Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government recognise the harms that can be caused by gambling. As set out in our Population Health Framework, we are taking a Public Health approach to tackle these harms and improve the treatment services.

Through the Gambling Levy funds, the Scottish Government has announced funding of £7.9 million to a wide range of organisations in 2026-27. We are working with stakeholders funded through the Levy, including RCA Trust, GamCare and Citizens Advice Scotland to raise awareness of the support available across Scotland.

In addition, we are working closely with the UK Government over the National Gambling Helpline which is a key component for those seeking support.

Vessel design studies are set to conclude later this year, with passenger capacity and capital costs included in the Outline Business Case.

As indicated in Parliamentary Question S7W-01610 on 5 August 2026, the Long Term Conditions Advisory Groups, were established under the previous government to provide recommendations to inform our way forward for long term conditions. It is for Scottish Ministers to decide whether and to what extent any of the recommendations become government policy. We are carefully considering these recommendations as we develop this work.

We are grateful to all members of the Advisory Groups for their involvement in developing these recommendations and continue to engage with the Advisory Groups as this work develops.

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.

There is an established body of UK and international evidence showing that gambling-related harm can have significant consequences for mental health, financial wellbeing and family and personal relationships. Gambling-related harms can affect not only people who gamble, but also families and others close to them.

Through funding from the UK Statutory Gambling Levy, the Scottish Government funded several exploratory projects in 2025-26 to help us understand more about the mental health impacts of gambling harms in Scotland’s communities. Key learning from across the range of projects was highlighted in a flash report published by the Health and Social Care Alliance (the ALLIANCE) in May 2026. We have made further funding available in 2026-27 through the Gambling Harms and Mental Health fund, administered by the ALLIANCE, to continue to support mental health focused work and develop this learning.

The UKRI Research Programme on Gambling is investing in a coordinated programme of independent research to strengthen the evidence base on gambling-related harms. Scottish Government will continue to work with partners to understand how to best prevent and treat gambling-related harms based on the available evidence.

In 2024, following a commission from the Scottish Government, Public Health Scotland began publishing nationally collated data on waiting times for NHS gender identity services, making Scotland the first country in the UK to publish such data. The third annual instalment of these data was published on 30 June 2026.

These statistics are essential for understanding local progress and variation in the impact of Scottish Government funding, and provide a foundation for ongoing improvement work. While these data demonstrate good progress in some areas in, we recognise that performance is not yet at the level we all want to see, particularly in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.

Scottish Government officials are engaging closely with the leadership of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde to ensure that the Board is appropriately supported to improve its service delivery, and we will continue to share best practices and work collaboratively across NHS Scotland to build on improvements to date.

Public Health Scotland (PHS) releases statistics, as part of the monthly Stage of Treatment (SoT) publication. This covers waits for new outpatient appointments under the 12-week standard, and for inpatient and day case admissions covered by the 12-week Treatment Time Guarantee (TTG). The latest statistics are published up to 30th June 2026 and can be found using the link below:

https://publichealthscotland.scot/publications/stage-of-treatment-waiting-times/

The Scottish Government has worked closely with Trading Standards and COSLA during the development of the Tobacco and Vapes Act 2026 (2026 Act) and will continue to do so during its implementation.

All Scottish Statutory Instruments resulting from the 2026 Act will be supported by the appropriate impact assessments as part of our usual policy development process.

Local Authorities have responsibility to ensure local budget decisions deliver local and national priorities including enforcement of existing legislation around sales, illicit tobacco and vapes, and the single use vape ban. The 2026-27 Scottish Budget provides a further real-terms increase in the Local Government Settlement, delivering record funding of almost £15.7 billion, including a quarter of a billion pounds of unrestricted General Revenue Grant.

On 30 July 2026, the Scottish Government published statutory guidance for retailers of tobacco, vaping, nicotine or herbal smoking products on creating an age verification policy for their store, found here: https://www.gov.scot/publications/selling-tobacco-products-vaping-products-nicotine-products-cigarette-papers-herbal-smoking-products-age-verification-guidance-age-verification-policies-retailers/ .

On 11 August the UK Government published UK-wide guidance on implementation of the 2026 Act which covers the following topics:

• Selling tobacco, herbal smoking and cigarette papers:https://www.gov.uk/guidance/selling-tobacco-herbal-smoking-products-and-cigarette-papers
• Selling vaping and nicotine products: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/selling-vaping-and-nicotine-products
• Tobacco, vaping and nicotine products: fixed penalty notices: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tobacco-vaping-and-nicotine-products-fixed-penalty-notices#nations-in-scope
• Tobacco and vaping product vending machine ban: https://www.gov.uk/guidance/tobacco-and-vaping-product-vending-machine-ban .

Broadcasting is reserved and we believe it should be devolved to the Scottish Parliament. The Scottish Government recognises the valuable role of community radio in delivering local news and important information to our communities right across Scotland. We believe that it is vital that there is a network of radio operations to expand and enhance the service provision for Scottish listeners and we will continue to champion a stronger broadcasting sector in Scotland to ensure a diversity of voices in communities across Scotland.

The Scottish Government has been engaging with NHS boards regarding their use of the £4.5 million funding for myalgic encephalomyelitis (ME) and long COVID services since April 2026 and continues to do so.

The funding is being allocated to NHS boards on a recurring basis to support the delivery of specialist support across Scotland for people with long COVID, ME/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and similar conditions.

The Scottish Government will continue to work with NHS boards to monitor progress and identify any further support that may be required.

The Scottish Government is providing £4.5 million annually to NHS boards supporting the development and delivery of specialist services for people with long COVID, ME/Chronic Fatigue Syndrome (ME/CFS) and related conditions. The funding, provided on a recurring basis, is distributed using the NHS Scotland Resource Allocation Committee (NRAC) formula, which takes account of factors associated with variations in healthcare need across populations.

The Scottish Government will work with NHS boards to monitor progress.