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NHS territorial and special health boards were advised of their initial allocations for 2016-17 on 26 February 2016.

The NHS senior leaders forum are the Director General for Health and Social Care and Chief Executive of NHS Scotland, directors of the Scottish Government’s Health and Social Care Directorate, NHS Scotland chairs and chief executives, and the chairs of the NHS Scotland medical directors and nurse directors groups. The forum forms part of regular engagement between Scottish Government and NHS boards.

The Scottish Government will distribute the £250 million to health boards via their annual allocations, using the same allocation formula as was used for distribution of the Integrated Care Fund. This approach takes account of funding formulae used for the NHS and local government, using a 1:1 ratio of the National Resource Allocation Committee formula for the NHS and grant aided expenditure formula for local government.

Details of the National Scheduled Care Programme titled "Getting Ahead – sustainable whole system management for elective services" was issued on 25 January 2016 under a Health Directorate Director letter. This can be accessed at the following link: http://www.sehd.scot.nhs.uk/dl/DL(2016)02.pdf.

The National Scheduled Care Programme known as “Getting Ahead – sustainable whole systems management for elective services” has been discussed in detail with the NHS Scotland Chief Operating Officers Group and other informal discussions with a number of NHS boards as well as the British Medical Association.

The Health Directorate Access Support Team will be meeting with all boards to support them in taking forward this work over the next few months.

This is a matter for NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde who are responsible for the planning and provision of local services.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-30038 on 4 March 2016. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/Apps2/Business/PQA/Default.aspx.

The integration joint board Section 95 officer is responsible for the proper administration of its financial affairs. In terms of the living wage commitment, the Section 95 officer must prepare a budget for approval by the integration joint board that includes an allocation to its local authority partner for social care services that is sufficient to meet the cost of the living wage commitments. More generally, the Section 95 officer must provide assurance to the integration joint board that the commitments in relation to social care spending set out in the letter from the Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Constitution and Economy of 27 January have been met.

The sanctions set out in the letter from the Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Finance, Constitution and Economy of 29 January 2016 apply to local authorities.

The £250 million investment will help to alleviate the issue of a two-tiered workforce. Currently care workers employed by local authorities are already paid the living wage. This additional investment will help enable councils to support the joint aspiration for care workers, including in the independent and third sectors, to be paid £8.25 an hour.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-30141 on 26 February 2016. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.