Chamber and committees

The level of funding invested each year by the Bank since it was established is as follows:

2020-21 (November to March): £23,097,000

2021-22: £130,414,000

2022-23: The Bank’s final outturn is still being finalised and it is too early to provide a provisional figure to Parliament. The Bank will lay its audited Annual Accounts in Parliament before the end of September.

The Bank’s most recent Annual Accounts are published on its website: https://www.thebank.scot/sites/default/files/2022-10/the-bank-annual-report-2022.pdf .

The portfolio page on the Bank’s website also provides details of the deals they have completed: https://www.thebank.scot/portfolio .

The Scottish Fiscal Commission’s Fiscal Sustainability Report sets out that the projection of lower GDP growth in Scotland than the UK is primarily due to demographic change, with Scotland’s population aged 16-64 projected to fall by 16 per cent over the next 50 years, compared to a fall of 2 per cent for the UK.

This presents a risk to Scotland’s long term economic competitiveness and while the challenges of an ageing population are not unique to Scotland, Scotland lacks the full range of powers to deal with these in the way that other countries can, in particular with the UK Government’s current immigration system failing to meet the needs of Scotland’s communities in addressing both labour market and demographic challenges. In the short term, the Scottish Government is using the powers it has to address Scotland’s population challenges and in 2023 the Ministerial Population Taskforce will launch a new Talent Attraction and Migration Service for Scotland, and an Addressing Depopulation Action Plan will be published.

Furthermore, the National Strategy for Economic Transformation sets out the action the Scottish Government is taking to deliver a wellbeing economy which will increase productivity and international competitiveness, and deliver fairer, greener prosperity for all Scotland’s people and places.

There are no current plans to alter the number or structure of NHS Boards. This will be kept under review as we continue to consider how best to reform and renew the NHS, whilst remaining within the long established principle of a public service free at the point of use and need. Our priority remains delivering the NHS Scotland Recovery Plan, and improving services across Scotland.

Ministers are regularly listening to business stakeholders to maintain an understanding of business perspectives, carrying out on average 100 engagements per month. I have already met with a number of businesses and their representative organisations in the 3 weeks since taking up post.

Resetting the relationship with business is a core priority for this Government. On Tuesday 18 April, the First Minister announced a mechanism for a new and improved relationship with the business community that will also be a vehicle to improve the business and regulatory environment in Scotland.

Ministers meet representatives of civil society organisations from time to time to discuss matters of common interest. Meetings with Amnesty International have been held on a number of occasions since May 2021.

Information about ministerial engagements is proactively released and is publicly available on the Scottish Government website .

Civil society organisations contribute in other ways to the development and delivery of public policy in Scotland, for example through participation in working groups and advisory boards.

Amnesty International is a member of the steering committee for the Scottish Human Rights Defender Fellowship, which is funded by the Scottish Government and delivered by the University of Dundee in collaboration with Amnesty International and other independent civil society organisations.

The Permanent Representative of Ireland to the EU and I held a positive meeting in June last year, in which we spoke about energy policy and the latest developments regarding the Northern Ireland Protocol.

The subject of Scottish independence was not an agenda item in discussions, however Scottish ministers will always be polite enough during meetings to answer any questions put to them about the Scottish Government's stated policies, including a legal, constitutionally sound referendum, as set out in our Programme for Government.

The Permanent Representative of the Czech Republic to the EU and I held a positive meeting in June last year in which we spoke about the Czech Republic's priorities for the Presidency of the European Council, including energy policy.

The subject of Scottish independence was not an agenda item in discussions, however Scottish ministers will always be polite enough during meetings to answer any questions put to them about the Scottish Government's stated policies, including a legal, constitutionally sound referendum, as set out in our Programme for Government.

Public Health Scotland Publish information on the number of GPs and patients by Health Board and this is available at:

General Practice - GP Workforce and practice list sizes 2012 - 2022 - General Practice - GP workforce and practice list sizes - Publications - Public Health Scotland

Table 2 sets out the number of GPs in each board area and Table 4 shows the registered number of patients in each health board, over the past 10 years.

The Scottish Budget is largely fixed and the Scottish Government cannot overspend against the Budget limit. Budgets are carefully managed by Scottish Ministers through well-established planning, year-round management and reporting processes. The robust financial management processes in place ensure that spending against the Scottish Budget is continually assessed with all available funding directed to priorities to maximise the effective use of resources. This includes annual autumn and spring revisions of the Budget which are agreed with the Scottish Parliament. All fiscal underspends are carried forward within the Scotland Reserve with no loss of spending power. It is important that the Parliamentary focus is on the discretionary budget figures (that support public spending) rather than technical (non-cash) underspends that can inflate the headline figure but do not impact on spending power.

The Scottish Funding Council’s (SFC) College Infrastructure Strategy: The Approach to Delivering Scotland’s College Infrastructure, published in November 2022, supports the college sector’s ambitions for net zero with the planned production of an Infrastructure Investment Plan for the college sector being a key goal.

The strategy recognises that investment in college infrastructure is needed and presents a significant opportunity for colleges to play their part in tackling the climate emergency. SFC will support colleges to progress their Net Zero ambitions that are integral to any future infrastructure investment.