The Scottish Government continues to support Scotland’s businesses by passing on every penny we receive from the UK Government and more. Our approach to supporting businesses is tailored to Scotland’s economic needs and we have developed a package of measures that reflects Scotland’s economy and consequentially we are providing support which is unavailable elsewhere in the UK.

The Bed & Breakfast Hardship Fund was set up to provide hardship relief to B&B/small serviced accommodation providers who were unable to access support through other schemes. The Scottish Government is committed to supporting as many businesses as we can through this critical period and will continue to consider what steps we can take to support those in need and the Scottish economy.

Our guidance on safe use of places of worship reflects evolving scientific and health advice and has been developed in close collaboration with our faith communities. On the 9 July, the First Minister announced that the reopening of places of worship would be brought forward to 15 July. As such, since that date, places of worship have been able to open for congregational services and life event ceremonies.

I recognise how difficult it has been for Scotland’s faith communities to be unable to come together in places of worship at this challenging time, and understand the important role of congregational worship in supporting spiritual wellbeing. We do not want any restrictions to this to last any longer than is necessary but must ensure that people who enter places of worship to undertake congregational activities will be safe.

We will continue to work closely with those communities as we move towards fully reopening places of worship as soon as it is safe to do so.

Following the announcement by the First Minister on the 9 th of July, it was confirmed that driving lessons will not resume before 31 st of July. An update will be made at the earliest opportunity to ensure driving instructors will be able to return to work when possible.

Following an announcement by the First Minister on 9 July, beauty salons are permitted to reopen from 22 July.

The Scottish Government has published guidance for close contact services based on a risk assessment process which business owners should use to identify which treatments and activities can be offered. This includes a comprehensive checklist designed to help implement safe working practices. Further guidance will be issued to provide clarity around treatments carried out in people’s homes.

Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, SEPA has had to adapt its approach to incident response in order to protect its staff, operators and the public. As a result SEPA is currently only deploying in the field to deal with the most significant incidents and where SEPA’s physical presence is necessary to rectify an incident.

SEPA gave full consideration to the reported Pow Burn incident on 24-25 June and determined that site attendance did not meet its criteria for field deployment. However, SEPA did take action to investigate the incident remotely. This involved a team of experienced staff analysing the information received and contacting local businesses to attempt to identify any likely sources or issues which may have contributed to this fish kill. As a single source for the pollution was not identified, SEPA intends to undertake a number of follow-up activities in the area, including business audits to identify any outstanding issues as SEPA officers return to increased fieldwork in line with Scottish Government guidelines.

On 18 March the Scottish Government announced that an additional £350 million would be made available to those most affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.

This funding has been made available to councils, charities, businesses and community groups and has been designed to be flexible, cutting down on red tape to enable them to respond swiftly and according to local need for people impacted economically or through reduced contact with society.

A number of church and community halls have been supported in dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. This has included receiving assistance via the Third Sector Resilience Fund, through which many faith groups and places of worship have been awarded funding in recognition of the important work they carry out.

If a church hall is in need of support those responsible for the hall should consult the SCVO Coronavirus Third Sector Information Hub or contact their local authority for further advice and guidance.

The Scottish Government is not aware of any plans by NHS Dumfries and Galloway to permanently close community hospitals.

As part of the ongoing work of the COVID-19 Education Recovery Group (CERG), we published the Strategic Framework for Re-opening Schools, Early Learning and Childcare Provision in Scotland on 21 May. Alongside this, we published an Initial Impact Assessment to accompany the framework. This document sets out some of our key priorities in this area and our commitment to completing full impact assessments with the input of equalities groups and other interested parties in due course. These documents continue to be developed and will be published prior to schools reopening in August.

The Scottish Government recognises that transport plays an important role in joining up communities and maximising the economic potential of South West Scotland, including the part that the A75 plays in connecting Dumfries with the wider trunk road network. The South West Scotland Transport Study – Initial Appraisal: Case for Change Report was published in January 2020 and includes the amongst its recommendations, the option for partial dualling and targeted improvements of the A75 between Dumfries and A74(M). This is one of the 23 recommendations that will be subject to more detailed appraisal, as part of the second Strategic Transport Projects Review (STPR2).

While the study has emphasised the importance of a connected, safe, resilient, and high quality strategic transport network for those travelling in South West Scotland it has not recommended taking forward the option for dualling the A75 between the A74(M) and Dumfries and onwards to Stranraer. The alternative series of targeted improvements, supports the regional transport objectives, whilst more proportionately meeting the Sustainable Investment Hierarchy set out in the National Transport Strategy and our commitment to delivering transport projects which will help us to create the conditions for an inclusive and net zero emissions economy.

We remain committed to working with stakeholders to take forward STPR2, albeit in revised timescales, that take account of the Covid-19 impacts and as we work toward a green economic recovery. We will also need to understand how the impact of the pandemic may shape our future transport system and the demands placed on it. We will do that as part of an overall Government programme, before we can take individual decisions on schemes such as future road improvements to the A75.

It is the statutory responsibility of Dumfries and Galloway Council to manage its school estate. The Scottish Government works with Councils to provide additionality to their investment plans and work is underway on the Learning Estate Investment Programme (LEIP).