Questions and answers

Question reference: S6W-09052

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 10 June 2022
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 21 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports of patients at abortion clinics in the Central Belt being harassed at these premises, whether it is monitoring activity at hospitals and clinics across the country, and whether instances of intimidation have occurred elsewhere in Scotland.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that women can access abortion services safely and without fear of intimidation or harassment.

The Scottish Government is commissioning independent research which will provide evidence of protests and vigils. Gillian Mackay MSP has launched a consultation on buffer zones, and the Scottish Government asks anyone with an interest to respond.

We also continue to encourage hospitals and clinics to report protests and vigils as they happen to Police Scotland to ensure they are dealt with in an appropriate manner.

Question reference: S6O-01183

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 June 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 8 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how its cross-government COVID recovery policies can reassure clinically vulnerable members of the public.

Question reference: S6W-08570

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 May 2022
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 1 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on any ongoing works that are currently in process to progress the dualling of the A96 (a) in general and (b) in relation to the section that will create the Nairn bypass.

The Scottish Government remains committed to the north and east of Scotland, including improving the A96 corridor and will take forward an enhancements programme that improves connectivity between surrounding towns, tackles congestion and addresses safety and environmental issues.

The current plan is to fully dual the A96 route between Inverness and Aberdeen, however the Scottish Government has agreed to conduct a transparent, evidence-based review of the programme which is already underway and will report by the end of 2022. Effective stakeholder and public engagement is an essential part of the review and an initial public consultation survey was launched on 12 May 2022.

The A96 Dualling Inverness to Nairn (including Nairn Bypass) scheme, which runs from Inverness to Hardmuir, is separate from the wider A96 corridor review process which is currently being undertaken and we continue to progress the preparation stages of the scheme with a view to completing the statutory process.

Delivery of the scheme can only commence if approved under the relevant statutory procedures and thereafter a timetable for progress can be set in line with available budgets.

Question reference: S6O-01173

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 May 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 1 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what work it is doing to ensure that young people are educated on the issue of sexual consent.

Question reference: S6O-01136

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 May 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 26 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding the potential impact on Scotland of the UK Government’s reported plans to unilaterally change the Northern Ireland Protocol.

Question reference: S6W-08096

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 April 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 18 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to address reported social worker shortages in specialist (a) adult and (b) paediatric cystic fibrosis centres.

Due to the variable management required, much of the treatment required by Cystic Fibrosis (CF) patients is specialist and tailored to the needs of the individual patient. The Scottish Government therefore expects NHS Boards to treat CF patients according to individual need, this includes ensuring clinical psychologist and social work input when required.

Whilst the Scottish Government set out the wider policy within which NHS Scotland is expected to deliver services, we expect all NHS Boards to provide high quality care that is safe, effective and person-centred. This is a matter for NHS Boards locally. The information requested is not held centrally.

The Scottish Government is committed to working to improve outcomes for people with rare conditions, including Cystic Fibrosis. We are developing an Scottish Action Plan for Rare Disease based on the four priorities of the UK Rare Disease Framework: faster diagnoses, increased awareness, better care co-ordination, and access to specialist treatments and care.

Question reference: S6W-08229

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 April 2022
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 10 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to ensure that sexual harassment is treated as a health and safety concern.

The Scottish Government is clear that there is no place for harassment or abuse in any form in the workplace and that everyone has the right to go to work without fear of intimidation. All employers have a duty of care to protect the health, safety and welfare of their workers.

Health and Safety legislation, as well as Equality Law and Employment Law, is reserved to the UK Parliament. Only with the devolution of further powers will the Scottish Government have the full set of levers to take real action on workplace injustices.

Not with-standing that we recognise the important role Scottish Government has in promoting Fair Work policy and actions to make workplaces fairer and more inclusive. We encourage all employers to have in place robust workplace policies for handling issues such as bullying or harassment.

As part of our Equally Safe strategy, we are providing over £330,000 in funding to Close the Gap to develop “Equally Safe at Work”, the first accreditation programme to focus on gender equality at work. This funding will allow for the expansion of Equally Safe at Work into additional local councils.

The programme is also being piloted in the NHS, third sector organisations and the Scottish Government. The programme address themes such as leadership, data and workplace culture and supports organisations to improve employment practice, advance gender equality and prevent violence against women.

Question reference: S6W-08332

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 May 2022
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 6 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how much financial assistance has been provided through the Rural Tourism Infrastructure Fund to date, broken down by local authority.

Since its inception, the Rural Tourism Infrastructure Fund (RTIF), which was established to support critical infrastructure at rural pinch points, has provided £14.5 million of grant funding to support development of facilities such as car parks, waste disposal and toilet provision.

The fund has supported 66 projects across 15 local authorities and both national parks. A full list of successful applicants and projects are published online: Rural Development Fund - Funding | VisitScotland.org

RURAL TOURISM INFRASTRUCTURE FUND
RURAL TOURISM INFRASTRUCTURE FUND
	ROUND 1 - 4 TOTALS
APPLICANT	STAGE 2 APP No.	Total RTIF APP	% of Total
LOCH LOMOND & TROSSACHS NPA	3	796,500	5.61
CNPA	2	244,098	1.72
HIGHLAND COUNCIL	29	5,373,269	37.82
ARGYLL & BUTE COUNCIL	6	1,454,327	10.24
ABERDEENSHIRE COUNCIL	4	1,089,549	7.67
SHETLAND IS COUNCIL	3	792,960	5.58
STIRLING COUNCIL	2	573,183	4.03
CLACKMANNANSHIRE COUNCIL	1	141,768	1.00
COMHAIRLE NAN EILEAN SIAR	1	230,000	1.62
DUMF & GLLWY COUNCIL	2	283,000	1.99
FIFE COUNCIL	1	380,000	2.67
EAST LOTHIAN COUNCIL	2	412,830	2.91
ORKNEY IS COUNCIL	1	260,000	1.83
PERTH & KINROSS COUNCIL	3	918,601	6.47
MORAY COUNCIL	2	426,565	3.00
EDINBURGH CITY COUNCIL	2	564,734	3.98
SCOTTISH BORDERS COUNCIL	1	93,403	0.66
WEST LOTHIAN	1	171,420	1.21
TOTALS	66	14,206,207	100
AVERAGE		215,246

* Figures as of March 2022. Not including figures for the Design grants in Rounds 3 & 4 for projects which were ultimately unsuccessful or did not submit a full application

In addition to this £14.5m, preceding RTIF, there were three pilot projects designed to test the fund’s concept. These comprised: The Stones of Stenness (£80,000); Neist Point (£100,000) and the Fairy Pools (£340,000)

Question reference: S6T-00680

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 May 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 3 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the potential impact on households and businesses in Scotland of the National Grid’s locational pricing system, in light of Scottish Renewables' reported assessment that Transmission Network Use of System charges make projects in Scotland almost 20% more expensive than equivalent projects in the south of England.

Question reference: S6W-07793

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 04 April 2022
Current Status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 25 April 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether ministers have visited the Penumbra Edinburgh Crisis Centre, and whether it has any plans to support similar services being established across Scotland to bridge the gap between emergency and community mental health care.

The integration of care across emergency and community mental health services is vital to ensure that anyone in crisis receives continuous, compassionate care.

At the end of last year, the Government appointed the former chief executive of Penumbra, Nigel Henderson, as National Lead for suicidal crisis responses, with responsibility for driving forward the National Suicide Prevention Leadership Group (NSPLG)’s recommendations on suicidal crisis responses. The NSPLG’s recommendations did not prescribe a fixed model for crisis support, but highlighted the need for people in crisis to receive Time, Space and Compassion wherever they present – be that in statutory services, front line services, and across our communities.

In taking forward this work, the National Lead has established an action group, which includes a range of statutory and third sector partners, including Penumbra; he is also engaging with statutory partners and communities. This engagement is focussed on identifying models of good practice (including pathways between services), that reflect the diversity of people and places in Scotland, This learning will inform a Scotland wide programme to further embed compassionate crisis responses right across our communities.

The Edinburgh crisis centre is an example of an established crisis support service. There are other community based services, such as the recently established Neuk in Perth. A Ministerial visit has not taken place to either service, however good engagement is happening at official level to ensure learning is shared.

Finally, the Government’s national Distress Brief Intervention programme is a world-leading example where compassionate support is provided for people in distress within their communities; with direct referrals from emergency services, where appropriate. The Government’s investment in alternatives to emergency care will also ensure that every GP practice has access to a mental health and wellbeing service by 2026, with 1,000 additional roles.

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