Chamber and committees

There are 15 prisons located throughout Scotland, 2 of which are managed privately.

Responsibility for providing prison healthcare was transferred from Scottish Prison Service (SPS) to NHS in 2011, and as such the Scottish Government does not hold data on the mental health workforce.

Data such as the number of staff in post or vacancies is collected on specific job roles but not within specific settings such as prisons.

While the Scottish Government provides funding for recruitment under Action 15, workforce and service planning is conducted by Integration Authorities according to the needs of their populations.

Under Action 15 of the Mental Health Strategy 2017-27, 54.4 whole time equivalent (WTE) mental health posts have been recruited to in our prisons.

We have undertaken significant engagement with people who have lived experience of energy limiting conditions and organisations which represent them. Adult Disability Payment has been designed to be inclusive and accessible for people with energy-limiting conditions. Applications can be made through a choice of channels and the questions are relevant to people with fatigue and fluctuating conditions. Social Security Scotland makes entitlement decisions based on the individual’s account of the impact of their disability or condition and other supporting information, including from people’s wider support network. This is particularly helpful for people who may have difficulty accessing a diagnosis or treatment.

Consultations between a client and a health and social care practitioner employed by Social Security Scotland will only be held when necessary. Examinations, such as asking clients to touch their toes, will not be used as they do not provide reliable information, especially in relation to energy-limiting conditions. Social Security Scotland case managers also stringently apply the reliability criteria. This means that entitlement decisions must take into account the full impact fatigue has on individuals when completing activities, including any recovery time needed afterwards.

Regular open and constructive engagement with the early learning and childcare sector continues to be a vital part of our approach to policy development. This includes engagement with the sector representative bodies, and through the Childcare Sector Working Group, which last met on 16 June 2022.

Scottish Government and Education Scotland’s ‘Realising the Ambition – Being Me’, the national practice guidance on supporting young children’s learning, was published in 2020. Private providers contributed to its development via sector representative bodies and through a series of consultation events held across Scotland in order to seek the views of practitioners working in the public, private, third and childminding sectors.

The Roads (Scotland) Act 1984 places the statutory responsibility for local roads improvement, maintenance and repair with local road authorities.

The vast majority of funding to local authorities from the Scottish Government is provided via a block grant and we do not stipulate how local authorities should utilise their individual allocations. It is therefore the responsibility of each local authority to manage their own budget and to allocate the financial resources available to them on the basis of local needs and priorities, having first fulfilled their statutory obligations and the jointly agreed set of national and local priorities.

The 2022-23 Local Government Settlement of almost £12.7 billion is both fair and affordable, under the most challenging of circumstances.

Following publication of the Audit Scotland report on Maintaining Scotland’s Roads in 2016, the National Roads Maintenance Review undertaken by Transport Scotland, SCOTS (the Society of Chief Officers of Transportation in Scotland), CoSLA and SoLACE (the Society of Local Authority Chief Executives) considered the recommendation for long term funding settlements for local road maintenance. However, the conclusion was that this would lead to further ring fencing of local authority funding settlements which would impact on local accountability and decision making, and was not taken forward.

The Roads (Scotland) Act 1984 places statutory responsibility for local roads, including structures, improvements, maintenance and repair with local roads authorities. As such it is the responsibility of the local authority to determine how best to meet its duties on local roads in their respective areas and no formal guidance is issued on this matter.

SCOTS (the Society of Chief Officers of Transportation in Scotland) – www.scotsnet.org , are responsible for implementing new materials and best practice on local road maintenance.

Transport Scotland does share knowledge and best practice through a number of forums. Transport Scotland hosts the Scottish Road Research Board (SRRB) which undertakes research and trials of innovative new materials. SCOTS and the Scottish Road Works Commissioner are members of the SRRB. Transport Scotland also hosts the Transport Scotland Pavement Forum which discusses latest developments in road surfacing. This includes representatives of SCOTS (Society of Chief Officers of Transportation in Scotland) and from the road surfacing industry.

The Roads (Scotland) Act 1984 places statutory responsibility for local roads, including structures, improvements, maintenance and repair with local roads authorities. As such it is the responsibility of the local authority to determine how best to meet its duties on local roads in their respective areas.

SCOTS (the Society of Chief Officers of Transportation in Scotland) – www.scotsnet.org , are responsible for developing guidance and good practice on local road maintenance which is published on their website. Local authority asset management processes and procedures are led by the SCOTS Asset Management Group. Transport Scotland does share knowledge and best practice with local authorities through a number of forums. Local authorities also align with the national guidance and tools produced by the Department for Transport through the UK Roads Leadership Group, UK Roads Board and the UK Asset Management Board.

Scottish Rail Holdings advised that the cost of the recent pay agreement with ScotRail train drivers is £4.5 million per annum. It will be funded from the 2022/23 budget allocated to ScotRail Trains Limited, with no other budgets having been affected.

The Scottish Government currently has no plans to extend the statutory free bus schemes to include rail services.

We are, however, undertaking a Fair Fares Review that will look at look at the range of discounts and concessionary schemes which are available on all modes including bus, rail and ferry.

Transport Scotland has corresponded with relevant local transport authorities in respect of the 101/102 bus service between Dumfries and Edinburgh. I am pleased that those authorities have now reached an agreement to continue a service until 31 March 2023 and I welcome the discussions now beginning with local communities to find long term solutions for this route.

Bus service provision in Scotland operates in an open de-regulated market and the provision of local bus services is a matter for bus operators and local transport authorities. The Scottish Government has, however, extended recovery funding for bus services via the Network Support Grant Plus, prioritising essential support for operators to support bus services like this with extra funding while travel patterns and demand adapt following the pandemic.

The Scottish Government is consulting on potential legislative reforms to strengthen victims’ rights and improve their experiences of the justice system in the ‘ Improving victims’ experiences of the justice system ’ consultation. This includes proposals for the establishment of a Victims’ Commissioner for Scotland. The consultation is currently live and will close on 19 August 2022.