Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government monitors and considers the available evidence about the housing market and listens to the views of stakeholders on an ongoing basis in order to inform its approach on Land and Buildings Transaction Tax (LBTT).

Decisions on rates and bands for LBTT are taken as part of the Scottish Budget process.

The majority of food law which applies in Scotland stems from European Union legislation and after an extensive process to ensure that it remains operational after the UK’s departure from the EU, the detail of the requirements remains in place.

Food Standards Scotland (FSS) has responsibility for the policies surrounding food labelling in Scotland and are currently working closely with policy officials across GB in the day to day business in this respect.

While there is no timescale at present, in due course, the food labelling legislation will be subject to review, which is likely to be a significant task and will need to be informed by EU developments on food information. During the review process consideration will be given to which areas and policy approaches are appropriate for Scotland and in a GB context this will also include England and Wales. Policy considerations are expected to include mandatory braille labelling and/or how the use of barcoded food information and new technology could help in this area.

There are around 25,000 Civil Servants who are part of the reserved Public Sector in Scotland [1] . The UK Government has not provided details on how their planned Civil Service reduction will affect their staff working in Scotland.

The UK Government’s plans to reduce Civil Service headcount will not have a direct impact on civil servants who serve the Scottish Government, as the responsibility lies with Scottish Ministers and the Permanent Secretary when it comes to determining our workforce size. We continually engage with our trade unions on matters impacting our workforce, in line with our partnership agreement, and remain committed to making the best and most efficient use of our resources.

The UK Government spending review in November 2021 sets out the multi-year funding envelopes for devolved administrations. The Scottish Government is continuing to plan on this basis. The UK Government reviews its spending plans at each fiscal event and amends UK Government department and devolved administration budgets accordingly.

[1] Source: Public Sector Employment In Scotland Statistics For 4th Quarter 2021 - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) .

An evidence review on international approaches to challenging demand is being carried out by Scottish Government’s Justice Analytical Services, and will be published later this year as an official social research report.

This analysis will support the development of a model for Scotland which effectively tackles and challenges men’s demand for prostitution, whilst taking into account Scotland’s unique legal and societal landscape.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-08691 on 7 June 2022. 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 .

Crown Estate Scotland have not sold seabed through the ScotWind leasing process. Option Agreements and ultimately leases to use areas of the seabed for offshore wind energy generation have been provided, raising around £700 million in initial fees and potentially many millions more in rent, once these projects are operational. If projects do not proceed to full lease, the option agreements expire. Furthermore, through the Supply Chain Development Statements, ScotWind developers will invest an average of £1.5 billion in Scotland for each project – across the 17 different sites, that could lead to more than £25 billion of investment.

As per S6W-08314 on 7 June 2022, Crown Estate Scotland conducted market testing and evidence gathering to inform option fee levels and this is not information held by Scottish Government. Following the announcement of The Crown Estate’s Round 4 results and a very clear change in the market, Crown Estate Scotland paused and reviewed the ScotWind option fee levels accordingly.

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

The Super Sponsor scheme is designed to provide a quick and safe route for displaced people from Ukraine to come to a place of sanctuary by removing the need for applicants to be matched to an individual sponsor prior to being given permission to travel to the UK.

Once people have arrived, a national matching service, delivered by COSLA, will match those settling here with longer-term accommodation across Scotland.

Displaced people from Ukraine are asked to complete a short questionnaire that captures key information and preferences. This information is then used to find suitable longer-term accommodation, which will be offered as a choice.

All 32 of our local authorities are taking part in this programme, and hosts have offered up their homes right across the country. The national matching service will ensure that people are offered settlement opportunities across Scotland, recognising that people will have different preferences and available housing is limited in some local authorities.

The Scottish Government recognises and supports the generous offers from the people of Scotland to privately sponsor Ukrainians through the UK Government’s Homes for Ukraine scheme, as well as the work of the many charities and groups across the country who are facilitating matches between displaced Ukrainians seeking accommodation and volunteer hosts.

On Tuesday 24 and Tuesday 31 May we delivered public webinar sessions on host guidance in collaboration with the Scottish Refugee Council. A final session will take place on Thursday 9 June. These sessions allow us to address questions on our recently published guidance for hosts on our website, which includes a range of information on safeguarding, property checks, matching, funding and the roles of hosts and their guests.

Crown Estate Scotland (CES) is responsible for the ScotWind seabed leasing process and the management and collation of the information used to support its decision to review and, ultimately, change the option fee prices for seabed leasing. The Scottish Government has already released the advisory note procured from Strathclyde University ( https://www.gov.scot/publications/foi-202200277291/ ) and did not provide any further information to CES.

CES also procured additional advice that the Scottish Government do hold but these have not been released due to the ongoing nature of ScotWind clearing process and applications.

Now that the Public Inquiry is complete Scottish Ministers are considering the terms of the report received on 18 February 2022 and should be in a position to make a decision in due course.