Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government is clear that violence against women and girls is abhorrent and completely unacceptable, regardless of who the perpetrator is. Women must have confidence that allegations of abuse will be taken seriously, investigated rigorously and acted upon appropriately.

Building and maintaining public trust in policing is essential, particularly for women and survivors who need the confidence to come forward and report abuse. We will continue to work with Chief Constable Jo Farrell, Police Scotland, the Scottish Police Authority and wider partners to support robust action where concerns are identified and to ensure victims and survivors are at the centre of policing responses.

The Scottish Government has strengthened the framework for police accountability through the Police (Ethics, Conduct and Scrutiny) (Scotland) Act 2025 and the Police Service of Scotland (Vetting) Regulations 2026, which introduced ongoing vetting throughout officers' careers and strengthened powers to manage risks and remove officers who cannot maintain vetting clearance. These reforms are designed to strengthen integrity, transparency and public confidence in policing.

Data gathered by Museum Galleries Scotland, Scotland’s national sector development body, suggests that 63% of closures since 2024 have occurred outside of the central belt. Whilst it is for locally elected representatives to make decisions on how best to deliver and fund services in their local communities, the Scottish Government recognises the significant challenges faced by the museum and galleries sector.

The Scottish Government values the important role that Museum Galleries Scotland plays in supporting the sector, which is why it has provided £8.2 million to Museum Galleries Scotland this financial year. This includes £4 million for the Museum Futures Programme, delivered in partnership with Museum Galleries Scotland and National Lottery Heritage Fund. Through this investment, the Scottish Government is supporting the sustainability of cultural infrastructure across urban and rural communities, with funding reaching museums in every region of Scotland.

The Scottish Government recognises the cost and supply-line challenges that developers on islands and in more rural areas face. To protect these developers, The Building Safety Levy (Scotland) Act 2026 exempts homes built on islands from the Levy and the Scottish Government will extend this to three mainland Highland areas, Cape Wrath, Knoydart and Scoraig, which are only accessible by boat.

The annual levy-free allowance of 29 units is also intended to support smaller and rural developers, removing an estimated 89% of remote small towns and remote rural areas from the levy.

In addition, housing that has been funded through our Affordable Housing Supply Programme will also be exempt. This includes homes wholly or partly funded by the Rural and Islands Housing Fund and Rural Affordable Housing for Key Workers Fund, which aim to support the delivery of affordable housing in rural and island areas.

The Scottish Government will continue to assess the potential impacts of the Levy ahead of its implementation date in April 2028.

Last year, 97% of designated bathing waters in Scotland achieved the bathing water quality standard and 82% achieved the higher standards of “Good” and “Excellent"

The Scottish Government is working with Scottish Water and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) to address water quality concerns at Portobello.

Scottish Water is undertaking a £1 million project to protect and potentially improve the water quality at Portobello. This work includes detailed modelling and a “find and fix” watercourse pollution study to identify and mitigate sources of pollution as they are identified, such as misconnections, where household waste pipes have been incorrectly connected to surface water drains. Scottish Water expect to conclude the project in March 2027

In addition, last year, SEPA established a Management Group together with the City of Edinburgh Council, and Scottish Water, to provide oversight of the investigations in Portobello and Fisherrow to consider wider improvement and beach management activities.

I have also asked SEPA to consider opportunities to raise awareness of the positive role everyone can play in helping to protect water quality at Scotland’s bathing waters.

The Scottish Government continues to work with Environmental Standards Scotland on this matter. All correspondence has been published by Environmental Standards Scotland and is available on its website.

The Scottish Government carried out an analysis of the 2026 revaluation values which has been published on the Scottish Government website at: About the 2026 revaluation - Non-domestic rates revaluation 2026 statistics - gov.scot.

A comprehensive review of non-domestic rates is also being undertaken which will examine improvements and reforms that can be made, working closely with business to ensure the system provides the clarity, incentive and transparency which businesses need. This builds on the commitment to examine the impact and configuration of all our reliefs in advance of the next revaluation on 1 April 2029 and Ministers commenced a series of engagements with businesses over the summer.

Decisions on non-domestic rates and reliefs for 2027-28 will be set out as part of the Scottish Budget in the usual manner.

The national increase in the number of pupils recorded as having an additional support need is partly driven by increased awareness and identification, but also by a change in how ASN statistics were gathered in 2010, to ensure that these record any type of additional support provided to pupils.

We are undertaking a National ASN Data Improvement Programme focusing on improving the consistency of how additional support needs are identified and recorded across Scotland. Part of this work includes a full review of the current categories of need and creating national guidance.

We are working in collaboration with local authorities to ensure this work helps schools and local authorities understand the needs of children and young people more clearly, support staff to record identified needs more consistently, and to support more effective overall planning to meet children’s needs.

There is no legal requirement for landlords to appoint a structural engineer whenever concerns are raised about a property’s condition. However, landlords must ensure rented homes meet the Repairing Standard and Tolerable Standard under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2006.

Where concerns may indicate a risk to the structural defect or instability of the property, landlords should investigate appropriately and take any necessary action, including obtaining advice from a suitably qualified professional where required. Any assessment should inform whether remedial works are required and help landlords to meet their legal responsibilities to provide a safe home for tenants.

The Museum Futures programme was established in July 2025 in direct response to sector need. Now in its second year, the programme is delivering a strong, sector-endorsed model and building an important evidence base around what does and does not work for the sector.

Ongoing programme evaluation will inform the Scottish Government’s long-term strategy to supporting our non-national museums and galleries and help to ensure that the Scottish Government’s support continues to be effectively targeted where it will have greatest impact. Multi-year funding is just one of the mechanisms that will be considered as part of any exploratory work in response to the developing evidence base. All Scottish Government proposed funding allocations are subject both to the annual Scottish Government’s budget scrutiny process through Parliament and our own internal Accountable Officer processes.

The Scottish Government recognises the importance of raising awareness of falls prevention among older people, their families and carers. This includes the provision of public information through national means such as NHS inform or targeted information such as Scottish Government’s Personal Footcare Guidance released in March 2025, all of which continue to be reviewed and updated.

NHS Scotland and Health and Social Care Partnership services also provide falls prevention advice, assessment and support based on individual circumstances. In addition, national improvement programmes such as the Scottish Patient Safety Programme support NHS Boards to reduce falls-related harm and promote good practice in falls prevention.