Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government has engaged with a range of stakeholders to plan and prepare for the implementation of the Act.

In April 2026, the Scottish Government established an Advisory Group to inform and coordinate this work. The answer to Parliamentary Question S7W-02739 on 21 September 2026 provides further detail on the membership of this group, which includes representatives from the residential outdoor education sector.

In addition:

• Scottish Government officials have been continuing to undertake visits to residential outdoor education providers and local authorities to explore different models of provision, including provision for pupils with complex and/or multiple support needs.
• In June 2026, Scottish Government and Education Scotland officials delivered a set of initial discussion sessions with school leaders to draw on their expertise and insights.
• The implementation of the Act was discussed at the Curriculum and Assessment Board in March 2026, which includes representation from teaching unions.

Scottish Ministers will make commencement regulations by 30 September 2027, in line with the provisions of the Act. Those commencement regulations will confirm the timeline for commencement of the Act and Ministers and officials will continue to engage with a range of stakeholders in relation to this work.

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 NHS complaints handling procedure, which applies to independent contractors and NHS Board managed GP practices, allows people to raise complaints about primary care services with the relevant NHS Board. However, GP practices should take every opportunity to resolve complaints quickly and locally, and at the point of contact wherever possible.

If an NHS Board recognises that it would not be appropriate, or possible, for a person to complain directly to a Primary Care service provider, they will contact the provider to agree the way in which the complaint will be managed. Where agreement cannot be reached, it is for the NHS Board to determine how the complaint is managed. The person making the complaint must be kept informed of the decision.

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service is well prepared to deal with the range of risks present on communities across Scotland including flooding. SFRS responds to every emergency incident with the appropriate level of resources.

The Scottish Government intends to implement the right to breaks for unpaid carers of all ages, including young carers, in line with Chapter 1 of Part 1 of the Care Reform (Scotland) Act 2025. It is also committed to setting statutory timescales for preparing young carer statements and to establishing new duties for organisations to promote take-up and awareness of carer support, including support for young carers, both in accordance with the same chapter of the 2025 Act.

The Scottish Government’s Programme for Government 2026 to 2031 includes our commitment to “engage with local authorities, trades unions, and healthcare and service providers to reach agreement on reform of social care which makes best use of the funding in the system, delivers fairer and more efficient services and achieves economies of scale, while enhancing the focus on community need”.

The Scottish Government does not procure buses. Bus services are predominantly provided by commercial operators, with local authorities and other public bodies procuring or supporting services where appropriate. As these organisations are autonomous contracting authorities, they are responsible for their own procurement activity and for determining, on a case-by-case basis, how best to meet their legal obligations and policy objectives.

Where the Scottish Government provides funding support through subsidy schemes, such as the Scottish Zero Emission Bus Challenge Fund (ScotZEB), schemes must be designed and delivered in accordance with the UK Subsidy Control Act 2022. Under that framework, subsidies cannot be made contingent on the use of domestically produced goods or services, often referred to as local-content requirements.

ScotZEB3 was a competitive, criteria-led scheme. Applications were assessed against published criteria, including market development and wider community benefits, which together accounted for 30% of the assessment. The scheme is intended to support the transition to zero-emission buses while helping to grow Scotland's green economy, support jobs and strengthen supply chains.

Recruitment and retention of staff is a matter for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service as an employer. Wholetime firefighter recruitment is heavily oversubscribed by applications and therefore there are no significant barriers in place. There are challenges in recruiting on-call firefighters in some remote and rural locations. SFRS is addressing these through its On-Call improvement programme.

An evaluation of our ‘Be the Early Bird’ campaign during 2024-25 can be found here - 10. Other marketing channels and activity - Detect Cancer Earlier Marketing Campaign: Evaluation Report 2024/2025 - gov.scot.

This report found that the campaign’s impact is evident in the high levels of recognition, engagement and reported action, and increased visits to our getcheckedearly.org website.

We plan to publish an evaluation into the 2025-26 outputs of the campaign before the end of 2026.

Regarding the potential for a specific campaign for gynaecological cancer, it is important to note that the Scottish Government takes a whole-system, cross-cutting approach to improving cancer survival and providing excellent care, rather than developing tumour-specific national action plans or campaigns.

The current Cancer Strategy for Scotland 2023-2033 is structured around system-wide priorities such as prevention, diagnosis, treatment, workforce, inequalities, person-centred care, research and survivorship. This is with the aim of making system-wide improvements that benefit people with many different cancers, rather than any one tumour type.

In addition to this, we are working towards the ambition of our Women’s Health Plan, that all women and girls in Scotland experience the best possible health – throughout their lives.

As stated in response to S7W-02992 on 15 September 2026, Our Detect Cancer Earlier (DCE) Programme takes a whole-systems approach to early detection and encompasses primary care, diagnostics, public education, data, innovation and screening. Detect Cancer Earlier’s ‘Be The Early Bird’ campaign launched in March 2023 aiming to reduce fear of cancer and empower those with possible symptoms to act early.

It is essential that primary care professionals are supported to recognise signs and symptoms when seeing people concerned about cancer. The Scottish Referral Guidelines (SRGs) for Suspected Cancer support primary care clinicians to identify those with symptoms suspicious of cancer and identify those who require urgent assessment by a specialist, including for gynaecological cancers. A clinical review of SRGs has been completed with updated guidance published on 6 August 2025.

Our Gateway C platform provides innovative and tailored information to support earlier cancer diagnosis efforts and enable effective decision-making. This free online platform is accessible to all primary care clinicians including pharmacists, dentists, and optometrists.

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.

I refer the Member to the answer to question S7W-00647 on 11 June 2026. 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.

Hospital at Home is an important part of our wider programme to reduce pressure on acute hospitals and improve patient flow across the health and care system. However, we recognise that hospital occupancy and delayed discharge remain significant challenges, reflecting pressures across the whole system.

The Scottish Government has been clear that no one should remain in hospital when they no longer need to be there. Evidence from Healthcare Improvement Scotland shows that Hospital at Home helps prevent delays associated with patients remaining in hospital which is linked to poorer outcomes, including increased risk of hospital-acquired infection, reduced mobility and poorer wellbeing. By providing acute hospital-level care in a person's home, Hospital at Home can support timely discharge and reduce the need for prolonged hospital stays.

The recently published National Flow Plan 2026-2031 sets out a comprehensive programme of action to address these issues. Reducing delayed discharge is one of the Plan's key priorities, with a strengthened focus on Discharge Without Delay, Home First and Discharge to Assess approaches. These models support people to leave hospital as soon as they are clinically ready, with discharge planning beginning on day one of admission and health and social care services working together to ensure patients recover in the most appropriate setting.

Alongside this, we are expanding Hospital at Home, virtual care, online and telephone consultations, remote monitoring and care-at-home services. These alternatives to inpatient care will help ensure more people can receive the right care, in the right place, at the right time, reducing demand for hospital beds where clinically appropriate.