Chamber and committees

The Scottish Prison Service (SPS) is an Executive Agency of the Scottish Government and has responsibility for the operation of prisons.

The information requested is not recorded by SPS.

As SPS continues to face significant overcrowding and population pressures, restricted regimes may be necessary at times to ensure the safe and effective operation of prisons.

SPS does not use fixed numerical thresholds when implementing restricted regimes. Decisions are taken locally, based on daily dynamic assessments of safety and operational capacity. Governors also consider the stability of the establishment and staffing levels to ensure that statutory rights and essential services are prioritised.

Where a full regime cannot be delivered safely, restrictions may be applied to purposeful activities to ensure that key legal entitlements, including access to open air, meals and visits, continue to be met.

The most recent available information on the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service’s capital backlog is contained within the SFRS Risk Based Capital Investment Plan 2025.

Risk Based Capital Investment Plan 2025 | Scottish Fire and Rescue Service

Audit Scotland and His Majesty’s Fire Service Inspectorate in Scotland are currently carrying out a joint audit and inspection of SFRS’s management of estate, fleet and equipment. This report is expected to be published in March 2027.

SFRS was formed in April 2013 and the Resource budget for its first year of operations in 2013-14 was £277.23 million. Adjusting that figure using the GDP deflators that are published by the OBR at UK fiscal events, means the equivalent annual budget for 2026-27 would be £399.99m.

The SFRS Capital budget for 2013-14 was £15.292m. Using the same adjustments means the equivalent annual budget for 2026-27 would be £22m.

The non-fiscal element of the SFRS budget has not been included for the comparison of the impact of inflation. For reference, this figure was £22.02 million in 2013-14. Whilst this element is included in the total budget allocated to SFRS each year, the amount is allocated on the basis of actual cost to SFRS to cover accounting elements such as depreciation. As such, this element of the SFRS budget is not subject to inflationary pressures.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information.

SFRS publishes Fire Safety and Organisational statistics and Incident statistics on their website https://www.firescotland.gov.uk/about/statistics/, the next edition of Incident statistics is expected on 30 October 2026. There are currently no official statistics on the average incident response times in Scotland.

SFRS continues to respond to every emergency incident with the appropriate level of resources. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service's (SFRS) Operations Control rooms dynamically mobilise fire appliances based on their real-time location and availability, rather than fixed station response areas. This approach ensures that the nearest available resource is always deployed to achieve the quickest possible response time.

The Scottish Prison Service (SPS) is an Executive Agency of the Scottish Government and has responsibility for operation of prisons including staffing:

SPS commissioned an independent review of organisational culture in November 2024 and, following a competitive tender exercise, appointed CROWE to undertake the review. During 2025, CROWE carried out site visits and engaged with staff, senior leaders and individuals in custody. SPS received the final report in March 2026. The report has been shared with senior leaders and engagement sessions are being undertaken to discuss the findings and recommendations ahead of its wider communication to staff and publication on our external website.

Statistical information concerning wildfires and associated data collection is compiled by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, (SFRS). The Service publishes two statistical bulletins annually, which are Fire Safety and Organisational Statistic and Incident Statistics.

SFRS has provided the following information on wildfires attended by year:

Wildfires attended by year

There are many causal factors influencing Operational Response Times and their change in recent years. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service is supporting work being carried out by Northumbria University looking at why response times to incidents in Scotland are changing, and what this means for people and communities in Scotland. This is fundamental academic research – it is about improving the understanding of patterns and causes.

This is a matter for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service. The information requested is not held centrally. The member may wish to contact the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service directly.

The budget for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service is set each year as part of the annual Budget Act process. The Scottish Government provides SFRS with the budget it needs to keep communities safe.

Scottish Government officials regularly meet representatives from the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) and the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS) to discuss the implementation of the sexual offences court (SOC). Central themes of this engagement have included the increase in the number of sexual offence cases being prosecuted; the projected caseload for the SOC; and how to most effectively sequence the establishment of the SOC with wider reforms in the criminal justice system.

Scottish Government officials have also met a range of other stakeholders to discuss necessary preparations for delivering the court, I have discussed the SOC with the Law Officers, the Lord President and the Chief Executive of SCTS.

The Scottish Government has also engaged with the Scotland Office and the Ministry of Justice on the preparation of necessary secondary legislation to support the implementation of the SOC.