Chamber and committees

The Home Energy Scotland (HES) Grant and Loan Scheme, launched in December 2022, offers homeowners and self-builders in Scotland a grant, interest free loan or a combination of both to support the installation of clean heating systems and energy efficiency measures.

In 2023, the Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan Scheme made 6,618 funding commitments to homeowners.

The figure provided represents all funding agreements, including both loan and grant offers.

The Scottish Government remains committed to building a system of school age childcare which will be funded for those families who need it most.

Our "School Age Childcare Delivery Framework", published in October 2023, sets out the action areas for the next 2 to 3 years and outlines our person-centered and place-based approach to designing this new system, learning from what works at a local level. The Framework can be found on the Scottish Government website at: www.gov.scot/publications/school-age-childcare-delivery-framework/

In 2023-24, we invested £15 million to design and test an all-year-round system of school age childcare, including in four Early Adopter Communities and nine Access to Childcare Fund projects across Scotland, where families are accessing funded services. It also included a partnership with the Scottish Football Association to fund breakfast, after school and holiday clubs across the country for targeted children and families.

In addition, we have invested over £25m to deliver targeted summer programmes of funded activities, childcare and food provision for eligible children from low-income families across Scotland since 2021.

The Scottish Government is supportive of woodland creation on crofts and recognises the multiple environmental and economic benefits this brings. There are several initiatives and funding in place to encourage and support crofters to make applications. Due to spatial data limitations it is not possible to identify the total proportion of land with planting potential that is under crofting tenure.

Following the completion of the Allied Health Professions (AHP) Education and Workforce Policy Review, an advisory group has been established to oversee the effective implementation of the recommendations. The group held its second meeting on 4 March 2024 where the group considered the delivery plan.

The delivery plan takes an outcome based approach and the group recognises the complexity and interdependency of how the suite of recommendations contributes to achieving the overarching positive change required.

The group will consider the timescales required to meet the overarching aims at its future meetings, scheduled in June and October 2024.

The Scottish Government works closely with NHS Education for Scotland who are the national body that are responsible for advanced practice across the Allied Health Professions (AHPs) including physiotherapy.

The NHS Education for Scotland Multiprofessional Advanced Practice Toolkit aims to facilitate the professional development of advanced practitioners and provides easy to navigate links to useful information across four pillars of practice.

Although not profession specific, advancing practice and the promotion of AHP career pathways is a key focus of the AHP Education and Workforce Policy Review intended outcomes. The review’s work is being taken forward through an ongoing delivery plan that aims to adopt a comprehensive approach to fostering the growth and advancement of the AHP workforce.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information.

Under The Microchipping of Dogs (Scotland) Regulations 2016 enforcement, and how this is undertaken across territories is a matter for Local Authorities and relevant enforcement agencies. It is within the power of any Local Authority who find a dog without a microchip to serve a notice.

The Scottish Government does not routinely hold this information as it is a matter for the relevant enforcement agency.

A progress report will be published on the Scottish Government webpage in due course. The report will provide a short update on each of the actions within the Wild Salmon Strategy Implementation Plan which have progressed in the first year since publication.

The Marine Directorate Fish Health Inspectorate (FHI) maintains a register of aquaculture facilities on behalf of Scottish Ministers, which includes details of wild fish restocking hatcheries. The FHI provide advice on biosecurity, record keeping, fish health and disease issues.

The Scottish Government is absolutely committed to keeping our NHS true to its founding principles – publicly-owned, publicly-operated, and free at the point of need. Health Boards might arrange treatment for some patients outwith NHS Scotland, including the private sector in exceptional circumstances. It is for local NHS Health Boards to determine how they use the private sector and to agree any contractual arrangements.