Chamber and committees

I appreciate the disappointment the Glasgow City Region will be experiencing following the UK Government’s decision not to support their bids for Levelling Up funding.

Any borrowing by local authorities, whether it’s through the public works loans board or through the issuance of bonds, is for local authorities to determine affordability themselves, subject to the conditions of their prudential borrowing regime.

However, any decisions to permit local authorities to issue bonds would require Ministerial consent. Ambitious investment strategies have led to financial insolvency in certain English local authorities and therefore this would require very careful consideration. My officials would be happy to discuss proposals with Glasgow City Council.

The independent review of the role of incineration in the waste hierarchy recommended that in view of the upcoming ban on landfilling biodegradable municipal waste, Scottish Government should work with local authorities to ensure they have a solution to manage their residual waste in 2025. The ban is in line with Committee on Climate Change recommendations and will come into force on 31 December 2025.

Through work overseen by a dedicated Programme Board (which includes representation from Cosla, SOLACE, SEPA and Zero Waste Scotland), we are continuing to support local authorities to collaboratively secure landfill ban compliant residual waste treatment options. We are doing this by facilitating collaborative procurement and funding provision of additional technical, procurement and legal support.

We will continue to work closely with local authorities and commercial operators to support those that do not currently have solutions to treat their residual waste ahead of the forthcoming ban.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that numbers of teachers and support staff are protected. We will provide local government with £145.5 million in next year's budget, which is conditional on the successful delivery of the following objectives:

• Maintaining teacher numbers at 2022 census levels, as published in the Summary School Statistics in December 2022.
• Maintaining pupil support staff numbers at 2022 census levels, which we will publish on 21 March 2023 based on the data collected from local authorities in September 2022.
• Ensuring that places remain available for probationer teachers who need them through the Teacher Induction Scheme.

Where these objectives are not being met, the Scottish Government reserves the right to withhold or recoup funding which has been provided for this purpose.

We plan on consulting on proposed updates to Housing for Varying Needs to uplift standards applicable to homes delivered with support through the Affordable Housing Supply Programme in the Spring of this year. This consultation will also include proposals for the introduction of an all-tenure Scottish Accessible Homes Standard which is planned to be implemented through changes to building standards and guidance from 2025-26.

The Scottish Government does not hold information on the range of options considered by local authorities for the treatment of residual waste ahead of the forthcoming ban on landfilling biodegradable municipal waste.

Local authorities are responsible for the provision of local waste services and are, therefore, best placed to comment on contractual arrangements for waste services.

The Scottish Cabinet determines the proposed programme of Government business with due regard to current circumstances, including any decisions taken by the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body regarding the operation of the Parliament. It is for the Parliamentary Bureau and, ultimately, the Parliament as a whole to agree the terms of the business programme.

Official statistics for the Scottish Cervical Screening Programme will be published this Spring, with data up to March 2022. It is therefore too early to assert what uptake for 2021/22 will show, however the Scottish Government is aware that previous years have highlighted the need to improve uptake.

Both the Scottish Government and the Cervical Screening Programme encourage all those eligible for cervical screening to go for a test when invited, and for all those eligible to take up the offer of the HPV vaccine when invited to.

We continue to work with Jo’s Cervical Cancer Trust to support their vital campaign work on cervical cancer, having awarded £456,000 in funding to highlight the benefits of screening and to better understand barriers to uptake.

Finally, we understand that increasing uptake alone is not enough, and that we must also strive for equality of uptake. Work is currently underway on a national Equity in Screening Strategy, which is being led by National Screening Oversight. The strategy will provide a focus and commitment to tackle inequalities in screening, to achieve equity of access for all eligible individuals across the whole screening pathway. It will consider the main causes of inequalities and will outline initial actions to address barriers and facilitate access of underserved groups.

Green Freeports in Scotland will be required to the comply with existing environmental legislation and regulations. The legal protection of sites for nature, such as Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs), Special Protection Areas (SPAs) and Special Areas of Conservation (SACs), will not be changed as consequence of the decision to give Green Freeport status to all or part of any site.

The Scottish Government promotes the role of Citizens Advice Scotland and the Advisory, Conciliation and Arbitration Service (ACAS) in providing free and impartial advice and support on workplace issues, including bullying and harassment.

Everyone has the right to go to work without fear of intimidation. We endorse the Fair Work Convention's Fair Work Framework and agree that every worker, regardless of status or position, should be treated fairly and with respect.

We are committed to supporting strong trade unions and promoting collective bargaining. On 09 December we published our refreshed Fair Work Action Plan and continue to encourage all employers to provide effective voice channels, giving workers a voice in tackling workplace issues such as bullying.

Only with the devolution of employment powers will the Scottish Government have the full set of levers to take real action on workplace injustices.

As health and safety legislation is reserved we regularly cooperate with the Health and Safety Executive to promote workplace safety. This includes using our devolved healthcare powers to promote and support safety in the workplace, our Fair and Healthy Work for All Strategy, and continuing to represent the opinion of the Scottish Government on worker safety to the HSE.

The Scottish Government believes that bullying and harassment of any worker, under any circumstances, is unacceptable. Everyone has the right to go to work without fear of intimidation. We endorse the Fair Work Convention's Fair Work Framework and agree that every worker, regardless of status or position, should be treated fairly