The deployment of officers and staff are matters for the Chief Constable. Police Scotland has stated that, “The nature of policing is unpredictable, and overtime is a flexible mechanism which can help to ensure we maintain an effective service for all our communities”

The Scottish Government is investing a record £1.64 billion in policing in 2025-26, an increase of almost £90 million of additional funding from the 2024-25 budget to support police capacity and capability. Our investment in policing has enabled Police Scotland to undertake the highest level of recruitment since its inception in 2024-25. Police Scotland has stated that it has a healthy recruitment pipeline.

Police Scotland’s three-year Business Plan 2024-2027 sets out an ambitious programme of workforce modernisation which aims to bring frontline policing to its strongest possible position.

The spend achieved on the Sustainable and Active Travel budget for 2024-25 was £147,700,000. This equates to 85% of the value allocated for investment at the start of the 2024-25 financial year.

The Scottish Government is transparent on all investments that are made to delivery Partners. On an annual basis this information is publish via the Transport Scotland section 70 returns, these are available for all to view on the Transport Scotland Website. For the years mentioned in question S6W-36360 (2021-22, 2022-23, 2023-24), the funding distributed from the Sustainable and Active Travel budget to delivery partners has been placed with SPICE under bib number 66035.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-39888 on 9 September 2025. 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.

Under the North East Operating Company contract, there are no Payment Adjustment Factors applicable to delays to completion of work for unforeseen events outwith the control of the contractor, such as un-charted services and environmental/ecological issues. As such no contractual penalties have been applied for the completion of the repair and refurbishment work at the A96 Union Bridge in Keith.

I meet regularly with the Scottish Police Federation (SPF), where we discuss a range of issues which affect their members. At our meeting on 19 December 2024, the SPF raised concerns about the condition of buildings in the Police Scotland estate, and we discussed the Police Scotland Estates Masterplan.

Management of the Police Scotland estate, including assessments of the condition of its buildings, is an operational matter for the Chief Constable under the oversight of the Scottish Police Authority. The Scottish Government supports the work undertaken by Police Scotland to address the issue of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC), which has been identified in four locations across the Police Scotland estate, and Police Scotland’s commitment to providing a safe environment for officers, staff and the public.

We are investing a record £1.64 billion in policing in 2025-26. This includes £70 million of capital funding for investment in police assets, including the police estate.

The Scottish Government is committed to doing all it can to secure the future of the business’ operations at Grangemouth. As such, Scottish Ministers engage regularly with the management of INEOS O&P. Most recently, the Deputy First Minister met INEOS O&P UK CEO, Stuart Collings, on 22 August to discuss the challenges that the business continues to face and the role that the UK Government must play to support the business.

This is an operational matter for the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh and the information is not held centrally by the Scottish Government.

While the Scottish Government has overall responsibility for health and social care support policy in Scotland, it is for local authorities and health boards to work with the Health and Social Care Partnerships (HSCPs) to set budgets and ensure that social care support services are in place to provide people with the appropriate support.

Social Care spend therefore occurs at a local government level and details can be found in the Local Finance Returns: https://www.gov.scot/collections/local-government-finance-statistics/#scottishlocalgovernmentfinancialstatistics

However, each year, the Scottish Government does provide additional investment into Social Care.

Details of the Scottish Budget for each year can be found here: https://www.gov.scot/budget/

This is an operational matter for the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh and the information is not held centrally by the Scottish Government.

Some of this information can be found in the Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh‘s (RBGE) Annual Reports and Accounts: Accounts | Corporate Information | What We Do | Royal Botanic Garden Edinburgh.

The Scottish Government continues to consider, alongside potential investors, regulatory and policy barriers to investment, including those outlined in Project Willow. We are already making tangible progress with the conclusion of an initial study by the James Hutton Institute and Scotland’s Rural College on the potential for cover crops to be grown in sufficient quantities that could support a potential biorefinery project at Grangemouth which will be published shortly. This will now progress to field trials to ensure a comprehensive approach is being taken to satisfactorily address the recommendation in the Project Willow.