Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government has no plans to establish such a body.

The Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS) is an independent body corporate under the leadership of the SCTS Board and the Lord President.

The 2026-27 Budget and infrastructure delivery pipeline confirmed the Princess Alexandra Eye pavilion replacement as a ministerial priority project. The project is currently at Outline Business Case stage with current planning assumptions estimating that the full planning application will be submitted in late 2027/early 2028. There will be greater clarity on timeline once the business case process is complete.

The Summary Case Management (SCM) model which commenced roll-out in January 2025 has enabled more cases to resolve before a trial diet is assigned, thereby reducing the number of victims, witnesses and police officers cited to attend trials, through earlier disclosure of evidence, early engagement between the Crown and defence and active judicial case management.

Where a trial is scheduled, earlier and more focused preparation has provided greater opportunity for evidence to be agreed and for those witnesses whose attendance is necessary to be identified before citations are issued.

The joint inspection recognised that SCM has significantly reduced the number of witnesses, including police witnesses, requiring to be cited or re-cited to court.

Work is underway to consider how the principles and learning from SCM can inform similar improvements to case management in solemn criminal proceedings.

The Thirlwall Inquiry examined systems and services that operate in the NHS and wider system in England. I recognise the wide-ranging nature of the lessons learned and recommendations and will take time to fully consider these within the context of devolved Scottish health care and the actions already being delivered here.

The independent Patient Safety Commissioner for Scotland already has statutory powers to carry out investigations into systemic patient safety issues and make recommendations to which organisations will be obliged to respond.

Separately, Healthcare Improvement Scotland provides support to NHS Boards to improve the management of adverse events, including the ways in which they are reviewed and reported. This is part of Healthcare Improvement Scotland’s extensive framework of assurance, inspection, scrutiny and improvement at local and national levels.

While the findings of the Thirlwall Inquiry relate to services and regulatory arrangements in England, the Scottish Government recognises the importance of the report and will carefully consider its recommendations.

Scotland has established national arrangements for the handling of whistleblowing concerns within NHSScotland through the National Whistleblowing Standards and the Independent National Whistleblowing Officer (INWO). The INWO operates independently of both NHS Boards and the Scottish Government and has powers to review how NHS Boards have handled whistleblowing concerns where an individual remains dissatisfied after local processes have been exhausted.

NHS Boards are responsible for considering and responding to whistleblowing concerns raised within their organisations. Where an individual believes their concern has not been handled appropriately, they may ask the INWO to undertake an independent review of how the concern was managed.

The Scottish Government recognises that live comedy makes an important contribution to Scotland’s cultural life and our reputation as a vibrant, creative and innovative nation. Creative Scotland supports comedy practitioners, venues and festivals through a range of funding routes. We continue to consider views from across the creative sectors, including comedy performers, in developing cultural policy, including the minimum income pilot for artists. This will provide opportunities for the experiences and challenges of those working in comedy to inform our approach.

The Schools (Consultation) (Scotland) Act 2010 provides an opportunity for the local community to put forward their views on proposals for significant changes to the school estate. The Scottish Government has issued statutory guidance on the Act. The guidance makes clear in paragraphs 23 and 24 the importance of engagement with the local community prior to the statutory consultation process and that can include consideration of a range of different options.

With regard for requests for additional information, the statutory guidance sets out in paragraphs 111-114 authorities’ statutory obligations in relation to giving advice and information to a parent of a pupil, that requests for information should be responded to in a timely manner and, where appropriate, published alongside consultation documentation.

It is also the case that if any additional information emerges during the consultation period that casts doubt on the accuracy of the proposal paper, provisions set out in paragraphs 106 and 107 of statutory guidance allow for inaccuracies and omissions to be corrected and, if necessary, for the consultation to be extended. In extreme cases where the omission or inaccuracy was so significant that it would materially affect the consultees ability to understand or respond to the proposal paper the authority would be expected to withdraw the proposal and either abandon it or start again with a revised proposal paper for the full consultation period.

In addition, Section 11 of the Act provides that a period of three weeks elapse between the authority’s publication of the consultation report and taking a decision on whether to implement the proposal(s). The intention is that interested parties should have time to see and digest the contents of the consultation report and have time if they wish to make the authority aware of any final issues and opinions regarding its decision. Decisions about the school estate remain the responsibility of the local council as is compliance with the statutory requirements of the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002, including timescales for responding to requests for information.

The responsibility for these matters rests with local authorities in their role as employers of teachers. You may wish to contact the Highland Council. You may also wish to contact the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS), the independent regulator of teachers in Scotland.

The Scottish Government commitment to ensuring staff are appropriately trained and developed is set out in the Staff Governance Standard that is underpinned by legislation. This aims to ensure that NHS staff work in an environment that is safe, supportive and focused on high standards of patient care.

As employers, NHS boards are responsible for ensuring that staff and board members receive appropriate training, development and support to fulfil their roles. Decisions on the content, delivery and frequency of training are therefore matters for individual NHS boards.

NHS Scotland has established a range of measures to support staff to raise concerns where patient safety may be at risk. This includes the National Whistleblowing Standards, which set out how concerns should be raised, received and responded to, and which apply to all NHS boards. The Standards include expectations around responding to concerns raised by workers and ensuring appropriate action is taken.

In addition, every NHS board has a designated Whistleblowing Champion, whose role is to seek assurance that staff are encouraged and supported to speak up and that whistleblowing arrangements are operating effectively.

NHS staff and those providing services to the NHS can raise concerns through Scotland's whistleblowing framework. Where an individual remains dissatisfied with how a concern has been handled locally, they may ask the Independent National Whistleblowing Officer (INWO) to review the handling of their whistleblowing case.

The Scottish Government recognises the importance of the recommendations made by the Thirlwall Inquiry. We will carefully consider Recommendation 4, alongside the Inquiry's wider findings, and assess whether any further action is required in the context of existing arrangements in NHS Scotland.

Establishment visits allow officials the opportunity to see firsthand, the complexities and uniqueness of the prison environment.

In my capacity as Cabinet Secretary for Justice, I visited HMP Barlinnie on 17 July 2026, during which I met with the Governor and his senior management team, who allowed me to see both the infrastructure of the establishment and more notably, the excellent work carried out by our Prison Officers.

Although there is no formal record of everyone I met during the visit, I was able to meet with a wide range of stakeholders, including prisoners and prison officers, which provided me with a deeper understanding of the operational constraints and the good work that is carried out inside Scotland prisons.

I have however met personally with the POA(S) on 16 June 2026 and am attending their Annual Conference on 29 October, I am also aware my predecessor visited HMP Barlinnie on 5 February and 5 August 2025.