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The Scottish Government continues to prioritise investment in health and social care and to work with health boards to address financial pressures across the system. Investment of over £73 billion over the Resource Spending Review period, and a further £1.3 billion capital investment to 2025-26, will support recovery and redesign of services and delivery of a financially, environmentally and socially sustainable health service.

The upcoming NHS Climate Emergency and Sustainability Strategy calls for Health Boards to focus on energy efficiency measures and the generation of on-site renewable electricity through solar panels and wind turbines. Short and medium term reductions in electricity use will provide reductions in cumulative emissions, i.e. the total emissions resulting from the NHS over the period, as well as limiting energy bills.

The Scottish Government’s Heat in Buildings Strategy sets out that its Green Public Sector Estate Decarbonisation scheme will invest a minimum of £200 million between 2021-2026 in public sector energy efficiency and decarbonisation improvements. Health Boards have successfully applied for funding in the first round of that scheme and will be supported to apply to future rounds as well. Up to £50,000 of pre-capital funding is also available per organisation to carry out measures such as energy audits to inform the development of energy efficiency and transition programmes.

The Scottish Government has not carried out an evaluation of the performance of each NHS Board against Article 26 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

The Scottish Stroke Improvement Programme measures do not formally evidence the aims of Article 26 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Through the Scottish Stroke Improvement Programme we reflect the aims of Article 26 of the Convention, particularly that rehabilitation begin at the earliest possible stage, and is based on the multidisciplinary assessment of individual needs and strengths.

Our Stroke Improvement Plan recognises that rehabilitation is key to improving people’s health and wellbeing. A refreshed Stroke Improvement Plan is in development and will reflect the key elements of a holistic model of stroke rehabilitation including assessment, interventions, evaluation and the rehabilitation infrastructure that supports the provision of coordinated care.

The Scottish Stroke Improvement Programme (SSIP) report published on 28 June contains information on Stroke Improvement Plan (2014) priorities and actions; and can be found here: Scottish stroke improvement programme 2022 national report - Scottish stroke improvement programme - Publications - Public Health Scotland .

Work to develop the establishment of Scottish Cities of Refuge will start later in this Parliamentary term.

The development of Cities of Refuge will align with the approach of our New Scots refugee integration strategy, which sets out the vision of a welcoming Scotland, where people seeking protection are supported to rebuild their lives from the day they arrive.

From March 2020, a series of Temporary Special Leave Measures (specifically through https://www.sehd.scot.nhs.uk/dl/DL(2020)05.pdf and https://www.sehd.scot.nhs.uk/dl/DL(2020)30.pdf )were introduced to both support NHS Colleagues and assist in the prevention of the COVID-19 pandemic from spreading across our NHS Sites.

In particular:

• Since March 2020, NHS Staff who have been absent due to COVID-19 have been paid in full as if they had been at work; and,

• Those absences have not counted towards normal sickness absence triggers for those staff.

As we are now at a different stage in dealing with COVID-19 it was confirmed (on 24 June), and in broad alignment with other UK Nations, that all Temporary Covid Policies (including Special Leave) will be removed ( https://www.sehd.scot.nhs.uk/dl/DL(2022)21.pdf) .

In particular, from 1 September 2022, NHS colleagues who are absent due to COVID-19 will revert to contractual sick leave entitlement.

I can confirm that on that date, no-one will see their Sick Pay stop with the vast majority receiving six months full pay followed by six months half pay.

Through the ClimateXChange centre of expertise the Scottish Government has received expert advice on the use of animal feed additives which have the potential to reduce methane emissions. This advice has suggested that more data are needed to assess the full potential of feed additives and feed materials in reducing methane emissions from livestock.

FSS and FSA are responsible for assessing animal feed safety in GB. Any new innovative feed material would be considered through the feed risk analysis process. For feed additives these are products that require to be authorised by the GB regulated product process before they can be sold and used in animal feed in GB and may only be used for the purpose stated in the authorisation. The FSA and FSS carry out the risk analysis process for regulated products such as feed additives and provide advice to Ministers who decide whether the product can be placed on the market in England, Wales and Scotland. Feed additives intended to reduce methane production in ruminants are new and highly innovative feed additives and within the GB regulated products application process are being categorised and risk assessed as; zootechnical feed additives under the functional group ‘as substances which favourably affect the environment’.

Scotland’s export performance is published annually in the Export Statistics Scotland (ESS) report at the start of each year and provides the Scottish Government with estimates of Scotland’s international and domestic trade in both good and services, excluding oil and gas. The timing and content of the ESS publication is determined independently of ministers.

ESS relies heavily on company data collected through the Global Connections Survey (GCS). However, the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic resulted in the postponement of that survey in 2020 and impacted the publishing the ESS in 2020 and 2021. However, data collection for the GGS 2020 and 2021 data is due to start imminently.

Our most reliable and up to date source of export data is provided by the ESS 2019 report - Export statistics Scotland: 2019 - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) . Based on ESS 2019, the USA is our top international export destination with an estimated value of just over £6bn in total exports.

We fully understand that women want mesh removal surgery undertaken by surgeons who enjoy their full confidence and a range of measures are now in place to ensure that this happens.

The Complex Pelvic Mesh Removal Service has been established in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde (GGC). This service assesses needs and where appropriate, and subject to shared decision making and informed consent, performs mesh removal surgery. The Service has undertaken a number of mesh removal surgeries since its designation, despite the impact of the pandemic on activity levels across the Health Service. To complement Scottish services women can also, if they so wish, request to be treated at one of the NHS England Specialist Centres.

In addition, and exceptionally, women now have the option to request to be referred on to one of two independent providers. A contract with Spire Healthcare, where Professor Hashim operates, was agreed earlier this year and arrangements for the first patients to travel to Bristol are underway. Furthermore, I am pleased to be able to announce today that a contract has been agreed with Gynaecologic and Reconstructive Surgery Ltd, Missouri, USA, where Dr Veronikis operates. NHS National Services Scotland will now work closely with NHS GGC and local Health Boards to facilitate the arrangements for those who wish to travel to the USA for mesh removal surgery.

It is expected that anyone seeking mesh removal from either Professor Hashim or Dr Veronikis first discuss this with their local clinicians within their own Health Board. If considered appropriate at that stage, and in line with a process agreed with the independent providers, they would then be referred to the Complex Pelvic Mesh Removal Service in NHS GGC for consideration by a full multi-disciplinary team (MDT). If it is agreed that surgery is appropriate, the patient can choose to be treated by the service already available in NHS Scotland or to be referred to a specialist NHS centre in England or to one of the independent providers. Each of these options will be available free of charge. I would encourage anyone who wishes referral to one of these services to make their wishes known to their clinical team, if they have not already done so.

The independent analysis report of the responses to the not proven verdict and related reforms consultation will be published today, 12 July 2022 and will be available at https://www.gov.scot/isbn/9781804356890 .

The consultation received 200 responses, of which 21 were from organisations and 179 from individuals, and these will also be published today, where we have permission to do so, at https://consult.gov.scot/justice/not-proven-verdict/ .

We must now give careful consideration to the full range of views received on these complex issues. The findings from this consultation analysis, along with a range of other information and evidence from engagement and consideration of the issues, will inform the decision making process on any potential recommendations for reform.

Any potential reforms will be considered alongside wider work, including the outcome of the current consultation on improving victims’ experiences of the justice system . That consultation includes consideration of those recommendations of the Lord Justice Clerk’s review on improving the management of sexual offence cases which require legislative change to implement.

The final recruitment figures under Action 15 of the Mental Health Strategy 2017-27 will be published today, 12 July, at 10:30am, at Mental health workers: quarterly performance reports - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) . A total of 958.9 whole time equivalent mental health staff have been recruited in key settings over 4 years, significantly exceeding the original commitment for 800 additional workers.