The Scottish Funding Council (SFC) is responsible for allocating funding to colleges, in line with Ministerial priorities, as set out in SFC’s Annual Letter of Guidance 2025–26. Colleges are responsible for determining their own operational decisions, including course provision.

To ensure that post school provision becomes more responsive to Scotland's strategic skills needs and priorities, the Scottish Government is working closely with partners, including SFC, to deliver on the Programme for Government’s commitment to introduce a new Scottish Government-led approach to national skills planning, and strengthen regional skills planning.

The current Pollinator Strategy runs from 2017 to 2027 and has been a successful catalyst for local authorities, communities, and other organisations to come together to improve existing pollinator habitat and improve linkages between them. In 2026, NatureScot will begin discussion with a range of stakeholders over the successes of the current Strategy, the elements which need to be built on over the coming 10 years covered by the second Strategy, and new initiatives which may need to be taken forward.

NatureScot has recently published the annual Pollinator Strategy Progress Report which is available here: Pollinator Strategy - 2024 Progress Report | NatureScot. Evaluation of future Pollinator Strategies will be taken forward within the context of the wider Monitoring and Evaluation Framework which is being developed for the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy details of which are available here: Biodiversity strategy and delivery plan: governance, monitoring and evaluation - gov.scot.

Independence would give Scotland the opportunity to introduce new legislation for matters currently reserved to Westminster, such as surrogacy. Decisions on changes to laws on surrogacy in an independent Scotland would be a matter for the government of the time, elected by the people of Scotland.

The Scottish Government has been engaging in ongoing discussions with the UK Government regarding the introduction of a “Hillsborough Law”, including a legal duty of candour for public servants and accompanying criminal sanctions. The Scottish Government is considering the extension of this to Scotland and the work in relation to this is ongoing.

The Scottish Government is aware of the Law Commission’s report on the common law offence of misconduct in public office in England and Wales and its recommendation that this is replaced with two statutory offences. The common law offence of misconduct in public office does not exist in Scots law. However, there is a comparable common law offence in Scots law of wilful neglect of duty. The Scottish Government has had some early engagement with the UK Government in relation to the Law Commission’s report.

To date, £4,400,000 has been allocated to the Islands Cost Crisis Emergency Fund since it was established in 2022-23. This can be broken down as follows:

2022-2023

£1.4 million

2023-2024

£1 million

2024-2025

£1 million

2025-2026

£1 million

The Scottish Government has awarded over £213 million of regeneration funding to Clyde Gateway Urban Regeneration Company (URC) from 2007 for the purpose of supporting the delivery of its 20-year operating plan. This includes direct support through annual capital and resource funding to develop and regenerate key sites identified in the plan, support core running costs and other activities it delivers in support of local communities.

Grant awards were made in each financial year are provided in the following table:

Each of Scotland’s enterprise agencies operates within a defined geography. Scottish Enterprise provides services to businesses and supports projects in areas of Scotland not covered by South of Scotland Enterprise and Highlands and Islands Enterprise, alongside the services it provides on a pan-Scotland basis and internationally.

The Scottish Government takes the welfare of farmed fish very seriously and has already committed to exploring options for how to best to set welfare standards for farmed fish during production, as set out in its response to the Rural Affairs and Islands Committee’s recommendations (13 March 2025) following its enquiry into salmon farming in Scotland.

There are no plans at this time to introduce new requirements for semi-natural grasslands. Semi-natural grasslands sit within the definition of ‘rough grazing or other semi-natural areas’ which are currently protected under Cross Compliance. Requirements under GAEC 6 prohibit farmers and crofters from ploughing or cultivating areas of rough grazing or other semi-natural areas unless approved as part of an Environmental Impact Assessment. Further guidance is available at: Maintenance of soil organic matter (GAEC 6)Maintenance of soil organic matter (GAEC 6)

Support remains available via the Agri-Environment Climate Scheme (AECS) to land managers to conserve semi-natural habitats. Relevant options include Moorland Management, and alongside this, Summer Hill Grazing Cattle and Away Wintering Sheep. Further detail is available on the AECS webpage.

Scottish Government have been in regular communication with both Defra and Welsh Government, including regular discussions between CVO’s since disease was identified as circulating in England in 2024, with meetings taking place at least twice a week since then. Scottish Government policy and veterinary colleagues have attended twice weekly bluetongue meetings, and weekly bluetongue vaccine task force meetings with the other devolved administrations and industry representatives. There are also twice weekly licensing and policy calls between all the administrations.