Chamber and committees

Budget discussions are still ongoing. We are working hard to confirm the final position for FWDF in 2023-24 as quickly as possible. An announcement will be made once a final decision has been reached. Meetings with the Scottish Funding Council and Skills Development Scotland are held regularly to discuss updates and any issues relating to the Fund.

The Sex Offender Notification Requirements in Scotland requires convicted sex offenders to provide a range of personal information to the police, including their name, and to inform the police should any of those details subsequently change.

Individuals convicted of sexual offences are not prevented from making an application for a Gender Recognition Certificate under the UK Gender Recognition Act 2004.

While the Scottish Government has not sought confirmation from energy companies relating explicitly to Energy UK’s vulnerability commitment, I have written to all major suppliers raising concerns regarding consumer protection and fuel poverty levels. With energy prices remaining significantly higher than two years ago, we have called upon all suppliers to take meaningful action to better support those consumers who need help the most. Continued engagement with suppliers has highlighted the measures they are taking to improve customer service standards and support for consumers who are struggling to pay their bills. I also recently chaired three working groups, all of which Energy UK was a member. While these groups were short-lived, members continue to progress collaborative actions to support consumers across Scotland including working with Energy UK, Ofgem and energy companies.

All applications are subject to site-specific assessments. National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) states that potential impacts on communities, nature and other receptors will be important considerations in the decision-making process. NPF4 Policy 11 requires project design and mitigation to demonstrate how impacts on communities and individual dwellings, including residential amenity, visual impact, noise and shadow flicker will be addressed. It is for the decision maker to determine what information is required to support an application, and where Residential Visual Amenity Assessment is provided, to determine the distance to be considered in that assessment.

I can confirm that this is new investment, not funding already committed in previous budgets. It will stimulate and support private investment in the infrastructure and manufacturing facilities which will be critical to the growth of a world-leading offshore wind sector in Scotland.

Our aim is to maximise the number of green jobs and we are considering how we can best work collaboratively with the renewables sector to do that.

The latest report from the Offshore Wind Industry Council (OWIC) [June 2023], predicted jobs in this sector in the UK could grow to over 100,000 by 2030. This OWIC report also shows a 4% increase in offshore wind jobs compared to 2021-22, showing that the sector currently supports over 32,000 jobs, almost 30% of which are in Scotland.

This £500m investment will help to support market certainty, creating the environment that will deliver these jobs, whilst creating a highly productive, competitive economy, embedding innovation and boosting skills.

The Scottish Government will carefully consider the recommendations made by the UK Animal Welfare Committee and will continue to work with stakeholders to ensure the welfare of fish throughout the animals’ life.

The Scottish Government is committed to the highest possible welfare standards for animals, including fish. Improving aquaculture health and welfare is an ethical responsibility and is one of the main priorities that is enshrined in our Vision for Sustainable Aquaculture.

The Scottish Government will carefully consider the recommendations made by the UK Animal Welfare Committee and will continue to work with stakeholders to ensure the welfare of fish throughout the animals life.

The Scottish Government had regular engagement with Circularity Scotland (CSL) as part of preparations for Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme (DRS). Circularity Scotland Ltd went into administration in June 2023 following the UK Government’s decision not to grant a full exclusion from the UK Internal Market Act.

It is not possible to provide a list of all verbal engagements between Scottish Government officials and CSL staff due to the frequency of these working-level engagements and the fact that many of them were informal discussions rather than scheduled meetings. However, the main meetings between CSL and Scottish Ministers or officials are as follows:

1. CSL met with the Minister for Green Skills, Circular Economy and Biodiversity on a monthly basis, [link] .

The Scottish Government is committed to advancing equality and furthering the realisation of human rights in Scotland. Social Care support is provided by Local Authorities and we are working closely with local government to further advance equality and realise human rights for supported people and staff. This includes recent updates to Self-Directed Support guidance, which was developed in participation with a wide range of stakeholders and is grounded in a human rights-based approach to social care. We are also co-designing Getting It Right For Everyone (GIRFE), a national practice model for health and social care, with pathfinders across Scotland and people with lived experience. Respect, dignity, kindness, and human rights are integral to the GIRFE approach, which seeks to put what matters to a person at the heart of the decision-making which impacts their own life.

The Scottish Government is also working to establish a National Care Service (NCS) to provide national oversight and accountability to locally delivered care support, community health and social work. We are committed to developing the NCS with human rights at its heart and ensuring that the voices of lived experience are central to our decision making. As part of our human rights-based approach to the development of the NCS, the NCS National Board will be underpinned by robust and effective complaints processes that deliver accountability for people accessing social care support, social work and community health services.