Chamber and committees

In my statement to Parliament on 16 May, I set out that there is now a critical risk to the continued safe and effective operation of the prison estate, and that urgent action is needed.

If the legal test for use of emergency release is satisfied when section 11 of the Bail and Release from Custody (Scotland) Act 2023 comes into force on 26 May, then I intend to bring forward a proposal for Parliament’s consideration for the emergency release of prisoners.

This is not a decision I have taken lightly. But we must ensure the safety and wellbeing of Scottish Prison Service staff and those people in their care, and that our prisons continue to function effectively to accommodate those who pose the greatest risk of harm.

Members will have the opportunity to scrutinise and debate the approach and, in this instance, we will not release a single prisoner without Parliament’s consent.

I also intend to carry out a short consultative exercise over the summer, and to return after recess with a proposal for a Bill for Parliament’s consideration to change how long-term prisoners are released and managed.

Finally, I intend to bring forward secondary legislation to amend the eligibility criteria for use of Home Detention Curfew (HDC), increasing the period of time individuals can spend on release under licence conditions. These regulations will be subject to scrutiny under the affirmative procedure.

NHS Boards have a responsibility for ensuring they have the right workforce in place at all times to provide safe and high quality patient care.

There is a long history of volunteer services in NHS Scotland, and we are thankful to those who chose to volunteer. Volunteer services are not however there to replace the core workforce, and we expect all NHS Boards to have policies and procedures in place to ensure that volunteers are used appropriately, and only specifically for volunteering services. Volunteers are subject to the same safety checks as NHS staff, including PVG and Disclosure.

Not all the information requested is held centrally.

Some information on the percentage of people using glucose monitors and other diabetes technologies can be found in the Scottish Diabetes Survey, which provides an annual summary of key issues and trends in diabetes care and treatment in Scotland. The Survey provides annual data going back to 2004 and can be found here: https://www.diabetesinscotland.org.uk/publications/#survey-docs.

The next iteration of the Survey, covering data for 2023, will be published later this year.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that people with diabetes to receive the best care, treatment and support. Clinical indications for technology required to optimise diabetes control are very different for people with type 2 diabetes compared to those with type 1 diabetes.

At present, clinical guidelines indicate that technology is required in only a select cohort of individuals with type 2 diabetes and we are monitoring provision of this via prescribing data.

The information requested is not held centrally.

In accordance with the ChargePlace Scotland (CPS) contract, the CPS operator will provide Transport Scotland with a written report outlining the cause, impact and actions take to rectify the issues which recently affected less than 1% of CPS members. The report will also detail steps that will be taken to mitigate the risk of future occurrences. Transport Scotland officials will meet senior managers from the CPS operator to discuss key lessons learned.

The selection of a site and the configuration of wind turbines is a matter for the wind farm developer. This process involves comprehensive analysis to ensure the most suitable placement and design for wind turbines. Developers may have to balance the benefits of a compact site, which can minimise construction cost, and the gains from maximising energy capture from greater separation distances.

Policy 11: Energy of National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) states that potential cumulative impacts are important considerations in the decision-making process. All applications are subject to site-specific assessments.

The efficacy of the University Innovation Fund (UIF) has been monitored by the Scottish Funding Council through the submission of annual progress reports, managed through the SFC Outcome Agreement process. The SFC Knowledge Exchange metric return and HESA Higher Education and Business Interaction survey has also been used as indicators of performance against knowledge exchange activity metrics, with the latest data indicating that the UIF has enabled at least 24,000 interactions with Scottish businesses and helped generate KE&I income of over £755M. (SFC KE metric return 22-23.)

The installation of cross-pavement solutions for on-street Electric Vehicle charging has the potential to provide those without off-street parking access to more affordable domestic tariffs, whilst reducing trip hazards posed by loosely trailed cables. The market for cross-pavement charging solutions is at a relatively early stage, however, there are already a variety of solutions that have been trialled by local authorities across the UK, including in local authorities in Scotland. The decision to allow or reject the installation of a cross-pavement solutions on the public highway ultimately rests with local authorities and cross-pavement charging solutions may not be the suitable in all circumstances. Transport Scotland is working closely with the Scottish Road Works Commissioner and Scottish local authorities to better understand the issue and how best to support local authorities as the market develops with actions incorporated within the Vision Implementation Plan.

No contractor has yet been appointed for the Aberdeen – Central Belt Service Improvement Project as the project is still in the design stage. The programme for implementation, and therefore contracting, of the scheme remains under consideration. I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-26336 on 11 April 2024.

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 .