Chamber and committees

Confirmed on 2 February 2026, the appointment of four members to the independent Gill Review on the valuation methodology applied to licensed hospitality premises: Alison Andrews, Bob Mowat, Hugh Munro and Graham Whyte.

The first meeting of the Review Group was held on 2 February. Invitations to join an Advisory Panel of the independent Review have also been issued to selected individuals.

The Review Group will report by the end of 2026.

The Scottish Government will work with third sector partners to deliver Scotland’s first ever “Third Sector Partnership” which will further strengthen the role and place of the sector in Scotland. This new Partnership creates a unique and valuable opportunity for government to work more effectively with the sector and build on progress made through our Fairer Funding pilot.

The principles underpinning the partnership, in line with those set out by SCVO, will include alignment with Fairer Funding principles, protection of the sector’s independence, outcomes-focussed to reflect shared goals, ensuring accountability and alignment with relevant legislation and strategies. We will work closely with a diverse range of third sector partners to co-design the partnership.

We already recognise the essential role played by the third sector in delivering for communities across Scotland everyday. We recently announced a £20 million investment for third sector partners in the draft Budget to deliver the support that people need in their communities, underlining the importance of the government and third sector organisations working to tackle the challenges of the day together. This is in addition to delivering on our Fairer Funding pilot that provides multi-year funding worth £130 million over 2025-2027, prioritising those that deliver frontline services and tackle child poverty.

Acknowledging the impact of the revaluation, we are protecting business by introducing a Revaluation Transitional Relief to protect those most affected and will cap increases in gross bills up to the next revaluation in 2029. Increases in non-domestic gross liabilities due to revaluation will be capped at 15 per cent (cash terms) in 2026-27 for small properties, rising in subsequent years, with higher caps for larger properties. This relief will ensure that the gross bills of around 60,000 properties are lower in 2026-27 than they otherwise would have been. Table 1 shows the year-on-year caps by rateable value bracket. No property class or size is excluded from Revaluation Transitional Relief eligibility.

Table 1: Year-on-year Revaluation Transitional Relief caps (%), 2026-27 to 2028-29

The Scottish Government is prioritising longer-term reform so that Employment Injury Assistance best meets Scotland’s needs. This approach was backed by the largest number of responses to our consultation in 2024.

As set out in the consultation response, protecting the continuity of payments is our first priority during the devolution of disability benefits and it will continue to be our priority for the approximately 22,000 people currently in receipt of awards under the IIS in Scotland.

The Scottish Government established an Employment Injury Assistance Steering Group in June 2025. The Steering Group has been asked to consider overarching policy principles and identify priorities for reform. We expect the Group’s final report this summer.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring the involvement of trade unions in the development of Employment Injury Assistance. A public consultation was held in 2024 on the next steps for the delivery of Employment Injury Assistance. This consultation was targeted at organisations with a specific interest in industrial injuries benefits, including trade unions. For example, the Scottish Government ran online engagement events to enable trade unions to share their views on the development of Employment Injury Assistance.

The Scottish Trade Union Congress (STUC) is a core member of the Employment Injury Assistance Steering Group. The Steering Group was established in June 2025 to provide expert input to help address the unique complexities associated with replacing the UK Industrial Injuries Scheme. The Group is expected to produce a report with recommendations for Ministers’ consideration which will inform next steps.

The Scottish Government has taken into account the commissioning of the Gill Review on the valuation methodology applied to licensed hospitality premises in its financial planning. The Review is independent of government.

Each year the Scottish Government updates its online non-domestic rates calculator at Non-domestic rates calculator - mygov.scot. This will be updated in due course for 2026-27.

The Scottish Government’s role is to set the strategic policy direction for the NHS in Scotland. Operational matters, including local recruitment decisions, are the responsibility of each NHS Health Board as employers.

Whilst it is hoped that all graduates can join the NHS in their local area upon graduation, this is not always immediately possible. When a student is ready to graduate and cannot find employment with a local health board, universities will provide support and career guidance to assist the student in the consideration of all employment opportunities across health and social care.

As part of ongoing efforts to strengthen workforce planning across NHS Scotland, we have developed an internal panel (the Advisory Panel on Workforce Projections & Controlled Subject Intakes) to improve our healthcare student planning, ensuring we continue to fund the right number of healthcare training places across a range of disciplines.

In addition, we have tasked the NHS Scotland Centre for Workforce Supply to explore what further national support is required to promote employment opportunities in Scotland and we are working alongside the Scottish Executive Nurse Directors Group to identify what action can be taken to support newly qualified nurses to access employment in health and social care across the country.

Section 37 of the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997 sets out that, when determining planning applications, planning authorities are to have regard to the provisions of the development plan, so far as material to the application, and to any other material considerations. The development plan consists of National Planning Framework 4 and the relevant local development plan.

It is for the relevant planning authority to identify, in each individual planning application, what material considerations apply and what weight to give to each material consideration in reaching their decision. This is a matter of planning judgement for the authority.

The Scottish Government met with the Non-Domestic Rates Consultative Group, which includes representatives of the hospitality sector, on 5 February to discuss potential additional measures for Scotland following the Chancellor’s announcement of further relief for pubs and music venues in England.