Seòmar agus comataidhean

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-36648 on 29 April 2025. 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.

In line with the Labour Party Motion, it is for Scottish Enterprise to decide the scope, timescale, and terms of reference of the review. The Scottish Government has remained in close contact with Scottish Enterprise on this work, exchanging relevant advice and views.

Health and safety legislation applies to all employers across the UK without exception and is a reserved matter under the authority of the UK Parliament.

It is an employer’s duty to protect the health, safety and welfare of their staff and where death or injuries at work occur, there are a range of reserved offences which can be used to hold employers to account, if they are found to be criminally liable.

The Health and Safety Executive states one factor that Scotland’s higher workplace death rate is in part due to more workers in high-risk industries.

The Scottish Government promotes workplace health and safety through its Fair Work policy and supports initiatives like Healthy Working Lives, a Public Health Scotland programme offering resources and training to improve workplace wellbeing.

The Scottish Government published the Core Standards for Mental Health to help improve the quality of mental health services. The standards highlight that people, including those in crisis, should have timely access to mental health services, with clear communication about available services and any alternative support if needed.

Health Boards are expected to place significant emphasis on the quality and safety of all clinical environments, particularly those where individuals need to be assessed and may be admitted where a place of safety orders is in force. Responsibility for designating a healthcare facility a Place of Safety should be agreed by local partners and outlined in their Psychiatric Emergency Plan.

The Thistle will undergo a comprehensive, independent evaluation, funded by the National Institute for Health and Care Research and led by a collaboration of academic institutions, including the University of Glasgow, Glasgow Caledonian University, and other expert research partners.

The development of a national pilot to provide free bus travel for people seeking asylum, and who are currently not eligible for existing National Concessionary Travel Schemes, is progressing with the Working Group. This group, which includes third-party representatives, reconvened on 7th May, with the most recent meeting taking place on 11 June.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-38250 on 17 June 2025. 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

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

In the last five years, the SPS has made payments to prisoners to settle cases related to “slopping out”. In the last five financial years, there has been a total of three cases settled relating to “slopping out” which were settled in Financial Year 2020-21. The total cost of these three cases was £12,000. There have been no further cases settled relating to “slopping out” since 2020-21.

The primary driver for introducing a national policy was to achieve a level of consistency and resolve the situation where some NHS Boards were already reimbursing the electricity costs associated with home dialysis, some partially reimbursing and others making no reimbursement at all. The Scotland-wide policy allows for Boards to determine reimbursement rates for home dialysis whilst recommending the standard UK Kidney Association (UKKA) calculator as a basis.

A review of implementation of the national policy found that all Boards had reimbursement policies for eligible patients. The policy requests that Boards proactively identify patients eligible for reimbursement but does not mandate how Boards may manage the reimbursement process; this is a local decision for each Board.

The Scottish Government withdrew the Scottish Good Practice Statement (SGPS) on 28 May 2025, leaving NICE Guideline NG206 as the default clinical guidance on ME/CFS. This will help provide clarity to NHS Boards as providers of care for people in their area with ME/CFS.

Work is ongoing to determine how the additional £4.5 million announced in the 2025-26 budget to deliver new specialist support for ME/CFS, long COVID and other similar conditions will be allocated to NHS boards, what conditions it will cover and the services it will prioritise. We want this money to have maximum impact and are working closely and carefully with boards across Scotland to allocate it as quickly and effectively as possible.