Chamber and committees

We remain committed to supporting science festivals across Scotland in 2023-24 with funding of up to £220,000 available to make science accessible to a wider Scottish audience providing annual and local focus for activities and events.

Science festivals play a key role in towns and regions across Scotland in making science, innovation and creativity accessible to a wide public audience as well as inspiring young people. Science festivals also support the aims of the STEM Education and Training Strategy through supporting science learning, promoting careers in STEM and helping to inspire our next generation of scientists.

This year’s funding to support science festivals is allocated to festivals that take place between September 2023 and June 2024 and have an existing, proven track record of delivery. The festivals must also include public events such as topical debates or talks by scientists, family activities allowing children and young people and parents to learn about science together, and, unless being held during school holidays, a schools programme for primary and secondary schools.

Any organisation interested in running a science festival and receiving grant funding from the Scottish Government should contact our Science Advice and Engagement Team via the Central Enquiries Unit ([email protected]), for further information about funding criteria and requirements.

During the development of the Bill Scottish Government officials have been in regular contact with officials from the Department for Science, Innovation and Technology to understand the UK Government’s plans for the legislation and the impact it will have on organisations in Scotland as well as with subject-specific officials in other Departments. There have also been exchanges between the various Ministers in both Governments throughout the process.

Of particular focus in these discussions has been: the need to balance the rights of individuals with reducing the burden on organisations using personal data; the potential for impact on EU data adequacy for Scotland as a result of the Bill, which the Scottish Government has sought assurances on; and the areas which require Legislative Consent from the Scottish Parliament.

The Scottish Government also issued a response to the UK Government’s 2021 consultation ‘Data: a new direction’ which informed the development of the legislation.

Monitoring compliance with conditions attached to planning permissions is a matter for the relevant planning authority. Planning authorities have a range of enforcement powers, and a general discretion under the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 to take enforcement action against any breach of planning control if they consider such action to be in the public interest and proportionate to the scale of the breach, having regard to the provisions of the development plan and any other material considerations. The Scottish Government and Scottish Ministers have no remit under planning legislation to intervene in or comment on individual cases.

Tackling poverty and protecting people from harm is one of three critical missions of this government.

The Tackling Child Poverty Ministerial Oversight Group, which I will convene, will provide Ministerial-level oversight and assurance of the delivery of the actions set out in Best Start, Bright Futures.

The Scottish Government provides £169 million in funding for the provision of free school meals – which is one of the most generous of anywhere in the UK. All pupils in primaries one to five, and eligible pupils in primary six through to S6, can benefit from free school meals, saving families an average of £400 per eligible child per year.

The Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills has announced that the next phase of our free school meal expansion will see them rolled out to all primary six and seven pupils, whose families are in receipt of the Scottish Child Payment. This will be the next step in fulfilling our commitment to universal provision in primary schools and we are working with partners to take this work forward. Further phases, including a pilot at secondary, are being considered.

Monitoring compliance with conditions attached to planning permissions is a matter for the relevant planning authority. Planning authorities have a range of enforcement powers, and a general discretion under the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 to take enforcement action against any breach of planning control if they consider such action to be in the public interest and proportionate to the scale of the breach, having regard to the provisions of the development plan and any other material considerations. The Scottish Government and Scottish Ministers have no remit under planning legislation to intervene in or comment on individual cases.

The Scottish Fiscal Commission publish forecasts of the number of people receiving payments and spending for Carer’s Allowance Supplement. Those figures are on a national level and not at a constituency geography. The latest published forecasts estimated spending forecast for Carer’s Allowance Supplement for 2023-24 is £49 million with an estimated 91,000 people receiving payments.

The Scotland’s Economic and Fiscal Forecasts at May 2023 can be found at: Scotland’s Economic and Fiscal Forecasts – May 2023 – Scottish Fiscal Commission .

To note, payments are made twice a year and while most people will receive two payments there may be some people only eligible at one of the payment windows.

Social Security Scotland publish statistics for total number of carers eligible for Carer’s Allowance Supplement, in each financial year by local authority area, as well as the value of payments at each eligibility date by local authority area.

The official statistics for Carer’s Allowance Supplement can be found at: Social Security Scotland - Summary statistics for Carer's Allowance Supplement to April eligibility date 2023

The latest published number of carers paid and value of payments for the Local Authority area of South Lanarkshire, which includes East Kilbride, are as shown in Table 1.

Table 1: Number and value of Carer’s Allowance Supplement payments in South Lanarkshire for each financial year.

Under planning legislation a failure to comply with a condition of planning consent constitutes a breach of planning control. Monitoring compliance with conditions attached to planning permissions is a matter for the relevant planning authority.

Planning authorities have a range of enforcement powers, and a general discretion under planning legislation to take enforcement action against any breach of planning control if they consider such action to be in the public interest and proportionate to the scale of the breach, having regard to the provisions of the development plan and any other material considerations.

The Scottish Fiscal Commission publish forecasts of the number of people receiving payments and spending for Carer’s Allowance Supplement. The latest published forecasts show the estimated spending for Carer’s Allowance Supplement for 2023-24 is £49 million with an estimated 91,000 people receiving payments.

The Scotland’s Economic and Fiscal Forecasts at May 2023 can be found at: Scotland’s Economic and Fiscal Forecasts – May 2023 – Scottish Fiscal Commission

To note, payments are made twice a year and while most people will receive two payments there may be some people only eligible at one of the payment windows.

Social Security Scotland publish statistics for total number of carers eligible for Carer’s Allowance Supplement in each financial year by local authority area, as well as the value of payments at each eligibility date by local authority area.

The latest official statistics for Carer’s Allowance Supplement can be found at: Social Security Scotland - Summary statistics for Carer's Allowance Supplement to April eligibility date 2023

The latest statistics show in total 94,460 carers received a payment in the financial year 2022-23, with a value of payments of £42.7 million.

The Scottish Government gathers data on displaced Ukrainians applying for homelessness support as part of the statutory collection which feeds into the Homelessness in Scotland official statistics series. The intention is to publish this data six-monthly, in line with the timing of the Homelessness in Scotland publication schedule. Annual statistics are published around late August and a six-monthly update, to give an indication of trends ahead of the next annual publication, is published around late January/early February.

The Scottish Government has not conducted an assessment regarding discharge levels from Exhaust Gas Cleaning Systems (EGCS) in Scottish ports. Whilst statutory port authorities have individual powers to regulate vessel activities within their harbour limits, the responsibility for shipping emission regulations is reserved to the UK Government. The Maritime and Coastguard Agency is responsible for enforcing all shipping regulations in UK waters, to ensure vessels are meeting UK and international safety and environmental regulations.