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A total of 761 applications were received for ICF Round 1 in June 2019. Of those, 276 were approved and 485 were unsuccessful

The following table shows the number of ICF applications approved and rejected broken down by local authority area

The work of Police Scotland’s International Development and Innovation Unit is a matter for the Chief Constable of Police Scotland. The Scottish Police Authority has responsibility for oversight of Police Scotland and to scrutinise the decisions of the Chief Constable.

Scotland has a strong and enduring commitment to securing democracy, the rule of law and human rights across the world. We expect all states to recognise fundamental human rights, comply with human rights legislation and condemn human rights abuses wherever they occur. Through International Engagement we will share our experiences, values and expertise in areas such as justice, education and climate change, with a view to seeing the human rights of people across the world fully realised.

The Scottish Government has provided funding for International Development work by Police Scotland in Malawi and Zambia since 2016. The funding provided in 2019-20 was £449,831 and the funding for 2020/21 was £162,000. The current funding supports Police Scotland’s work on a “Rights & Equalities for Marginalised Groups” programme, which helps tackle local issues in Malawi and Zambia, working with a wide range of marginalised groups such as women, children, those with disabilities, LGBTI and people with albinism. The ability to deliver the programme has been impacted by Coronavirus but Police Scotland hope to re-commence in-country training next year.

Work to establish the Cleaner Air for Scotland 2 Delivery Group is currently in progress. Membership will be announced shortly.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensure everyone with a neurological condition has timely access to care and services in all regions of Scotland. That is why we published a Neurological Care and Support – a National Framework for Action in December 2019 . We are investing £4.5 million of funding to implement the Framework’s aims and commitments. The aims include improving the provision of co-ordinated health and social care and support, developing sustainable workforce models and ensuring high standards of person-centred care.

Since 2015, the Scottish Government provides £2.4 million annually to improve specialist nursing services. NHS Boards make the decision on where to prioritise this funding based on local need. NHS Boards are expected to ensure that patients, including those who require epilepsy services, have access to a range of professionals to provide the appropriate management of their condition.

The Scottish Government launched its NHS Recovery Plan on the 25 August, which sets out our key headline ambitions and actions to be developed and delivered now and over the next 5 years. The plan is backed by more than £1 billion of investment over the next five years.

By the end of this year, we will publish a National Workforce Strategy that supports the delivery of the NHS Recovery Plan , specifically its key workforce targets. The strategy will set out the strategic framework through which we will design, develop and deliver training programmes in partnership with NHS National Education Scotland and the NHS Academy, offering new routes into the NHS, and broadening opportunities. In addition, it will provide NHS Boards a framework for assessing nationally the role of Clinical Nurse Specialists (CNS). The NHS will gain additional 500 Advance Nurse Practitioners (ANP) over the next five years and we will be working closely with neurology services to identify areas of need for both ANPs and CNS capacity to better meet patient need.

A recent report published by the Chief Nursing Officer Directorate made a number recommendations regarding CNS roles. This work is being taken forward in Neurology (and epilepsy specifically) by a group with representation from Chief Nursing Officer Directorate, NHS Education Scotland, Centre for Sustainability Delivery as well as strong Epilepsy CNS Representation.

The impact of addressing the COVID-19 pandemic has meant that many health and social care services had to be suspended or reduced in scope and scale. This has affected almost all aspects of NHS care. Addressing the backlog of care, while continuing to meet the ongoing urgent health and care needs of the country, is a priority for this Government.

The Centre for Sustainable Delivery continues to work closely with Neurology services in all Health Boards. In particular work on Active Clinical Referral Triage aims to ensure patients who require appointments most urgently are seen as soon as possible, while those who may not benefit from a Consultant appointment are returned to the GP with advice and guidance; and Discharge Patient Initiated Review aims to avoid unnecessary return appointments, again supporting access for those patient who need to be seen in a timely manner.

The Scottish Government has not made an assessment of the revenue levels generated by Police Scotland, through the activities of its International Development and Innovation Unit, as the management of all financial matters in relation to Police Scotland, is the responsibility of the Scottish Police Authority.

Our priority remains keeping children, young people and school staff safe. The guidance on reducing COVID risks in schools, has been updated and was published on 15 September. It is in line with current advice from the COVID-19 Advisory Sub-Group on Education and Children’s issues. The sub-group keeps the mitigations in schools and Early Learning and Childcare settings under constant review, and will consider the issue of parental attendance at school sporting events at its next meeting on 21 September.

Scottish citizens, who have had their first dose of the COVID-19 vaccine out with Scotland, and 8 or more weeks have past, will be able to receive their second dose of the COVID-19 vaccine in any of our available vaccination centres.

We have made the vaccine as accessible as possible such as having drop in clinics are available throughout mainland Scotland and also the option to phone the national COVID-19 Vaccination helpline on 0800 030 8013.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-02795 on 21 September 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 .