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Officials wrote to NHS Dumfries and Galloway on 7 July 2020 requesting information about plans to reopen Acorn House after its temporary closure due to Covid-19, and what alternative support would be available in the area if the facility was to close permanently. This request was to inform responses to letters from a parent and from Joan McAlpine MSP who raised concerns on behalf of a number of constituents.

NHS Dumfries and Galloway’s reply (14 July 2020) explained that there had not been a decision to close services at Acorn House. It confirmed services were suspended on 20 March 2020, due to the Covid-19 outbreak. Prior to this, a review of Short Break Services had been carried out by Action for Children and a report presented to the Integration Joint Board. An options appraisal process had commenced, but had been suspended due to Covid-19.

NHS Dumfries and Galloway shared a further letter with Scottish Government on 27 July 2020 which had been sent to parents explaining the recovery planning for the short break service at Acorn House. This stated that there are no plans to permanently close Acorn House and the restarting of services at Acorn House would be considered in line with Scottish Government guidance. It also advised that the options appraisal process would recommence with Action for Children when safe to do so; and that parents would be kept informed and have the opportunity to share their views and be involved in the process.

Scottish Ministers wrote to stakeholders, including all Health and Social Care Partnership Chief Officers, Chief Social Work Officers, and Directors of Public Health on 3 August to confirm that, pending updated guidance, all registered stand-alone residential respite services that provide respite/short breaks only, could now reopen where approaches have been first agreed with both local NHS Boards’ Health Protection Teams and the Care Inspectorate, and they have been adapted and risk assessed, in line with existing infection control guidance.

Scottish Ministers considered a number of options to support businesses through the crisis, and took the decision to prioritise support on small and medium sized businesses and businesses in specific sectors, through grants and reliefs. This was to ensure a more efficient use of limited resources and support to as many businesses as possible.

The Scottish Government provides empty property relief to non-domestic premises that are vacant. As with all reliefs the awarding of empty property relief is a matter for each local authority.

Twenty five farmers have had penalties applied to their support scheme payments for removing hedgerows. The level of penalties are calculated in line with the Cross Compliance related regulations which form part of the Common Agricultural Policy.

As I have explained in correspondence with the Member, I support the campaign to give the Lowland Common Ridings and the Riding of the Marches culturally significant status. Such a designation can be bestowed by UNESCO under the convention for the safeguarding of intangible cultural heritage. This will not be possible, however, until the UK Government agrees to sign up to this convention.

On 26 July I announced the funding package of £10 million to help the events sector, including its supply chain, remain in business while restrictions are in place and then as it seeks to recover from the coronavirus pandemic. There is no outstanding request to meet these bodies and in the first instance I would encourage them to contact Event Scotland regarding the £10m support package for Events.

Further details on eligibility and how to apply for the first funding stream will be issued very soon by EventScotland, who publish details of their funding streams at https://www.visitscotland.org/events/funding

We would like to see facilities like gyms, reopen as soon as possible. As it stands the indicative date for the reopening of indoor sport and leisure facilities including gyms is Monday 14 September with physical distancing and enhanced hygiene measures in place. The Scottish Government will continue to review the situation to see if earlier reopening is possible, with the intention to provide a further update on 20 August 2020.

To judge whether and when restrictions can be eased, we consider a range of evidence on the progress of the pandemic in Scotland including what we know about the reproduction rate of the virus and data on the number of infectious cases. As we have taken decisions about what sectors and activities to re-open on our route out of lockdown, we have been guided by the principles set out in our Framework for Decision Making . In particular we have sought to reduce broader health, economic and societal harm, but always with the necessity to suppress the virus. This has led to some difficult timing decisions about how best to balance the various harms. Such decisions are necessarily more complex than simply comparing the viral transmission risk of one sector or setting with another, as broader economic and social impacts and interdependencies are also taken into account.

All sports and activities pose different challenges, which can impact on the timing of resumption of certain disciplines.

As it stands the indicative date for the reopening of indoor sport and leisure facilities including indoor equestrian centres is Monday 14 September with physical distancing and enhanced hygiene measures in place. The Scottish Government will continue to review the situation to see if earlier reopening is possible, with the intention to provide a further update on 20th August 2020.

In collaboration with the sector, the Scottish Government have been developing robust guidance and protocols that will allow necessary preparation for facilities to provide confidence for members and staff to return safely.

An announcement was made on 28 March 2018 of our intention to strengthen the current standards we have in place for fire alarms. This announcement was widely reported in press, television and social media as well as housing and electrical related publications. An informative fact sheet was also made available on our website: https://www.gov.scot/publications/fire-and-smoke-alarms-in-scottish-homes/

A joint awareness raising campaign will be taken forward, coordinated across Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, Scottish Government and the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities to ensure consistency in approach in all local authority areas prior to the standard coming into force on 1 February 2021.

Following a clinical assessment, personal retail services, including Complementary and Alternative Medicine services (CAMs) and massage therapy, were advised that they could resume services as of 22 July 2020, where the service is carried out in a therapist’s own premises (i.e. not a mobile therapist, who provides treatment in a patient’s home), and the close contact retail guidance has been updated to reflect this.

The Scottish Government are undertaking further clinical assessment of the risk of transmission of COVID-19 for mobile massage and CAM services, and are considering whether further guidance is required for these.

In addition to the £350m Communities Fund, including the Third Sector Resilience Fund, the Scottish Government has provided over £2.3 billion of support to businesses through grants and reliefs. The Small Business Support Grant was available for church halls which met the eligibility criteria.

The criteria for the Coronavirus Business Support Grant Scheme was linked to the non-domestic rates system. Church halls were listed as a qualifying purpose and to be eligible, the premises had to be in receipt of the Small Business Bonus Scheme, or eligible for Small Business Bonus Scheme but in receipt of a range of other reliefs, including Charitable Rate Relief.