Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that all students with a disability, long term medical condition or additional support needs are able to access further and higher education and are fully supported throughout their studies.

Further Education

The Additional Support Needs for Learning Allowance is a non-income assessed allowance administered by individual colleges. It is intended to support students with disabilities or additional learning needs who are studying a course of Further Education and may have extra costs because of their disability.

Colleges, as part of their integral core funding via Scottish Funding Council, also receive the Access and Inclusion Fund. This supports the teaching and learning of students with additional support needs.

It is the responsibility of individual colleges to manage their student support budgets in a prudent and effective manner. The Scottish Funding Council has clear guidelines and processes in place to monitor colleges’ management of their student support funds, including the requirement for colleges to be audited, by external auditors, on their annual student support expenditure.

Higher Education

The Disabled Students Allowance (DSA) is a non-income assessed fund that is administered by Student Awards Agency Scotland. It is intended to support disabled students and those with additional learning needs who are studying a course of Higher Education and may have extra costs because of their disability.

As a bespoke fund, the amount a student is eligible to receive is based on their individual needs. Those awards are made based on comprehensive guidance prepared by Student Award Agency Scotland and shared with institutions on an annual basis, ensuring that there is a consistency of approach across the sector.

Local authorities are responsible for the development and delivery of flood protection schemes.

Five flood protection schemes were due to complete in 2024 and the relevant local authorities have advised that Millport Coastal, Upper Garnock and Stranraer are complete. Campbeltown and Hawick FPS are at an advanced stage and nearing completion.

The Scottish Hospice Leadership Group is comprised of the Chief Executives of most of the independent Scottish hospices and their key partners.

The group is not a Scottish Government body, however Scottish Government officials attend their meetings on a regular basis to discuss matters of mutual interest.

The Minister for Public Health and Women’s Health last met the Chair of the group on 18 September 2024 to discuss working towards establishing a longer term sustainable funding model.

The Scottish Government welcomes the insights provided by The Circularity Gap Report: Textiles published by Circle Economy. The report highlights critical challenges and opportunities in transitioning towards a circular economy within the textiles sector.

The findings of the report align with the Scottish Government’s proposals set out in the draft circular economy and waste route map to 2030, to tackle textile waste, reduce resource consumption, and encourage sustainable production and consumption practices. The final Route Map will be confirmed in due course.

The Scottish Government will engage with stakeholders across the textiles supply chain to develop policies and actions that reflect the urgency highlighted by this report. We recognise the need for a strategic approach to textiles across the waste hierarchy, from production and consumption, through to recycling and end of life management.

The Scottish Government continues to engage with stakeholders across the textiles supply chain to develop policies and actions that reflect the urgency highlighted by this report.

We will carefully review the recommendations of the Circularity Gap Report: Textiles and consider its findings as part of our ongoing efforts to deliver a net-zero and circular economy for Scotland.

The common staffing method (CSM) sets out a process to identify, mitigate risks and determine what changes, if any, are needed to staffing numbers. Its purpose is to ensure a consistent approach to decision making across NHS Scotland. The frequency of applying the CSM has been defined as once per financial year as a minimum.

Local recruitment based on the outputs of the CMS are a matter for the Health Board and are one of several factors used to determine recruitment.

Use of the CMS will form part of the evidence that Health Boards submit Scottish Government to demonstrate how they have complied with the Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act 2019. Under the Act all Health Boards must submit a report on how they complied with their legislative requirements. Scottish Ministers will then lay a summary report to Parliament outlining overall compliance with the Act.

Under the Act, Scottish Ministers have a duty to take all reasonable steps to ensure that there is a sufficient number of registered nurses, registered midwives, medical practitioners, and other types of employees.

Information gained from Health Board annual reports will inform national policies to ensure sufficient future supply including determining future student intake numbers, recruitment and retention polices, and student career pipelines.

Scotland has hit the target of 6,000 public electric vehicle charge points two years early.

Since 2011 the Scottish Government has invested over £65 million in public electric vehicle charging. As a result of this early investment, and increasing private sector investment, Scotland has one of the most comprehensive public charging networks in the UK, and the latest UK Department for Transport statistics show that Scotland has the highest number of public charge points on a per head of population basis of any part of the UK, except London, and the most rapid charge points of any part of the UK.

I am pleased to announce that today we have published our draft Vision Implementation Plan. This draft plan identifies the actions required to deliver our ambitious Vision for public electric vehicle charging in Scotland, as well as a route map for delivering approximately 24,000 additional public electric vehicle charge points by 2030.

Meeting our ambitions will require concerted efforts from public and private bodies alike, and the draft Implementation Plan has been developed in consultation with the key stakeholders that share collective responsibility for delivering public electric vehicle charging in Scotland. The plan is being published alongside a consultation on its proposed actions, and I warmly welcome all responses to this consultation, which will strengthen the final Implementation Plan and route map to be published in 2025.

Today I am also pleased to announce a further £1.9 million has been awarded to Perth & Kinross and Angus Councils through our EV Infrastructure Fund. This additional funding will enable both local authorities to work in partnership with the private sector to deliver an additional 177 public electric vehicle charge points, with a particular focus on delivering infrastructure in rural communities, to ensure Scotland continues to lead the UK on public electric vehicle charging.

Access to inclusive communication is a fundamentally important matter for people using public services, many of whom have diverse communication needs, and that is why the Scottish Government is investing in new guidance and tools to strengthen the public sector’s approach.

The Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS) is an independent public body and has a legal duty under the Equality Act 2010 to protect the rights of people living with disabilities. SCTS recognises the need and responsibility that the public sector in Scotland has to provide accessible services to its users. The specific support provided to people with dyslexia is an operational matter for the SCTS board.

The Scottish Government recognises the essential role that heritage has in shaping Scotland's identity, and the importance of protecting and caring for it in a sustainable way so current and future generations can enjoy and benefit from it.

Tartan is inextricably connected with Scotland, its history and its culture. With Tartan Day being a chance for people around the world to mark their connections to Scotland.

The Scottish Government is grateful for the work of Prickly Thistle in maintaining and innovating the craft of tartan weaving in the Highlands.

As part of a multi-agency response, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) continues to investigate the reported chemical spill incident in the Cameron Street area of Coatbridge. SEPA is at an early stage of this and is unable to provide further details until the conclusion of this investigation.

For more information, you can contact SEPA directly at [email protected]

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency’s (SEPA) remit in relation to such incidents covers monitoring and mitigating potential impacts on the environment. It is working in partnership with North Lanarkshire Council who are leading on development of plans to ascertain exactly what remedial works are required.

For more information, you can contact SEPA directly at [email protected]