Chamber and committees

Scottish Ministers attended the 36 th British Irish Council (BIC) Summit hosted by the Welsh Government which had the theme of Indigenous Minority and Lesser-Used Languages. Shirley-Anne Somerville, Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills, attended a virtual work sector meeting on 17 November 2021, and Nicola Sturgeon, First Minister and Kate Forbes, Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Economy attended the Summit on 19 November, when Ms Forbes gave her update on economic recovery to the pandemic in Gaelic.

Scottish Ministers have taken part in a number of ‘Exit Operations’ meetings with their counterparts across the UK. These meetings have focused on measures to prepare for and address the impacts of the UK’s exit from the EU. The meetings have dealt with a range of issues relevant to the culture and creative sectors, including the international mobility of artists, international trade and exports, and funding.

Scottish Ministers engage with their counterparts across the UK through Four Nations Ministerial Meetings, which have addressed issues of shared concern such as sectoral recovery from the pandemic and the challenges to the culture sector presented by Brexit.

Scottish Ministers attended the 36 th British Irish Council (BIC) Summit hosted by Welsh Government which had the theme of Indigenous Minority and Lesser-Used Languages. Shirley-Anne Somerville, Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills, attended a virtual work sector meeting on 17 November 2021, and Nicola Sturgeon, First Minister and Kate Forbes, Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Economy attended the Summit on 19 November, when Ms Forbes gave her update on economic recovery to the pandemic in Gaelic.

Scottish Ministers have taken part in a number of ‘Exit Operations’ meetings with their counterparts across the UK. These meetings have focused on measures to prepare for and address the impacts of the UK’s exit from the EU. The meetings have dealt with a range of issues relevant to the culture and creative sectors, including the international mobility of artists, international trade and exports, and funding.

Scottish Ministers engage with their counterparts across the UK through Four Nations Ministerial Meetings, which have addressed issues of shared concern such as sectoral recovery from the pandemic and the challenges to the culture sector presented by Brexit.

The Scottish Government is represented on the Indigenous Minority and Lesser Used Languages Work Stream where we promote and support the links between our languages and language bodies. In recent times the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA) and Scots Language Centre have both worked to ensure there are better links with the Scots and Ulster Scots Communities.

Through Colmcille 1500, there has been a partnership between Scotland, Ireland and Northern Ireland to celebrate St Columba’s legacy and 1500 years since his birth. There have also been many projects supported through a Creative Scotland funding stream set up to encourage activity linking Scottish Gaelic and Irish Gaelic language and culture projects.

The Improvement Service (IS), who manage the application process, have informed us that at close of business on 1 March 2022 a total of 144,377 cards had been produced and despatched.

The latest figures that IS have provided broken down to a local council level are from close of business on 14 February 2022 and can be found in the following table.

The Improvement Service (IS), who manage the application process, have informed us at close of business on 1 March 2022 there had been a total of 201,306 online applications submitted. The breakdown by local authority has not been provided by IS at this stage, however I have asked my officials to pursue this matter to give a more granular breakdown of applicants.

Up to 930,000 young people aged between 5 and 21 will be eligible for the Young Persons' Free Bus Travel Scheme. This is in addition to almost 60,000 young people in this age group who already hold National Entitlement Cards providing access to the existing Free Bus Travel Scheme for Older and Disabled Persons. The following table provides population estimates calculated by Transport Scotland on the basis of data published by National Records of Scotland.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-06205 on 4 March 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 .

The current cancer plan, “Recovery and Redesign: An Action Plan for Cancer Services”, comes to completion in March 2023. Early discussions are commencing on what shape a future strategy will take. We anticipate this work will occur over the 2022-23 financial year with a view to publishing a future strategy by April 2023.

The Scottish Government has provided the Violence Reduction Unit with the following funding:

 *includes a one off payment for additional funding to VRU

This example scenario was developed with input from the Scottish Futures Trust, and drew on the costings that had already been developed for the Business Ventilation Fund with input from the expert Covid-19 Ventilation Short Life Working Group.

An undercut of a door was only one element of an example scenario set out in my letter to the Education, Children and Young People Committee, used to illustrate the appropriate level of overall additional funding that might be needed to tackle problematic spaces.

Inclusion of the potential for a door undercut in the example is fully in line with expert advice. This makes clear that undercuts (small gaps at the bottom of a door) allow air pressure to be equalised on each side of the door, to ensure that additional force on one side does not make the door difficult to open. This includes cases where the pressure increase caused by mechanical ventilation systems – another key element of the example scenario – could impair the normal safe operation of a door.