Seòmar agus comataidhean

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-27676 on 8 October 2009. 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.

An additional £3.7 million is being provided to Energy Saving Trust this year to manage the Energy Assistance Package (EAP). This covers costs of providing direct advice and support to clients, costs of liaising with other EAP delivery partners, including data transfers and reporting on outcomes, and national and local marketing.

Details of the funding to the Energy Saving Trust, as managing agent for the Home Insulation Scheme, are provided in the answers to S3W-27661 and S3W-27664 on 8 October 2009. 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 Energy Assistance Package offers a range of services and products to help tackle fuel poverty through improving energy efficiency, reducing fuel bills and maximising incomes. The package is not intended to bring properties up to a benchmark standard of energy efficiency as in the case of the Scottish Housing Quality Standard. The package directs government resources to helping those most likely to be in fuel poverty, targeting enhanced physical measures at those on the lowest incomes living in the least energy efficient homes (sap 38 or below). The sap rating of homes receiving stage four measures to date have increased by an average of 49 points.

The Energy Saving Trust was appointed as managing agent for the Energy Assistance Package and Home Insulation Scheme (HIS) by Scottish ministers by way of grant funding using powers contained in section 153(1) of the Environmental Protection Act 1990, as varied by S.I. 1995/554, which allows the grant funding of named bodies “ including Energy Saving Trust “ for environmental expenditure.

Energy Saving Trust is currently carrying out a procurement exercise to appoint the supplier offering the best deal for HIS customers in a given area. This is an open and competitive process in order to obtain value for money and to reflect EU procurement and regulations.

An exercise to appoint a managing agent for stage 4 of the Energy Assistance Package from 1 April 2010 is currently in progress in accordance with EU procurement and tendering rules.

I refer the member to the answer to question S3W-27669 on 8 October 2009. 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 Energy Assistance Package is a holistic approach to tackling fuel poverty that addresses both the home and householder, and includes services to maximise income, reduce fuel bills and improve energy efficiency. Stage 4 of the package offers a menu of enhanced physical measures to groups most likely to be fuel poor including central heating.

For Energy Assistance Package applicants who had completed Stage 4 by the end of August, the managing agent has indicated that it took an average of 86 days from initial contact with the Energy Saving Scotland advice centre to completed installation of measures. For legacy, central heating programme applicants who received an installation between 6 April and 31 August 2009, it had taken an average of 119 days from application to installation.

The average time for all installations under the central heating programme during 2008-09 was five months (151 days), compared to earlier years that had usually averaged around six months.

We have no plans to limit the number of GPs prescribing to patients in care homes.

Any GP of an individual practice in Scotland, where a patient has their name on the list, is required to prescribe for the patient as appropriate. Should it be deemed necessary for a patient to change practices, it would be for the appropriate health board to take action to ensure the patient is placed on another practice list.

Following publication of the report, all NHS board chairs and chief executives were asked to review the content of the NHS QIS report and ensure the lessons learned were considered in the context of their own NHS board. This was followed up with visits by Scottish Government Health Directorates officials to all boards to review progress against implementation of the Healthcare Associated Infection (HAI) National Action Plan, introduced following the outbreak of Clostridium difficile at the Vale of Leven Hospital last year.

The Scottish Government Health Directorates has also agreed that NHS QIS undertake follow-up visits in December 2009 to assess the progress made by NHS Orkney, NHS Grampian and NHS Highland with implementation of the actions detailed in the report.

Whilst not directly linked to the NHS QIS report, the new Care Environment Inspectorate will be visiting every acute hospital at least once over the next three years and will also undertake unannounced inspections. Their focus will be to reduce the HAI risk to patients through a rigorous inspection framework that will specifically focus on providing assurance to the public, NHS boards and the Scottish Government that patients are as safe as possible from HAIs and their consequences; that HAI standards in NHS acute hospitals are high and that any HAI issues are being tackled effectively.

In accordance with the terms of reference, I expect the inquiry to complete its work within one year of its set up date.

However, the inquiry chairman may seek an extension, if he considers it necessary. Any such request will be given due consideration.

All persons authorised to prescribe antimicrobial agents in healthcare settings, including care homes, are required to adhere to local antimicrobial prescribing policy.