Chamber and committees

The theft of railway materials is an important issue. It is for the police to enforce criminal laws such as theft and the Scottish Government fully supports the police taking the necessary action to hold perpetrators to account.

In terms of the resale of stolen railway materials, attempts may be made to sell these to metal dealers.

There is a licensing scheme for metal dealers and itinerant metal dealers under the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (“the 1982 Act”). The Scottish Government has taken action to raise standards within the industry, and make it more difficult for metal thieves to convert the proceeds of crime into cash. These changes were made via the Air Weapons and Licensing (Scotland) Act 2015 (“the 2015 Act”), which amended the 1982 Act, strengthening and modernising the existing regime.

The 2015 Act provided new definitions for metal dealer and itinerant metal dealer, thereby extending the scope of the regime. It tightened record keeping arrangements and required proper identification of customers. It also increased penalties for licensing offences.

In more detail, the 2015 Act raised the penalties for failure to have an appropriate metal dealer or itinerant metal dealer licence, or failure to comply with licence conditions. The maximum penalty on summary conviction for operating without a licence without reasonable excuse, or for operating in breach of a condition of a licence, was increased to a fine not exceeding £20,000 and/or imprisonment of no longer than six months. The 2015 Act also amended the 1982 Act to provide for forms of payment that may be accepted by a metal dealer or itinerant metal dealer. This permits payment by bank transfer or cheque and means cash is not an acceptable method of payment.

Scottish Government marketing and advertising spend is published each year and can be found at https://www.gov.scot/collections/marketing-spend/ including a breakdown by media type, portfolio and individual campaign, including public health campaigns.

I have asked Alison Byrne OBE, Chief Executive of National Records of Scotland (NRS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

Access to NRS Services is set out in our Public Access Policy - National Records of Scotland (NRS) .

For the range of services delivered by NRS, assessments including the EQIA, Island Communities Impact Assessment and Digital Scotland Service Standard Assessment are undertaken at the point of service change and improvement to help improve accessibility for citizens across all communities.

The distribution of doctors in training is managed by NHS Education for Scotland (NES). This has traditionally worked within a distribution model of 50:25:15:10 for the West, South East, North and East respectively.

Aligning to Scottish Government commitments, which include the remote and rural and island initiatives, NES have been reviewing alignment to population health data, consultant and GP vacancies and an increased need for generalism. This review is leading to a redistribution of where doctors train recognising the changing locations and demographics of our population.

UK data from the General Medical Council (GMC) shows that the reported trend of Foundation Year 2 doctors delaying NHS specialty training in Scotland is similar to the trend in the UK as a whole. There are a number of possible (and complex) explanations for this trend but progression data from the GMC shows that 90% of trainees have obtained a specialty training post in the UK within three years of completing the Foundation Programme.

Details are as follows:

The proportion of Scottish Government marketing spend that has been allocated to community radio in each of the previous five years is as follows:

Allocating spectrum and assessing appropriate levels of local content is the responsibility of Ofcom. While spectrum regulation is not a devolved matter, the Scottish Government maintains a close interest in stakeholder and audience views in relation to reception and spectrum allocation because of the wider implications for the economic, creative and cultural sectors in Scotland.

We continue to set out to Ofcom and the UK Government that maintaining and developing a radio network in Scotland that meets the specific needs for both urban and rural areas across the country, is key to ensuring audiences in Scotland are kept informed and entertained, and we will continue to do so. Our view remains that it is essential that local voices and coverage of local issues are protected and enhanced, and that the regulatory framework should allow for clear and effective regulation of the requirements.

Fundamentally, we believe that broadcasting should be devolved so that the decisions that impact audiences and the creative industries in Scotland can be determined by the Scottish public through the Scottish Parliament.

Registers of Scotland is a non-Ministerial Public Body answerable to the Scottish Parliament.

The work of the Registers of Scotland is demand led, depending on the volume of activity in the housing market. RoS is continuously working to improve its efficiency and thereby keep its running costs as low as possible. The costs of running RoS are largely covered by the fees charged for its services, and that is expected to remain the position.

The allocation of medical specialty training places is made annually to ensure it meets the needs of the healthcare workforce, recognising that completion of specialty training can take a minimum of 3 to 8 years depending on the specialty. This process is overseen by a group of senior representatives from the Scottish Government, NHS Education for Scotland, professional bodies, and Health Boards. Based on workforce data and service demands, the group makes recommendations to Scottish Ministers regarding any changes needed, including the potential expansion of training places in specific specialties.