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An estimate of the number of households with legislation compliant alarms will only be available when the results of the 2022 Scottish House Condition Survey are published. This is expected to be by early 2024. For social housing, the Scottish Housing Regulator will publish its annual Social Housing Charter report for 2022-2023, which will set out the information for this sector, in August 2023.

Scottish Government has provided a total of £2.1 million between Care & Repair and Scottish Fire and Rescue Service to support those in greatest need or at greatest risk of fire, to meet the new standard.

We are carefully considering the next steps on how to address the responses to our engagement with people affected by historical adoption practices. We are in the process of obtaining some additional consultation from the Cabinet on how we should proceed with this matter.

In the meantime, we have issued a tender to commission research into support services and have also started the implementation of a new dedicated peer-support service for mothers affected.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-02957 on 12 October 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 .

First, I express my sympathies to everyone who has been affected by the loss of a loved one and to anyone who has been injured on our roads over this year.

The Government remains committed to investment in the A9, including dualling the road between Perth and Inverness.

We are currently progressing the procurement for the Tomatin to Moy section and undertaking design work on the rest of the programme, with ministerial decisions to complete the statutory process confirmed for seven of the remaining eight schemes. I will update Parliament shortly on the progress of this section.

I have also today announced to Parliament through the answer to S6W-12140 progress on dualling the A9 section from Killiecrankie to Glen Garry, in that I have determined that the Orders for that scheme should be made.

The only section not to have started the statutory process is the Pass of Birnam to Tay Crossing project, where design and assessment is ongoing to identify a preferred route option following the innovative co-creative process with the local community. Work is progressing on announcing a preferred route for this section.

Work to determine the most suitable procurement options for the remaining sections of the A9 dualling is also ongoing. This is a complex exercise which looks at a number of factors including how the project can be delivered most efficiently by the industry, whilst minimising disruption to road users and helping to support economic recovery post-COVID.

I will of course keep Parliament updated on progress in relation to all aspects of these dualling schemes.

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

In March 2022, we published The National Workforce Strategy for Health and Social Care in Scotland . This Strategy sets out a new framework to shape Scotland’s health and social care workforce over the next decade and places training, wellbeing, job satisfaction and the principles of Fair Work at its heart. The strategy, the first of its kind, stresses the need to plan, attract, train, employ and nurture staff.

As part of this publication, and as announced in the 2021 Programme for Government, we have committed to increasing the number of medical school places by 100 per annum over the lifetime of this Parliament, whilst also doubling the number of Widening Access places over the same period. This will result in an additional 500 medical school places and 120 Widening Access places, ensuring a healthy supply of trainee doctors for further training at postgraduate level.

We have also committed to expanding the number of trainee doctor posts in line with medical workforce modelling intended to achieve a planned and sustainable medical workforce to meet current and future needs. We remain committed to increasing the number of GPs working in Scotland by at least 800 by 2027. In June of this year we launched our national GP recruitment campaign to promote working as a GP in Scotland as a good career choice.

The Scottish Government are not aware of plans to roll out the use of Rezum steam treatment throughout NHSScotland. This treatment is currently being offered by NHS Fife and has been since December 2020.

It is ultimately for the 14 Territorial Health Boards across Scotland to decide whether to procure and apply this intervention as part of their treatment for patients with enlarged prostate.

Health Boards receive support from Healthcare Improvement Scotland’s, Scottish Health Technologies Group (SHTG) and the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE), in making such decisions. SHTG and NICE provide clinical and cost effectiveness evidence advice on the use of new and existing health technologies when they are likely to have significant implications for people’s care.

Updated guidance on the expanded criteria is being finalised and agreed with local government partners and will be published on the Scottish Government website in the coming weeks.

Each local authority was awarded an allocation of funds, to be used in the last financial year, ending 31 March 2022. Where it has not been possible to spend this in full, local authorities can continue to use their allocation in 2022-23 until fully spent.

Existing funding has not been exhausted and there are no plans to provide additional funding at present. However our emergency budget review, published on 2 November 2022, has outlined significant funds to help those most affected by the cost of living crisis. The Scottish Government will continue to do everything within our resources and powers to help those most affected by the cost of living crisis.

The provision of NHS Pharmaceutical Care services is the responsibility of territorial Health Boards. Any concerns by members of the public on pharmacy closures and accessing services should be raised with the Health Board.

The arrangements under which applications may be made to open new pharmacies are long-standing and the current process is detailed in the NHS (Pharmaceutical Services) (Scotland) Regulations 2009. When an application to open a pharmacy is made, NHS Boards are required to establish a Pharmacy Practices Committee to act on their behalf in considering applications for entry to the Pharmaceutical List. In considering the application the Board will consider the pharmaceutical services already provided in the area, the pharmaceutical services to be provided and any representations received by the Board and also any other information available which is relevant to the consideration of the application. During this process, members of the public can be consulted on the need for additional community pharmacy capacity in their local area.

An application shall be granted by the Board only if it is satisfied that the provision of pharmaceutical services at the premises named in the application is necessary or desirable in order to secure adequate provision of pharmaceutical services in the neighbourhood in which the premises are located. The Scottish Government is not involved in deciding applications for pharmacies to be added to the Pharmaceutical List.

Following the public consultation and Parliamentary scrutiny of Draft National Planning Framework (NPF) 4, we have been carefully considering the wealth of evidence received and intend to lay a final NPF4 in the Parliament later this Autumn.

Draft NPF4 was accompanied by a Housing Land Requirement Explanatory Report , which provides an explanation on the proposed Minimum All-Tenure Housing Land Requirement and Assessment Reports for each authority area.