestic recruitment. All of this budget is earmarked for allocation by financial year end, with £4.5 million of this funding already allocated thus far. A further £0.3m supports other initiatives including refugee doctors and nurses, marketing of NHS Scotland, and employability programmes.

CMAL have used a closed tendering process through the Public Contracts Scotland portal for the procurement of 2 further Islay Class RoPAx vessels. This procurement allows for local content to be considered as part of the evaluation process amongst many other commercial and technical aspects. No specific criteria has been set.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-12306 on 5 December 2022 2022. 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

A national oversight group responsible for a review of AHP Education and Workforce Review has recently concluded its work. The collaborative group involving a wide range of AHP stakeholders including professional bodies, HEIs and NHS Boards have produced a number of recommendations. Workforce and recruitment and education delivery models have been considered and, although I will not pre-empt the recommendations of that group, I look forward to receiving the suite of recommendations the group has put forward regarding the future of training and development of AHP staff.

The Scottish Government is fully committed to ensuring that the NHS in Scotland delivers high quality, safe, effective and person-centred care to all patients, every time they access health services. The Scottish Patient Safety Programme (SPSP) continues to be implemented in every NHS Board, including NHS Forth Valley. It is designed to improve the safety of care. It is vital for patients to have confidence that when they access any part of the healthcare system, they will receive the best available treatment without fear of harm.

The Stage 4 escalation is not a reflection of the staff working tirelessly to provide care for the population of Forth Valley. The wellbeing and support for staff is paramount. This escalation decision has been made to allow the leadership team to take forward the transformational change required to improve the culture and leadership, but with the appropriate additional support through the Assurance Board, to ensure effective and efficient change which they have not been able to implement to date. NHS Forth Valley are responsible for delivering improvement against an agreed Plan, and support will be provided to assist NHS Forth Valley in delivery.

If staff do wish to raise concerns during this time then they should be supported to do so and they should be protected throughout the process and not suffer any harm as a result of speaking up. Boards are expected to investigate concerns fairly and appropriately.

The Scottish Government will continue to protect free tuition for Scottish-domiciled students undertaking under-graduate courses in addition to stepping in to address specific workforce challenges directly related to government workforce policy ambitions . At present there are no plans to extend bursaries to those studying on allied health professions’ courses outside of Paramedic Science.

Escalation addresses complex issues and an element of judgement will always be required. The timeline will be driven by the actions within NHS Forth Valley’s Improvement Plan and their associated timelines. My expectation was for the Improvement Plan to be developed and presented to the Assurance Board for scrutiny at its first meeting, with a focus on completing immediate actions by the end of the year.

The overall aim of escalation and the related package of scrutiny and intervention put in place is to support any NHS Board, including NHS Forth Valley, to deliver the required improvement and address the underlying issues effectively and sustainably so that they can be safely de-escalated as swiftly as possible.

The Assurance Board, which has been established to bring direct SG oversight of NHS Forth Valley’s escalation, will provide advice to the Director General about the future escalation status of NHS Forth Valley, including criteria for de-escalation.