Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government is in regular contact with the UK Government’s Department for Energy Security and Net Zero about the Energy Charter Treaty (ECT).

Following the ECT Annual Conference on 20 November 2023, Scottish Government officials contacted the UK Government, seeking an update on their review of UK membership of the ECT. Subsequently, the UK Government has confirmed publicly that it is continuing to review the UK’s membership, and to consider stakeholder views.

The Scottish Government shares many of the concerns raised by experts, such as the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and the Climate Change Committee, about ECT membership and sees merit in calls for the UK to withdraw. Our position, as set out in our Vision for Trade, is that no part of a trade or investment agreement should limit the ability of the Scottish Parliament to regulate in devolved areas, or constrain much needed action to achieve our net zero goals.

We therefore remain concerned at the lack of a decision on this issue and the prospect of Scotland continuing to remain subject to the provisions of an unreformed Treaty, through the UK’s continued membership.

The Scottish Government is working to make information around the development and delivery of chronic pain more publicly available and we are currently reviewing the information on the Scottish Government website. We will be updating the chronic pain webpage to provide information, including membership of the Pain Management Task Force and relevant working groups, on how we are developing and delivering the Pain management service delivery framework: implementation plan update .

The new Joint Strategic Board for Children and Family Mental Health, co-chaired by Scottish Government and COSLA, will have a strategic overview of mental health work spanning preconception, the perinatal period, parent-infant relationships, early years (up to 5), children and young people (5-24 year olds or 26 years for care leavers), their families and carers. This will build on the work of the Children and Young People’s Mental Health and Wellbeing Joint Delivery Board and the Perinatal and Infant Mental Health Programme Board which both came to an end in March 2023.

Work is underway to set up the new Joint Strategic Board. An early preparatory meeting of the Board took place in November, with the first formal meeting of the Board due to take place in early 2024. Part of this work will involve establishing the precise make up of the implementation groups sitting under the Joint Strategic Board. Whilst the exact remit of these groups has still to be finalised, perinatal and early years mental health has been agreed as a core priority area for the Joint Strategic Board.

The Third Sector plays a key role in providing perinatal mental health support and we are working with stakeholders as we develop this next stage.

Since 2020, over 10,000 people have been supported by the Perinatal and Infant Mental Health Main Fund and Small Grants Fund. Between December 2019 and March 2023, over £2.8 million was distributed to 34 organisations to support families across Scotland.

Further details on Perinatal and Infant Mental Health grant funding beyond September 2024 will be issued in coming months.

The Scottish Government is not aware of any plans to move the Scottish National Pain Management Programme from its current site. We are working with stakeholders to ensure that the delivery of the SNPMP is sustainable and the services offered still meet the needs of people in Scotland living with chronic pain.

Final decisions for AECS 2024 will be made available once the full details of the SG budget allocations for financial year 2024-25 is available.

In September 2023, organisations in receipt of the Perinatal and Infant Mental Health Grant funding were informed that this would be extended until the end of September 2024.

A commitment to further grant funding was made in the Mental Health & Wellbeing Delivery Plan and an update will be issued in coming months.

It is encouraging that the Summary Statistics for Schools in Scotland published on 12 December reported a slight increase in the number of post probationers securing a teaching post in the year following their probation.

The Teacher Induction Scheme provides a one year probationary placement to allow teachers to meet the Standard for Full Registration. This does not provide a guarantee of future employment with a particular local authority. Teaching posts should be advertised and filled in a fair and transparent manner.

The Scottish Government is clear there is no place for Islamophobia or racism in our schools, colleges or universities. Discrimination or prejudice of any kind is unacceptable and must be addressed quickly whenever it arises.

A consistent and uniform approach to recording and monitoring incidents of bullying in schools was introduced in 2019. Guidance for local authorities and schools on recording and monitoring bullying incidents was produced to support the approach. The Bullying and Equalities Module on SEEMiS, the schools management information system, was updated to reflect the new approach. The list of characteristics that can be reported on within SEEMiS includes incidents where race or religion was a factor.

Our Behaviour in Scottish Schools research, which published on 28 November 2023, provides information on the frequency with which staff are dealing with racist incidents towards pupils or themselves. Our work on Racism and Racist Incidents, which is part of the Anti Racism in Education Programme, will provide further guidance for schools on recording and monitoring racist incidents, including incidents of Islamophobia.

The Scottish Funding Council (SFC) and the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) published a report earlier this year, which asks higher and further education institutions to address the most pressing persistent inequalities in the tertiary education system, including islamophobia, by contributing to a set of National Equality Outcomes (NEOs). We expect higher and further education institutions to prioritise, and demonstrate progress against these NEOs, in line with their reporting requirements under the Public Sector Equality Duty.

Additionally, in 2021-22, the Scottish Government supported the Fearless Glasgow collaborative in a pilot on the use of Report and Support, an online reporting system for incidents of islamophobia, gender-based violence and other issues, which is now in use at a number of universities across the UK.

The Scottish Government recognises the significant impact of Storm Babet on people, businesses and communities. The Government has been working closely with affected local authorities on a package of support to help people whose homes and businesses were flooded. This package includes extending the Bellwin scheme’s application window to help all Councils, including Argyll and Bute, cover eligible expenditure for urgent repairs.

The Scottish Welfare Fund also provides emergency support to those on low incomes in Scotland, including in Argyll and Bute. Support may be provided through the provision of Crisis Grants and Community Care Grants, including to those who have experienced a disaster situation, such as a flood. Residents can apply to the Scottish Welfare Fund through their Council.

This support is in addition to Scotland’s longer-term investment in flood resilience, where we have committed £150m over the course of this Parliament to deliver improved flood resilience, in addition to the £42m provided annually to councils for flood resilience through the general capital grant.