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For 2017-18, all Scottish receipts from the 2014 Pharmaceutical Price Regulation Scheme (PPRS) will directly flow into the New Medicines Fund as they have done in previous years. The value of PPRS receipts for 2017-18 has not yet been confirmed.

NHS Boards are allocated funding for the New Medicines Fund by the Scottish Government on the basis that they are required to utilise all of the funding provided over the period 2014-15 to 2018-19 in line with the stated intentions of the Fund.

(a) 2016-17 allocations:

In 2015-16 NHS Boards received £85.0 million of funding from the New Medicines Fund and reported expenditure of £50.3 million. Health Boards are allocated funding on the basis that they are required to utilise all funding provided by the Scottish Government from the New Medicines Fund over the period 2014-15 to 2018-19 in line with the stated intentions of the fund.

(b) The value of 2017-18 allocations will be based on the level of PPRS receipts received.

The development of the Scottish Primary Care Information Resource (SPIRE) began in August 2014. The project has several major deliverables including the development of the SPIRE software, deploying the software to all practices in Scotland and training practices in its use. Training is due to be completed in March 2018, after which the SPIRE project will move into “business as usual”.

Smoking is the leading cause of lung disease in Scotland and smoking rates are highest in our most deprived communities. The action being taken through the Scottish Government's tobacco control strategy - Creating a Tobacco-free Generation - is reducing smoking rates in areas of social deprivation. All NHS Scotland stop-smoking service targets are specifically targeted on smokers from areas of social deprivation. Plans to reduce the incidence of smoking-related lung disease further include: targeted campaigns on the effectiveness and availability of stop-smoking services and the harms of second-hand smoke; and the introduction of offences for smoking around hospital buildings and the move to make prisons tobacco-free.

The Scottish Government's Health and Social Care Delivery Plan, published in December 2016, sets out our aim for Scotland to provide high quality services with a focus on prevention, early intervention and supported self-management. The plan sits alongside our National Clinical Strategy, which evidenced the need to change the way services are delivered in order to continue meet the healthcare needs of our population, setting out the framework for developing health services in Scotland for the next 10-20 years, including people living with lung disease.

These policies will be complimented by the existing work to implement the tobacco control strategy and the development of Respiratory Health: Quality Improvement Plan. We are working closely with the Respiratory National Advisory Group to support local improvement in respiratory diagnosis, treatment and care through the Plan.

I announced in December 2016 that we will be taking forward the recommendations from the review. We are working at pace, in collaboration with stakeholders, including the Scottish Medicines Consortium, NHS Scotland, and the pharmaceutical industry to implement the recommendations as quickly as possible.

I announced in December 2016 that we will be taking forward the recommendations from the review, which includes the establishment of a multi-agency taskforce or equivalent group to consider options for the managed entry of new medicines. We are working at pace, in collaboration with stakeholders, to implement the recommendations as quickly as possible.

The Scottish Government funds the Scottish Centre for Healthy Working Lives, part of NHS Health Scotland, to provide information and advice on workplace health and wellbeing. The Centre, and the network of advisers in territorial NHS Boards, offer free and confidential advice on a wide range of issues relating to health and safety in the workplace. This includes promoting wellbeing in the workplace, managing sickness absence and supporting employees to return to work.

The Centre's advice includes how employers can meet their obligations under the Equality Act and how they can make reasonable adjustments to support employees with long term, limiting health conditions and disabilities.

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-10189 on 2 August 2017. 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

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-10193 on 26 July 2017. 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