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The guidance to support the provision of the £400 one-off payment to teachers is available on the Scottish Government website at: https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-for-employers-on-one-off-gbp400-payment-for-teachers/

This exceptional payment is being made in recognition of the additional workload for teachers who have supported the delivery of the Alternative Certification Model (ACM) in the unique circumstances brought about by Covid-19 in 2020/21.

This will be paid through a grant arrangement to education authorities and directly from the Scottish Government through a grant to independent and grant-aided schools, further to claims being received.

The online vaccine booking portal closed on 11 June.

The online portal was part of the Scottish Government’s measures to widen the accessibility of vaccine appointments, and was extended for another week, on top of the original three week window. 40% of the young people aged 18-29 who were still to be vaccinated, self-registered on our online portal.

Those who did not register online, are being scheduled for an appointment on the system, and letters are coming out over this week and next. However, to give advanced sight of appointments online, we are launching an appointment checker on NHS Inform to help people view their pending appointments. This will help those people, like students, who may have moved away from their registered GP term time address. This will also help them view their offered appointment earlier and chose to reschedule to fit with their work and life.

The National Vaccination Scheduling System (NVSS) has successfully appointed millions of Scottish citizens while achieving exceptionally high uptake rates this demonstrates a massive success for a system built from scratch in the space of 8 weeks.

Our intention has always been to evolve and continually enhance the NVSS. As the programme has engaged with younger cohorts it has become evident a digital first online booking approach would be beneficial. The programme team are in the process of designing an online booking system for the autumn/winter Flu vaccinations.

The Scottish Government has engaged with a range of sectors, including catering and hospitality representatives, promoting the benefits of effective ventilation to reduce the risk of transmission within enclosed spaces. I would encourage all sectors to review the guidance we produced on ventilation, as this contains useful information and assets which could easily be incorporated within training courses.

The guidance can be found at: https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-ventilation-guidance/

We continue to engage with sectors and review this guidance as new evidence emerges regarding how these systems can prevent the spread of COVID-19 and other airborne viruses.

Since the start of the pandemic the Scottish Government has made considerable investment in tackling misinformation through a number of channels. Our approach based on behavioural insight is not to directly challenge misinformation as this provides further exposure to the incorrect information. Instead, priority is placed on establishing reputable sources of information for the public to access and trust such as NHSinform.scot. Activity has included:

1. First Minister Briefings

2. Pro-active and reactive media relations

3. The Scottish Government issues proactive social media content that informs and engages the public on facts to do with COVID-19 and the actions required of them to stop the spread of the virus.

4. Public information campaigns linked to the pandemic to promote compliance with guidelines, steps that can be taken to reduce exposure to the virus and what to do if an individual or a close contact develops symptoms. For example, our recent Vaccination campaign, Roll Up Your Sleeves, was independently evaluated with a sample of 1,480 adults eligible for the vaccine. The campaign had 95% prompted recognition, with 78% of those recognising it agreeing that the advertising made them more aware of the importance of being vaccinated

5. During 2020-2021, funding to support the newspaper industry was delivered via a £3m press partnership which provided the Scottish Government advertising across national, regional and local titles.

6. Collaborating with the UK Government on campaigns being delivered across the four nations.

7. National door drops on coronavirus, Test & Protect and the vaccination programme

8. Working with Health Boards and Local Authorities

9. Working with key stakeholders such as Young Scot and BEMIS to co-create content for their audiences that communicates key information. For example, the recently published Vaccine Explainer video was developed following stakeholder feedback on barriers to vaccination, has been translated into multiple languages and distributed via stakeholders.

10. Using NHSInform.scot and gov.scot as the two-lead digital sources of information relating to Covid-19 in Scotland

11. Publishing daily information on virus levels and progress of vaccination via Public Health Scotland website to enable any member of the public to easily access information relating to current position of the pandemic.

Examples of guidance available to help tackle misinformation:

• NHS Inform COVID-19 Information [15 languages/formats]: Coronavirus (COVID-19) in Scotland | NHS inform
• Test & Protect Self-Isolation Fact Sheet [26 languages/formats]: Coronavirus (COVID-19): self-isolation factsheet - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)
• COVID-19 Vaccine Information on NHS Inform [Available by Language]: Coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine translations | The coronavirus (COVID-19) vaccine (nhsinform.scot)

To ensure the information detailed in all marketing campaigns is accurate, guidance is provided by our key clinical experts; Chief Medical Officer; Deputy Chief Medical Officer; National Clinical Director for Scotland. On occasion these experts have featured in our communications to further validate the clinical accuracy of our messaging to the public.

The Scottish Government is continuing to invest in communications activity to provide the public with clear and simple guidance on the actions they need to undertake in response to the pandemic.

The UK Government announced that the UK would participate in the COVAX initiative in September 2020.

COVAX is a World Health Organisation (WHO) initiative to ensure that poorer countries have equitable access to COVID-19 tests, treatments and vaccines.

The initiative is designed to support the research, development and manufacturing of COVID-19 vaccines and negotiate their pricing.

On 8 June, UNICEF sent an open letter to G7 countries, urging them to donate 20% of their vaccines doses to COVAX by August.

To date the UK has committed over £500m to the Covax initiative, the UK has also announced it will donate at least 100 million surplus coronavirus vaccine doses within the next year, including 5 million beginning in the coming weeks.

In September 2020, the Scottish Government began a review of its approach to international development, and in December marked £2M of its International Development Fund (IDF) to support partner countries’ COVID-19 responses.

In June 2017, Healthcare Improvement Scotland published their report on the Review of Ayrshire Maternity Unit, University Hospital Crosshouse, NHS Ayrshire & Arran (Adverse Events).

Recommendation seven said that NHS Scotland should develop and agree a list of mandatory skills and competencies for maternity services to support ongoing training programmes in NHS boards . NHS Education for Scotland facilitated a short life working group which identified a package of core mandatory update training for midwives and obstetricians. In December 2018 Scottish Government requested all NHS Boards ensure that midwives and obstetricians undertake the core mandatory update training required.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic it has not been possible for staff to undertake face to face training, including elements of the package of core mandatory training, and staff time to undertake training has been significantly curtailed. Boards are actively looking at ways to take forward training in a COVID safe way, and many of the training packages have moved to virtual platforms to mitigate restrictions as a result of COVID.

As routine business is remobilised we expect Boards to move forward with completion of the package of Core Mandatory Training.

Everyone attending the Glasgow Fan Zone is encouraged to take a lateral flow test prior to the event. From Monday 14 June, rapid lateral flow test kits were mailed to 17,000 ticket holders due to attend the Glasgow Fan Zone, as part of a series of measures to help reduce the risk of transmission before and after the event.

A mobile testing bus has also been based at Glasgow Green to provide on-site lateral flow testing as an additional option for attendees. A selection of attendees have been asked by COVID marshals on site whether they have taken a test as part of ongoing reporting on the site.

These testing measures are in place in addition to other robust public health interventions, such as physical distancing, contact tracing, hand sanitiser stations, frequent cleaning, table-service, PPE for staff, and clear and informative signage.

Data on vaccination is compiled and forwarded to the Scottish Government by Public Health Scotland.

We do not hold data on vaccination rate for specific illnesses of conditions, but on how many people in a specific cohort have been vaccinated.

Latest vaccination figures can be found here : Coronavirus (COVID-19): daily data for Scotland - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) and COVID-19 Daily Dashboard | Tableau Public

The updated guidance regarding the extended use of face masks and coverings in hospitals, primary care, wider community care and adult care homes was published after consultation with numerous stakeholders, including Scottish Social Services Council, Scottish Care, Fair Work in Social Care Group, COSLA and GMB Scotland.

The guidance relating to residents wearing face masks in specific situations in care homes contained in the updated version (Version 3) guidance, published on 7 June 2021, was also contained in Version 2 of the guidance published in October 2020. Scottish Care, COSLA and the Coalition of Care and Support Providers in Scotland (CCPS) were given the opportunity to comment on this earlier version of the guidance.

The Scottish Government listened to feedback on the recent update and worked in partnership with representatives from the sector to rapidly review the language and information relating to social care within the guidance. As a result of this review, social care guidance has been separated from hospital and primary care settings and has been updated to ensure it accurately communicates that residents are not required to wear a Fluid Resistant Surgical Mask (FRSM) or face covering within the care home. which is first and foremost their own home. It is a resident's choice whether to wear one.

The updated guidance on the use of face masks within social care settings including adult care homes was published on 23 June and is available at the following link

Coronavirus (COVID-19): use of face coverings in social care settings including adult care homes - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

All of our decision making in the approach to responding to Covid-19 is guided by the latest scientific evidence from the Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE) , advice from Health Protection Scotland and our Chief Medical Officer. The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) provides advice on immunisation to all UK Health Departments, including on the efficacy and safety of vaccines.

Decisions to prioritise one population group over another are not taken lightly, nor are they straightforward. That is why our prioritisation decisions have been, and will continue to be, guided by the independent expert advice from the JCVI.

It is also worth noting that this is the case with many other vaccines. People are not routinely offered a choice of the type of vaccines in other vaccine programmes in Scotland. The Scottish Government currently has no plans to introduce an option for receiving either Covid-19 vaccine, beyond a clinical recommendation.

Following the statements by the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) and the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) we want to stress that the evidence shows that, overall, the benefits of the Oxford/AstraZeneca vaccine outweigh the risks and it continues to be a safe and effective vaccine.

However, the Scottish Government will follow the JCVI recommendation to offer alternative vaccines to adults under 40 without underlying health conditions.

The JCVI and MHRA continue to monitor this carefully and are in regular contact with other regulators.

JCVI recommendations are set out in the Green Book, available at COVID-19 Greenbook chapter 14a (publishing.service.gov.uk)

GPs may make a recommendation for their patients to receive a specific vaccination if they believe there is a clinical need.

If the JCVI recommend a specific vaccination for any specific group we will of course take up this advice immediately.