Chamber and committees

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-30309 on 28 October 2024. 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

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-30309 on 28 October 2024. 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

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-30309 on 28 October 2024. 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

Eligible Scottish pre-registration nursing, midwifery and paramedic science students receive funding through the Paramedic, Nursing and Midwifery Student Bursary Scheme (PNMSB) which is administered by the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS).

Eligibility for support depends on three conditions:

• that the course is eligible;
• that the individual has not had previous PNMSB funding; and
• that they meet the residence requirements.

Bursaries are for eligible students attending courses which:

• lead to registration on the Professional Register maintained by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), which may include degree, honours and masters levels; or
• lead to the award of a BSc Paramedic Science; and
• are partly or wholly funded by the Scottish Government Health and Social Care Directorates (SGHSCD).

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

SPS have no specific evidence as to why the use of steroids is reportedly increasing within prisons. However, in collaboration with our Partners at Dundee University, the regular re-calibration of Rapiscan machines does support our ability to identify new substances.

We recognise the profound impact that illicit articles entering our prisons and acknowledge the continued need to support to those in our care who misuse substances and those who are on their recovery journey.

The Scottish Government remains committed to the legal, ethical and proportionate use of new technologies in policing, which takes account of ethical and human rights obligations, to ensure that the adoption of any new technology for policing purposes is done in a way that secures public confidence.

That is why we commissioned a report into emerging technologies in policing from an independent advisory group, which was published in February 2023 (Independent advisory group on new and emerging technologies in policing: final report ). The report confirmed that Scotland is in a strong position to become world-leading in adopting a rights-based, ethical approach to the adoption of emerging technologies in policing.

Any decision to deploy Live Facial Recognition technology is an operational matter for the Chief Constable under the scrutiny of the Scottish Police Authority. The Chief Constable is responsible for operational policing and is accountable to the Scottish Police Authority for this - not to Scottish Ministers. These arrangements are in law and in place to ensure public confidence that the police act independently, free from Ministerial interference.

I have written to the Scottish Police Authority to seek assurances that a transparent and robust process will be adopted in considering and scrutinising any plans for the future deployment of Live Facial Recognition technology.

The Scottish Government opposed the abolition of tax-free shopping when it was announced in 2020 and called upon the previous UK Government to listen to industry and urgently reconsider the issue, including in a letter sent to the Chancellor ahead of the 2024 UK Spring Budget.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-30309 on 28 October 2024. 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

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-30309 on 28 October 2024. 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

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-30309 on 28 October 2024. 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