Chamber and committees

The Scottish Ambulance Service reports that in 2022, 46888 call-outs have alcohol mentioned as a possible factor by ambulance crews when completing an electronic patient record. The Scottish Ambulance Service does not specifically record alcohol-related incidents.

The timetable process is embedded and set out in both (a) Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Service (CHFS) and (b) Northern Isles Ferry Service (NIFS) contracts and is monitored through the management of these contracts by my officials in Transport Scotland.

Both operators should engage directly with community groups on timetable issues.

Full details of active travel funding for the next five years has not yet been agreed and will form part of the annual Scottish Government’s Budget process. The Active Travel budget for 2022-23 increased by £35 million to £150 million and the Bute House Agreement committed to increase the proportion of Transport Scotland’s budget spent on Active Travel initiatives so that by 2024-25 at least £320 million or 10% of the total transport budget will be allocated to active travel.

The total number of bikes issued to date is 2857. The bikes include adapted and non-standard bikes to cater for a range of needs.

In addition, fleet bikes delivered by Sustrans Scotland to participating schools, but not given to any individual child, have been used 4448 times.

The following table provides the information on how much was spent on active travel in each of the past five financial years:

Plans for the Coronation of The Monarch are traditionally led by the Royal Household. Any consideration of planning in Scotland cannot be made public until the Royal Household share their intentions.

Due to the off-market and confidentiality arrangements imposed by the seller, Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) were unable to consult with the local community prior to purchase. Full consultation with stakeholders, including the local community, will be undertaken as FLS develop proposals within the Land Management Plan (LMP) for Glenprosen.

As set out in the Emergency Budget Review (EBR), published on 2 November, the Scottish Government’s mental health programme budget has been revised to £252 million. This has resulted in revisions to this year’s Mental Health Service Improvement budget line, which now stands at £119,109,000.

Actual expenditure will not be available until after the end of the financial year.

Following the EBR publication, we are engaging with those organisations which have been incurring spend in order to formally confirm the remainder of the 2022-23 funding allocations.

All of the employees of the Scottish Government earn above the real Living Wage, with the minimum full-time salary on our pay scales being £22,182 (£11.48 per hour).

For indirectly employed staff, agency workers doing the same grade of work as Scottish Government employees receive the same rates of pay as Scottish Government employees under our pay parity rules, and so are also earning above the real Living Wage as a minimum.

As a condition of Scottish Government procurement terms, employees of contractors working in Scottish Government buildings are paid the real Living Wage and the recent increase to the real Living Wage will be paid with effect from 1 November 2022.

The Scottish Government has committed to undertake further work to quantify Scotland’s offshore wind potential. We will update Parliament once this work is concluded, and at that point also consider which legacy documents, including the National Strategy for Economic Transformation, may need to be updated.