Chamber and committees

Our immediate priority is to capitalise on the near term opportunities set out in Project Willow, with a focus on bringing forward new jobs at Grangemouth as quickly as possible. The Grangemouth investment taskforce is delivering on this priority by working with businesses with an interest in developing projects aligned to those suggested in Project Willow.

Local authorities must use the financial resources available to them as efficiently as possible to ensure the best possible value. How this is done is a matter for each council. Local Authority reserve balances in Scotland remain considerably higher than pre-pandemic levels.

The record funding settlement for Local Government in 2025-26 was the result of early and meaningful engagement between Scottish Government, COSLA and Councils. We remain committed to ensuring the sustainability of local services going forward and budget engagement ahead of the 2026-27 Scottish Budget has already commenced.

The Scottish Enterprise and UK Office for Investment have established the Grangemouth Investor taskforce which is focussed on identifying and attracting investment in the proposals outlined in Project Willow, with a particular focus on opportunities that the Grangemouth Just Transition Fund could support to ensure they become market investible.

As this is an operational matter for Scottish Water, and the Scottish Government does not hold this information, I have asked them to respond. Their reply is as follows:

Annual leakage levels are published in Scottish Water’s annual report and accounts which are routinely laid before Parliament and available online at https://www.scottishwater.co.uk/Help-and-Resources/Document-Hub/Key-Publications/Annual-Reports. Data for England and Wales is published by Ofwat at https://www.ofwat.gov.uk/publication/leakage-dataset-june-2025/

The leakage figure reported by Scottish Water currently equates to circa 24.7% of water supplied. Leakage is a function of an ageing asset base, and rates are affected by the increase in extreme weather conditions.

If seeking to compare leakage in Scotland with other parts of the UK, it should be noted that Scottish Water’s network is different to many others due to the remote nature of many rural and island communities, as well as the topography and length of pipework used. Direct comparison is difficult due to the very localised nature of how leakage is calculated. When all the various factors are considered, Scotland’s leakage rate appears marginally higher than the average for the UK, however it is still comparable.

Overall, Scottish Water has made great progress and since 2007 has reduced leakage by some 58%.

We remain focused on delivering 110,000 affordable homes by 2032, with at least 70% of these for social rent and 10% in rural and island areas, including new build, rehabilitation and acquisitions.

Backed by £768 million of investment this year, we are continuing to work with partners to increase the delivery of more affordable homes. We will report on all homes delivered through the Affordable Housing Supply Programme via our quarterly official statistics. Official statistics for the Affordable Housing Supply Programme are available on the Scottish Government website at Housing statistics - gov.scot.

Local authorities, as strategic housing and planning authorities, are responsible for assessing affordable housing needs in their area and setting out their investment priorities in their Strategic Housing Investment Plans (SHIPs). These plans set out planned proposals for affordable housing supply over a five year period, and should be available on each local authority’s website.

From 23 March 2022 to 31 December 2024, a total of 26,039 affordable homes have been delivered towards the target of 110,000 affordable homes by 2032, consisting of 19,945 (77%) homes for social rent, 3,644 (14%) for affordable rent, and 2,450 (9%) for affordable home ownership.

We will update parliament in due course on the progress made against the recommendations set out in Project Willow.

Creative Scotland assesses all applications made - irrespective of theme, subject matter or artform - in accordance with the published criteria and guidance for each funding stream. This guidance states explicit restrictions on the use of funding provided by Creative Scotland for party political activities. The terms and conditions of the agreements entered into with successful applicants further support this position, making clear that funding awarded cannot be used for such activities.

I agreed the remit of the Review of Creative Scotland with the independent Chair, Angela Leitch, and it is available on the Scottish Government’s website at the following link: Independent Review of Creative Scotland: remit - gov.scot

The review will include consideration of Creative Scotland’s finances and distribution of funds.

The Review is independent of the Scottish Government and will deliver its recommendations in November.

Information on university retention rates is published by the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) in the statistics publication “Report on Widening Access”. There is no breakdown by those with teacher assessed grades. The latest published data on retention rates covers those students starting in 2021-22 and continuing on to 2022-23.

There are numerous reasons why students may drop out of university which may include personal circumstances or moving into other positive destinations such as work or other forms of study.

We continue to learn from good practice in the sector, such as the University of the West of Scotland’s Student Success Model, which is premised on early intervention and supports student retention and progression.

Scottish Government is committed to enhancing outcomes for young people by delivering a fair and credible qualifications and assessment system as part of our work on qualification reform.

We want young people to have the opportunity to undertake the learner pathway that best matches their abilities and aspirations and ensures they are: successful learners, confident individuals, responsible citizens and effective contributors.

The Scottish Government has met with the EHRC and we will continue to engage as they update the Code of Practice.

The Scottish Government has already begun work on implementation. We have established a Short Life Working Group to ensure support and consistency across Government. The EHRC are aware of our approach and this work will position us towards a state of readiness to take all necessary steps when the EHRC’s Code of Practice and updated guidance are published.

The group consists of senior civil servants representing all relevant portfolios across government. The aims of the group are to;

- ensure that there is a consistent approach to the understanding of the ruling;

- review legislation, guidance and policies within Scottish Government portfolios that the ruling impacts on; and

- ensure the Scottish Government is ready and prepared once the EHRC's revised Code of Practice is published.