Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government does not hold a central record of which Acts of the Scottish Parliament have been commenced either in full or in part.

The Scottish Government welcomes the official opening of Sumitomo Electric’s new subsea cable factory at the Port of Nigg on 19 October. Supported by £24.5m in Scottish public sector funding, the factory puts Scotland at the heart of the energy transition, unlocking domestic capability in HVDC subsea transmission cable manufacturing for the first time.

Sumitomo Electric has confirmed the facility will directly create over 200 skilled local jobs, with a total projected impact of more than 400 jobs across the broader UK supply chain.

We want to see companies like Sumitomo Electric continue to thrive in Scotland. To support this, the UK Government must use its reserved policy levers to provide the long-term certainty and stable pipeline of clean energy projects that manufacturers need to invest with confidence.

The Scottish Government recognises the significant and lasting impact that sexual abuse and exploitation can have on victims and survivors and is committed to ensuring they receive appropriate support. Such support must be tailored to the needs of victims and survivors; therefore, the nature of support provided and who is responsible for providing that support is dependent on factors such as the type of harm experienced, the age of the victim/survivor and where they live.

For child victims and survivors, we continue to work with partners across local government, health, justice and the third sector to strengthen responses to child sexual abuse and exploitation and improve outcomes for those affected. Recent work includes the publication of the National Review of Group-Based Child Sexual Abuse and Exploitation and the establishment of a statutory inquiry chaired by Professor Alexis Jay, which will help inform future improvements to prevention, identification, protection and support arrangements for victims and survivors.

Through the national implementation of Bairns’ Hoose, the Scottish Government is supporting access to coordinated, trauma-informed justice, health, care and recovery services for children affected by abuse and exploitation, with the aim that all children who need a Bairns’ Hoose can access a consistent response regardless of where they live in Scotland.

The Scottish Government has also committed to establishing a Truth Project, providing survivors with a meaningful opportunity to share their experiences and help shape future policy and practice. Survivors are offered wraparound support to share their testimony, which is then analysed, summarised, anonymised and published with the findings used to inform future policy.

Adult victims trafficked for the purposes of commercial sexual exploitation can access crisis accommodation in line with the Human Trafficking and Exploitation (Scotland) Act 2015. The Scottish Government provides funding to NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde to deliver a national specialist psychological trauma therapy service for adult victims of human trafficking and exploitation.

Through the Victim-Centred Approach Fund we have awarded over £75m to victims’ organisations for the period 2022-2027 to fund provision of practical and emotional support to victims, survivors, and witnesses of crime across Scotland. We have also provided funding of over £650k to trauma specialists at Public Services Delivery Scotland to develop and support implementation of a Trauma Informed Justice Knowledge and Skills Framework for the justice workforce.

Across Scotland, local authorities are legally obliged to offer advice and assistance to people who are at risk of or are experiencing homelessness, and temporary accommodation if it is needed. Interim or emergency accommodation can be provided while the council assesses a household’s situation.

We are committed to growing the community energy sector and have increased funding for the Community and Renewable Energy Scheme (CARES) to £15 million this year, in line with our Programme for Government.

While budgets are currently set annually through the Scottish Budget process, the Scottish Government is committed to engaging with Parliament and stakeholders to shape our multi-year spending plans.

In line with the approach taken last year, we aim to build broad support across Parliament for the 2027-28 Scottish Budget and will listen to stakeholders to ensure their views inform future spending plans.

In light of the review of the Carbon Calculator published by ClimateXChange on 13 January 2025, the Scottish Government is currently letting a further research contract jointly with UK Government to bring the tool up to date and ensure it is applicable to all peatland types across Scotland and England.

This new research is being phased. The first phase will prioritise updating the Carbon Calculator within its existing methodological framework, enabling rapid improvements in accuracy without interrupting user access while the research continues. Subsequent phases will focus on developing new modules specifically tailored to various peatland types and integrating increasingly detailed spatial data into the tool.

In the interim, the Carbon Calculator will continue to provide a consistent framework for assessing carbon impacts, with its outputs considered alongside the wider evidence submitted through the consenting process. This approach will ensure the Carbon Calculator remains available for use throughout, while methodological enhancements and expanded capabilities are introduced over time. Whilst noting its limitations, the Carbon Calculator provides the best currently available means by which carbon calculations can be provided in a consistent and comparable format.

I am due to meet the Governor of HMP & YOI Polmont in December.

Additionally, a record of ministerial engagements can be found on the www.gov.scot website; this will include a list of any meetings between myself and the Scottish Prison Service.

Tackling social housing waiting lists depends fundamentally on increasing housing supply and improving the effectiveness of housing delivery, including through sustained investment in affordable housing and the establishment of More Homes Scotland to strengthen delivery.

Our Public Sector Reform: Proposals represent a significant opportunity to strengthen housing delivery, including consideration on how responsibilities are best organised to improve outcomes for communities. The legislative framework on social housing allocations, including housing lists, will remain in place during, and following, public sector reform. The First Minister recently agreed with COSLA that further joint work should be undertaken to consider which powers are best exercised at community, regional and national levels, with a clear commitment that reform will strengthen local government and local decision-making. These discussions are ongoing and no decisions have been taken.

We remain focused on delivering 110,000 affordable homes by 2032, with at least 70% for social rent and 10% in rural and island communities, and will invest up to £4.9 billion over the next four years, including £4.1 billion of public investment, to support delivery of that ambition.

In 2026-27, a total of £925.9 million is available through the Affordable Housing Supply Programme (AHSP), including funding distributed to local authority areas through Resource Planning Assumptions to support the delivery of affordable housing in line with local housing priorities: Affordable Housing Supply Programme: resource planning assumptions - gov.scot

Alongside this investment, the Scottish Government is also establishing More Homes Scotland from 1 April 2027 to help strengthen support for local authorities and wider partners in delivering the homes their communities need, bringing together funding, expertise and delivery tools under one roof to help unlock and accelerate housing delivery.

The Scottish Government's Public Sector Reform: Proposals, published on 21 September 2026, presents a significant opportunity to strengthen housing delivery as part of wider public service reform. Housing has been identified as a key area for discussion as the Scottish Government and local government consider how responsibilities are best organised to improve outcomes for communities. The First Minister recently agreed with COSLA that further joint work should be undertaken to consider which powers are best exercised at community, regional and national levels, with a clear commitment that reform will strengthen local government and local decision-making. These discussions are ongoing and no decisions have been taken.

The Scottish Government is sympathetic to these concerns. However the key levers affecting electricity prices, including electricity market design, network charging and energy bill policy costs, are reserved to the UK Government. Under current market arrangements, gas frequently sets the wholesale electricity price, leading to high costs driven by volatile international gas markets. This arrangement is unfit for purpose.

The Scottish Government continues to press the UK Government to reform the energy market, including by decoupling electricity prices from gas prices, so that consumers and organisations in Scotland can fully benefit from our country's substantial renewables resource, ensuring the lower costs of renewables are reflected in consumer prices. We are also supporting investment in renewable generation, electricity networks, energy efficiency and low-carbon heat to reduce long-term exposure to volatile international gas prices.

The GetYourNEC website states that an individual with a valid disability proof dated within the last 18 months (with review date clearly visible if applicable) residing in Scotland can apply for a National Entitlement Card.

GetYourNEC also refers to full details being available on the Transport Scotland website, which states that anyone in receipt of a qualifying benefit for concessionary travel will require a letter dated within the last 18 months which also confirms the length of benefit entitlement.