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As outlined in my response to S6W-27647 on 31 May 2024, and in my recent letter to Ms Gosal, I would welcome the opportunity to meet with you to discuss further alongside your policy paper which outlines this particular ask. 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 .

As outlined in my response to S6W-27647 on 31 May 2024, and in my recent letter to Ms Gosal, I would welcome the opportunity to meet with you to discuss further alongside your policy paper which outlines this particular ask.

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 monitoring and evaluation plan is being developed by Public Health Scotland (PHS). The first stage of this is for PHS to develop key indicators for monitoring progress. These are currently being drafted and PHS will be consulting on them shortly. Following this there will be further work to identify gaps in monitoring progress and address these. The finalised plan is expected to be published by the end of the financial year.

A new PHS-led blood borne virus and sexually transmitted infection dashboard is also scheduled for launch in 2024-25 which will help to monitor progress on elimination at national and NHS board level.

The Scottish Government has no immediate plans to expand emergency department opt-out blood borne virus testing beyond the current three-month pilots. It is important that decisions about any further expansion are based on the best available evidence.

A review will be undertaken once all three areas have completed their pilot projects and local evaluations later this summer. However, decisions about further interventions will also be informed by the findings of a Scottish Government-funded research project aimed at identifying optimal approaches to testing to reduce undiagnosed blood borne viruses, which are expected in spring 2025.

An open bidding process was issued in 2023 for projects to support delivery of the Scottish Government’s sexual health and blood borne virus goals. The successful projects were published alongside the Sexual Health and Blood Borne Virus Action Plan and include a number of local initiatives which contribute to the aims of the HIV Transmission Elimination (HIVTE) Delivery Plan. Further funding for some actions within the HIVTE plan is still to be finalised.

Every action is being taken to facilitate an early decision on this funding, following which officials will be in contact with stakeholders.

The Armed Forces Pension Scheme and benefits including the War Pension Scheme are wholly reserved to the UK Government and are assessed and administered by Veterans UK on behalf of the Ministry of Defence. The Scottish Government is therefore unable to intervene on those matters. Nevertheless, the Scottish Government has previously been made aware of people experiencing issues with their pensions and Scottish Ministers wrote to former Ministers for Defence People and Veterans at the Ministry of Defence in 2021 and 2022 highlighting this. I will raise this again at my next meeting with the UK Minister for Veterans Affairs.

Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) do not undertake any road upgrades, or build new roads, for the purpose of windfarm development. FLS include the right for a windfarm developer to upgrade roads or build new roads, at their expense, within a lease agreement. FLS will only enter into a lease and permit civil engineering works relating to windfarm construction once the development has received planning approval.

Publication of the independent review focused on increasing the number of social enterprises, employee-owned businesses and co-operatives in Scotland has now been delayed due to the UK General Election announcement. A new publication timescale will be confirmed in due course.

None of the benefits delivered by Social Security Scotland are directly means tested although some rely on a reserved UK benefit, such as Universal Credit as a qualifying benefit. In practice this means that armed forces compensation generally does not directly affect Scottish Government social security benefits. It may affect Funeral Support Payment. If the compensation payment has been issued to the deceased person it may be treated as funds that can cover or help towards funeral costs. This is to ensure that support goes to those who need it most.

Scottish Government officials do engage with The Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) on a range of subjects and in October 2023 raised the issue of war pensions being treated as income for pension credit. This engagement was prompted by Poppyscotland’s Credit their Service campaign. DWP made clear they had no plans to change their current policy, and as this is an area reserved to the UK Government, the Scottish Government is unable to intervene on this issue any further.