Seòmar agus comataidhean

This budget covers the purchase of pandemic influenza vaccine on behalf of NHS Scotland as part of the UK four Nation agreement. Funds that are allocated are based on need with the majority of spend occurring later in the financial year. Final confirmation of spend will be included as part of the Scottish Government provisional outturn.

The majority ofthis budget is directly allocated to Health Boards to support international recruitment and domestic recruitment. All of this budget is earmarked for allocation by financial year end, with £4.5 million of this funding already allocated thus far. A further £0.3m supports other initiatives including refugee doctors and nurses, marketing of NHS Scotland, and employability programmes.

The original published budget for Digital Health and Care was £112.9 million, not £108.729 million. See https://www.gov.scot/publications/scottish-budget-2022-23/pages/5/ . Since the budget was published in December 2021 there has been a Scottish Government wide Emergency Budget Review and the agreed corporate savings from this exercise have resulted in a budget of £99.6 million being allocated to Digital Health and Care in 2022-23.

This budget provides funding for the delivery of ‘ Care in the Digital Age’ , with individual activities as set out in the accompanying Delivery Plan . Funds that are allocated are based on need, and final confirmation of spend will be included as part of the Scottish Government provisional outturn.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-12413 on 9 December 2022. 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’s Chief Scientist Office invests through NHS Research Scotland in research infrastructure in Health Boards that allows them to host and participate in clinical research studies and trials. Health Boards make individual decisions about participating in the trials that are offered to them, subject to the trials that are already being supported within each Health Board, and the research expertise and capacity available to take on additional trials. Scottish Health Boards are continuing to participate in a number of trials of medicines for the prevention or treatment of COVID-19 disease, providing opportunities for their patient populations to enrol in these studies, although none currently include Evusheld. Should a trial sponsor organisation approach Scottish Health Boards about participating in a trial of Evusheld, participation would be considered by Health Boards with participation subject to the research expertise and capacity available.

The breakdown of the information requested is not held centrally the collation of this information would incur disproportionate costs.

The capital budget of £574 million will be allocated in full to NHS Territorial and National Boards and it is expected that the budget by the year end will be fully invested and spent. This will cover basic maintenance, replacement of essential medical equipment, developing the National Treatment Centre Programme, delivering the Baird and ANCHOR centre in Aberdeen, the Parkhead Health and Social Care Centre in the East End of Glasgow and numerous other vital capital projects.

This budget provides funding for the national Childsmile programme as well as wider measures to tackle oral health inequalities in all age groups. Funds that are allocated are based on need, and final confirmation of spend will be included as part of the Scottish Government provisional outturn.

With reference to S6W-12408 on 7 December 2022, no COVID-19 reserves have been recouped to date. Work is on-going, with IJBs, to understand their financial forecasts.

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

With reference to S6W-12070 on 16 November 2022, we continue to work with IJBs to understand their financial forecasts. Therefore, no COVID-19 reserves have been recouped to date.

Further detail will be communicated later in the financial year at an IJB level and the process and timetable will follow through further communications.

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