Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government has fully funded Network Rail Scotland to meet the assessment of its requirements as carried out by the independent rail regulator for the next five year rail investment Control Period (2024-29).

The total funding for the rail sector in Scotland for financial year 2023-2024 alone is circa £1.4 billion. This is compared to pre-pandemic levels of around £1 billion, demonstrating a significant increase in investment by the Scottish Government.

Scottish Ministers’ priorities remain focussed on a high-performing, efficient and safe rail network. These objectives are fully aligned with ScotRail and Caledonian Sleeper so that best value is secured for Scotland’s rail passengers, communities and businesses.

Where the ORR has determined increases in spend, such as operations to adapt to climate change, the Scottish Government has accepted and fully funded these recommendations, in order to strike the right balance in this Control Period among operations, maintenance and renewals.

In support of a range of priority commitments within Scotland’s population strategy , Scottish Government is developing a Talent Attraction and Migration Service, expected to launch in 2024. The service will help address Scotland's demographic challenges, attract and welcome more workers from outside Scotland with the skills that our economy will need and support those who have chosen to make Scotland their home.

The certification of a person’s death is a matter that falls solely within the clinical responsibility of medical practitioners, who require to be satisfied to the best of their knowledge and belief as to the cause of death.

Following a post mortem examination, the pathologist will ordinarily certify the cause of death. In some cases, an ‘interim’ death certificate is issued by the pathologist indicating that the cause of death is unascertained until the results of further analysis - including but not limited to histopathology, toxicology and neuropathology - are obtained. This certificate allows the death to be registered and the body to be released to the family to allow funeral arrangements to be made. Once all analysis has concluded and the final cause of death is confirmed, the interim death certificate is then amended. However, in a small percentage of cases the pathologist is unable to determine a cause of death even after all such analysis is done.

In relation to post mortem examinations instructed by COPFS from 1 January 2023 to 31 August 2023, the pathologist was unable to determine a cause of death after full analysis in 134 cases. It is not presently possible to confirm the number of examinations where a cause of death was able to be determined as, in some cases, the final post mortem report confirming the cause of death has not yet been finalised and only interim causes of death have been issued.

Where a pathologist is unable to determine a cause of death, they will include in their report as much information as possible about their findings to assist nearest relatives with possible explanations for the death having occurred. COPFS will provide that information to relatives when advising them of the final cause of death.

In summer 2023 we engaged with stakeholders including clinicians, third-sector organisations and people with lived experience of chronic pain. Feedback received was used to inform the development of the updated Pain Management Service Delivery Framework – Implementation Plan.

Annex A – response to feedback in the Plan highlights common areas of feedback we received throughout our engagement period and outlines our response to this.

The Environmental Health Policy Co-ordination Group was formed in October 2022 and, as per the Terms of Reference aims to meet monthly, subject to member availability and other diary commitments. Since its inception in October 2022, the group has met 9 times. The Environmental Health Officer (EHO) vacancies and workforce shortages are a standing agenda item for each meeting.

The group consists of representatives from a number of Scottish Government directorates, Food Standards Scotland, COSLA, the Society of Chief Officers of Environmental Health in Scotland and SOLACE. Other participants such as those representing education have been invited as determined by subject matter and agenda items.

The Scottish Government takes the issue of declining wild Atlantic salmon populations very seriously and is committed to working with our partners, both domestic and international, to safeguard this iconic species.

The Scottish wild salmon strategy was established in January 2022 in response to the long term downward trend in the number of Atlantic salmon returning to Scottish waters. In February 2023 we published the wild salmon strategy implementation plan, which sets out over sixty actions to tackle the wide range of pressures affecting the species throughout their life cycle.

The Parliament building closed to the public for one day, Friday 13 October. Unfortunately, on the day in question, there was a combination of staff taking pre-approved annual leave,  several staff who were too unwell to come to work, and a small number of operational vacancies. As this issue occurred during the October recess period there was no impact on parliamentary business therefore the decision was taken to close the building to the public.

The SPCB is satisfied that since this incident happened on 13 October, the Security Office has taken all relevant steps to ensure staffing levels are maintained by supporting staff in returning to work and employing new staff.

No teacher, member of staff or pupil should have to suffer abuse in schools. The Scottish Government is absolutely clear that our schools should be safe and consistent learning environments for all, and that violent and abusive behaviour towards pupils or staff is unacceptable.

Last month concluded a series of summits I held with a wide range of stakeholders on behaviour in schools. The Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research was also published, which set out that while the majority of pupils are well behaved there has been an increase in some forms of serious disruptive behaviours, including violence.

In my statement to Parliament on 29 November, I confirmed a multi-year plan is in development to address issues identified in the Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research. This plan will be developed in collaboration with the Scottish Advisory Group on Relationships and Behaviour in Schools, and we expect it to be published early next year.

A member of the third-sector community was identified to join the Pain Management Task Force in October 2022 to represent the needs of people with lived experience.

We are committed to increasing the representation of the needs of people with lived experience in our work and that is why we are currently about to begin the process of recruiting additional lived experience representatives as outlined in the recently published Pain management service delivery framework: implementation plan update.

The Scottish Government has met with several Local Authorities to discuss their delivery of Free School Meals during which views on being involved in any future pilot were sought. These meetings took place; on the following dates;

• Western Isles Council – 5 July 2023
• Inverclyde Council – 26 July 2023
• North Ayrshire Council – 9 August 2023
• COSLA – 16 August 2023
• Edinburgh City Council – 16 August 2023

Most recently, on 11 October 2023, ADES and COSLA were invited to ask members if they would be interested in taking part in the pilot of universal free school meals at secondary.