Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government does not collect statistics on the number of foster carer registrations. Local authorities and independent or voluntary service providers hold information on the number of foster carers they have registered with them.

The Care Inspectorate have been collecting some information on foster carer registrations since 2015 and according to their Fostering and Adoption Statistical Bulletin 2016-17, there were 430 new foster carer households approved in the year up to 31 December 2016 (down 7% from 464 households in 2015). The Care Inspectorate do not hold information on foster carer registrations prior to this.

http://www.careinspectorate.com/images/documents/4140/Fostering%20and%20adoption%202016-17%20statistical%20bulletin.pdf .

The management of prosecutions, including rape, is a matter for Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) while the management of court business is a matter for the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service.

Serious sexual offences, principally rape, now account for around 75% of all High Court trials. In recent years there has been a significant and sustained increase in the number of sexual crimes reported to COPFS, with an unprecedented increase of 42% in the number of cases in which criminal proceedings were commenced in the last year alone.

Against that background, COPFS has reorganised the way its specialist prosecutors work in order to speed up case preparation and reduce the time which it takes to bring cases to trial. Particular efforts have been made to address the pre-petition workload which contributes to the journey time from report to trial, as a result of which COPFS has reduced the number of such cases from 700 in 2016 to approximately 200 today.

The Scottish Government is committed to finding ways to improve the criminal justice system as it affects all victims, and especially victims of sexual crime. Delays in the court process can contribute to stress, anxiety and reluctance on the part of witnesses. In this regard the Lord Advocate has accepted all of the recommendations made by the Inspector of Prosecutions in her recent report, and the Law Officers and COPFS are working hard with colleagues across the system to improve the efficient administration of justice in this important area.

The Scottish Government does not collect statistics on the number of foster carer de-registrations. Local authorities or independent or voluntary fostering service providers hold this information.

The Care Inspectorate have been collecting some information on foster carer de-registrations from 2015 and according to their Fostering and Adoption Statistical Bulletin 2016-17 , between 1 Jan 2016 and 31 Dec 2016, 382 foster carer households de-registered (9% of all registered at the start of the year) compared with 318 de-registrations in 2015 (8% of all registered at the start of the year).

http://www.careinspectorate.com/images/documents/4140/Fostering%20and%20adoption%202016-17%20statistical%20bulletin.pdf ..

The Scottish Government does not collect statistics on the number of people who register as foster carers. This information is held by individual local authorities or independent or voluntary fostering service providers.

The Scottish Funding Council mostly recently allocated £62,016 for British Sign Language (BSL) at Heriot Watt University in AY 2012-13. The university sits within the Lothian parliamentary region.

The Scottish Funding Council does not currently specify that any of their Teaching Funding should be allocated to BSL. However, colleges and universities must publish their own BSL plans by October 2018 setting out how they will promote and support BSL and this may include information about teaching of BSL.

It is up to local authorities to determine what learning opportunities are provided through Community Learning and Development, and to assess that provision. This information is not held by the Scottish Government.

Local authorities and other listed authorities are required by the British Sign Language (BSL) Scotland Act 20156 to publish a BSL Plan by October 2018, setting out how they will promote and support BSL. These plans could include current or planned provision of BSL though Community Learning and Development.

Ministers and Scottish Government Officials regularly meet with companies across the financial services sector including some of those listed. All ministerial engagements are published proactively at https://beta.gov.scot/search/?q=ministerial+engagements .

These discussions cover a range of issues relating to the sector and its workforce. For example, in a recent conversation with Aberdeen Standard Investments I discussed gender inequality in the sector and measures they were taking to address this. The First Minister will take part in their annual Gender Summit in July.

The Scottish Government works closely with a range of key partners to engage with and consult LGBTI people.

In February 2017, I announced three year funding under the Equality Budget. As part of this, grant funding was announced for a range of organisations working to promote LGBTI equality in Scotland, including work to address discrimination and tackle hate crime. Funding was announced for three years, with the first funding year (running from 1 July 2017 – 30 June 2018) confirmed and the next two (July 2018 – June 2019 and July 2019 – end June 2020) on an indicative basis. The amounts for
‎ 2018-19 have now also been confirmed and the funding for 2017-18 and 2018-19 are set out as follows.

2017-18 funding

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-16407 on 16 May 2018. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx .

Prosecution policy is a matter for the Lord Advocate.

The Scottish Government will continue to work with key justice partners, including Crown Office, Police Scotland and the Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service, and with third sector organisations such as Rape Crisis Scotland to deliver its key commitments within the Equally Safe Delivery Plan. This includes developing a victim-centred approach to the justice system and encouraging the increased use of pre-recorded evidence to minimise the requirement to give evidence in court.