Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government is working to improve opportunities and choices to work for autistic people and people with learning disabilities through Towards Transformation , our autism and learning disability plan, published in March 2021. As stated in this plan, the Scottish Government will continue to work towards our ambition to at least halve the disability employment gap by 2038 (from the 2016 baseline of 37.4 percentage points), in conjunction with work being delivered through our Fair Work action plan: becoming a leading Fair Work nation by 2025 , published in December 2022. The plan takes forward the current work to support more disabled people, including those with a learning disability autistic people and neurodivergent people, into fair work.

Our employability support, delivered through Fair Start Scotland and No One Left Behind, prioritises those who face complex barriers to accessing the labour market.

We are delivering support that is person centred, tailored and responsive to the needs of the individual. This includes bespoke key worker support, as well as peer support groups and referrals to specialist partners which can offer enhanced support to people who are autistic, learning disabled or neurodivergent.

Our approach to employability support is also consistent with the Supported Employment Framework for Scotland, currently delivered through Fair Start Scotland. The Framework lays out the five-step approach to supported employment, recognising it as "an employment first approach", which focuses on positive outcomes for individuals.

In 2023-24 we are investing up to £108m for employability support to ensure those who require additional support has access to employability services that will help them towards and into sustainable employment.

The latest statistics published on 22 February 2023, covering the period April 2018 to December 2022, shows there were 54,030 starts on Fair Start Scotland and 18,819 job starts. Of these starts, 24,067 (45%) reported having a disability, 3,825 (7%) reported a learning difficulty, 1,679 (3%) a developmental disorder such as Autism Spectrum Disorder or Asperger’s Syndrome and 524 (1%) a learning disability such as Down’s Syndrome.

While we do not refer to the specific category of neurodiverse, the percentage of participants with developmental disorders moving into work is largely in line with the percentage of overall participants moving into work. Overall, 37% (15,512 of participants) have started in employment, compared to 34% (448 participants) of those with a developmental disorder starting employment.

From October 2022, a new data template co-designed with Local Authorities and aligned to the Shared Measurement Framework has been in place. Over time the statistics available for No One Left Behind will reflect this new information, including more detailed breakdowns on types of conditions such as learning disability, learning difficulty, autism spectrum and other developmental disorder, as well as further progression information.

The Scottish National Investment Bank is a mission focussed impact investor. It was established to invest in Scottish business, projects, and communities in order to deliver positive environmental and social impacts and positive financial returns for the people of Scotland.

The Bank offers long-term, patient capital on commercial terms and will make both debt and equity investments. It seeks to invest where the risks are beyond the appetite of private capital. The Bank’s approach to investment helps crowd in and stimulate private investment helping to create and shape new markets.

The Bank is open to approaches from employee-owned businesses that are in line with its missions and Investment Strategy.

Expert ecological opinion and anecdotal evidence from management operations by FLS estimate the number of kits killed will be significantly smaller than the theoretical maximum presented. This hypothetical maximum estimate assumes worst case scenario is all assumptions. In all years the proportion is always less than 3% of the estimated population of kits in known red squirrel habitat.

Removing the stigma attached to problem drug use and harmful drinking in Scotland is a key part of our alcohol and drug strategy.

In January 2023, we published the Stigma Action Plan as part of the cross-government response to the Drug Deaths Taskforce final report, aimed at tackling the stigma of substance use. The Action Plan has multiple strands of work to tackle public stigma and the institutional barriers that people face in accessing services and support, including in entering education and employment and in being able to achieve the best level of health and wellbeing.

We will shortly begin a co-design phase on the details of the actions outlined in the plan and will be engaging with partners and stakeholders in the drug and alcohol sectors.

We are supporting the development of the forthcoming UK-wide alcohol treatment guidelines, led by the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities. The guidance will look to introduce new approaches to treatment, including non-stigmatising service delivery.

Woodland expansion alongside protecting and restoring peatlands are critical elements of our plans to address climate change and help achieve net zero. Public funding of woodland creation requires high standards of forest practice in line with the UK Forestry Standard: the UK framework to deliver sustainable forest management. The Standard provides requirements and guidelines on planting and managing woodlands in ways that maximise carbon removals and minimise emissions. Planting on deeper peats (over 50 cm depth) is prohibited in Scotland.

Further guidance on ground preparation for woodland creation was strengthened in 2021 to require the use of less disruptive techniques on peaty soils, helping protect these important carbon sinks. Ploughing in preparation of tree planting on peaty soils is limited to less than 10 cm depth to protect peatlands as they are important carbon sinks.

a) The estimated percentage of commercial forestry operations that have taken place in known red squirrel habitat:

From Jan 2021 – March 2023 the Scottish Government provided over £2.8 million as part of our Women Returners funding through which over 2,100 women have been given support to help with their route back to work. In so doing we have met our 2018/19 Programme for Government commitment to support over 2000 women by the end of the 2022-23 financial year.

Discussions between Scottish Government and COSLA officials have been ongoing since late April 2023 to reach consensus on the National Care Service. These discussions have, to date, focussed on accountability arrangements. Agreement has been reached where Ministers, local authorities, and NHS boards would share accountability, with councils retaining accountability for delivery functions, staff and assets. New governance arrangements will be introduced to ensure consistently high levels of service across the country, while building flexibility to meet varying community demands at a local level. This consensus is a significant, early success of the Verity House Agreement between national and local government.

Discussions have also recently begun with the trade unions and two of this summer NCS regional co-design events have taken place, with seven in person and five digital events still to run. The outcomes from all of this work will be brought together to inform next steps to be developed over the coming months. I will continue to update parliament on this work.

The Scottish Government works closely with partners to ensure the ScotEID multispecies database system is fit for purpose and meets the requirements of Industry stakeholders. The system is driven by innovation and continuous improvement, to ensure future challenges can be met. ScotEID will continue to support legacy IT systems used in other parts of the United Kingdom.

We recognised the importance of working with the sector on testing technologies and researching different systems, including the benefits that it could accrue to both the industry and government and welcomed proposals set out in a voluntary industry led pilot on the early adoption of electronic identification of cattle (Bovine EID). As a result, the Scottish Government issued funding for this voluntary industry led initiative for Bovine EID through the Programme for Government.

Scottish Government officials last met with their Welsh Government counterparts on 29 June 2023. The meeting was a Four Nations introductory meeting to share knowledge, policy and practice on foster care. Officials have met their Welsh counterparts on 16 occasions since 2021 to discuss a range of policies relating to children in care and social care.