Due to the commercial nature of this information, the Scottish Government does not hold data on broadband coverage apart from that achieved through the Digital Scotland Superfast Broadband (DSSB) Programme. However, independent broadband analysis site, thinkbroadband.com provides breakdowns of coverage percentages for fibre broadband at local authority level. The following table shows latest fibre broadband coverage percentages, which includes DSSB.

The DSSB programme does not report on percentage coverage at local authority level. Instead it reports on the number of premises now capable of accessing fibre broadband, as a direct result of the DSSB programme. These figures have also been provided.

Our forthcoming flu vaccination programme will formally begin in October 2019, with a public awareness campaign, and runs until March 2020.

The vaccination programme will provide everyone who is eligible the opportunity to receive the flu vaccination for free through the NHS. The following people are eligible:

• Those aged over 65
• Those under 65 with a health condition (for example diabetes, heart disease, kidney disease or asthma resulting in regular use of an inhaler)
• Pregnant women
• Healthcare workers
• Children aged 2 – 5 (and not yet in school)
• Primary school children (vaccination delivered at school)

The vaccines that have been procured for Scotland for the forthcoming season are in line with the recommendations of the independent expert ‘Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation’ (JCVI). Health Protection Scotland have worked with Health Board Leads to allocate vaccines appropriately between the boards.

The following vaccines will be available for use in the groups outlined below:

Individuals aged 65 years and over will receive adjuvanted Trivalent Inactivated Vaccine (aTIV) (Fluad ®) or cell based Quadrivalent Inactivated Vaccine (QIVc) (Flucelvax Tetra®). Both vaccines are considered by the JCVI to be equally effective for this cohort.

Individuals aged 18-64 years with at risk conditions will receive either QIVc or egg based Quadrivalent Inactivated Vaccine (QIVe). Both vaccines are considered by the JCVI to be equally effective for this cohort

Healthcare workers (HCWs) will be offered QIVe through Health Boards to support their vaccination programme.

2-5 year olds not yet in school, all primary school aged children, and those in clinical risk groups under age 18, will receive Quadrivalent live attenuated intranasal vaccine Fluenz Tetra ® (LAIV). As this vaccine has a shorter shelf life than other vaccines it will be subject to phased delivery to ensure ‘in date’ vaccine is available throughout the season; this is the case across the UK as the vaccine for this programme is procured on behalf of Scotland, England, Wales and Northern Ireland by Public Health England (PHE).

The programmes are anticipated to have sufficient vaccine procured and supplied and will be subject to ongoing management at a local level. We will continue to monitor supply as we approach and go through the season.

Health Board Immunisation Coordinators are in place to help address any local issues, with support at national level from Scottish Government and key partner Health Protection Scotland.

The flu vaccine remains the best protection against flu and we would encourage everyone who is eligible to get vaccinated.

The next wave of the Inpatient Experience Survey will commence in mid-2020, with fieldwork starting in early 2021. The Inpatient Experience Survey is one of four patient experience surveys carried out by the Scottish Government. The timings of this survey have been amended to avoid an overlap with the Health and Care Experience Survey fieldwork which commences at the end of 2019. Changing the timing of the Inpatient Survey by a year will provide a better balance to the wider Scottish Care Experience Programme, minimising the pressure on participants who may be asked to contribute to more than one experience survey and consequently may improve response rates.

The Scottish Government has no plans to introduce statutory regulations on the fees set by Property Factors.

All property factors must comply with a code of conduct which sets out minimum standards of practice in the delivery of services to homeowners. This includes a requirement to ensure transparency in financial and charging arrangements and when making repairs and maintenance arrangements.

A homeowner can apply to the First-tier Tribunal for Scotland (Housing and Property Chamber) where they have an unresolved complaint under the code or with their property factor duties, including charges that are being made.

A property factor’s arrangement is between two or more sharing owners therefore property factors do not make charges to tenants.

One of the key drivers of high quality ELC is a well-trained, professional and skilled workforce. It is important that we value our workforce and support their commitment to professional development. Our Quality Action Plan published in 2017 sets out a number of actions we are taking to support and improve quality and establish our National Standard – quality criteria that will apply to all providers delivering funded ELC from August 2020.

As part of our workforce development programme we have already delivered the National Induction Resource (Action 3) which was launched on 20 May 2019 and is hosted on the Scottish Social Services Council website.

Our National Directory of Continuous Professional Learning was launched on 20 March 2019 to help the ELC sector identify developmental support available to them once qualified.

We are also developing a package of online continuous professional learning modules which will be available to all ELC workers. The national programme will focus on areas where practice and/or existing opportunities for learning need to be strengthened, as reflected in Education Scotland and Care Inspectorate inspections. It will also seek to address barriers to learning through virtual and distance models, thus encouraging uptake and retention of new and existing staff.

We expect South of Scotland Enterprise (SOSE) to be an exemplar of fair work when it is established on 1 April 2020. My first strategic guidance letter will make clear that Scottish Ministers expect fair work to be embedded from the outset. Fair work has been set as an essential competency of the Chair and we will make similar requirements of the Chief Executive and members.

Other measures we expect SOSE to take will include:

• Becoming an accredited living wage employer at the earliest opportunity;
• Addressing fair work in its action plan on which it will consult;
• Working with organisations representing its staff to implement the model of the Scottish Government’s agreement with the civil service trade unions to embed fair work in its operating practices; and
• Taking the learning of the initial roll out of the Fair Work First project that Scottish Enterprise is taking forward so that grants offered by the new agency support jobs that are paid at least the living wage and do not have inappropriate zero hours contracts.

Scottish domiciled nursing students are eligible to apply for the Nursing and Midwifery Student Bursary, which will be increasing from £6,578 to £8,100 in 2019-20 and again to £10,000 in 2020-21.

A no deal Brexit is by far the biggest threat to farming and to our successful food and drink sector with a wealth of evidence indicating that Scotland’s farmers and food producers will be worse off under any scenario compared to remaining in the EU and maintaining free trade and freedom of movement. The UK Government’s recent no-deal applied tariff policy, which was made with no prior consultation with Scotland or the other devolved administrations, offers little protection for the dairy sector, as it allows the opening up of the market to cheap imported dairy products by significantly dropping current tariff rates, with the double whammy that any exports to the EU will face much higher rates. Whilst we call for the UK government to remove any possibility of a no deal Brexit, in the meantime I fully agree with many of the leading industry voices in also calling for the UK Government to reconsider their proposed tariffs to remove the potential damage these are likely to cause dairy farmers, processors, creameries and related businesses, putting at risk jobs and livelihoods in Scotland’s rural communities.