Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government takes the welfare of farmed fish very seriously and has already committed to exploring options for how to best to set welfare standards for farmed fish, as set out in its response to the Rural Affairs and Islands Committee’s recommendations following its Follow Up Enquiry into Salmon Farming in Scotland.

As stated in my response of 10 June we are developing guidance for the welfare of farmed fish at the time of slaughter, which has been developed with the industry and animal welfare bodies.

The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) are responsible for considering welfare complaints and investigating potential breaches in welfare legislation, and will continue to apply their professional knowledge and training to assess fish welfare against the provisions set out in The Animal Health and Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006.

Transport Scotland has confirmed that enforcing moving traffic offences would require new primary legislation. Officials are exploring the use of ANPR for school street enforcement as part of broader policy development on moving traffic violations. This includes consultation with the Department for Transport and other stakeholders to assess the effectiveness of such enforcement in England and Wales, including school streets.

While this work is part of Transport Scotland’s longer term plans, no specific timeline has been set for its commencement.

The Scottish Government has engaged closely with Local Authorities throughout the response to the issues raised by reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC). In August 2023 the Scottish Government held the first meeting of the RAAC Cross Sector Working Group to help raise awareness of RAAC across the public sector. Local Authorities are represented on this group as are representative organisations such as the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (CoSLA) and the Scottish Heads of Property Services (SHoPS).

Creative Scotland publishes information on all successful applications made to its funding programmes on its website. The assessment criteria for all funds are also published and are accessible to applicants and indeed any member of the public. It would not be appropriate for Creative Scotland to publish information on unsuccessful applications due to sensitivities around, for example, an applicant's commercial interests. It is the decision of each individual unsuccessful applicant whether they make the outcome of their application publicly known.

The Dynamic Support Register (DSR) provides a mechanism for national data collection relating to people with learning disabilities and complex care needs. However, the DSR does not include data broken down by specific conditions or diagnoses, including autism.

Public Health Scotland (PHS) collect and publish the DSR data quarterly, with the most recent collection for the quarter ending 26 December 2024, published in March 2025. This publication reported that forty people with learning disabilities and complex care needs in Scotland had been in hospital for ten years or more. The DSR full March PHS report is available here: Insights into learning disabilities and complex needs: statistics for Scotland - 18 March 2025 - Insights into learning disabilities and complex needs: statistics for Scotland - Publications - Public Health Scotland. The next DSR data collection will be published by PHS in June 2025.

In 2024, we asked the Mental Welfare Commission for Scotland (the Commission) to review the care and treatment of people with learning disabilities and complex care needs who had been in hospital for over ten years. The Mental Welfare Commission Report is available here: Hospital is not home

We are continuing to engage with the Commission and system leaders to address these delays and ensure that people’s human rights are upheld.

The Scottish Government has met with the EHRC and we will continue to engage as they update the Code of Practice.

The Scottish Government has already begun work on implementation. We have established a Short Life Working Group to ensure support and consistency across Government. The EHRC are aware of our approach and this work will position us towards a state of readiness to take all necessary steps when the EHRC’s Code of Practice and updated guidance are published.

The group consists of senior civil servants representing all relevant portfolios across government. The aims of the group are to;

- ensure that there is a consistent approach to the understanding of the ruling;

- review legislation, guidance and policies within Scottish Government portfolios that the ruling impacts on; and

- ensure the Scottish Government is ready and prepared once the EHRC's revised Code of Practice is published.

In Scotland, typically the responsibility for Council Tax liability falls to the occupier of the property, not the owner. The exceptions to this general position may apply in specific circumstances, such as where a property is exempt, or let as a House in Multiple Occupation (HMO) where the owner has the responsibility to pay Council Tax.

Generally, landlords are not expected to take responsibility for ensuring that tenants pay Council Tax, and would not be aware of the payments arrangements between the council and the occupant for Council Tax purposes.

The collection and enforcement of Council Tax is governed by legislation and administered by local authorities. Collection rates for Council Tax are consistently high compared to other forms of taxation, averaging around 97% in recent years.

This question relates to operational matters that are the responsibility of the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS) corporate body. The question has been passed to the Chief Executive of the SCTS who reply in writing within 20 days.

The Dynamic Support Register (DSR) provides a mechanism for national data collection on people with learning disabilities and complex care needs. However, data collected through the DSR is not broken down by how many individuals with autism and learning disabilities remain in hospital settings, despite being clinically fit for discharge.

Public Health Scotland (PHS) collect and publish quarterly data, with the most recent collection, from 26 December 2024, published in March 2025. At that time, there were 1,273 people on the DSR, of which there were 84 delayed discharges and 51 inappropriate out-of-area placements.

The full March PHS report is available here: Insights into learning disabilities and complex needs: statistics for Scotland - 18 March 2025 - Insights into learning disabilities and complex needs: statistics for Scotland - Publications - Public Health Scotland

The next DSR data collection will be published by PHS in June 2025.

Additionally, PHS publish monthly data on delayed discharges here: About this release - Delayed discharges in NHSScotland monthly - Figures for March 2025 - Delayed discharges in NHSScotland monthly - Publications - Public Health Scotland. This data is broken down to Health Board and Local Authority level.

As this is an operational matter for Scottish Water, and the Scottish Government does not hold this information, I have asked them to respond. Their reply is as follows:

Scottish Water is investing some £36m every year to reduce leakage and this investment includes active leakage management to find and repair leaks, as well as repairs of visible and reported leakage and capital schemes to reduce leakage. This sum is part of a broader investment of some £110m every year in the operating and capital costs of managing leakage, repairing bursts, and rehabilitating water networks.