Chamber and committees

Since 2018-19, as part of our annual Staff Governance Monitoring exercise, the Scottish Government requests information on the number of bullying and harassment cases raised locally each year. This information was not requested in 2019-20 due to the pandemic.

Please note than when numbers of cases are less than 5, we cannot give specific figures for reasons of maintaining anonymity.

The following table contains the figures for each Health Board.

On 28 April 2022, the UK’s Subsidy Control Bill received Royal Assent, becoming the Subsidy Control Act 2022 (the Act). Although the UK’s domestic subsidy control regime now has statutory footing, most of the Act has not entered into force, meaning the interim regime based on the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) remains applicable. The new regime is expected to be operational later this year. Officials will continue to work through the UK Government’s proposals to understand the impact on subsidies, including on ferry services.

We are all shocked by the devastating effects of the floods in Pakistan, with children reported to be the most vulnerable; UNICEF has reported that some 17,566 schools nationwide have been damaged or destroyed. The Scottish Government has made £500,000 in funds available to be split between the Disasters Emergency Committee and the Humanitarian Emergency Fund. This is a clear example of loss and damage caused by climate change, speaking to the importance of Scotland’s leadership in this area. It is important that we stand in solidarity with Pakistan, its people, and the diaspora community during this crisis. I met with the Pakistan Consul General in Glasgow on 7 September to hear first-hand the situation on the ground, and to offer Scotland’s support. We are working with the Pakistani community to ensure that we provide consistent messaging on how they might best assist the people of Pakistan during this time.

The Scottish Government has not been consulted or invited to engage with the UK Government on its new 5-year acquisitions programme, including where this involves those contemporary visual artists who are based in Scotland. The Scottish Government is aware that the UK Government is dealing with the Scottish Contemporary Art Network (SCAN) directly on this project.

There was no dedicated budget for the Islands Bond consultation as this work was undertaken as part of our overall policy development activity.

Local Authorities are responsible for street lighting on public roads and footways that are within their statutory list of public roads, Motorways and Trunk Lighting are maintained by Transport Scotland.

The Scottish Government does not hold information on how many street light electric vehicle charge points are currently in operation broken down by local authority area. However, the majority of public charge points installed to date in Scotland, including through the Scottish Government’s £50m investment in the ChargePlace Scotland Network, are unlikely to be connected or integrated to lampposts.

The Scottish Government has worked with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, the Welsh Government and the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs in Northern Ireland on the mandatory water efficiency label proposals. The consultation was launched on 2 September 2022 and I would encourage households and businesses to respond. The press release is available at: Action on water efficiency - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

Yes, Argyll and Bute alongside other local authorities that are home to large numbers of private water supplies were considered when deciding where to pilot private water supply first time connections scheme. The main purpose of this scheme is to focus on private water supplies which are facing water scarcity due to climate change.

Paper £20 and £50 notes will be withdrawn from circulation on 30 September. This change will have an impact on individuals and businesses within Scotland.

The decision to withdraw these notes in Scotland coincides with the withdrawal of Bank of England £20 and £50 paper notes from circulation on the same date. In advance of 30 September deadline the Bank of England have issued multiple news releases to inform individuals and businesses that paper £20 and £50 notes will not be accepted beyond this date. This mirrors the approach of the previous decision to withdraw the legal tender status of paper £5 and £10 notes across the UK in 2018.

Additionally, a press release has been issued on 1 September by the Committee of Scottish Bankers on behalf of Bank of Scotland, The Royal Bank of Scotland and Clydesdale Bank to inform Scottish customers of the upcoming 30 th of September deadline.

It is important to note that 30 September is only the deadline for which paper £20 and £50 notes can be used to purchase goods and services in shops. Beyond this date paper notes can still be deposited into bank accounts at banks and post offices. Notes can also be exchanged for the corresponding polymer note at certain banks and post offices in Scotland, and Bank of England paper notes can be exchanged directly with the Bank of England via post.

The Scottish Government does not hold information on how much it estimates it would cost to retrofit every street light to include an electric vehicle charging point. Costs will be influenced by a range of factors including the location of and type of lamppost, the electric vehicle charge point technology itself as well as any associated installation and civils works. Retrofitting would also need to factor in the variable on-going cost of operation and maintenance.