Chamber and committees

The UK Government announced on 28 January 2016 that it will offer refuge to unaccompanied children. They have commissioned the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) to draft recommendations as to the criteria of vulnerability for unaccompanied children, and to recommend steps to serve the best interests of children in conflict areas, which would include resettlement in the UK. UNHCR have been asked to report at the end of February 2016. The Minister for Europe and International Development chaired the refugee taskforce meeting on 9 February 2016 where the Home Office was represented and where unaccompanied children were discussed. The minister continued to make clear Scotland’s commitment to providing refuge to unaccompanied children. Further to this Scottish Government officials attended a meeting on 11 February 2016 chaired by the Minister for Immigration at the Home Office where they discussed the work to be carried out by UNHCR and what preparation was needed by home countries.

A programme of work – overseen by the Construction Review Delivery Group – is currently ongoing to implement the 66 accepted recommendations from the 2013 Review of Scottish Public Sector Procurement in Construction. It is expected that work relating to the recommendations will be completed by the end of 2016.

The Procurement Reform (Scotland) Act 2014 (Commencement No. 3 and Transitional Provisions) Order 2016 states that the provisions relating to the publication of procurement strategies will come into force on 18 April 2016.

The Commencement Order also contains transitional provisions in relation to procurement strategies. Under these transitional provisions, the first procurement strategies do not need to be produced by contracting authorities until 31 December 2016.

A copy of the Commencement Order is available to view at:

http://www.legislation.gov.uk/ssi/2016/30/pdfs/ssi_20160030_en.pdf.

We are awaiting the recommendations from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees on the next steps for this group of very vulnerable children, they have been asked to report at the end of February 2016. Scotland stands ready to welcome and provide a safe refuge to unaccompanied children that are resettled in the UK by the UK Government.

The applications for additional financial assistance under the Bellwin Scheme that have been turned down since 2007 are as follows:

2008-09 – Scottish Borders Council – three separate incidents of flooding and winter weather – the claim was £250,000 above their threshold – the council received their share of £5 million (£239,000) provided across all 32 councils following the severe winter weather in place of any specific support being provided through the Bellwin scheme.

2012-13 – Perth and Kinross Council – severe flood damage – the claim was £369,555 above their threshold – the claim was rejected as the majority of the claim consisted of capital expenditure which is ineligible under the Bellwin Scheme.

2012-13 – Dumfries and Galloway Council – winter weather – the claim was £1,079,196 above their threshold – the claim was rejected as the majority of the claim consisted of expenditure to put right the ill effects of the storm which the Bellwin Scheme guidance states is ineligible. The council were however awarded additional capital funding of £500,000 towards the repair of the river banks, the sea walls and the coastal paths.

The Scottish Government is supportive of the proposal to expand Aberdeen Harbour and is committed to working with the UK Government, local regional partners and private sector partners to deliver this project. It is ultimately a decision for the private sector on whether to invest in the harbour expansion and Scottish Futures Trust will bring the expertise to explore innovative options to attract additional investment and consider all financial mechanisms to deliver the best funding and financing solution for this project.

Both governments are committed to finding a route to fund the supporting infrastructure that maximises the impact of the harbour project on the wider regional economy.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring we have the right number of teachers, with the right skills, in the right places to educate our young people. That is why we provided additional funding of £51 million to local authorities in 2015 specifically to support the maintenance of teacher numbers.

The government has proposed to local authorities for 2016 that the pupil teacher ratio be maintained nationally at 2015 levels and that places are provided for all probationer teachers who require one under the teacher induction scheme. In return, the government will again provide authorities with £88 million (£51 million specifically for the purpose of maintaining teacher numbers and a further £37 million for the teacher induction scheme). If, however, the pupil teacher ratio is not maintained nationally then the Scottish Government reserves its position to recover monies allocated to individual authorities’ whose pupil teacher ratio rises. This action will be proportionate and apply only to that element of the funding for a specific measure that a local authority does not deliver.

Local authorities are currently considering whether to accept the proposed local government finance settlement of which this commitment forms an integral part.

Since 1 January 2007, settlement agreements with nine individuals have been reached at a total cost of £113,000.

Page 32 of the Draft Budget for 2016-17 provides indicative baseline funding for NHS territorial boards:

http://www.gov.scot/Resource/0049/00491140.pdf

Details of the finalised 2016-17 baseline budgets of each territorial NHS board will be published following completion of Stage 3 of the Budget Bill in Parliament on 24 February 2016.

Between 1 January 2007 and 1 January 2016, 415 staff left Highlands and Islands Airports Ltd representing a turnover of less than 10%.