Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government takes seriously the contribution the whisky sector makes to our national economy and its strategic importance as the provider of high paid, skilled employment in many rural communities. This is particularly true of Speyside with the concentration of some of the most renowned distilleries in Scotland situated in the Speyside area. The previous Deputy First Minister saw first hand when opening the Cabrach distillery just how the whisky sector can provide the catalyst for local regeneration and bringing employment and tourism to some of our most rural communities.

Most recently, the First Minister was thanked by President Trump for making the case of the symbiotic partnership between the Scotch and US whisky industries. This helped in securing the commitment by the US President to remove whisky tariffs, in a significant boost for the Scottish whisky sector, helping to safeguard exports to this vital market. The US is the single most valuable country for Scotch whisky exports worth nearly £933m last year.

The Scottish Government has invested over £20 million to the “Sustaining Scotland Supplying the World” food and drink industry strategy since 2023 to drive growth across the entire food and drink sector, including whisky. This is supporting innovation, expanding market opportunities, and helping the industry accelerate progress towards our net-zero ambitions. In March 2026, we also launched the Food and Drink Processing Scheme Scotland as a key part of a £9 million package of capital funding to strengthen production and resilience across the country’s food and drink businesses.

The Six-Point Export Plan, delivered through the 2025-26 Programme for Government, strengthened support for businesses to access international markets, diversify their export destinations, and build global partnerships. These improvements now sit firmly within our export growth plan, A Trading Nation, as we continue to deliver and invest in the practical support that underpins export growth.

For the food and drink sector specifically, we have also provided over £7m since 2014 towards delivering the Scotland Food & Drink Export Plan, an SDI-led plan to help the industry exploit the most significant opportunities for Scotland with a team of food and drink specialists situated in our key markets around the globe.

Ministers and officials will continue to meet with the sector to understand the issues facing the industry and opportunities the sector can better leverage, in Speyside and across Scotland.

As outlined in our pledge over the first 100 Days of a new government and as set out in the Scottish Budget 2026-27, Scottish Spending Review 2026 and the Infrastructure Delivery Pipeline 2026, published on 13 January, the Scottish Government is fully committed to dualling the A9 between Perth and Inverness and the A96 between Inverness and Aberdeen.

The Scottish Government provided an update to Parliament on the A9 Dualling Programme in January 2026 and will be providing a further update to MSPs at the upcoming MSP Engagement Briefing in Parliament to which you will be invited. I can confirm that delivery of the A9 Dualling is currently on track as per the 2026 Delivery Plan, with 11 miles currently under construction.

The A9 Dualling Programme is estimated to cost £3.97 billion at April 2025 prices and the Scottish Government remains committed to completing the A9 Dualling programme by the end of 2035.

In terms of the A96, the Scottish Government supports the full dualling of the route. As part of this commitment the Scottish Government is already starting the dualling process from Inverness to Nairn, including Nairn Bypass.

With the land acquired for the A96 Dualling Inverness to Nairn (including Nairn Bypass) in 2025, funding is included in the 2026-27 Budget to commence the delivery of advanced works. In parallel to the advanced works, investment in 2026-27 will also allow Transport Scotland to continue to take forward the work to determine the most suitable procurement option for delivering the scheme and further develop the Business Case.

The Scottish Government’s preference would be to deliver the A96 Dualling Inverness to Nairn (including Nairn Bypass) as one project. However, due to the continued fiscal challenges, it is planned that the Scottish Government will take forward a phased approach to delivery, starting with the Nairn Bypass, followed by the remaining sections of the scheme, from Seafield, east of Inverness, to Balloch and then on from Balloch to the Nairn Bypass.

Completion of the preparatory work, including approval of the Business Case, will enable a firm timetable for delivery to be set as part of the annual budget setting process, with a view to commencing procurement of the main works contract for the Nairn Bypass within this Capital Spending Review period.

The Capital Spending Review also allows for the commencement of construction of the Nairn Bypass in 2029-30, subject to business case approval and confirmation of funding beyond the spending review period.

Despite the current fiscal position and following the A96 Dualling Inverness to Nairn (including Nairn Bypass) scheme, the Scottish Government will continue to progress dualling of the A96 eastwards, including an Elgin Bypass.

The Scottish Budget 2026-27 contains no provisions to reopen the Local Bridge Maintenance Fund and no requests from any MSPs and opposition parties were received in developing the budget.

Determinations by Scottish Ministers will only be taken after careful consideration of all relevant information, the Reporter's assessment and recommendations from the public inquiries.

Scottish Ministers have an ambition to determine priority applications for transmission infrastructure within 52 weeks of the date of application.

Officials have routine meetings with SSEN Transmission in relation toa range of matters. While application handling processes and associated timescales may be discussed as part of routine engagement, no specific date for determination of the proposed Kintore to Tealing electricity transmission line has been confirmed through those discussions.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-43830 on 2 March 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

The full PEF allocations for Glasgow schools in the last five years are set out in the following table. 2026-27 PEF allocations will be published in due course.

All material considerations raised in representations and submitted by members of the public are carefully considered before the Scottish Ministers reach a decision on an application for energy consent.

The Scottish Government does not routinely record the method of submission of representations. Representations about applications for energy consent, as well as application information and related documents, are publicly available on the Energy Consents Unit portal: https://www.energyconsents.scot/Default.aspx

In this session, I am delighted to maintain Cabinet level leadership for Gaelic, building on the substantial legacy of the previous DFM. My focus will be on implementing the Scottish Languages Act 2025, passed unanimously by this Parliament. I will continue to be supported in this by officials in the Gaelic and Scots division working to strengthen the statutory support and development of Gaelic across Scotland. This legislation is supported by an increase in funding secured through the 2026-2027 Budget, demonstrating the Government’s commitment to creating a secure future for Gaelic in Scotland. A range of projects and initiatives, operating in different sectors, are in place to support and promote the Gaelic language. Along with significant funding there is also welcome support and co-operation in place from local authorities and public bodies.

The Scottish Government is committed to reforming energy consenting, including improving the consultation process for communities affected by proposed electricity transmission infrastructure projects. To this end, a comprehensive review of Scottish electricity infrastructure consenting was undertaken in 2024 through a joint UK and Scottish Government initiative, leading to reforms included within the UK Government’s Planning and Infrastructure Act 2025.

The Act granted new regulation-making powers to the Scottish Ministers, such as mandating pre-application engagement, introducing an acceptance stage and establishing new time limits. Later this year, Ministers will consult on the use of these powers to improve the consenting process for all stakeholders, the results of which would inform associated secondary legislation.