Chamber and committees

The Commission will ensure that the value and importance of lived experience is respected and reflected in its approach to gathering and considering evidence to inform its recommendations.

This will include meaningful participation and engagement with people with direct experience of selling/exchanging sex - which will also be reflected in the Commission’s panel of experts.

The Scottish Government, together with the UK Government and Welsh Government, has commissioned the National Energy System Operator (NESO) to produce a Strategic Spatial Energy Plan (SSEP). The SSEP is a whole system spatial plan for Great Britain’s future energy infrastructure and is due to be published for consultation next year.

All Health Boards were asked to submit proposals in response to the initial Call for Proposals and were asked to ensure proposals did not adversely impact existing service provision. I am however aware of staffing challenges faced by some sites and my officials remain in regular contact with affected sites to work together to find solutions.

Whilst the Scottish Government sets the strategic policy direction for the NHS in Scotland, operational matters such as staffing and recruitment, including the recruitment of graduates, are the responsibility of the individual health and social care employers, taking into account national, regional and local priorities.

NHS Boards are responsible for general medical services and ensuring that their GP contractors act within the agreed terms of their contracts. If an NHS Board believes that a communication from GP contractors does not reflect those agreements, that is a matter for the board to raise with the practice.

The existing guidance does not set out to cover all the circumstances in which patients might be removed from their current GP practice.

Patients who are concerned about being removed from a practice list when areas are revised should contact their practice or their local health board.

The Scottish Government has had no discussions with the UK Government regarding the findings of its technical report.

The report is a high-level technical desktop study about the in-principle suitability of sites in Scotland.

It provides no new information or evidence that would change the Government’s long-standing opposition to the development of new nuclear power stations in Scotland.

I have asked Linda Pollock, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

SPS publishes prison numbers on a quarterly basis via the Prisoner Information Page (PIP), the most recent of which can be found here: Public Information Page.

Additionally, SPS publish Prison Population Data Reports which illustrate the population in custody broken down by custody type, gender, and age, the most recent of which can be found here: Data, Research and Evidence | Scottish Prison Service.

The Scottish Funding Council collects data on the number of students who have graduated from pre-registration children’s nursing courses across Scotland.

There are no pre-registration neo-natal programmes available in Scotland. Instead, qualified nurses can undertake a specific neonatal qualification post registration course known as Neonatal Care - Qualified in Speciality.

There are two walk-in services open in South Scotland, located in Hawick and Stranraer. Sites in East Ayrshire and Lanark are due to open in high street or former retail premises. These locations require longer lead times, as converting retail spaces into clinically compliant facilities must meet strict safety standards. I have committed to expanding the pilot programme and a Call for Proposals has been issued to Health Boards asking them to consider additional sites across Scotland.