Chamber and committees

I can confirm investment of £10 million over the next two years to increase the number of Changing Places Toilets in Scotland.

I expect to launch the Fund in Summer 2025, with funding awards confirmed in the Autumn. Development work on the Fund is well underway and we will be seeking views as part of that. Further information on the Fund will be provided in due course.

Following a period of negotiation with the contractor Kier on the construction contract price, the total project cost of £998.4 million was confirmed in November 2024.

I received regular updates on the pricing and commercial process of the HMP Glasgow construction contract from the Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service over the course of 2024. On 13 January 2025 Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs received formal advice confirming the total project cost £998.4m.

The construction contract is fixed price and the total project cost includes contingency for risk.

The Scottish Government greatly values Disabled People’s Organisations (DPOs) across Scotland. We know that many disabled people currently face significant barriers. DPOs support thousands of disabled people across Scotland through programmes which build the confidence, connections and capacity of disabled people.

£5 million of our Equality and Human Rights fund supports Disabled People’s Organisations to tackle inequality and discrimination, furthering equality, and advancing the realisation of human rights in Scotland.

We are also investing an additional £2 million for the Disability Equality Plan and are working closely with DPOs on delivering essential support to Scotland’s disabled people.

The information requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government and could only be obtained at a disproportionate cost. Outstanding warrants are an operational matter for Police Scotland and other relevant authorities.

Emergency early release regulations have been utilised twice within the last five years (May 2020 and June/July 2024).

Any individuals who were identified during the assessment process as having any outstanding warrants, or court processes, were not eligible for release during either emergency process.

The Law Officers’ role is secured by the Scotland Act 1998 and any changes to that role would require legislation in the UK or Scottish Parliaments depending on any changes proposed. As we have said, the Scottish Government will engage further with the UK Government on any changes that might be considered.

Zero Waste Scotland's (ZWS) Corporate Plan for 2025-2030 includes present and future targets beyond the life of this Corporate Plan.

The reference to seeking reduction of Scotland's extraction of raw materials by one third is based on a United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Report, which stresses the importance of high-income countries reducing their material footprint by bending the resource use curve to achieve economic growth, reduced inequality, improved quality of life and dramatically reduced environmental impacts.

During the lifetime of the current Corporate Plan, Scottish Government will continue to work with ZWS in developing data and policies required to establish a baseline and trajectory for future target setting to measure progress towards a circular economy.

As set out in the Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012, the Chief Constable of Police Scotland is responsible for the policing of Scotland, and is accountable to the Scottish Police Authority for this, rather than to Scottish Ministers directly.

It is therefore not the place of Ministers to issue guidance on operational policing matters. The member may wish to write to the Chief Constable on this issue.

A start date for the review is not confirmed at this time – it is important that the scope and timing of the review is considered within the context of wider reform on access to health care, which is already underway.

It is recognised that transport to health is a key enabler to ensure equitable access to healthcare, and work to bring travel/transport and health planning closer together is in progress. This work will include bringing local bodies together at a regional level to consider the options for transport to health.

While the Scottish Government provides the overarching guidance for patient travel expenses reimbursement, NHS Boards are responsible for developing local policy to best meet the needs to their populations, and for assessing eligibly for financial support and level of that support. This includes setting and reviewing reimbursement rates.

Boards are expected to consider local and individual circumstances, ensuring patient care is at the centre of all decisions made.

Our Equally Safe at School (ESAS) project, developed by Rape Crisis Scotland and Zero Tolerance, applies a whole school approach to inequality and gender-based violence in schools. As of August 2023, there were 79 schools registered with an ESAS account.