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The Scottish Government continues to monitor the transmission of Covid-19, including in retail settings. In light of the transmission rate of the new variant of COVID-19 we have taken steps to strengthen our guidance on the operation of retail settings.

Under Regulations, supermarkets must take all reasonable measures to ensure that a distance of two metres is maintained between any persons on the premises, with the exception of those within the same household or a carer assisting another person. They must also take all reasonable measures to ensure that it only admits people to its premises in sufficiently small numbers to make it possible to maintain that distance. This includes those queueing awaiting entry to the premises.

We are aware that a number of supermarkets already base their footfall on 3-metre distancing and have introduced additional protective measures such as the use of Perspex screens to protect staff and customers.

We will continue to work with sector leads to protect workers and customers in retail settings as we monitor the transmission risks associated with the new variant of the virus and, if appropriate, will amend the guidance and Regulations currently in place.

Scottish Government has produced detail sector guidance for retail which covers procedures for staff and customer safety. This guidance emphasises the need to assess risk for your business and has an operations checklist with actions for retailers, for example related to physical distancing, cleaning and staff support. By following this operational guide and checklist, this will ensure that retailers have made minimum provisions for the health and safety for their staff and customers.

Further detailed guidance in relation to food business operators can be found from Food Standards Scotland . This guide can help food business in identifying and implementing measures needed to prevent the spread of COVID-19 across their operations. To accompany this guidance, Food Standards Scotland have developed a risk assessment tool and checklist which identifies the key areas that need to be addressed to provide a safe environment for staff and customers in preventing the spread of COVID-19.

The Scottish Government recommend that to keep the workplace clean and prevent transmission, frequent, for example at least twice a day, cleaning and sanitising ( with appropriate products ) work areas and equipment between uses. Ensure regular detergent cleaning schedules and procedures are in place using a product which is active against bacteria and viruses. Regular cleaning schedules is also emphasised in the Scottish Government sector guidance for retail ensuring at least twice daily cleaning of commonly touched objects and surfaces. The Food Standards Scotland guidance for food business operators also provides clear guidance on implementing effective cleaning and disinfection and advice on appropriate chemicals that can be used.

To determine the appropriate cleaning regime, The Health and Safety Executive suggests undertaking a risk assessment to manage risk and decide how best to work safely and protect people during COVID-19.

I refer the member to the answer to S5W-33876 on 11 January 2021. 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 .

Public Health Scotland first published an analysis of the variation in outcomes by ethnic group among those tested positive for COVID-19 on 20 May. Updates using more complete data on ethnicity were published on 15 July, 12 August and 2 December. The analysis focussed on the risk of a more serious outcome due to COVID-19, requiring hospitalisation, admission to a critical care unit care or dying.

The ethnicity analysis in the PHS reports does not include specific information on testing or deaths as this information is not held centrally. The latest report re-enforced earlier findings, that there was evidence of increased risks of serious illness due to COVID-19 in those of South Asian origin, particularly in relation to those needing critical care or dying following a positive test.

The PHS report from 2nd Dec shows that South Asian ethnic groups (Pakistani, Indian and Bangladeshi) accounted for nearly 2% of patients (among those that tested positive for COVID-19), similar to the proportion of the population recorded at the last census. It also notes that among South Asians, the increased risk of hospitalisation or death was particularly evident among the Pakistani group, based on 94 cases.

The report also shows that when the analysis is restricted to COVID-19 patients with the most severe outcomes, i.e. admission to a critical care unit (ICU or HDU) or death, the increased rate of severe disease among the South Asian ethnic group was seen most markedly within the Pakistani ethnic group.

The latest report is available here: https://beta.isdscotland.org/find-publications-and-data/population-health/covid-19/covid-19-statistical-report/2-december-2020/

Detailed tables showing a breakdown of all ethnic minority groups accompany the report, and are available from the PHS website here: https://beta.isdscotland.org/media/6736/ethnicity-tables.xlsx

National Records of Scotland (NRS) also published a report on 8th July which showed that there were 23 deaths amongst the “Pakistani, Pakistani Scottish or Pakistani British” ethnicity category where Covid-19 was written on the death certificate, either as a suspected or probable contributing factor in the death. The report is available here:

https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/files//statistics/covid19/ethnicity-deceased-covid-19-june20.pdf

Subsequent analysis published by NRS in November reiterated the elevated risk to people in the South Asian group from COVID-19, and this is available on the NRS ‘ethnicity of the deceased person’ webpage here:

https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/statistics-and-data/statistics/statistics-by-theme/vital-events/deaths/deaths-background-information/ethnicity-of-the-deceased-person

The Scottish Government is fully committed to supporting ophthalmology services across Scotland and the management of waiting times and delays to eye care treatment.

The Scottish Government has made available £3 million of additional funding to NHS Boards in the current financial year to support community optometrists to manage the care of some hospital patients with eye conditions. This will ensure that more patients can safely receive the care they require. An additional £4.5 million capital funding has been provided to NHS Boards to support the upgrade of imaging and examination equipment.

Through work to reduce waiting times and delays, patients are being risk stratified on a continual basis ensuring that those patients with sight-threatening conditions are given priority. Where possible, patients are being managed remotely where using Attend Anywhere/Near Me software, and telephone calls. These virtual clinics are also being used to safely manage patients who require assessments through automated examinations with the results are reviewed by medical teams.

Finally, NHS Golden Jubilee opened their new cataract treatment centre in December and additional staff are being recruited to support this.

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-33690 on 7 January 2021. This answer provides detail of what initiatives are being put in place to support Ophthalmology across NHS Scotland.

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 is not currently considering ‘health passports’ to verify negative tests and vaccine, or mobilising mass testing to allow the safe return of spectators to football stadia. In addition to ethical considerations, there are practical issues with any such approach.

Scotland's Strategic Framework published on 23 October 2020 permits limited numbers of spectators at stadia events in local authorities with protection level 1 or level 0 restrictions. Our priority remains supressing the virus and safeguarding lives – and that remains the best way to get supporters back into grounds and to allow other activities to resume.

Information on cases of hospital onset of COVID-19 is published weekly by National Services Scotland, ARHAI (Antimicrobial Resistance Hospital Acquired Infection). Reports are published here:

https://beta.isdscotland.org/find-publications-and-data/population-health/covid-19/

The agreed nosocomial case definition for the UK is based on the number of days since admission to an NHS health board to the date of specimen sampling for a positive SARS-CoV-2 RT-PCR test. Time since admission to specimen sampling is categorised as probable hospital onset where the first positive specimen is on days 8 to 14 of admission to NHS board and definite hospital onset where the first positive specimen date was 15 or more days after admission to NHS board.

I refer the member to the response provided for S5W-34041 on 23 December 2020, which sets out planning considerations for UEFA EURO 2020 at Hampden in June and July 2021. Regarding health or immunity passports, there are not something that the Scottish Government is contemplating at this stage. In addition to ethical considerations, there are practical issues with any such approach - we do not yet know the extent to which vaccination prevents transmission of Covid and we cannot be sure that, just because someone has been vaccinated, they cannot pass Covid on to somebody else.

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
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