Chamber and committees

Transport Scotland worked closely with its operating company, Amey, to develop and deliver the scheme, including the associated traffic management arrangements. Throughout the planning process, careful consideration was given to the potential impacts on local communities and businesses, with every effort made to minimise disruption. Ahead of the works, Amey implemented a comprehensive communications campaign to raise awareness of the project and inform road users and businesses of potential delays. Mobile Variable Message Signs were deployed on the trunk road at Elgin and Keith for more than two weeks prior to the commencement of works. In addition, details of the overnight road closures and diversion routes were shared in advance with local MSPs and elected members. Information was also disseminated directly to residents and stakeholders through letter drops, local print media, social media campaigns, email alerts and Traffic Scotland communication channels.

The Scottish Government is committed to improving timely access to needs-based support for children and young people, in line with GIRFEC and the National Neurodevelopmental Specification. Access to support should not be dependent on a diagnosis, except in limited circumstances such as the prescribing of ADHD medication.

We are continuing our work with COSLA and the Children and Young People’s Neurodevelopment Taskforce to deliver on the actions set out in the Review of the Specification for Children and Young People.

In 2025-26 we provided over £2.9 million of funding to support projects to improve access to neurodevelopmental support across Scotland. The 2026/27 Budget includes additional investment of £7.6 million.

It is important to recognise that CAMHS is a specialist service for those experiencing significant mental health issues. Neurodevelopmental conditions, such as autism and ADHD, are not mental health conditions. CAMHS is therefore not the correct service for neurodevelopmental diagnostic assessment, unless there is a co-occurring mental health condition that meets CAMHS criteria.

The current transmission charging regime is a significant barrier to investment in Scotland’s renewable energy industry, with key projects such as the West of Orkney Wind Farm having stalled due to the impact of high and volatile charges.

Transport Scotland and its Operating Company, Amey, worked collaboratively to develop the most effective approach for delivering these works. Each project must achieve an appropriate balance between safety, efficient delivery, minimising impacts on local communities, and ensuring value for money in the use of public funds. To reduce disruption as far as possible, a range of options was considered before a preferred approach was identified. This involved maintaining access across the bridge throughout the works by keeping one lane open during daytime hours and limiting full closures to overnight periods only. Where overnight closures are necessary, a Standard Incident Diversion Route is implemented. This route is assessed and agreed by Police Scotland, Moray Council, and Amey. It is important to recognise that both the traffic management arrangements and the works themselves operate within a dynamic environment that can change on a daily basis. While no traffic management solution can completely eliminate delays, Amey will continue to monitor traffic conditions closely and make adjustments to temporary signal timings where appropriate. The aim is to achieve the best possible balance between traffic flow and project delivery, minimising impacts on all stakeholders while ensuring the works are carried out safely and efficiently.

The Young Patients Family Fund is a demand-led fund, and the Scottish Government has ensured funding for all eligible claims each year since its launch in 2021. The 2026-27 budget has been set at £3.2 million based on expected demand levels and we remain committed to provide full funding in 2026-27.

The YPFF is designed to support the families of all babies, children and young people from birth to age 18 who require inpatient care in Scotland, regardless of diagnosis.

Other financial support is available to children and young people with a cancer diagnosis and their families for travel to hospital via the patient travel expenses reimbursement schemes. Under those schemes, patients and authorised escorts can reclaim reasonable costs of travel associated with attending a hospital appointment, in line with eligibility criteria and medical requirements.

The Scottish Government keeps the operation and eligibility of the YPFF under regular review, alongside the wider financial support available to patients and families through the patient travel expenses reimbursement schemes.

The Scottish Government has developed a range of national guidance, including the Discharge Without Delay approach, which promotes multidisciplinary assessment, person-centred discharge planning and collaboration between health, social care, housing and homelessness services. This approach is reinforced by Scotland's homelessness prevention duties, which, when enacted, will require relevant public bodies to ask and act where a person is at risk of homelessness and ensure housing needs are considered as part of assessment and discharge planning.

The immigration system, including the Seasonal Worker visa route, is reserved to the UK Government. The Scottish Government regularly engages with DEFRA, other UK Government departments and the devolved administrations on issues affecting seasonal agricultural workers in Scotland either directly as matters arise, or through participation in working groups, such as the Seasonal Worker Interest Group and the Devolved Governments Workforce Group, where matters relating to worker welfare and employment rights are discussed.

(a) Employment law and immigration policy are reserved matters. The UK Government regulates the employment rights of seasonal agricultural workers through employment legislation, visa conditions and relevant enforcement bodies. In Scotland, seasonal agricultural workers’ pay and conditions are also covered by the Agricultural Wages (Scotland) Act 1949 and annual Agricultural Wages Orders.

(b) Responsibility for enforcement of employment rights rests with the UK Government and its agencies. However, Scottish employers are increasingly dependent on migrant workers, who make a valuable contribution to Scotland's agricultural sector. The Scottish Government does not support an immigration system that increases the risk of forced labour or worker exploitation and continues to engage with stakeholders and UK Government counterparts on matters affecting the welfare and rights of seasonal agricultural workers in Scotland, including undertaking enforcement activity to ensure compliance with the terms of the Scottish Agricultural Wages Order relating to all agricultural workers in Scotland.

The Scottish Government recognises the workforce and skills implications of delivering across these sectors and is working to ensure the skills system can respond.

The consented onshore wind pipeline presents a significant opportunity for Scotland’s economy, as does the transmission infrastructure needed to unlock the full benefit of the clean, affordable and secure power that Scotland can generate from its own resources.

Delivery of the pipeline and investment by Scotland’s Transmission Owners will support thousands of skilled jobs in construction, engineering and the wider supply chain. The Scottish Government is supporting this through the skills system and working with industry, developers and our skills agencies to ensure that communities across Scotland benefit from these opportunities.

In respect of data centres, we continue to take steps to understand the impact on Scotland’s construction supply chain. This includes working with wider public sector to understand what research may be required to fully account for the current projects in the planning system.

The Scottish Government has also introduced a Scottish Government-led skills planning model, being developed in partnership with stakeholders, to ensure the post school education and skills system becomes more responsive to Scotland’s strategic skills priorities.

The Scottish Government’s has no current plans to introduce a phased transition requiring all locum consultant psychiatrist posts to be held by doctors on the General Medical Council (GMC) Specialist Register.

The Scottish Government’s role is to provide strategic leadership for NHS Scotland to ensure a sustainable NHS workforce. Operational matters relating to staffing including recruitment to specific specialities such as psychiatry, are the responsibility of individual NHS Boards and will depend on service needs, taking account of national, regional and local priorities.

NHS Boards are required to ensure that suitably qualified and competent staff are available in appropriate numbers to support safe, high-quality care and staff wellbeing, in line with the requirements of the Health and Care (Staffing) (Scotland) Act 2019.

There are already established routes available for experienced doctors, including locums, to obtain specialist registration through the General Medical Council (GMC). NHS Boards should ensure that the staff they employ have access to appropriate training and development opportunities that align with their statutory workforce planning and service delivery responsibilities.

The Centre for Workforce Supply (CWS) hosted by Public Service Delivery Scotland provides national leadership on workforce supply, supporting NHS Boards with recruitment and retention initiatives in support of the mental health and wider workforce across Scotland.

Within the Scottish Government policy responsibility for Health and Care Research sits with the Chief Scientist Office (CSO).

NHS Research Scotland (NRS) is a partnership between the NHS Boards and CSO. NRS works to ensure that the NHS in Scotland provides the best environment to support clinical trials. The Scottish Government provides annual NRS Infrastructure support funding. The 2025-26 figure for this funding was £46.16 million.

The above infrastructure includes the NRS Cancer Research Network that supports the set up and delivery of cancer clinical trials including in brain tumours (Cancer | NHS Research Scotland | NHS Research Scotland) – annual Scottish Government funding to the NRS Cancer Network is in the region of £1 million per annum. The NRS Cancer Network is currently supporting 10 brain tumour studies open to recruitment in the NHS in Scotland – these studies have recruited a total of over 120 patients to date.

CSO co-funds in partnership with Cancer Research UK, the Adult Experimental Cancer Medicine Centres (ECMC's) in Edinburgh and Glasgow, and a Paediatric ECMC in Glasgow. These form part of a UK-wide ECMC Network that works to support the delivery of early phase cancer studies including in Brain Tumours (Edinburgh adult centre | Experimental cancer medicine centres) and (Glasgow adult centre | Experimental cancer medicine centres) – CSO’s annual contribution is approximately £470K.

The VPAG Commercial Clinical Trials Investment Programme was agreed as part of the 2024 Voluntary Scheme for Branded Medicines Pricing, Access and Growth (VPAG). It aims to strengthen the UK’s global competitiveness in life sciences and support innovation led growth. The programme is supported by approximately £400 million of funding from the Association of the British Pharmaceutical Industry members.

The clinical trials component of VPAG is intended to enhance capacity and delivery of commercial clinical research across the UK. Approximately £40 million from this element of the VPAG investment programme is expected to be invested in Scotland over the five year scheme. CSO has worked with NRS to configure this investment to maximise the opportunities for patients to participate in commercial clinical trials.

This includes the setting up of 4 Commercial Research Delivery Centres (CRDC's) - based in Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow - to accelerate and strengthen commercial clinical research delivery. It is anticipated that Cancer trials (including Brain Tumour trials) will represent around 50% of the commercial trial portfolio.