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The Scottish Government has continued to use its convening power to meet both trade unions and employers to urge continued dialogue and collaboration over a range of workforce issues, including the ongoing pay negotiations. However, the Scottish Government has been absolutely clear that it has no locus to be involved directly in the national bargaining process. This position is in line with the findings of the Lessons Learned report and respects the national collective bargaining framework.

Scottish Government officials have made contact with Northern Ireland and have met with counterparts in England and Wales regarding fetal alcohol spectrum disorder (FASD) policy. We will continue to share learning and consider how these discussions will inform FASD policy in Scotland.

In addition to the links through policy officials relating to FASD, our funded FASD delivery partners are also linked in nationally with other third sector organisations as well as universities and researchers.

The Scottish Government is still awaiting some responses to the Lessons Learned report from partners in the National Collective Bargaining process and is currently considering next steps with respect to the report’s recommendations that are for Scottish Government to progress, particularly in relation to the independent Chair of the National Joint Negotiating Committee (NJNC).

Once all responses have been received from all partners in the National Collective Bargaining process, the Scottish Government will engage with the Education, Children and Young People Committee on those findings.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-22728 on 21 November 2023. 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 Scottish Government keeps its records management plan under review as stipulated in the Public Records (Scotland) Act 2011. It is reviewed annually, or sooner if changes to the law require it.

The Scottish Government keeps its Mobile Messaging Policy under review and updates annually.

The Action Plan reflects on the strong evidence of what we know works and builds on the firm foundations of best practice to reduce delayed discharges and overall hospital occupancy and reasserts the Scottish Government’s commitment to responding to the many challenges that still exist over the coming winter.

On 24-hour delays, while we absolutely need to work to reduce these instances, it is important to emphasize that these figures represent a fraction (0.6%) of all attendances to Emergency Departments in this period. The patients experiencing these waits will, in the main, be those who require admission and are waiting for a bed in a ward. They will have been triaged and seen by a doctor.

The Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC) continues to provide early information - on an in confidence basis - to Health Boards on medicines in clinical development that are expected to require a companion diagnostic through regular horizon scanning reports.

As part of the Scottish Strategic Network for Genomic Medicine (SSNGM), the Scottish Genomic Testing Advisory Group (SG-TAG) for cancer is now live, and has successfully carried out a review of a new genomic testing pathway for biliary tract cancer which was approved for implementation. This cancer pathway includes diagnostic and prognostic targets, and also targets for SMC approved medicines. The equivalent group for Rare and Inherited Conditions is due to launch next month. Both groups will include a process for considering the laboratory genomics delivery model as well as the cost of the genomic testing pathway for SMC approved medicines.

The independent research which aims to examine the impact and scale of vigils and protests which take place outside of healthcare settings providing abortion services is ongoing.

The research was commissioned by the former Ministerial-led working group on safe access zones in 2022, and a final report is due in 2024. In the interim the Scottish Government will publish a literature review, which has been prepared as part of this research, before the end of 2023. In addition to this, a year 1 report which outlines the work that has been undertaken to date will be submitted to the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee as part of the call for evidence for the Abortion Services (Safe Access Zones) (Scotland) Bill.

Due to the nature of the eligibility criteria, the number of households eligible to apply for the scheme varies according to the number of households in receipt of the relevant social security benefits at any given time. However analysis of the eligibility criteria in December 2022 estimated that a total of 208,000 households were eligible to receive support at that time. Analysis of the current eligibility criteria for phase 2 of WHS estimates that around 433,000 households will be eligible.

The following table shows the number of households who have received support each financial year in phase 1 of Warmer Homes Scotland.

There have been no disciplinary cases against Scottish Government employees as a result of a failure to ensure that the records for which they are responsible are complete and accurate.