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We listened closely to small retailers in designing Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme (DRS). Under the DRS Regulations, return-point operators including small retailers will be able to claim a reasonable handling fee from the DRS scheme administrator for each container returned. This fee must cover costs including the rental value of space used to collect or store scheme packaging and will ensure small retailers are not out of pocket for operating a return point.

Retailers will also be able to refuse returns where the quantity of material is disproportionately greater than the volume of containers they would usually sell as part of a single transaction.

We are confident that these protections will ensure that small retailers can successfully operate a return point. Nevertheless, the DRS Regulations do allow a retailer to apply to the Scottish Ministers for an exemption from the obligation to operate a return point where they meet certain criteria. Further information is available at: https://depositreturnscheme.zerowastescotland.org.uk/ .

After suffering a substantial cyberattack in December 2020, SEPA enacted business continuity arrangements and implemented procedures to ensure priority planning and business critical cases were responded to.

SEPA worked with planning authorities and other consulting bodies, providing practical planning advice. By August 2021, SEPA had processed the backlog of cases and to date have responded to 1597 consultations.

The number of patients who have waited over 12 weeks for Trauma and Orthopaedic surgery in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde and NHS Ayrshire and Arran are published by Public Health Scotland (PHS) on a quarterly basis. These details are available on PHS’s website and can be found in table 1.2 through the following link: https://www.publichealthscotland.scot/media/8811/newop_aug21.xlsx

As announced by HM Treasury on 14 November 2016, the Scottish Government's population-based settlement from the UK Government's Apprenticeship Levy was £221 million in 2017-18, £230 million in 2018-19 and £239 million in 2019-20. This funding was allocated as part of the block grant.

From 2020-21 there has been no notional allocation of Apprenticeship Levy revenue included in the block grant and the normal operation of the Barnett Formula has provided a similar outcome. The UK Government collects the Levy and has details on who is liable to pay it and what revenue is accrued, with the Scottish Government not being responsible for this information.

Future allocations from the Apprenticeship Levy will be received as part of the block grant, and we have no advance notice of what this will be.

The winter funding will be used by Health and Social Care Partnerships to fund a range of options to support the timely discharge of patients from hospital. This includes £62 million for enhancing care at home capacity, £20 million to develop multi-disciplinary teams, £40 million for the development of alternative, interim care options and up to £48 million to increase the hourly rate of pay for social care staff.

In addition to this funding, in March 2021 we issued a £20 million Community Living Change Fund to be used during 2021–2024. Funding will be used to redesign services for people with complex needs including intellectual disabilities and autism, and for people who have enduring mental health problems, avoiding the need for out of area placements and reducing delayed discharges from hospital.

The National Services Division (NSD) in NHS National Services Scotland (NSS) have commissioning responsibility for the Scottish Genetic Laboratories. NSD are currently conducting a review of NHS Scotland’s genomics services which will include reviewing the Scottish genomic test directory and genomics infrastructure. The review is expected to be completed by the end of the 2021–2022 financial year.

The outcomes from the review will be considered by the Scottish Genomics Leadership Group, chaired jointly by Professor David Crossman, the Chief Scientist for Health for the Scottish Government, and Susan Buchanan, NSD Director, who are supporting the Scottish Government in ensuring appropriate planning and robust decision-making processes are in place for genetic testing availability in Scotland.

The NHS Recovery Plan, launched on 25 August and backed by over £1 billion of additional investment, strives to recover NHS performance over the 5 years of this Parliament in order to ensure Treatment Time Guarantees and other waiting time standards can be met by every Health Board across Scotland.

Dealing with the direct and indirect impacts of the pandemic has resulted in the most significant challenge in 73 year existence of the NHS.

While it is not possible to anticipate when NHS Scotland will begin meeting the TTG in all instances, we know that it will take time and a series of targeted actions to build back capacity and redesign patient pathways to bring waiting times back within targets.

The Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC) liaises closely with colleagues from National Services Division (NSD) in NHS National Services Scotland (NSS) to share intelligence on emerging new medicines that may require a companion diagnostic test. NSD has commissioning responsibility for the Scottish Genetic Laboratories and is currently conducting a review of NHS Scotland genomics services which includes the Scottish genomic test directory and genomics infrastructure. The review is expected to be complete by the end of March 2022.

The SMC also provides early horizon scanning reports to the Molecular Pathology Evaluation Panel on medicines in clinical development and shares information on the anticipated timelines for these medicines to be granted a marketing authorisation and then be assessed by the SMC. The SMC horizon scanning reports are also supporting ongoing work with NSD, the Scottish Genomics Leadership Group and the Scottish Genetics Laboratory Consortium to understand the laboratory capacity requirements for current and future medicines requiring a companion diagnostic test.

The BSL National Plan Progress Report will be published today in British Sign Language, English and Easyread versions. This Report details the progress made since the Plan was published. I am pleased to report that the majority of the actions in the Plan have been put into effect, and have either been completed, or are ongoing as this Report is published. In almost all areas of public life in Scotland, significant progress has been made in promoting BSL, in making the language better understood and respected, and in improving access to services and support for BSL signers. We will continue to promote and support the use of BSL as one of Scotland’s vibrant indigenous languages.

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Interim Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

The SPS awarded the pre-construction services contract for the HMP Highland project to Balfour Beatty in September 2021.

The SPS are working with Balfour Beatty to further develop the design of HMP Highland, prior to the award of a stage two contract that will deliver the construction element of the project.