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The Scottish Government and NHS recognise the importance of ensuring cervical screening is accessible. Every sample taker is therefore required to undertake training provided by NHS Education for Scotland, and guidance is provided to account for each screening participants needs. This guidance includes making the appropriate adjustments, including those required for disabled women, to ensure that samples can be taken from all eligible women invited for screening. As part of our on-going commitment to providing the best service, in the coming months, the screening programme will explore additional steps to improve the experience for disabled women.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-05521 on 24 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

Transport Scotland has engaged with Transport for Edinburgh and Strathclyde Passenger Transport to try to understand the potential impacts of the introduction of the national free bus scheme on their operations. This work will help to develop a baseline evaluation of the new Scheme, which will be reviewed after its first full year of operation.

There are separate local concessionary schemes run by local authorities or Regional Transport Partnerships that cover other modes of transport. Any decision to extend concessions to these modes rests with them.

The Scottish Government is also working with CoSLA and the Association of Transport Co-ordinating Officers (ATCO) to quantify the overall effects of the introduction of the scheme on wider Local Authority budgets.

It is for Abellio up to 31 March and the new operator ScotRail Trains Ltd from 1 April 2022, to decide what rolling stock it runs and this needs to deliver the required timetable performance and provide capacity to meet changing demand levels. Transport Scotland continues to monitor the capacity provided through the current service operation contract.

Since November 2021, a mix of class 43 HSTs (4 + 5-cars) and class 170 (3-cars) trains has been running between Edinburgh and Aberdeen. From time to time it has been necessary to substitute other types of trains for the planned HSTs due to a variety of operational reasons, including absence due to Covid of the staff trained to operate HSTs.

The process for identifying and designating one or more new National Parks in Scotland will involve a fair and transparent bidding and evaluation process to identify the area or areas which will be put forward to obtain National Park status and allow the statutory process to begin. The Scottish Government remains open minded about the number of areas which will be progressed to National Park designation during the lifetime of this Parliament.

The Heat in Buildings Strategy sets out the Scottish Government’s proposed approach to introducing energy performance standards for all existing buildings. It confirms our intention to introduce regulations from 2025 for private housing to reach a minimum energy performance standard equivalent to EPC C at respective trigger points, where technically feasible and cost-effective to do so - with backstops of 2028 (for the private rented sector) and by 2033 (for owner occupiers).

For mixed-tenure and mixed-use buildings, including tenements, we intend to introduce regulations from 2025 onwards, with an expectation that all of these buildings should meet the standard of a good level of energy efficiency, equivalent to EPC C rating by 2040-45.

For non-domestic buildings, we intend to consult on the regulatory approach in 2022 and introduce regulations by 2025 to require owners to reduce demand for heat through energy efficiency improvements where feasible.

To support the introduction of these proposed regulations, we have set out proposals to reform the metrics underpinning Energy Performance Certificates. As set out in the Heat in Buildings Strategy, we plan to consult on our proposals for regulations during 2022.

This is an option that the Scottish Government has considered in the past, but it was agreed that hotels were not suitable places to provide health and social care. For a facility to operate as a care home in Scotland, it must be registered with the Care Inspectorate. When registering a service, the Care Inspectorate will consider if the premises in which the proposed service will be provided is fit to be used for the intended purpose. In the case of using hotel rooms as care homes, it is likely the case that such premises would not be suitable to meet people's needs in a person centred way. We recently issued £40m for interim care to make use of spare capacity in settings that are able to provide care in this way

We also aim to create additional capacity in the community by scaling up the provision of Hospital at Home services and £500,000 has been specifically invested to support the creation of a Covid remote monitoring pathway which will support people to stay safe at home through the provision of remote monitoring kits and dedicated support teams.

Scottish Government is open minded as to the size of the areas which are put forward as candidate areas for National Park status. Reference to ‘smaller in scale’ in the Bute House Agreement was to dispel any perception that areas nominated would need to be of the same scale as the two existing National Parks.

The Scottish Government meets with health boards on a regular basis to discuss the vaccination programme. Ensuring it is as accessible as possible for everyone is a key priority. As individual requirements are different, anyone who has concerns about access arrangements should contact their local health board to discuss any additional support needs they have so that adjustments can be made to accommodate them.

The NHS Inform website provides a breakdown of support available by local health board, including help finding transport to your vaccination appointment.