Seòmar agus comataidhean

The Road Traffic (Vehicle Emissions) (Fixed Penalty) (Scotland) Regulations 2003 provide local authorities with powers to issue fixed penalty notices to drivers of parked idling vehicles who refuse a reasonable request to switch off their engines. It is for individual local authorities to decide how to make use of their powers. The Scottish Government provides guidance and financial support to assist authorities in undertaking these duties.

The Government's new air quality strategy 'Cleaner Air for Scotland 2 - Towards a Better Place for Everyone', which was published in July 2021, sets out a wide range of measures intended to deliver further air quality improvements over the period to 2026.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-05487 on 21 January 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

NHS National Services Division is establishing a Strategic Network bringing together clinical experts, NHS Boards and lived experience to support the ongoing development, resourcing and implementation of services for people with long COVID. When established, the Strategic Network will have a key role in identifying and ensuring that the £10m long COVID Support Fund is targeted at areas where support is most needed and can make the biggest impact.

We anticipate that the long COVID Support Fund will be allocated and spent over the next three financial years, providing Boards with additional resource to respond in a flexible and tailored manner to the needs of people with long COVID.

For this financial year, 2021-22, total health portfolio funding exceeds £16 billion, with a further £1.9 billion provided to address pressures related to COVID-19. This substantial investment is already benefiting a range of NHS services which are supporting the needs of people living with long COVID.

(a) We would refute the assertion that the planting of non-native tree species is contributing to the biodiversity crisis. In Scotland, over the last 6 years, an average of 40 per cent of all new planting has been of native species, with the rest being productive conifers. Non-native productive tree species in well-designed woodlands can provide a valuable habitat and are an important part of tackling the twin climate and biodiversity crises. Scotland needs to plant both native trees and productive non-native conifers for climate, economic and environmental outcomes.

The current Programme for Government increased the target of new native woodland creation from a minimum of 3,000 hectares per year, to a minimum of 4,000 hectares. This target will be reviewed during development of the next Scottish Biodiversity Strategy which is due to be published in October this year.

(b) Protecting our ancient woodlands is a priority for our biodiversity and forestry strategies. There is no current published evidence to suggest ancient woodland is being lost to non-native tree regeneration. The most significant threat to our ancient woodlands is from selective browsing by deer, which we are tackling as part of the Scottish Government response to the Deer Working Group Report.

The Scottish Government has provided £240m to the culture sector over the pandemic, including £65m to help alleviate the financial pressures that individuals and organisations face following cultural venue closures and event cancellations in light of the Omicron variant.

Cultural organisations employing workers are eligible for the £25m COVID-19 Cancellation Fund for Cultural Organisations, administered by Creative Scotland. We would expect any organisation who applies to the Creative Scotland Cultural Organisations Cancellation Fund would use any money they receive to pay all their workers.

Through local Health and Social Care Partnerships, a wide range of support is provided to people aged under 60 who can no longer be looked after by their families at home due to complex medical issues.

This includes support from GPs and community Multi-Disciplinary Teams including therapists, nurses and social work teams. In some circumstances support from specialists may be necessary to handle specific complex medical issues, however the community team remains the cornerstone of care. Scottish Government recently announced £20 million to strengthen Multi-Disciplinary Teams, to support joint working between health and social care.

Self-directed Support (SDS) is Scotland’s mainstream approach to social care that seeks to give people choice and control over how their care is provided. Health and Social Care Partnerships (HSCPs) are required to ensure that people are offered a range of choices on how they receive their social care support.

Where it is no longer possible for people to remain at home, a wide range of residential options, in homely settings, are available. There is a robust assessment process to ensure that any receiving setting is assessed as a good match and can meet the health and social care needs of individuals.

Each Health Board operates their own policy for the management of risk assessment. This includes well established processes with locally agreed trigger points for maintaining a safe service and ensuring patient safety.

At the time of writing only NHS Lanarkshire is at the highest level of escalation, according to their own escalation framework.

We do not expect local authorities to develop new consultation processes on river catchment management and individual property protection measures.

The Flood Risk Management Act (2009) sets out Scotland’s catchment based approach to Flood Risk Management, including requirements for consultation on measures to reduce flood risk.

To support the implementation of the Act, the Scottish Government produce statutory and non-statutory guidance to help SEPA, local authorities and Scottish Water fulfil their responsibilities.

In 2019, the Scottish Government published the second edition of Delivering Sustainable Flood Risk Management . It includes advice for engaging with individuals, communities and landowners on flood risk, on steps that individuals can take to protect their families, homes and businesses from flooding, and of actions to avoid that can increase flood risk.

Our Living with Flooding Action Plan , also published in 2019 recommends actions for a range of stakeholders to take to help promote property flood resilience in Scotland. We continue to work with the steering group to help implement the actions set out in the plan.

We consider that these documents provide appropriate guidance for consultation on developing environmental considerations and policies.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-05369 on 25 January 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 .

The Scottish Government has not provided additional financial support to local authorities specifically relating to the Covid certification scheme.

We are working closely with Local Authorities, the Health and Safety Executive and Police Scotland to ensure that we are taking a joint approach on the enforcement of regulations and wider workplace health measures. We have committed to £2.9m in funding to support Covid related work carried out by Local Authority Environmental Health and Trading Standards Officers to year end 2021-22. We continue to engage with the Local Authorities to understand how this funding is being used to ensure they have the capacity to support businesses to comply with the regulations and guidance, including the Covid status certification requirements. Local authorities are responsible for prioritising enforcement work within their area, and they are doing so using a risk based and 4 Es approach (Engage, Explain, Encourage and Enforce).

We continue to engage with Local Authorities over this funding, and any potential extensions that may be required.