Chamber and committees

Data on the number of people on a housing waiting list is not held centrally by the Scottish Government. Estimates of the proportion of households on a housing waiting list is published on an annual basis using data from the Scottish Household Survey (SHS). However, the SHS does not sample people living in communal establishments/temporary accommodation. Due to the impact of COVID-19 restrictions, SHS data is not available for 2020 and 2021.

The latest data can be found on our website Households in Scotland by housing tenure: Scottish Household Survey, 2024 - gov.scot. Previous years can be found here: Scottish Household Survey: results - gov.scot. Data for 2025 will be published later this year and a publication date will be announced on the Scottish Government’s Official statistics: forthcoming publications list: Official statistics: forthcoming publications - gov.scot.

The Scottish Government also publishes the number of applications for local authority housing on an annual basis. This can be found on the Scottish Government website here: Housing Statistics 2025: Key Trends Summary - gov.scot. Local authority level data can be found in the tables linked to this publication: Housing statistics: Management of local authority housing - gov.scot. Please be aware of the caveats stated in the publication – the data:

• Is not a complete picture for Scotland, as six councils with no local authority housing stock (so for example, Glasgow) do not provide us with data on waiting lists.
• Will include double counting, as households can apply to multiple lists.
• Will include applications where housing is no longer needed, however they may not be removed from the housing list immediately.

The Scottish Government recognises that the availability and quality of business premises is a key enabler of economic growth across the South of Scotland.

Our National Planning Framework states that Local Development Plans should include a suitable range of business sites that meet current market demand, location, size and quality, and that planning authorities should support the delivery and reuse of business premises in line with need.

We have committed £15 million through the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal to deliver modern, fit for purpose business units at the Borders Innovation Park in Tweedbank, and a further £8 million through the Borderlands Growth Deal to deliver new industrial and business premises at five sites across the south.

Our dedicated enterprise agency for the region, South of Scotland Enterprise (SOSE), works with partners to improve the supply, suitability, and sustainability of business space as part of its wider support for place-based economic development.

SOSE commissioned a comprehensive survey of employment and business properties across the South of Scotland in 2020, covering property size, condition, location and local market dynamics. This analysis was refreshed in 2022 to reflect post-COVID impacts.

The survey findings - alongside current market intelligence and engagement with businesses and partners - have informed work to develop and enhance business premises where there is clear evidence of need and economic impact.

SOSE has, for example, worked with partners to support regeneration activity in the Midsteeple Quarter in Dumfries, where vacant town centre buildings are being brought back into productive use, including for commercial and business purposes.

All pharmacies in Great Britain, including those providing on-line services, must be registered with the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC) and meet their standards for registered pharmacies. These standards cover areas such as governance arrangements, safeguarding, environment and conditions, service delivery, premises and equipment. Not meeting the GPhC’s standards could result in them taking enforcement action and investigating the fitness to practise of all the pharmacy professionals involved.

In addition, in Scotland Healthcare Improvement Scotland (HIS) regulates independent, on-line services, and as part of its role provides information to the public on how to keep safe when getting medicines or treatment online. Unfortunately many prescription medicines obtained online originate from outside the UK and are not regulated by the GPhC, HIS or other UK regulatory authorities. However, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) has overall responsibility for medicine safety, regulation and licensing and the Scottish Government works in close partnership with them to raise awareness of the risk of buying prescription-only medicines online without consulting a suitable NHS healthcare professional.

Specifically in schools, children and young people learn about a variety of substances including alcohol, medicines, drugs, tobacco and solvents as part of Curriculum for Excellence and the Scottish Government is working with the MHRA and Education Scotland to strengthen medicines safety information in the Scottish curriculum. Universities have a responsibility to ensure that students can engage with student support, wellbeing and/or learning support services.

It is important to note that the situation relating to maintenance is dynamic; as NHS Boards address and eliminate items of maintenance, new items will emerge. It is therefore expected that there will be ongoing requirement for maintenance across the NHS estate and in particular across high use areas and older buildings.

We are currently working with all health boards to develop an NHS whole system infrastructure plan for Scotland. This supports continued safe and effective use of existing facilities, through ongoing business continuity planning, as well as informing future investment priorities based on assessment of need across the whole of Scotland.

The first phase, Business Continuity Planning, is focussed on priority investment in the existing estate to support service continuity. Boards have completed risk-based assessments and received confirmation of items which can be progressed with additional funding from the Scottish Government. Future Business Continuity Plan submissions will be on a two-yearly full submission cycle, with interim years only requiring ‘by-exception’ reporting of new essential maintenance or equipment replacement items not previously reported.

The second phase is focussed on the longer-term development of the estate to meet national, regional and local needs.

All Health Boards have been asked to undertake strategic needs assessments for three local investment priorities. In determining local investment priorities, Boards should also consider aspects of infrastructure resilience, capacity constraints and population-based service changes. Returns will be considered on a whole of Scotland basis. This approach aligns with the Scottish Government’s Health and Social Care Service Renewal Framework and Population Health Framework.

Further detail on NHS Whole System Infrastructure Planning is set out in DL 2025-15.

The 2026 Scottish Budget supports businesses and communities with a decrease to the three property rates and a package of reliefs forecast to save ratepayers over £870 million, in 2026-27. This includes the Small Business Bonus Scheme which remains the most generous of its kind in the UK.

Recognising the distinct challenges of retail, hospitality and leisure businesses, 15% relief is available for eligible retail, hospitality and leisure premises liable for the Basic or Intermediate Property Rate in mainland Scotland (excluding specified remote areas). An additional 25% relief is available for eligible licensed hospitality premises and music venues liable for the Basic or Intermediate Property Rates, taking their relief to 40%. These reliefs are capped at £110,000 per business per year.

Further, 100% relief is available to eligible retail, hospitality and leisure businesses on islands and in specified remote areas, capped at £110,000 per business per year.

Acknowledging the impact of the 2026 revaluation, the Budget introduced a Revaluation Transitional Relief to protect those seeing the most significant increases in rateable values, ensuring that the gross bills of around 60,000 properties are lower in 2026-27 than they otherwise would have been. Small Business Transitional Relief also ensures that properties losing or seeing a reduction in Small Business Bonus Scheme relief, rural rates relief, hospitality relief or 2023 Small Business Transitional Relief on 1 April 2026, do so in a phased manner.

We estimate that 96% of retail, hospitality and leisure businesses could benefit from some form of relief in 2026-27.

As a result of the decisions in the budget and the additional relief announced at Stage One of the Budget Bill, the revenues raised from non-domestic rates are estimated to be 7% lower in real terms (using CPI) in 2026-27 than pre-COVID, despite the number of non-domestic properties increasing in that time.

Reported incidents of drink spiking are likely to be recorded by the police as either (i) crimes of administering a substance for sexual purposes under section 11 of the Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act 2009, or (ii) drugging (assault). The former is recorded when a person intentionally administers a substance, or causes a substance to be taken, with the purpose of stupefying or overpowering, to enable any person to engage in a sexual activity involving the victim. The latter is similar in that a crime is committed when drugs are feloniously administered with intent to produce stupefaction, however there doesn’t need to be further intent, and it is not necessary that any injury to the victim is caused.

It is not possible to track these cases through the Justice system as each organisation uses their own administrative database for operational purposes. However figures can be provided on crimes recorded by the police, charges reported to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and of those charges, the number resulting in a conviction. It should be noted that crimes recorded in any one reporting year may become charges/prosecutions in later years. Furthermore, in the most recent years, a large proportion of the charges prosecuted remain ongoing. As the cases involved progress and reach a conclusion, it is possible that further convictions may be recorded.

In Scotland, conduct amounting to spiking can be prosecuted using a range of common law and statutory offences. As well as the common law offence of drugging and the statutory offence contained in section 11 of the Sexual Offences (Scotland) Act 2009, common law offences such as assault or culpable and reckless conduct can be considered. This framework allows prosecutors to assess each case individually and select the charges that best reflect the facts and circumstances of the case.

Challenges in prosecuting cases often arise from evidential difficulties which can include delayed reporting, the rapid metabolisation of substances, and lack of forensic opportunities. In most instances, the Procurator Fiscal becomes involved in an individual case in a substantive way on receipt of a report from Police Scotland, or other reporting agency. When a report alleging “spiking” is submitted to the Procurator Fiscal, and there is sufficient credible, reliable and admissible evidence in law, prosecutors adopt a robust approach when deciding what action best serves the public interest.

Total recorded crimes of either Drugging or Administering a substance for sexual purposes, Scotland, 2020-21 to 2024-25

I refer the member to the answer to question S7W-00442 on 5 June 2026. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

I refer the member to the answer to question S7W-00628 on 5 June 2026. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

I refer the member to the answer to question S7W-00208 on 02 June 2026. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

I refer the member to the answer to question S7W-00174 on 5 June 2026. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers