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In Spring 2017 we will begin engagement with stakeholders regarding possible content of a future Suicide Prevention Strategy or Action Plan. This engagement will build on the engagement we undertook on the forthcoming Mental Health Strategy, and on engagement already undertaken with stakeholders e.g. in academia, in the NHS and in the Third Sector who have a specific interest in suicide prevention. We aim to publish a new Suicide Prevention Strategy or Action Plan in late 2017 or early 2018.

In the meantime, whilst the timeframe of the existing Suicide Prevention Strategy (2013-16) has passed, its key themes (e.g. improving responses to distress; improving the NHS response to suicide; talking about suicide; and developing the evidence base) remain pertinent to continuing efforts to reduce the suicide rate; we will continue to work with stakeholders to implement the commitments under these themes.

The details of the consultation have yet to be finalised but it is anticipated that views will be sought on extending the powers to practitioners other than psychologists and the need for new legislation. It would be inappropriate at this stage to comment or the likelihood or not of new legislation.

The Staff Governance Standard for NHSScotland commits all Boards to providing a continuously improving and safe working environment promoting the health and wellbeing of staff, patients and the wider community. The welfare of NHS staff is critically important with every health board is required to have policies in place to comply with national policies on managing health at work which includes mental health and wellbeing. Through monitoring arrangements, we are ensuring that Boards have policies and actions in place to support staff.

There are programmes specifically targeted at workplace settings include Mental Health at Work and Work Positive are provided where workplaces sign up to these programmes.

Between April 2016 to November 2016, Mentally Healthy Workplace (MHW) one day courses were delivered to 418 people and 221 businesses; prior to participants attending these specific courses, they are encouraged to complete an online course which employers are also encouraged to promote as part of their wider mental health awareness activities – between April and November 2016 (which is the first year this online course has been actively promoted to employers), 7921 people have accessed this online resource.

In addition, there has been Mentally Healthy Workplace Training for Trainers (T4T) courses to 34 trainers and 16 businesses which qualifies those attending to deliver the MHW course at a local or business level. Work Positive courses were delivered to 113 people/80 businesses to allow them to use the Work Positive resource in their businesses and identify the work related issues that are causing stress to staff.

The Scottish Government provides £1 million per year, along with £0.5million from Comic Relief, to fund the See Me, Scotland’s national programme to end the stigma and discrimination that can be associated with mental illness. See Me delivers the See Me in Work Programme to support and enable workplaces in Scotland to address mental health stigma and discrimination. The See Me in Work Programme encourages employers to create a mentally friendly workplace where staff feel safe and able to talk openly about mental health and support employees experiencing mental health issues to access their rights.

The Scottish Government also provides funding to NHS Health Scotland to provide programmes specifically targeted at workplace settings include Mental Health at Work and Work Positive. Workplaces sign up to these programmes. Between April 2016 to November 2016, Mentally Healthy Workplace (MHW) one day courses were delivered to 418 people and 221 businesses. Prior to attending these specific courses, participants are encouraged to complete an online course which employers are also encouraged to promote as part of their wider mental health awareness activities. Between April and November 2016 (which is the first year this online course has been actively promoted to employers), 7921 people have accessed this online resource. In addition, there has been Mentally Healthy Workplace Training for Trainers (T4T) courses to 34 trainers and 16 businesses which qualifies those attending to deliver the MHW course at a local or business level. Work Positive courses were delivered to 113 people / 80 businesses to allow them to use the Work Positive resource in their businesses and identify the work related issues that are causing stress to staff.

NHS Health Scotland allocation from the Scottish Government for the provision of mental health at work programmes was £35,825 for 2016-17 and this covers the costs for materials and Training for Trainers courses. Information on the future allocation is not available.

The welfare of NHS staff is critically important with every health board required to have policies in place and to comply with national policies on managing health at work. This includes all aspects of health and wellbeing such as addressing workplace stress. The policy, which is currently subject to review to ensure it remains fit for purpose, also provides guidance to support Health Boards in their local evaluation of the policy.

Through our new approach to staff experience we are taking action on health and wellbeing issues that matter to staff. Our work with the iMatter Staff Experience Continuous Improvement Model, which is currently being rolled out across NHSScotland provides a team-based tool for measuring employee engagement levels, and putting in place an action plan to deliver improvements. This includes improvement to staff wellbeing while in the workforce, with a number of questions designed to focus attention on any issues relating to individual and team wellbeing.

We are also working with the Health and Safety Executive to pilot continuous improvement approaches to stress within NHSScotland.

The General Teaching Council for Scotland is an independent body responsible for the registration of teachers in Scotland. It is for the General Teaching Council for Scotland to set the registration fee at a level that will allow the range of services it provides to continue.

I had a meeting with the Consul General at the Chinese Consulate on 14 September 2016, during which they discussed the strengthening relationship between Scotland and China. Scottish Government Ministers and officials meet regularly with the Consul General and other Consulate officials in order to further develop Sino-Scottish relations. There are currently no future meetings planned.

The First Minister held a courtesy meeting with Vice President Song Jinwu, Vice President of the China Friendship Association - a branch of the Chinese Ministry for Foreign Affairs - during a visit he made to Scotland on 21 September 2016. Since 20 November 2014, there have been 11 other courtesy meetings which Ministers have held with members of the Chinese administration, including 4 by the First Minister during her visit to China in July 2015. Details of these meetings are described in the answer to the question S4W-27306 on 4 September 2015. In addition, Scottish Government officials based in Scotland and in the Scottish Affairs Office in Beijing, China, have regular courtesy meetings with various Chinese Government organisations, including the Shenzhen Foreign Affairs Office, the Shandong Foreign Affairs Office and the Ministry of Culture.

The Scottish Government condemns human rights abuses wherever they take place. We are committed to engaging with the Chinese Government on human rights – an issue critical to China’s long term prosperity and social stability – as part of our overall engagement. Respect for human rights and the rule of law is one of the four guiding principles that we set out upfront in the Scottish Government’s China Strategy and these underpin all of Scotland’s dealings with China. Where appropriate the Scottish Government will always raise the issue of human rights in meetings.

Before the First Minister’s visit to China in July 2015, she met with officials from Amnesty International and the Scottish Human Rights Commission – an approach which the Scottish Government has taken for previous Ministerial visits to China. In Beijing she delivered a keynote address on equal rights for women, which had been developed to build on the themes she had discussed with Amnesty and the Commission. In the address she outlined why gender equality – as well as being a fundamental issue of human rights - is also one of the great economic opportunities of the 21^st century. The First Minister recognised that like all societies – including Scotland – there is more that China can do. Amnesty International’s Programme Director in Scotland, Naomi McAuliffe, called the speech a “significant statement of support for equality and human rights in Beijing.”

We are committed to improving survival rates from Out of Hospital Cardiac Arrest (OHCA) and are working in partnership with a range of public and voluntary organisations to deliver the aims in Scotland's strategy for OHCA, published in March 2015. The Strategy aims to have 500,000 people in Scotland trained in the use of Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation (CPR) and increase survival rates by 10% across the country by 2020. Learning CPR is important in increasing bystander CPR, which in turn is essential to improving survival rates.

'Save a Life for Scotland' (SALFS) is the public-facing campaign to increase the number of people CPR trained and comprises a partnership of public and voluntary organisations.

Many schools already deliver CPR training and it is for schools and local authorities to decide if and how they want to take this learning forward. A priority for SALFS is working with schools to support CPR education. SALFS aims to link up schools seeking help with those providing CPR training in their area. SALFS have also worked with Education Scotland to create a pack for schools outlining CPR resources available from partner organisations. This will be a central starting point for schools and youth groups seeking CPR training. These resources are available on the Education Scotland GLOW website and via the SALFS website (www.savealife.scot).