Alex Cole-Hamilton

2 Dec 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether people who have worked in the social work sector over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic but who have since left that sector will be eligible for the £500 one-off "thank you" bonus.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: Adult social care staff, including social workers, who have been active for a minimum of one month between 17 March and 30 November 2020 will be eligible for the payment, including those who have since left or retired.

2 Dec 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether people serving in RAF bases who have Christmas leave will be subject to COVID-19 travel restrictions outwith the 23 to 27 December period.

Answer · Graeme Dey: RAF servicemen and women will be subject to COVID-19 travel restrictions outwith the 23 to 27 December period. However, as the First Minister stated to Parliament on 19 November, travel by armed forces personnel in Scotland to and from barracks and bases is e…

2 Dec 2020 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it is preparing to facilitate tourism activity and events in Edinburgh over the course of 2021.

1 Dec 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether battery-operated fire alarms will be allowed to be installed by property owners, or whether contractors will be required, once the new regulations on their installation come into force.

Answer · Kevin Stewart: Alarms with user replaceable batteries will not meet the standard. Alarms fitted with tamper proof long-life lithium batteries will meet the standard – as long as they are interlinked alarms, installed in the room most frequently used for daytime living purpo…

26 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will expand the extended household policy to include parents with children under one who might require extra support from other family members.

Answer · Maree Todd: The Scottish Government is currently not proposing to change arrangements for extended households, due to the ongoing prevalence of the Covid-19 virus. Currently, you can form an extended household, with one other household, if one of the adults lives alone, …

26 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government on what date the new £30 million fund to support taxi drivers and other people previously missed by other support packages will open for applications.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: The £30 million discretionary fund is specifically designed to target small businesses and the self-employed who have not received direct financial support through other Scottish Government financial support schemes since October. We have been working closely…

26 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many cases of bullying in its directorates and agencies have been recorded and investigated in each of the last 10 years.

Answer · Kate Forbes: As an employer, the Scottish Government is committed to ensuring the workplace is one where all colleagues are valued and treated with respect and dignity. Our policies and procedures allow managers to deal with concerns about bullying at an early stage and o…

26 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether chiropractors will be classed as healthcare workers and included in the first wave of delivery of the COVID-19 vaccine.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: At present there are no plans to include chiropractors in the first wave of the COVID-19 Vaccine Delivery. The Scottish Government are following the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) Guidance in the planning of vaccine delivery. This evi…

26 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it next plans to review exemptions for jury duty.

Answer · Humza Yousaf: There are no current plans to review exemptions for jury duty.

25 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether the COVID-19 vaccines available in Scotland will be safe for use by pregnant women and, if so, whether they will be prioritised in the earlier waves of the vaccines' delivery.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: There is no data as yet on the safety of COVID-19 vaccines in pregnancy, either from human or animal studies. Given the lack of evidence, the JCVI favours a precautionary approach, and does not currently advise COVID-19 vaccination in pregnancy.

25 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether unpaid carers who are not in receipt of Carer's Allowance for whatever reason will be eligible for the COVID-19 vaccine in the first wave of delivery and, if so, how will they be identified.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: The Joint Committee on Vaccinations and Immunisations have identified the groups to be prioritised within the first phase of vaccinations, including everyone over 50, and people under 50 with particular conditions. This approach is designed to address approxi…

24 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has asked its advisory group on COVID-19 to publish the full minutes of its meetings.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: I announced on 29 October 2020 in S5W-32889 that, with effect from the next meeting of the Covid-19 Advisory Group, the minutes of the meetings would be expanded to provide more detail than the previous summary format. The minutes of the first meeting of the …

24 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) pupils and (b) teachers have contracted COVID-19 in schools in each month since August 2020.

Answer · John Swinney: We do not hold information on pupils and teachers who have contracted Covid-19 in schools. Information on the number and percentage of positive cases among people who report working in education/childcare, by week, is reported in the PHS weekly statistical r…

20 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether travelling to an Alcoholics Anonymous meeting in an area within a different COVID-19 protection level would be allowed under the current travel regulations.

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: I refer the member to the travel exceptions document published on the 20 November 2020 which allows travel for healthcare. This is available here: https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-on-travel-and-transport/#travellingsafely .

20 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-27003 by Jeane Freeman on 19 February 2020, whether it will provide this information regarding the number of sepsis diagnoses for (a) the 2019 calendar year and (b) each month of 2020.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: Information on diagnosis of sepsis is held centrally for patients admitted to hospital. The following tables present the number of hospital stays with a diagnosis of sepsis at any point during the stay. This is listed by NHS Board of Treatment for the year 2…

19 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether the travel exemptions regarding education only apply to schools, universities and colleges, or whether other forms of training courses are included.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: There is an exception to the travel restrictions for work purposes, and also for accessing, providing or receiving education or training. This means education or training both in formal education establishments and elsewhere. The Scottish Government recognise…

19 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether dentists, hygienists and dental nurses who are qualified in administering injections will support the implementation of the COVID-19 vaccination programme.

Answer · Joe FitzPatrick: Planning is underway to build a sustainable workforce to ensure vaccines can be delivered to all, safely and sequentially, as they become available.

19 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason there can be a variance between NHS boards on the visiting or attendance rights of the partners of women in labour when these areas are under the same COVID-19 restrictions level.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: Scottish Government recently published updated Maternity and Neonatal Hospital visiting guidance that is in line with the move to COVID-19 local protection levels as detailed in Coronavirus (COVID-19):Scotland's Strategic Framework . This guidance is intende…

18 Nov 2020 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it will respond to reports of increases in mental ill health as a result of the pandemic and the restrictions.

18 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether travel is allowed between areas subject to different COVID-19 restriction levels if it is for the purpose of viewing a property for sale.

Answer · Michael Matheson: Under the provisions of the Health Protection (Coronavirus)(Restrictions and Requirements)(Local Levels)(Scotland) Amendment (No.3) Regulations 2020, there are exemptions around travel to or from Level 3 and 4 areas for activities in relation to the purchase,…

17 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether higher education students returning home at the end of the current term will be considered as essential travel and therefore exempt from travel restrictions.

Answer · Richard Lochhead: I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-33579 on 26 November 2020, in which the Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills outlined the amending Regulations made to the Health Protection (Coronavirus)(Restrictions and Requir…

17 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of concerns that pupils might face significant disruption, for what reason the SQA exam diet for 2021 has been pushed back by two weeks to 10 May.

Answer · John Swinney: As outlined in my statement to Parliament on 7 October, due to the continuing disruption caused by the Covid-19 pandemic, we can no longer risk the running of a full Exam Diet in 2021. In line with the recommendations made to me by Professor Mark Priestley i…

17 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason there appears to be a distinction in its COVID-19 guidance regarding the use of buses to transport children to schools and nurseries.

Answer · John Swinney: Scottish Government guidance sets out the requirements that apply to arrangements used to transport children and young people to school. Typically, local authorities provide dedicated school transport services primarily for the use of school pupils. Following…

17 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to support the early educational development of children who have been unable to obtain spaces at their local nurseries because of the COVID-19 capacity restrictions.

Answer · Maree Todd: Scotland’s Strategic Framework emphasises the commitment to prioritise keeping schools and regulated childcare, including early learning and childcare (ELC), open while ensuring the safety of children and young people and the staff who have worked hard to kee…

17 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how the most recent limit on nursery numbers in response to COVID-19 was decided.

Answer · Maree Todd: All of the guidance and restrictions on childcare provision is based on scientific and expert advice including advice from the Advisory Sub-Group on Education and Children’s Issues. The most recent advice from the Advisory Sub-Group , published on 30 Octob…

17 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to children from the same family participating in multiple COVID-19 bubbles in two different nurseries rather than being part of the same bubble in the same nursery.

Answer · Maree Todd: All of the guidance and restrictions on childcare provision in response to COVID-19 is based on scientific and expert advice. Scottish Government guidance does not restrict children within one household from attending separate ELC settings. The most recent gu…

17 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to ensure that all working families can get access to the childcare that they need during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Answer · Maree Todd: During lockdown, when schools and childcare settings were closed, critical childcare was provided for children of keyworkers to allow parents to continue to attend work which was critical to national infrastructure. Reopening of the regulated childcare secto…

17 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what support it is providing to people who are not able to access education in person due to being clinically extremely vulnerable to COVID-19, including people with cystic fibrosis.

Answer · John Swinney: Schools and local authorities retain the main responsibility for arranging remote learning for those at highest clinical risk, including people with cystic fibrosis. In order to broaden the options available to schools the national e-learning offer provides …

17 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to statement by the First Minister on 10 November 2020 (Official Report, c.25), whether it will confirm the (a) brand name, (b) type, (c) capacity and (d) cost of each fridge used to store Pfizer's COVID-19 vaccine; where these will be located, and whether they will be portable.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: Twenty three ultra-low temperature (ULT) freezers capable of the storage of medicines have been purchased, with at least one freezer in every territorial health board. Some boards will have more than one ULT freezer, for example three ULT freezers are being l…

17 Nov 2020 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many of the 2,000 building-snag issues identified at the new Royal Hospital for Children and Young People in 2019 remain outstanding.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: The snags identified at the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People in 2019 have been resolved. However, snagging resolution is a feature of all works and as completion of current works are progressing there are new snagging items or changes that are mon…