Seòmar agus comataidhean

Full details of active travel funding for the next five years has not yet been agreed and will form part of the annual Scottish Government’s Budget process. The Active Travel budget for 2022-23 increased by £35 million to £150 million and the Bute House Agreement committed to increase the proportion of Transport Scotland’s budget spent on Active Travel initiatives so that by 2024-25 at least £320 million or 10% of the total transport budget will be allocated to active travel.

The total number of bikes issued to date is 2857. The bikes include adapted and non-standard bikes to cater for a range of needs.

In addition, fleet bikes delivered by Sustrans Scotland to participating schools, but not given to any individual child, have been used 4448 times.

The following table provides the information on how much was spent on active travel in each of the past five financial years:

The Scottish Government is in regular communication with the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) about the effective maintenance and operation of the prison estate, including at HMP Barlinnie.

SPS have contingency plans in place to respond to issues arising in parts of the Scottish prison estate, including, if necessary, the placement of prisoners in other Scottish prison sites.

The exact locations and the extent of the impact for each individual prison would be reflected in the outcome of a detailed and dynamic risk assessment and resource consideration completed at that time.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-12369 on‎ 2 December 2022. 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

As committed to in Programme for Government 2021-22, work is underway to develop a new earlier cancer diagnosis vision for Scotland which will form part of the new cancer strategy, due to publish Spring 2023. This will outline the future direction of our Detect Cancer Early (DCE) Programme which we continue to invest in.

The Scottish Cancer Coalition, and its Early Diagnosis & Screening Sub-Group, which is Chaired by Pancreatic Cancer UK, have been consulted on the new vision and DCE awareness campaign that’s under development.

DCE’s website and social media channels continue to raise awareness of possible signs and symptoms and empower people to present early – this includes the development of an interactive symptom-checker tool.

An interim report published by the University of Strathclyde on 21 November 2022 shows that one of the most common types of cancer being diagnosed in our first Rapid Cancer Diagnostic Services (RCDS) are hepato-pancreato-biliary (HPB) cancer. We are committed to rolling out RCDS's across NHS Scotland.

A clinical refresh of the Scottish Referral Guidelines for Suspected Cancer was completed in 2018 with revised clinical guidance published January 2019. The guidelines support primary care clinicians in ensuring those with symptoms suspicious of cancer are put on the right pathway at the right time.

The Scottish Government continues to work closely with primary care clinicians across NHS Scotland, including the Scottish Primary Care Cancer Group, to raise awareness of symptoms and best referral practice for all cancer types, including pancreatic.

The timetable process is embedded and set out in both (a) Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Service (CHFS) and (b) Northern Isles Ferry Service (NIFS) contracts and is monitored through the management of these contracts by my officials in Transport Scotland.

Both operators should engage directly with community groups on timetable issues.

There have been no recent discussions between the Scottish Government and Teresa Medhurst, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service regarding apprenticeships in the SPS. The Scottish Prison Service are responsible for the recruitment and development of their workforce including apprenticeships.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-12380 on‎ 2 December 2022. 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