At the 2024-25 Scottish Budget, the Scottish Government announced that it will work with our partners in COSLA and local government, and other stakeholders, during 2024-25 to examine how further policy measures – regulatory and fiscal – can support existing policies and interventions to improve a wide range of land management outcomes, including the restoration of peatlands and the creation of more woodlands. This will also include consideration of a proposal for a Carbon Emissions Land Tax, as has been suggested by the John Muir Trust.

The Scottish Government will provide an update on its progress against this commitment before the end of the 2024-25 financial year.

Sections 9 and 10 of the Civil Litigation (Expenses and Group Proceedings) (Scotland) Act 2018 are not in force because the requisite court rules are not in place. Civil court rules govern the procedure to be followed in cases heard in the Court of Session and in civil cases in the sheriff courts to ensure a fair, efficient, and accessible legal system in Scotland.

Commencing legislative provisions without court rules in place would be irresponsible - potentially creating problems for court users and placing added pressures on our court system.

Responsibility for drafting court rules lies with the Scottish Civil Justice Council (SCJC), a statutory body chaired by the Lord President. The Council prepares an annual report on its activities along with an annual plan setting out its objectives and priorities each year and lays a copy before the Scottish Parliament. The rules required for sections 9 and 10 are currently in the SCJC work plan and are listed as a priority.

Implementing emergency measures to allow the court system to function during the pandemic and the subsequent work to manage recovery has had a significant impact on the delivery of the Council’s business, and its available resources. However, the SCJC have advised that drafting of the new rules is progressing well.

Scottish Government officials are continuing to engage with the SCJC and stand ready to commence the remaining sections of the Civil Litigation (Expenses and Group Proceedings) (Scotland) Act 2018 as soon as court rules are finalised.

The Scottish Government consulted on proposals to licence animal care services, including commercial dog walking services from 4 July 2023 to 26 September 2023. The analysis of responses to this consultation was published on 16 February 2024 and is available at Licensing of activities involving animals: consultation response analysis - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) .

Consideration of the views expressed in response to the consultation is ongoing. The Scottish Government will confirm its proposed next steps, including how it intends to proceed in respect to commercial dog walking activities, in due course.

There is around 484,000 hectares of Common Grazing land in Scotland that is registered in claims and applications with Rural Payments and Services. Of this, there are an estimated 286,000 hectares of peatland (50cm depth), or around 60% of the total land area. Around two-thirds of this peatland is in a degraded state. The Scottish Government’s Crofting Bill Team and stakeholder group are considering a number of proposals that will make it easier for crofters to use their common grazings for other purposes than agriculture, such as peatland restoration.

The Scottish Government expects all women, at all times, to receive high-quality, person-centred maternity care, tailored to their needs, with quality and safety for mothers and babies central to decision-making. We recognise that every woman’s experience of pregnancy and birth is different and that, for a variety of reasons, some women may require support related to trauma.

We continue to participate in four UK-wide audits and confidential enquiries, including the MBRRACE-UK programme, to highlight quality and safety of maternity and neonatal care and where that can be improved. The Scottish Government considers the findings of all data reports and reviews carefully and expects all NHS Boards to do the same locally. Where areas for improvement are identified, the Scottish Patient Safety Programme (SPSP) Perinatal arm provides support and guidance for NHS Boards to undertake focused quality improvement activity.

We are also committed to supporting the development of perinatal and infant mental health services across Scotland. We are working with NHS Boards to develop specialist Community Perinatal Mental Health services to provide assessment and care for women with moderate to severe mental illness, including psychological impact following the birth of a baby. All pregnant women in Scotland are provided with a copy of Ready, Steady, Baby! , a guide to pregnancy, labour and birth and early parenthood, during their routine antenatal care. This provides information for women on mental health and wellbeing in pregnancy and after birth, including signposting to other resources such as the Birth Trauma Association.

Public Health Scotland (PHS), through the Scottish Vaccination and Immunisation Programme (SVIP), is responsible for oversight and leadership of vaccine delivery in Scotland. The Scottish Government is part of SVIP and is working closely with PHS and NHS Boards to promote and encourage uptake of all childhood immunisations.

It is important that all parents and carers ensure that children attend their routine scheduled childhood vaccinations when invited to give them the best protection possible against vaccine preventable diseases.

The NHS Inform website provides details of how to arrange an appointment for anyone who has not had two doses of the free MMR vaccine.

The most recent childhood immunisation uptake statistics, which were published on 19 December 2023 for the quarter ending 30 September 2023, can be found on the PHS website: Childhood immunisation statistics Scotland - Quarter ending 30 September 2023 - Childhood immunisation statistics Scotland - Publications - Public Health Scotland

The Scottish Government is developing a place-based, industry specific Just Transition Plan for the region, committed to in our 2023 Programme for Government, that will outline the strategic long-term future of the industrial cluster.

The plan will outline a range of possibilities for operations at Grangemouth in 2045, including low-carbon hydrogen manufacture, carbon capture and Storage, bio-manufacturing and alternative low-carbon fuels as well as wider Just Transition impacts on the workforce, community and surrounding environment.

SG leads on this work, in partnership with the Grangemouth Future Industry Board, and has been working extensively with multiple industrial operators including Petroineos, and wider stakeholders to develop a baseline as well as a co-designed vision for the future Grangemouth Industrial Cluster.

A draft Grangemouth Just Transition Plan and Vision will be published in May 2024.

The Scottish Government has received the Care Inspectorate pay offer proposal for 2023-24. The Care Inspectorate has since made a pay award offer for financial years 2023-24 and 2024-25 during week commencing 19 February 2024.

The Care Inspectorate’s recognised trade unions agreed to ballot their members on this offer. The results of the trade union ballots are expected in the second week of March. Should the offer be accepted, the Care Inspectorate intends to pay their staff the first element of the 2023-24 award in their March 2024 salaries.