Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government is taking a range of actions to strengthen value-based standards in health and social care procurement, with a particular emphasis on whole-life costs across integration authorities, local authorities and NHS Scotland.

Central to this work is the NHS Scotland Value Based Health and Care Action Plan, which sets out the national approach to embedding value-based principles, including the use of realistic medicine to ensure treatments and services deliver the best outcomes relative to cost. The plan outlines the strategic aims, governance structures and improvement processes required to support the transition to value-based care as part of Scotland’s 2030 vision.

In parallel, the Delivering Value Based Health Care: A Vision for Scotland document highlights the contribution procurement can make in achieving these aims. It includes a case study on National Procurement’s role in the Care Home Continence Improvement Project, demonstrating how whole-life cost analysis and value-based decision-making can improve outcomes while delivering better long-term value.

To underpin this, the NHS Scotland Procurement Strategy requires all regulated procurements to consider total cost of ownership - covering acquisition, use, maintenance and end-of-life disposal - while aligning with national priorities such as net-zero, circular economy principles, ethical sourcing and community benefit requirements. The strategy promotes collaborative frameworks, digital tools for transparency, and strengthened governance to support consistent, value-driven procurement practice across the system.

Through these policies, guidance frameworks and practical programmes, the Scottish Government is ensuring that procurement decisions across health and social care increasingly focus on whole-life value, improved outcomes and long-term sustainability.

The Scottish Government does not regard it as appropriate to engage in public comment in respect of live court proceedings.

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

SPS hold our serving staff and prospective staff to the highest of standards. While the vast majority of our staff adhere to the highest standards of conduct, SPS continue to be vigilant to any potential corruption concerns within our establishments. Maintaining the safety and security of Scotland’s prisons is and remains an absolute priority.

The following table sets out the number of prospective or serving employees who have been removed, dismissed or prevented from taking up post due to security concerns.

SPS is only in a position to provide full year data from 2022 due to changes in reporting and recording processes.

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

Whilst SPS do not require prison officer applicants to complete a specific English language proficiency test as part of its recruitment process; verbal, written and comprehension skills are tested thoroughly throughout this operational recruitment process.

All applicants must successfully undergo and pass a comprehensive period of testing which includes a situational judgement test, cognitive ability test, a group and written exercise (for Residential Officer applicants only), and then finally a values-based job interview.

All offers of employment will however be subject to successful completion of all pre-employment checks, which include enhanced disclosure and right to work in the UK checks.

Every area of government which is or may be affected by the Supreme Court judgment is reviewing policies, guidance and legislation. This action is co-ordinated by the Working Group on the Supreme Court Judgment, convened by the Permanent Secretary, to ensure a cross-government approach and understanding is taken to this complex area of work.

The Scottish Government maintains regular communication with the United Kingdom Government regarding the Dunard Centre, as joint funders of the project through the Edinburgh and South East Scotland City Region Deal. On the additional capital costs for the project, we have engaged regularly with the UK Government and regional partners through a range of interactions over a number of months.

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

The SPS Policy for the Management of Transgender People in Custody protects the rights and welfare of transgender people living in Scotland’s prisons in a way which promotes the safety of all people in custody.

When placing a transgender person within our estate, we adopt an individualised approach to ensure the safety of everyone in our care by assessing and managing identified known risk.

There is a total of 21 transgender people in custody representing 0.3% of the total prison population. As a public body we must uphold our statutory obligation to ensure everyone in our care has their personal information protected. Given these small numbers, we are unable to provide any further disaggregation of this data due to potential risk of identification of individuals.

SPS also aim to publish prison numbers and relevant data on a quarterly basis, the last of which can be found here.

The First Minister was approached by members of For Women Scotland while attending an International Women’s Day event on Saturday 8 March 2025. In conversation, it was proposed by a representative of For Women Scotland that a meeting take place with the First Minister after the UK Supreme Court had reached a decision in For Women Scotland Ltd v The Scottish Ministers. The Supreme Court published its judgment on 16 April and I, as the Cabinet Secretary with portfolio responsibility for equality, and the Minister for Equalities, met For Women Scotland on 22 May 2025.

No meeting has taken place between the First Minister and For Women Scotland since then, and we would not consider a meeting to be appropriate due to the live legal proceedings between For Women Scotland and the Scottish Ministers.

The Scottish Government supports music venues through Creative Scotland’s Multi-Year Funding which has increased by £20 million, providing a major boost to Scotland’s cultural sector. This investment provides stability for organisations to plan and deliver high-quality programmes in theatre, visual arts, literature, and music.

Forty-six music organisations now receive multi-year support which is more than double the previous number – with potentially three more in development for
2026-27. The Scottish Government has also put in place 40% non-domestic rates relief for Music Venues with capacity up to 1,500 for 2025-26.

As part of the due diligence required for the additional £20 million pledge, the Scottish Government continues to work with IMPACT Scotland to ensure all cost mitigation measures have been taken to reduce the risk of further increases in construction costs, in addition to assessment of the affordability of latest cost estimates and future sustainability of the organisation post-construction.