17 SGBs supported activities to accelerate and expand reach with the inactive and under-represented across multiple groups. This included young people, women and girls, older people, disabled people, those living in deprived areas, ethnic minorities communities, and the LGBTI community.

It is not possible to specify how much funding went directly to BAME communities, as these projects targeted multiple groups (including BME-specific groups).

The awards made to the five projects referenced in the Scottish Government Race Equality Action Plan: Year 1 action report are:

• Badminton Scotland – awarded £30,000
• Scottish Athletics – awarded £30,000
• Scottish Gymnastics – awarded £50,000
• Scottish Squash – awarded £27,000
• Tennis Scotland – awarded £20,600

We know that quick and decisive treatment is necessary when patients present with stroke symptoms and that’s why 60% of patients requiring thrombolysis were treated with one hour of arrival at hospital which is a similar rate as seen in the rest of the UK.

We are actively considering how we can increase the pace of improvement across Scotland.

Scottish Government support for the Green Party amendments to the Transport Bill on the Workplace Parking Levy was contingent on the exclusion of hospitals and NHS premises, because of their particular circumstances. The Workplace Parking Levy provisions give wide powers to local authorities to apply local exemptions to reflect local circumstances. It would be for each local authority to determine if there was a need for a workplace parking levy in its area and to determine any additional local exemptions that might apply.

I refer the Member to the answer to question S5W-24309 on 30 July 2019. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx

The Scottish Government jointly launched the Local Governance Review with COSLA to consider how powers are shared across national and local government, and with communities. The Review reflects our shared commitment to Scotland’s different places and diverse communities having a direct say over decisions which affect them.

Talks with opposition parties and COSLA, our local government partners, to identify options for the replacement of the present council tax that would be supported by Parliament are progressing.

The Scottish Government jointly launched the Local Governance Review with COSLA to consider how powers are shared across national and local government, and with communities. The Review reflects our shared commitment to Scotland’s different places and diverse communities having a direct say over decisions which affect them. We are taking a whole system approach. This means looking across Scotland’s public services, and ensuring that measures to empower people and places in different spheres of governance are cohesive and mutually supportive.  

We will shortly be consulting on a new National Transport Strategy for Scotland. Part of the development work for the Strategy, included a review of transport governance which considered arrangements at national, regional and local levels. It is recognised that there is a need for change, in the current arrangements, and that further work is required to determine what a future model or models might be acknowledging that a one-size-fits approach all may not work. This work will commence when the outcomes from the NTS consultation are known.

The Scottish Government are supportive of integrated care systems across health and social care.

That is why work is currently underway through the NES Digital Service (NDS) to develop a National Digital Platform to support the secure and effective flow of people's data across both health and social care. It aims to breakdown traditional integration barriers between for example primary and secondary care, across health board boundaries and between health and social care.

The Programme for Government sets out the actions the Scottish Government will take in the forthcoming year. In the case of the commitments announced by the 2018-19 Programme for Government, these will begin implementation from the 2019/20 financial year onwards. It is too early in our financial reporting processes to record an accurate breakdown of spend at this time.

The Children & Young People’s Mental Health Taskforce was charged with taking forward the 2018/19 Programme for Government (PfG) commitment of developing services to aid community mental wellbeing.

Following the resignation of the Chair in May 2019 due to ill health, a joint announcement from Scottish Government and COSLA on 4 July 2019 advised that the work begun by the Children & Young People’s Mental Health Taskforce would be taken forward by a new programme board – the Children & Young People’s Mental Health and Wellbeing Programme Board. The Board will develop and monitor the delivery of support in the community as set out in the PfG commitment.

The Children & Young People’s Mental Health Taskforce, originally charged with taking forward the 2018/19 Programme for Government (PfG) commitment of developing services to aid community mental wellbeing, counted representatives from the third sector amongst its direct membership. A wider range of third sector expertise was also engaged through involvement in the Taskforce's arm's - length 'working groups'.

The Children & Young People’s Mental Health and Wellbeing Programme Board, who will take forward the work of the Taskforce, will develop and monitor the delivery of support in the community as set out in the PFG commitment. Membership of the Programme Board includes a representative from the Scottish Council for Voluntary Organisations (SCVO) who will represent the interests of all their members.