Chamber and committees

Public bodies in Scotland, as both employers and service providers, are required to comply with all relevant legal obligations, including the Equality Act 2010. The Scottish Government expects all public bodies to ensure that its policies and practices are legally compliant, taking account of the UK Supreme Court judgment and their own legal advice.

The Scottish Government has not undertaken a specific assessment of the number of specialist clinicians in Scotland whose expertise includes postural tachycardia syndrome (PoTS).

Autonomic symptoms are often experienced as part of a range of other conditions and may be managed across different clinical specialties. Information on clinicians with expertise in PoTS is not held centrally. NHS Boards may be able to provide further information on local service provision.

PSD(Scotland) has been commissioned by Scottish Government to deliver a Managed Service contract for GP IT Reprovisioning.

Data provided by Police Scotland shows the number of stop and searches where an item categorised as ‘bladed instrument’ was found. However, more than one type of item can be recovered in a stop and search. These figures do not reflect the quantities of items that were recovered. The additional categories for weapon recoveries include, ‘blunt instrument’, ‘pointed article’ and ‘other weapon’.

Year Bladed Instrument (positive stop search)

2020-21 561

2021-22 458

2022-23 457

2023-24 550

2024-25 528

2025-26 569

OneAdvanced, the supplier of the Vision GPIT system, have recently moved from a legacy service desk system to a different service desk provider so previous records of the numbers of reported issues are unavailable.

There are specific guidelines in place in every local authority area in Scotland for the disposal of sharp household items, including knives, to ensure safety. Neither local authorities nor Police Scotland have raised concerns about the current policy and approach – and have not reported a heightened risk to public safety arising from the disposal of household knives. More broadly, the Scottish Government is supporting a range of programmes such as No Knives, Better Lives, in our schools and in the wider community, to educate young people in particular about the dangers of carrying a knife.

While the subject matter of the Equality Act 2010 is reserved to the UK Government, we are undertaking a detailed analysis of the Code to fully understand its implications and to ensure our approach remains aligned with the law.

Responsibility for interpreting and complying with the Act remains with service providers and those providing a public function, with the Equality and Human Rights Commission continuing its role as regulator and enforcer.

Scottish public bodies are therefore expected to consider the Code carefully and to undertake their own assessment of its impact on their policies, services and functions, and to take all necessary steps to ensure compliance with their legal obligations.

The most significant delay to the programme of migrations was caused by the administration of In Practice Systems Ltd (INPS) in December 2024, which resulted in migrations being paused for a prolonged period during which no migrations could take place.

Part one of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 requires local authorities and National Park Authorities (“access authorities”) to take the lead role in delivery of non-motorised outdoor access, and in relation to core paths. Access authorities have a range of duties and powers to publicise, maintain, and keep core paths free from obstruction.

We have committed to explore with the Ordnance Survey the potential for core paths to be recognised in their mapping; and to work with the Scottish Outdoor Recreation Alliance and others to develop a Scottish Paths Fund; as well as to produce new guidance for access authorities on how to fulfil their responsibilities. Scoping of these commitments is currently under way.

The Scottish Government has not undertaken any specific recent assessment of the adequacy of GP training on postural tachycardia syndrome (PoTS).

Public Services Delivery Scotland (PSD Scotland, previously NHS Education for Scotland) supports GP education and training. Its learning platform ‘Turas’ includes training resources on autonomic nervous system dysfunction, including the recognition of symptoms and approaches to management. These resources are accessible to a multidisciplinary audience, including GPs.

PSD Scotland also develops Practice Based Small Group Learning modules for primary care. Topics are identified through an annual survey of practitioners, with the most frequently requested subjects taken forward for development.