Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government is committed to forging a constructive relationship with nations across the UK and collaborating on issues of mutual interest. The First Minister meets a range of people from across the UK and abroad and is supported in doing so by civil servants as appropriate.

The meeting on 30 October 2025 was requested by Rhun ap Iorwerth, leader of Plaid Cymru, and covered the close relationship between Wales and Scotland, and the challenges both countries face, such as tackling child poverty.

This engagement was separate and distinct from any engagement that may take place between Plaid Cymru and the SNP, which is not supported by the civil service.

Since May 2021, Ministerial oversight of Historic Environment Scotland (HES) has been led by the Minister for Europe and International Development until January 2022, then the Minister for Culture, Europe and International Development from January 2022 until May 2024. I took over Ministerial oversight of HES in May 2024.

In that time period, I have not attended any board meetings of HES. However, the Cabinet Secretary and Ministers have met regularly with the Chief Executive as is normal convention for non-departmental public bodies.

Scottish Ministers do not routinely attend Architecture & Design Scotland board meetings and I have not attended any board meetings of the body since May 2021. Most recently, I met with the Architecture & Design Scotland Chair and Chief Executive in November 2024. A senior official in the sponsor directorate attends the Architecture & Design Scotland AGM on behalf of Scottish Ministers. Officials also regularly attend A&DS board meetings as requested as an observer.

The Scottish Government is clear that we will not reintroduce tuition fees. Access to higher education must be based on the ability to learn, not the ability to pay. State funded tuition is a collective investment in our society and economy.

Within the clear and steadfast policy on free tuition, we are working closely with the University sector to understand and adapt to external factors, such UK immigration policies, while strengthening the sector’s national and global impact and reputation.

The Deal publishes both Annual and Quarterly Performance Reports to Governments and the City Region Cabinet, which are publicly available and report on delivery of the Deal.

Our investment has delivered significant outcomes to date including 34.9 hectares of enhanced public realm, more than 68 kilometres of new cycling and pedestrian routes, and over 63 hectares of vacant and derelict land reclaimed. At the tenth anniversary last year, partners announced that £880 million of follow-on investment has been secured.

Further benefits, including jobs, will be assessed as projects are completed and evaluated.

The Scottish Government assesses value for money and accountability on all City Region and Growth Deal projects. Each project must develop a robust business case, aligned with HM Treasury’s Green Book which is reviewed by Government officials to ensure it delivers social and economic benefits, is deliverable and sustainable. The economic case of each project business case in particular must demonstrate associated cost-benefit and value for money assessments.

Accountability rests primarily with regional partners, who are empowered to identify, manage and deliver projects which deliver economic growth opportunities within their geographical areas. A strong governance framework underpins each Deal which includes locally elected member oversight and regular performance reporting at quarterly and annual junctures with Government officials where progress is rigorously reviewed.

The Scottish Government also provides oversight via co-chairing the Scottish City Region and Growth Deals Delivery Board, ensuring appropriate scrutiny and oversight of this £3.4 billion programme of investment.

The Scottish Government has not carried out an assessment of the prevalence of organised crime in small retail businesses.

The Scottish Government works with members of the Serious Organised Crime Taskforce (SOCT) to detect and disrupt organised crime in Scotland. I chaired a meeting of the SOCT on 13 November where members heard an update from Police Scotland and other law enforcement partners on Operation Machinize followed by a presentation from Trading Standards officials on organised crime on the high streets.

Operation Machinize was launched by law enforcements partners in England earlier this year. This was in response to growing intelligence reports that some retail premises are being used for money laundering and other criminal activity. These include vape shops, Turkish barbers, mini-markets and other cash-intensive businesses, which can be fronts for organised crime. The second phase, which included Police Scotland and other partners based at the Scottish Crime Campus, took place during the month of October and has achieved some successful results.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information. Money laundering is investigated by Police Scotland alongside other partners including His Majesty’s Revenue and Customs and the National Crime Agency.

The Scottish Government regularly liaises with the UK Government and law enforcement partners about money laundering.

As I referred to in my answer to S6W-41770 on 24 November 2025, Operation Machinize has had successful results in relation to disrupting activity within shops that are being used for money laundering.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

Scotland hosts world-class research and innovation, with each of our unique universities conducting cutting edge, collaborative research across a broad range of disciplines. A suite of innovation activity occurs within Scottish research organisations and businesses. This generates a wide range of economic, societal and environmental impacts, and means we are highly successful in leveraging competitive funds from other sources. Recent analysis was undertaken by Elsevier on Scotland’s research and innovation performance.

The Scottish Government remains committed to research, which sits at the heart of a number of our key policies and strategies, such as NSET, the National Innovation Strategy and the International Education Strategy. We continue to support high-quality research and innovation across Scotland, increasing the investment in HE capital (which includes funding for research) to over £368m – an increase of 3.2% (or over £11m) for AY 25-26. We also continue to fund a portfolio of knowledge exchange and innovation investments, including the Innovation Centres, Interface and Alliances for Research Challenges (ARCs), and funding supporting international research collaboration.

Decisions around the Scottish Government’s Budget are being considered over the coming months. The Scottish Government will continue to work collaboratively with Universities Scotland on developing a framework for the sustainability of universities, including research activity.