Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government takes the welfare of farmed fish seriously and expects all aquaculture operators to comply with animal welfare legislation and industry standards. Where welfare concerns are raised, the Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) are responsible for investigating potential breaches of welfare law and, where appropriate, will take enforcement action using the range of powers available to it.

The Scottish Government provides funding for training APHA veterinarians on farmed fish welfare, and we have full confidence that they have the skill and expertise to carry out inspections. Arrangements for routine welfare inspections of Scottish fish farms by APHA have been strengthened and will result in an increased number of inspections undertaken each year.

The Scottish Government does not intend to require proactive publication of outcomes of individual welfare investigations. Any changes to existing reporting practices would require careful consideration to ensure consistency across sectors and to avoid prejudicing investigative functions.

Whilst menu content will be decided locally, there is much work underway by Scottish Government to facilitate the uptake of venison across the public sector.

This includes a successful pilot with Wild Jura, Argyll and Bute Council and Food for Life Scotland to supply venison into six primary schools. Officials are working collaboratively to explore opportunities to increase demand for venison and develop options to increase supply by helping the sector make the most of various routes to markets such as wholesale and framework agreements used widely across public sector.

In February 2026, the Scottish Government provided £45,000 to SAOS and Scottish Venison to undertake activity to help build capability within the venison sector and drive increased consumption of venison from Scotland. This includes work to improve and establish new supply chains, build skills and develop resources for use within schools.

Officials will continue to work collaboratively with the Scottish Venison Association, Scotland Food & Drink as well as other key stakeholders to ensure opportunities are available within the public sector to enjoy venison.

It would not have been appropriate for the First Minister to give details of any briefings without understanding the impact on proceedings should information be released. The Lord Advocate has now provided members with a wide range of examples to demonstrate the long-standing practice of prosecutors properly advising the Government of the day, of significant prosecutorial decisions taken by an independent prosecutor.

The Techscaler programme does not directly invest in businesses as it is our national programme for creating, developing and scaling tech startups. Members can access the national network of tailored education, mentorship, investment access, community infrastructure, and international opportunities available through the programme. A fuller breakdown of regional participation has recently been published in the Techscaler Annual Report 2025.

The Scottish Government promotes Scottish landed fish and shellfish through grants to Seafood Scotland from the Marine Fund Scotland.

Marine Fund Scotland awards for promotion of Scottish Seafood by year since 2021 are:

2021 £2.6m

2022 £1.92m

2023 £1.75m

2024 £1.85m

2025 £1.7m

As these funds are awarded to promote Scottish landed fish, it is not possible to split them out by fish and shellfish.

The Scottish Government remains steadfast in our commitment to preventing and eradicating violence against women and girls and to supporting specialist services that provide vital support to victims and survivors of gender based violence.

The commissioning of domestic abuse services is a matter for local authorities. However the Scottish Government strongly encourages local authorities to utilise the joint COSLA and Scottish Women’s Aid’s guidance on good practice in commissioning specialist domestic abuse services.

I wrote to the Chief Executive of Highland Council on 11 February 2026, highlighting concerns raised in relation to funding proposals for women’s aid organisations in the area, including Inverness Women’s Aid, requesting Highland Council consider engaging with the organisations concerned and cross-party MSPs in the Highlands, to better understand the challenges and how they can be resolved.

Through the Scottish Budget we have provided a 5% increase to the Delivering Equally Safe Fund, bringing total investment in the fund to almost £46 million over 2026-2028. This will increase the support Inverness Women's Aid receives through the fund to around £230,000 each year over 2026-2028, subject to annual budget processes. Our fund managers, Inspiring Scotland, are actively engaging with Inverness Women’s Aid to offer support.

The Scottish Government expects NHS Boards to ensure that all of their facilities comply with the guidelines and recommendations on the elimination of mixed sex accommodation which has been in place since 2005. In all new hospital developments, there should be a presumption of 100% single rooms, and where existing accommodation is being refurbished as close to 100% as possible is expected. There are limited exceptions, such as Intensive Care Units.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information. This is a matter for Boards, who are expected to comply with guidance on the elimination of mixed sex accommodation.

As noted in my response to question S6W-43974 on 5 March 2026, the National Radiology Lead from the Centre for Sustainable Delivery meets regularly with Health Boards to discuss imaging performance, staffing levels and scanner stock. NHS Boards have been asked to provide plans to support delivery of the 95% target of patients seen within 6 weeks throughout 2026-27, which includes reporting of scans.

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 works with Health Boards through planning to make best use of existing NHS resources and capacity, it is for Health Boards locally to determine how they use the private sector and to agree any contractual arrangements. The Scottish Government no longer provides direct funding to private providers for planned care, therefore, this information is not held.