Chamber and committees

The data on vandalism that the Scottish Government receives from Police Scotland does not include any information on the type of location in which they were committed. As such we are unable to separately identify whether any individual crime of vandalism recorded by the police or proceeded against in court, occurred in a public toilet facility.

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Interim Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

On 21 February 2022 the prison population at unlock was 7,561. A breakdown is provided below regarding the accommodation the individuals were located in:

1. 4,885 people were accommodated alone in a cell intended to accommodate one person and,

230 people were accommodated alone in a cell that is designed to be double occupancy.

2. 918 people were accommodated in a cell, or dormitory, intended for more than one person and,

1,528 people were accommodated with another person in a cell intended for one person.

This information is not collated centrally. It is for local authorities to ensure that it has sufficient services, including public toilet services, and to ensure they are safe to use.

Including glass in our Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) will bring significant environmental and economic benefits. The inclusion of glass will save over 1.2 megatonnes CO 2 equivalent over 25 years. DRS will also reduce the amount of harmful glass litter in our environment.

In addition, DRS will significantly increase the quantity and quality of glass recyclate, creating an aggregated and high-quality feedstock for reprocessing. This will include clear glass which we understand to be in high demand.

The Scottish Government intends to lay a copy of the report before the Scottish Parliament, as soon as it is practicable, as set out in accordance with Section 11F(5) of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. The Scottish Government will also publish a copy of the report on its website.

The Scottish Government intends to lay a copy of the report before the Scottish Parliament, as soon as it is practicable, as set out in accordance with Section 11F(5) of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981. The Scottish Government will also publish a copy of the report on its website.

The Scottish Government recognises the importance of educational mobility. While we remain committed to Erasmus plus, in the interim we are creating a Scottish Education Exchange Programme to support participants from across Scotland’s education system.

This is a Programme for Government commitment and will help maintain Scotland’s place as an outward looking, internationally connected destination for work and study.

It is not currently possible for someone to apply online for a card in a different name from that shown in their official identity documents, however an applicant can contact their local authority and request a different name is displayed on their card from that in their identity documents.

All three and four year olds and around a quarter of two year olds in Scotland have a statutory entitlement to up to 1140 hours of funded early learning and childcare a year. Our funded ELC offer is the most generous across the United Kingdom.

Unlike the UK Government’s funded ELC offer for England which prioritises children with two working parents, our aim in Scotland is to ensure that every child benefits from high quality early learning and childcare. Regardless of their parent or carer’s working status, all children have a right to play, to learn and to access experiences that meet their physical, social, emotional and cultural needs; and a right to associate with their peers.

Data on teacher absence due to Covid-19 has been collected since September 2020 and is still being collected and published on a weekly basis.

Data for the 2020-21 academic year can be found at this link in the 'School staff absence' tab: COVID19 - Schools and Childcare Information 2021 | Tableau Public

Data for the 2021-22 academic year can be found at this link in the 'School staff absence' tab: COVID19 - Schools and Childcare Information August 2021 | Tableau Public