Policy Statements and Initiatives
ScotGov: Rural communities in Scotland can now apply for support to help buy their land. The new £6m Scottish Land Fund which will empower communities by helping them acquire land has opened for applications.
Press release & links
Press release & links
DWP: Parents on income-related benefits who live apart from their children are to have the amount of child maintenance they must pay increased from £5 to £10 per week. The change will apply to clients of the new statutory child maintenance scheme.
A widely resented Child Support Agency rule will be scrapped for clients of the new scheme. This required some parents to pay maintenance even though they share the care of their children on a 50-50 basis. In the future, no maintenance will need to be paid in cases like these where care is shared exactly equally.
BIS: Postal Affairs Minister, Norman Lamb, has published the Government’s response to the consultation ‘Building a Mutual Post Office’ which sets out the building blocks towards securing a mutual post office. The consultation revealed enthusiasm amongst sub-postmasters, staff & the wider public for a stake in the Post Office.
DH: The Government has turned the spotlight on the quality of care received by people in the last 3 months of their life. In a survey published last week the Office for National Statistics reports significant differences in the quality of care experienced according to the age of patient at death, cause of death and place of death, with hospice care rated the most positively.
ScotGov: An options appraisal on how best to secure the functions of the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS) was published last week.
Following the options appraisal, Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs Fiona Hyslop is seeking a detailed business case for a merger between RCAHMS and Historic Scotland.
Following the options appraisal, Cabinet Secretary for Culture and External Affairs Fiona Hyslop is seeking a detailed business case for a merger between RCAHMS and Historic Scotland.
DH: Health Secretary Andrew Lansley has set out his new care objectives for the improvement of health & healthcare, with the publication of his draft mandate to the NHS Commissioning Board.
ScotGov: First Minister Alex Salmond has appointed Professor Stephen Tierney as an independent expert advisor to help ensure the autumn 2014 independence referendum meets the highest international standards.
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