Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government does not hold this information centrally.

Any planning application is required to be determined in accordance with the development plan unless there are material planning considerations that justify a departure from the development plan. In reaching a decision, full regard will be had to all material planning considerations, including the views of consultees as well as any representations submitted. The independent reporters held hearing sessions to gather evidence from the local community and expert witnesses (including those for the applicant, NatureScot and environmental charities) on the proposal’s potential impacts on protected sites, wildlife, and plants, as well as its anticipated socio-economic effects.

The Scottish Ministers are following the statutory planning process in considering the application. Any planning application is required to be determined in accordance with the development plan unless there are material planning considerations that justify a departure from the development plan. In reaching a decision, full regard will be had to all material planning considerations, including the views of consultees as well as any representations submitted.

The information you have requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government.

On 7 August, the Scottish Government published the latest 6-month prison population projections, based on court activity and prison population data, up to the end of 2025. Due to the uncertainty surrounding factors that influence prison population flows - such as crime rates and justice system activity - the projections included several possible scenarios, including a reasonable upper estimate and a reasonable lower estimate. Taking the scenarios together and assuming that recent trends in justice demand, policy and practice continue, it was projected that the average daily prison population could be between 7,950 and 8,750 in December 2025. The design capacity of the prison estate is currently 7,805.

The Scottish Government has received the final report from the Breast Screening Modernisation Board, and is grateful for their work. We are working with the organisations responsible for screening to implement the recommendations from the report. Funding has been provided to Screening Oversight and Assurance Scotland to oversee and progress this work.

The final report will be published in the coming weeks. In line with the prioritisation of recommendations suggested within the report, immediate work is focused on exploring possible changes to the way in which breast screening is managed.

Public Health Scotland (PHS) announced on their website that they have delayed publication of their breast screening report to December 2025. This is due to data quality concerns identified during their standard quality assurance process. PHS are in communication with their data supplier to investigate and resolve these concerns to ensure accurate data is published in the report. These identified issues have not affected the operation of the breast screening programme itself or participants’ results.

The Scottish Government will confirm the breakdown of up to £4.9 billion in the Scottish Budget and Scottish Spending Review.

Anyone who wishes to control mountain hares must apply to NatureScot for the appropriate licence.

The Scottish Government does not expect all persons or businesses conducting peatland restoration work will be required to control mountain hares, therefore, in these instances, an application to NatureScot for a licence would not be required.

Guidance on Mountain Hare licensing, which includes licensable purposes, is published on NatureScot’s website at Mountain hare licensing - Guidance for applicants | NatureScot

As colleges operate independently of Government, it is for them to decide on operational matters such as their campus footprint, taking into account the needs of the people, region and communities they serve.