Chamber and committees

We are committed to maximising the public benefits of our renewables revolution and will explore all options open to us to do so.

ScotWind reflects very significant market ambition for offshore wind in Scottish waters and will deliver over £750m in revenues to the public purse in initial option fees.

INTOG projects offer a further significant potential revenue stream for the Scottish Government, amounting to up to £261m in option fees if these are converted to full option agreements.

We are already investing these revenues in our journey to net zero, and the Scottish Budget sets out the multi-million pound investment in 2024-25 to ensure the Scottish workforce, businesses and communities all benefit from the offshore renewables revolution. The programmes promise to also deliver billions more in rental revenues once they become operational, to be invested for the benefit of the people of Scotland, creating thousands of jobs in the process.

Developers have also committed to invest an average projection of £1.5 bn in Scotland per project on the 20 ScotWind projects.

Our strategic investment of up to £500m over the next five years to anchor the offshore wind supply chain in Scotland will support market certainty, create a highly productive, competitive economy, provide thousands of new jobs, embed innovation and boost skills.

The management of the interim Vulnerable Persons Database (iVPD) is a matter for Police Scotland. As with any other organisation, Police Scotland has a duty to gather and process personal data lawfully.

The iVPD is used to source information for both (i) the annual Official Statistics on police recorded domestic abuse incidents and (ii) social research on the volume and type of police recorded hate crime in Scotland.

As part of producing these reports, Scottish Government statisticians have regular and ongoing communications with their counterparts in Police Scotland about the iVPD and the topics of domestic abuse and hate crime. Examples of this include both the planning of updated publications (such as timings for data receipt and quality assurance) and discussions on any future changes that might be made to the methodology for producing these statistics.

This is an operational matter for the NHS Boards and the Scottish Government does not directly monitor these operational arrangements. However we will be evaluating the role the scheme plays in supporting GP retention.

The creation of 152 extra specialty training places for trainee doctors went ahead in 2023 as planned. A breakdown of these posts by specialty can be found here .

The recruitment of trainee doctors in 2023 was the most successful to date; a total of 1,231 specialty training posts were advertised and 1,156 (94%) filled. Please note that these figures are accurate as at 26 March 2024 i.e. when end-year data was published. The publication itself can be found here , and a full breakdown of recruitment by specialty can be found here .

The Scottish Government announced funding on 23 November 2023 for further expansion taking place in 2024. This will see 153 additional specialty training places created this year – the largest uplift to date. More information can be found here . The 2024 recruitment cycle is currently underway and will conclude in November.

HM Inspectors inspect a sample of primary, secondary and special schools annually across Scotland. They evaluate the quality of education using various quality indicators from the quality framework 'How good is our school? (4th edition).'

From the 2015-16 academic year (commencing August 2015) to 10 May 2024, HM Inspectors have inspected a total of 172 schools in Highland and Islands. This number is based on the initial inspection and does not include any subsequent further inspections which took place as a result of the outcome of the initial inspection. The information does not include details of inspections carried out in academic year 2023-24 where fieldwork has been carried out but the reports not yet published.

In Argyll and Bute Council, a total of 45 schools were inspected: 2015-16 two primary schools; 2016-17 four primary and one secondary schools; 2017-18 six primary, one secondary and one special school; 2018-19 eight primary schools; 2019-20 five primary, two secondary schools; 2022-23 nine primary, one secondary school; 2023-24 five primary schools.

In The Highland Council, a total of 94 schools were inspected: 2015-16 seven primary and two secondary schools; 2016-17 nine primary and one secondary school; 2017-18 9 primary, three secondary schools, 2018-19 18 primary, one secondary school; 2019-20 8 primary, two secondary schools; 2022-23 21 primary, three secondary, one special; 2023-24 eight primary, one secondary.

In Comhairle nan Eilean Siar, a total of eleven schools were inspected: 2015-16 two primary; 2016-17 one primary; 2018-19 three primary, one secondary; 2022-23 two primary; 2023-24 one primary, one secondary.

In Orkney Islands Council, a total of eight schools were inspected: 2015-16 two primary; 2016-17 one primary; 2017-18 one primary; 2018-19 one secondary schools; 2019-20 one primary school; 2022-23 two primary school.

In Shetland Islands Council, a total of 14 schools were inspected: 2015-16 one primary and one secondary school; 2016-17 two primary schools; 2017-18 two primary schools; 2018-19 one primary school, one secondary schools; 2019-20 one primary school, one secondary school; 2022-23 three primary schools; 2023-24 one primary school.

NHS Boards are not required to inform the Scottish Government of the number of Golden Hello payments that are made to GPs in each financial year. This is an operational matter for the NHS Boards and the Scottish Government does not directly monitor these operational arrangements. However we will evaluating the role the scheme plays in supporting GP retention.

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

I refer the member to the response provided for S6W-27211 on 15 May 2024.

There is no equivalent standard to “certified normal accommodation” or “uncrowded capacity” for prison cells in Scotland.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers .

The Scottish Government commissioned an expert report from Malcolm McMillan on the roles and functions of the Scottish Law Officers. The purpose of the report is to outline the history and development of the roles and functions of the Scottish Law Officers; describe their current roles and functions; highlight the role of Law Officers in a number of other jurisdictions; describe the constitutional context relevant to a review of the roles of the Scottish Law Officers; and provide a summary of insights and comments on the Scottish Law Officers’ roles from former and current holders of these offices and relevant officials. The work to publish the final report is ongoing.

This is a matter for Police Scotland and therefore the information requested is not held centrally.

The management of the interim Vulnerable Persons Database (iVPD) is a matter for Police Scotland. As with any other organisation, Police Scotland has a duty to gather and process personal data lawfully. The Scottish Government has had no communication with the office of the Scottish Information Commissioner regarding the iVPD during this period.

For further information on the iVPD please refer to answer S6W-27225 on 17 May 2024.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers .