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COSLA recommended that a “non-legally committed” scheme is defined, for this purpose, as a scheme that has not been notified under schedule 2 of the Flood Risk Management (Scotland) Act 2009. This did not mean that current contracts should be immediately stopped but they should be paused at an appropriate time, where practicable, for example when a key project milestone is reached. Local authorities should not begin the notification process for Cycle 1 schemes if they have not already done so.

We know this is a difficult time for travel agents and we have had to make tough decisions to target funding to sectors immediately impacted by the updated public health guidance.

Since the start of the pandemic, businesses have benefitted from more than £4.4bn in support from the Scottish Government. This includes support for travel agents who benefited from sectoral grants of up to £25,000 per premises this year in addition to other support including the Strategic Framework Business Fund grants, Restart Grants, Contingency Fund, Non-Domestic Rates relief and furlough payments for staff.

We recently announced £375m of support for businesses impacted by the necessary public health measures introduced to control the spread of Omicron and have provided details on how £276 million of this will be allocated. Decisions on the allocation of the remaining funds will be confirmed following further consultation with affected sectors on how it can best be targeted.

Through our Programme for Government commitments we are already reflecting the aims of the European Stroke Organisation’s Stroke Action Plan for Europe.

In particular the ESO’s target that 90% of all patients with stroke in Europe should be treated in a stroke unit as the first level of care is already reflected within the Scottish Stroke Care Standards (Access to Stroke Unit - 90% within 1 day of admission).

The ESO also recommends ‘national plans for stroke encompassing the entire chain of care’. We already have a national plan on stroke - the Stroke Improvement Plan - which we are in the process of refreshing. To do so, we are developing a progressive stroke pathway document which will set out our vision for what stroke services across Scotland should deliver across the entire patient pathway. Following this, a refreshed improvement plan will support its delivery.

Further to the answer given to question S6W-04701 I can confirm that the team of reviewers in NHS Lothian were made up of clinical staff at consultant and senior nurse level who are all suitably qualified in their fields and span across various disciplines including Haematology, Microbiology, Infection Prevention and Control and Critical Care.

The Treatment Time Guarantee already outlines that after a diagnosis is determined and treatment agreed, each health board must ensure that patients receive inpatient and day case treatment within 12 weeks. This applies to all treatments and services apart from fertility treatment, obstetrics services, organ and tissue transplantation, direct referrals to Allied Health Professionals, dental treatment provided by undergraduate dental students, direct access referrals to diagnostic services, and mental health services.

The current unprecedented pressures on the NHS means that Health Boards are not currently able to reinstate services to such a degree as to be in a position to meet the existing waiting times standards and targets, which is why we published the NHS Recovery Plan. This includes a focus on providing alternative pathways of care that will allow people to be treated more quickly closer to home, delivering long term sustainability.

At this time, the Scottish Government has no plans to develop any further waiting time targets for cardiovascular disease.

Further to the answer given to question S6W-04701 I can confirm that the Case Note review carried out by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde along with the report of the peer review undertaken by NHS Lothian have both now been shared with Mrs Slorance.

The Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN) guidelines on stroke have been withdrawn due to being over 10 years old. SIGN therefore recommend that healthcare professionals look to other up-to-date evidence-based guidelines to inform practice. A good source is the National Institute of Health and Care Excellence (NICE) evidence search that includes trusted sources from a wide range of organisations: https://www.evidence.nhs.uk/

It has been agreed that a four nations approach will be taken to update the Royal College of Physicians Guidelines for Stroke (2016). SIGN is involved in the development process so that the revised guideline will be a collaborative national guideline which will be applicable for use in Scotland.

The Scottish Cardiac Audit Programme, within Public Health Scotland, have been actively seeking data submissions from all sites across Scotland that previously contributed to the UK National Cardiac Audit Programme, managed by the National Institute for Cardiovascular Outcomes Research (NICOR). This includes sites which carry out TAVI procedures.

Scottish participation in the UK National Cardiac Audit Programme (NCAP), managed by the National Institute for Cardiovascular Outcomes Research (NICOR), was previously enabled through the Healthcare Quality Improvement Partnership (HQIP).

The Scottish Government had been working with HQIP since November 2018 to identify a mutually agreeable legal basis that would support Scotland’s continued participation in a number of UK wide audits, including the NCAP programme. It was not possible to identify one and as a result, throughout 2020/21 there was a phased withdrawal of Scottish Government participation in HQIP associated audits as an appropriate point was reached in each.

As replacement for the NCAP, in April 2021 we commissioned Public Health Scotland (PHS) to develop the Scottish Cardiac Audit Programme. PHS have been actively seeking data submissions from all sites across Scotland which previously contributed to the NCAP.

PHS are currently working with clinicians and patients across Scotland to undertake further development of the audit programme.

The Scottish Stroke Care Audit (SSCA) already measures quality of care of Stroke Services in Scotland against the Scottish Stroke Care Standards. Health Boards are provided with reports on a monthly basis. Performance is monitored locally and nationally and actions agreed to improve delivery of stroke care in Scotland. The most recent annual report can be found here: Scottish stroke improvement programme 2021 national report - Scottish stroke improvement programme - Publications - Public Health Scotland

This is similar to the aims of the Sentinel Stroke National Audit Programme (SSNAP) which measures the quality and organisation of stroke care in the NHS across England, Wales, and Northern Ireland.