Chamber and committees

Scottish Enterprise has previously advised that 13 organisations had been identified as ineligible for support under the policy.

Records relating to applications for support are held by the relevant delivery body. Where those records are held by a public body, decisions regarding the publication or disclosure of information are operational matters for that organisation.

However, I have requested that officials ask delivery bodies to provide the Scottish Government with the same information released by Scottish Enterprise, and I will come back to Ross Greer MSP in due course.

Teachers’ terms and conditions of service, including maternity pay, are matters determined through the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT), which comprises teaching unions, local government employers and the Scottish Government.

Maternity pay arrangements, alongside a broader range of family-friendly policies, are currently being reviewed through ongoing discussions within the SNCT.

This review is intended to ensure that these policies continue to meet the needs of a modern workforce, while taking account of equality considerations, service delivery requirements and affordability.

Any changes to maternity pay arrangements would require agreement between all SNCT parties.

The decision to proceed with fortification of non-wholemeal wheat flour with folic acid is based on robust assessment of the available evidence. The Scientific Advisory Committee on Nutrition (SACN), which provides independent scientific advice to Ministers and risk assessments on nutrition and related health issues, recommended folic acid fortification following an extensive assessment of the evidence on folate and health. A wide range of impacts were considered, including in relation to cancer and cancer treatments. The reviews are available at:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/338892/SACN_Folate_and_Disease_Prevention_Report.pdf

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/637111/SACN_Update_on_folic_acid.pdf

The impact assessment for the policy is available at: https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/media/5d020f3640f0b609ad3158a3/folic-acid-impact-assessment.pdf

Non-wholemeal wheat flour is already the established vehicle for mandatory fortification, as it is currently fortified with calcium, iron, niacin, and thiamine. It was agreed UK-wide to limit folic acid fortification to flour that is already fortified, so that individuals are able to avoid fortified flour if they choose to or need to. These individuals will continue to be able to consume wholemeal flour and other non-wheat products, including gluten-free products and soy and spelt flours.

The mandated level of folic acid fortification for non-wholemeal wheat flour minimises the risk of people exceeding the recommended upper level of folic acid intake whilst helping to ensure that there is around a 20% decrease in the number of pregnancies affected by neural tube defects in the UK each year. The level of fortification is based on scientific modelling by Food Standards Scotland: https://www.foodstandards.gov.scot/sites/default/files/migration/downloads/STOCHASTIC_MODELLING_TO_ESTIMATE_THE_POTENTIAL_IMPACT_OF_FORTIFICATION_OF_FLOUR_WITH_FOLIC_ACID_IN_THE_UK_-_FINAL_REPORT_-_July_31_2017.pdf

The NHS provides guidance for individuals who may need to avoid folic acid, for example, due to specific medical conditions or interactions with medication. People in this situation are advised to seek advice from a healthcare professional.

The Scottish Government, together with the other UK nations, will monitor closely the impacts of fortification on health, including on the incidence of neural tube defects and on population health more widely.

To ensure people can easily identify products that are suitable for them, added vitamins and minerals, including folic acid, must be labelled in the flour’s ingredients list in accordance with food information and labelling requirements. This must also be declared when fortified flour is used as an ingredient in other food products, enabling consumers to make informed choices about the food they purchase. A 24-month transition period has been provided ahead of the regulations coming into force to give businesses sufficient time to amend their product specifications and labelling.

To maintain consumer choice and access to unfortified options, only non-wholemeal wheat flour will be required to be fortified with folic acid. This means individuals can avoid flour fortified with folic acid if they need to or choose to. These individuals will continue to be able to access products made from unfortified flour, which includes wholemeal flour, and other non-wheat products, including gluten-free products and other flour types such as soya and spelt.

A range of work is underway to ensure that people have access to healthy, affordable food. We have launched a consultation to gather views and evidence on whether capping the price of essential food items could help to improve affordability. We are also supporting local convenience stores to provide healthy, affordable options through the Scottish Grocers Federation Healthy Living Programme.

The Scottish Government, together with the other UK nations, is planning to evaluate the impact of the policy, including on the incidence of neural tube defects and on population health more widely. It is important that both the anticipated benefits and any potential adverse effects are considered as part of this evaluation.

The level of folic acid fortification will be kept under review as part of the evaluation of this policy. Work is underway to identify and establish appropriate baseline and post-implementation measures so that the impact of fortification can be robustly assessed, including any emerging evidence relating to groups who may be at increased risk of adverse effects.

Public Contracts Scotland (PCS) is Scotland’s national procurement portal for public sector contracting opportunities. All regulated contracts must be advertised on PCS and award notices must be recorded on the site. It also holds data on contracts voluntarily recorded by contracting authorities across Scotland.

A search of PCS data indicates that, since October 2024, no public procurement contracts recorded on PCS have been awarded to a company listed in the UN database of companies engaged in listed activities in the Occupied Palestinian Territory, as published by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR). The search was based on matching the company names recorded on PCS with those appearing exactly as listed in the UN database.

Scottish Procurement Policy Note 3/2026 sets out the options available to public sector buyers in relation to bidders which may be engaged in grave professional misconduct, including human rights violations. Companies cannot be pre-emptively excluded from procurement exercises, this can only occur when a company has requested to participate or has submitted a tender.

Procurement legislation is intended to ensure not only that contracting authorities are able to exclude unsuitable bidders, but that such companies are discouraged from bidding in the first place.

The Scottish Government has not excluded any companies on the basis of their involvement in the exploitation of assets from illegal settlements.

We do not hold information on whether other contracting authorities have excluded bidders on this basis. It is for each autonomous contracting authority to ensure that it complies with its own procurement policies and associated legal obligations. Decisions about whether to exclude a bidder from any given procurement process must be made on a case-by-case basis, and it is for the contracting authority concerned to carry out this process.

The Scottish Government receives legal advice on many different matters on an ongoing basis, as appropriate. All legal advice is confidential and it is a very long-established convention that legal advice provided to the Scottish Government is not disclosed.

The statutory review of the impact joint and several liability for council tax arrears has on victim-survivors of domestic abuse is currently underway.

The Scottish Government recognises that joint and several liability for council tax can create very difficult circumstances for victim-survivors of domestic abuse.

The review is taking a twin-track approach involving analysis of the available evidence base together with stakeholder engagement with groups such as domestic abuse support organisations, money advice and debt charities and local authorities.

On completing the review, we will lay a report on it before the Scottish Parliament by 6 November this year, which will include a statement of action we intend to take as a result. This is in line with the timescales established by section 76(2) of the Housing (Scotland) Act 2025.