Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government does not hold data on the number of epilepsy specialist nurses currently in post in Scotland.

The Scottish Government does not collect or hold data on length of waits for accessing neurodevelopmental assessments as managing waitlists is the responsibility of health boards. However, we are working closely with boards to improve the experience of children, young people and their families in accessing support for their neurodivergence. This involves continuing to implement our Neurodevelopmental Specification, which sets clear expectations for boards and children’s services to work together to deliver timely needs-based support, in line with GIRFEC.

Boards that have closed or suspended waiting lists to new referrals continue to have a responsibility to ensure that children and young people are appropriately signposted to alternative and community-based services. I expect all boards to make sure that families are directed towards the right support at the earliest opportunity, including local authority services, school-based support, and wider community supports. As the Specification makes clear, these should be available to children, young people and their families when needs arise and should not require a formal diagnosis.

Since 2021, the Scottish Government has invested over £5.3 million into Welfare Advice and Health Partnerships (WAHPs), supporting delivery of welfare rights advice within participating GP Practices. Building on the evidence from the WAHPs, since 2023 we have spent £4.7 million on our Advice in Accessible settings Fund which supports partnership working and improving the availability of advice services within a range of community, health and education settings.

As set out in the new Tackling Child Poverty Plan published on 12 March 2026, the Scottish Government is investing more than £27 million over the next two years in welfare, income maximisation and debt advice services. Multi-year grants will help provide stability and certainty for the sector, including improving staff retention and we expect these services to support at least 80,000 households each year. The plan also commits to providing funding of £6 million for the Advice in Accessible Settings Fund by the end of 2028-29, which we expect will support over 7,500 people each year.

The Plan also sets out how we intend to make good quality advice and support on income maximisation more easily available by sharing existing best practice more widely and working with education, health and advice sectors to review how to sustainably embed advice in schools.

Whilst the Scottish Government is one of the biggest single funders of national advice services in Scotland, the primary funder of locally based advice services remains local authorities and it is for local authorities to decide how best to meet the needs of their local communities through the decisions they make for services within their area.

The three Accredited Endometriosis Specialist Centres in Scotland provide coordinated, multidisciplinary treatment to individuals with complex symptoms of endometriosis and to those requiring complex surgery. Understanding the potential capacity of services such as the Specialist Endometriosis Centres will be a central aspect of the National Gynaecology Plan.

Gynaecology waits of over 52 weeks reduced by 44.6% for new outpatients and by 21.8% for inpatient/day-case between 31 July 2025 and 31 January 2026 as a result of the almost £13 million additional funding we allocated to health boards in 2025-26 for gynaecology services.

The 2026-27 Budget provides almost £22.5 billion investment in health and social care services.

NHS Board planning for 2026-27 is underway, and dedicated funding will support the continuation of the progress delivered this year. However; NHS Boards are responsible for deciding the distribution of funding that they receive from the Scottish Government across the services they manage, including any funding directed towards laparoscopic diagnostic surgery and multidisciplinary care.

We want all women and girls to be able to access the best possible care and support and to benefit from healthcare services that are safe, effective and put women at the centre of their care.

Endometriosis continues to be a priority for this Government, and we are determined to see diagnosis times reduced for all women and girls across Scotland.

Through Phase Two of the Women’s Health we are taking action to transform gynaecology services and reduce diagnosis times for all menstrual health conditions, including endometriosis. The Endometriosis Care Pathway has already been updated to align with the most recent NICE guidance so that NHS Boards can ensure that women and girls with endometriosis and endometriosis like symptoms have access to holistic and timely care.

The updated Endometriosis Pathway can be accessed here: www.rightdecisions.scot.nhs.uk/gynaecology-pathways/endometriosis/.

It is clear that urgent action is needed to address endometriosis diagnosis times. That is why we have allocated almost £13 million in additional funding to Health Boards this year to target long waits for gynaecology.

We are beginning to see the impact of that investment, with waits over 52 weeks reducing by 44.6% for new outpatients and by 21.8% for inpatient/day-case between 31 July 2025 and 31 January 2026.

Endometriosis continues to be a priority for this Government, and we are determined to see diagnosis times reduced for all women and girls across Scotland.

Through Phase Two of the Women’s Health we are taking action to transform gynaecology services and reduce diagnosis times for all menstrual health conditions, including endometriosis. The Endometriosis Care Pathway has already been updated to align with the most recent NICE guidance, so that NHS Boards can ensure that women and girls with endometriosis and endometriosis like symptoms have access to holistic and timely care.

The updated Endometriosis Pathway can be accessed here: www.rightdecisions.scot.nhs.uk/gynaecology-pathways/endometriosis/

The Scottish Government will continue to monitor the National Concessionary Travel Schemes to ensure their longer- term sustainability. At present the Scottish Government has no plans to extend the concessionary travel schemes beyond the current eligibility criteria. Any decisions will be for the next Parliament to consider.

The Scottish Government recognises the financial pressures that many households are experiencing, including debts to public sector bodies. Scottish Ministers have consistently encouraged public bodies to share good practice on debt assistance and collection and to show empathy and dignity when working with people struggling with debts including an assessment of affordability to repay debt. This includes using the Collaborative Council Tax Collection Guide[1] and Good practice principles for managing school meal debt[2] published by COSLA in February 2023 following engagement with local government partners. We have allocated £2.22m in 2025-26 to support a national Council Tax Debt Project delivered by Citizen’s Advice Scotland. In addition to enabling increased debt advice provision across the whole of Scotland for those in Council Tax arrears, this project is supporting the development of national resources which can help support the best practice principles in Council Tax collection.

The Scottish Government supported the inclusion of provisions during the passage of The Housing (Scotland) Act 2025 which require a review of how joint and several liability for Council Tax arrears affects people experiencing domestic abuse. This review will help councils navigate these complex cases with greater care and understanding, ensuring that support is available. Scottish Ministers have also committed to consult on the question of prescription periods and Council Tax in the next Parliament, so that any reform balances fairness for households with the need to protect local services and is robust and workable.

The Scottish Government has liaised with the Cabinet Office and HMRC to explore data sharing opportunities which improve Council Tax debtor data-sharing channels between Scottish local authorities and HMRC. New data-sharing pathways have been agreed which will support local authorities in enacting fair debt recovery and help identify and support vulnerable debtors while increasing uptake of the Scottish Government’s means tested Council Tax Reduction scheme. This scheme ensures that nobody in Scotland should have to meet a Council Tax liability they cannot be expected to afford.

These new data-sharing pathways represent an opportunity to support fairer debt recovery, help identify and support vulnerable debtors, and increase uptake of the Council Tax Reduction scheme by identifying eligible non-recipients.

Scottish Ministers continue to work with COSLA through the Joint Working Group on Sources of Local Government Funding and Council Tax Reform to encourage the adoption of best practice on debt collection and advice.

In addition, Social Security Scotland is committed to delivering a debt management service that is responsive to clients’ needs while protecting the public purse. This includes an approach for vulnerable clients that includes training debt officers to identify and sensitively handle potential hardship and vulnerable clients, as well as signposting them to support and advocacy groups.

[1]Collaborative Council Tax Collection (improvementservice.org.uk)

[2]Good-Practice-Principles-for-School-Meal-Debt-Management.pdf (cosla.gov.uk)

As in previous years, St Andrew’s House and Victoria Quay will be lit purple for epilepsy awareness on 26 March 2026.

I refer the Member to the answer to question S6W-41594 on 10 November 2025. 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

The most recent Scottish Criminal Justice Survey, published earlier this month shows that the majority of adults are confident in the effectiveness of the police to deal with incidents, solve crime, and catch criminals. Furthermore, the survey showed that 59% of adults have confidence in the police to respond quickly to appropriate calls and information from the public. This is higher than in 2008/09, when it was 54%.

While there are a complex range of factors behind confidence in policing it would be remiss not to acknowledge that overall trust has fallen in recent years. This mirrors a similar trend in England and Wales over the same period, suggesting the issues involved may not be solely specific to Scotland.

Confidence in our police service is vital for a safe and just Scotland and Police Scotland are already taking steps to respond – from strengthening community policing to improving how they engage with victims and local communities. That work is backed by record investment of £1.64 billion this year, which will increase to over £1.7 million in 2026-27.

Improving public trust and confidence is also a cornerstone of Police Scotland’s 2030 vision and is embedded within its three-year business plan and local policing plans.