Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government is committed to increasing private capital investment to Scotland to grow the Scottish economy and support a just transition.

To create a world-leading investment ecosystem, Scotland needs a continuum of capital able to meet the needs of companies and projects across all sectors and stages. The Scottish Government recognises the importance of strengthening domestic sources of investment and ownership alongside attracting high-quality inward investment.

The Scottish Government also recognises the value of collaboration between public sector investors, local government, economic development agencies and community organisations (including development trusts) and is continuing to consider how existing partnerships and investment mechanisms can best support these objectives. We continue to engage with the Scottish National Investment Bank, Scotland's economic development agencies, local authorities and the Scottish Local Government Pension Scheme to explore opportunities to increase investment in businesses, infrastructure and communities in Scotland.

Decisions on investment by Local Government Pension Scheme funds remain matters for the administering authorities, which must act in accordance with their fiduciary duties and the relevant statutory framework.

The Government remains committed to developing Scotland's investment ecosystem, including support for community ownership, patient capital and business growth finance.

The Scottish Government welcomed the publication of the UK Covid-19 Inquiry’s Module 1 report on pre-pandemic preparedness and resilience on 18 July 2024. The Scottish Government published an initial response on 16 January 2025, which set out the actions and steps being taken to address the Inquiry’s recommendations.

Today, the Scottish Government has published the third progress report, which shows six of the Inquiry’s recommendations have been delivered and closed as a result. Over the past six months the Scottish Government has continued to make significant, measurable improvements in Scotland’s pandemic planning and preparedness.

The Scottish Government has completed its review of risk assessment processes and is now developing the next iteration of the Scottish Risk Assessment. This will bring together all risks relevant to Scotland in a single document. To support this work, the Scottish Government has established a Scottish Risk Assessment Group to ensure a robust, expert-led approach, with a strong focus on vulnerability.

A Memorandum of Understanding is now in place to enable rapid sharing of data and analysis across the four nations in preparation for, or during, any future crisis. After taking part in the UK Government’s pilot process for independent review of whole-system civil emergency preparedness and resilience, the Scottish Government continues to engage with the UK Government as it progresses with the Catastrophic Risks Assurance Programme.

The Scottish Government remains committed to ensuring that Scotland is as resilient as possible to future risks, and will continue to take the necessary steps to achieve this. We look forward to continuing to work closely with our partners and stakeholders to deliver these recommendations.

A copy of the progress report is available online at: UK Covid-19 Inquiry - Module 1 report: progress update - July 2026

Our next progress update will be a combined report covering Module 1 and Module 2ABC, to be published before the end of November 2026.

We welcome the publication of the UK Covid-19 Inquiry’s Module 5 report focusing on the procurement and distribution to end-users across the four nations of the United Kingdom of key healthcare related equipment and supplies, including PPE, ventilators and oxygen during the Covid-19 pandemic. A copy of the report is available online at: https://covid19.public-inquiry.uk/reports/

During the pandemic, the Scottish Government’s foremost priority was to protect the public from the novel Covid-19 virus. Ministers sought to be open, transparent and accountable in respect of the decisions made. We extend our sincere and deepest condolences to the many thousands who have lost loved ones and who continue to experience the profound impacts of Covid-19. We recognise the loss, hurt and suffering experienced by people across Scotland and the rest of the UK, and we would like to again acknowledge the efforts and sacrifices of our health and social care workforce during the pandemic.

Progress continues with implementing the accepted recommendations of the UK Covid-19 Inquiry’s Module 1 report which covers pre-pandemic planning and preparedness. Six recommendations from the report have now been delivered, with our third progress report due to be published in July.

Our response to the Covid Inquiry’s Module 2 report into government decision-making was published in March. That response set out the steps we are taking in response to the Chair’s recommendations, and was informed by stakeholder engagement, including from the Covid Inquiries Response Engagement Group, chaired by the former Deputy First Minister, comprising organisations representing those disproportionately impacted by the pandemic and those furthest from decision-making.

Work on recommendations set out by the UK Inquiry in its subsequent reports is under way, and will be responded to within the timescale set out by the inquiry Chair.

We recognise that there is further work to be done. The Scottish Government will now take the necessary time to fully and carefully consider the findings and recommendations set out in the Inquiry’s Module 5 report, and will provide a detailed response to the report’s recommendations in due course.

The consultation carried out as part of the compulsory purchase reform programme included questions on Compulsory Sale Orders and responses are currently being analysed. The Scottish Government will publish a summary of responses to that consultation and associated analysis report, as well as an update on the compulsory purchase reform programme shortly.

The Scottish Government published the final report of the Social Tariff Working Group in March 2025. Since then, we have consistently and regularly pressed the UK Government to introduce an automatic and targeted discount on energy bills to address unaffordable energy prices at source.

In November 2025, we published modelling which shows that, based on the 2023 Scottish Housing Conditions Survey, the introduction of a social tariff would result in 660,000 households in Scotland seeing their estimated fuel bills go down by an average of £700.

Developing global events urgently reinforce the need for the UK Government to put in place arrangements for a sustainable and targeted bill support scheme as quickly as possible and we will continue to strongly make the case.

Before the oil price shock, based on the Ofgem energy price cap announcement, our forward looking estimates for April to June this year showed a decrease in fuel poverty in Scotland of around 30,000 households from estimates for January to March 2026.

However, developing global events continue to reinforce the impact of high energy prices, and the need to put in place robust and effective consumer protections and financial assistance for all fuel users.

While welcome, the limited support announced by the UK Government on 16 March, equates to only £33 per household using oil heating. This does not go far enough.

That is why the Scottish Government announced on 17 March we will more than double the amount available to support Scottish households struggling with heating oil prices. We will commit an additional £5.4 million on top of the £4.6 million allocated by the UK Government. We will announce further details around eligibility as soon as possible.

This new scheme is in addition to our existing support, including our energy efficiency schemes which already deliver average savings of £300 annually.

We urge the UK Government to take their responsibility for energy pricing seriously. In an energy-rich nation, no one should struggle to pay their bills. We must have the full powers of independence to make our energy wealth work for our people.