Chamber and committees

Transport Scotland officials have required ScotRail through Scottish Rail Holdings to work at pace to rectify any issues experienced by passengers upon release of the new ScotRail app in order to minimise disruption, and to reflect any lessons learned in any future initiatives.

We would expect the outcome of the feasibility study to be published by May 2027. The recently announced feasibility study into the use of tram trains on the Edinburgh Suburban Line is planned to take 9 months to complete.

This question relates to operational matters that are the responsibility of the Scottish Court 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.

We can confirm that the remit for the study is as follows: a high-level desk top based feasibility study focussing on the technical challenges and opportunities for running tram trains on the South-Suburban line.

The outputs of the study will be published when complete.

The Terms of Reference for this feasibility study will be published in due course.

The location of fire stations and any specialist functions they deliver is an operational matter for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service. All fire stations in Scotland respond to a wide range of emergency incidents, including wildfires, and SFRS keep all operational decisions under review depending on need.

Referrals to Tier 3 adult weight management services are not currently monitored through the Referral to Treatment (RTT) standard, following the suspension of RTT statistics publication in 2025. Instead, these services are subject to the New Outpatient and Treatment Time Guarantee waiting times standards.

Following review of processes to maintain competitiveness within vessel projects CMAL, as Procuring Authority, have chosen not to disclose the list of yards or locations of those bidding for the MV Lord of The Isles replacement or for any future vessel tenders.

An update will be provided at the appropriate time, when the required procurement processes are complete.

Whilst any assessment made prior to timetable adjustments is a matter for ScotRail, the Scottish Government expects that services give the best reliability and availability for passengers. ScotRail advises that the service in question attracted an extremely low number of passengers. ScotRail works closely with Regional Transport Partners to ensure that local needs are taken into consideration, particularly in rural areas.

Social Impact partnerships have the potential to change the way preventative work is funded. Our manifesto commitment is to develop a Justice Social Impact Partnership which targets reoffending and provision of safe spaces for young people. A partnership of nine organisations with experience in investment, philanthropy, prevention, and programme evaluation has been formed to take this work forward. Learning from the justice pilot will inform the wider use of social impact partnerships across government, including on issues such as creating the legal and financial structures to support investors and partnership delivery.

Scottish Government officials are in regular contact with the Subsidy Advice Unit (SAU) of the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) to discuss current and potential subsidy referrals including Ferguson Marine. Scottish Government officials met with the SAU on 2 June and 12 August 2026 to participate in routine discussions on the general requirements of the referral process.