Part of the debate – in the Scottish Parliament at on 26 October 2023.
The First Minister:
I will ensure that we write to Carol Mochan with full details of an update, but Scotland has been world leading in the implementation of HIV pre-exposure prophylaxis—PrEP—since the introduction of our programme in 2017. We have to recognise t hat PrEP has to be as accessible as possible for those who require it in communities up and down Scotland. That point is well made by Carol Mochan.
Work is very much under way to pilot the online PrEP clinic: £400,000 of funding has been provided for the development of the project, which is currently in the important development stage and on track to be taken forward during 2024 and beyond. I will ensure that a fuller update is provided to Carol Mochan.
Ministers make up the Government and almost all are members of the House of Lords or the House of Commons. There are three main types of Minister. Departmental Ministers are in charge of Government Departments. The Government is divided into different Departments which have responsibilities for different areas. For example the Treasury is in charge of Government spending. Departmental Ministers in the Cabinet are generally called 'Secretary of State' but some have special titles such as Chancellor of the Exchequer. Ministers of State and Junior Ministers assist the ministers in charge of the department. They normally have responsibility for a particular area within the department and are sometimes given a title that reflects this - for example Minister of Transport.
