Chamber and committees

Private rented homes have a poorer standard of energy efficiency and the tenants who live there are usually unable to make improvements. That’s why our consultation on proposals for a Heat in Buildings Bill asked for views on private rented homes reaching a good standard of energy efficiency before the end of 2028.

Our Private Rented Sector (PRS) Landlord Loan Scheme – launched in April 2020 – offers landlords interest free or low interest loan funding to support the installation of energy efficiency, clean heating and renewable systems. The scheme offers funding of up to £38,500 per property, including £15,000 for energy efficiency measures, £17,500 for the installation of clean heating and renewable systems, and up to £6,000 for the installation of energy storage systems.

The main aim of our Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing (EESSH) when introduced ten years ago was to remove poor energy efficiency as a driver for fuel poverty. The sector also has a role in achieving our climate change targets which require net zero heat in buildings by 2045. This is why we have recently consulted on proposals to establish a new Social Housing Net Zero Standard.

We are making £200 million available up to 2026 to support the installation of zero direct emissions heating systems and energy efficiency measures across the social housing stock.

In my appearance on 10 January 2024 at the Education, Children and Young People Committee I undertook to provide further information on the progress of post-school education and skills reform in March. On 27 March 2024 I wrote to the Convenor of the Committee with this update on the key areas of action .

Our plans for post-school education and skills reform have been developed in the light of James Withers’ report Fit for the Future: developing a post-school learning system to fuel economic transformation, and the Scottish Government’s own report of the Purpose and Principles for post-school education, research and skills .

I will continue to engage with partners across the sector and employers, and to update the Parliament.

As set out in answer S6W-26708 on 24 April 2024, the taskforce has established four subgroups to focus on attraction, education and development, leadership and culture, and wellbeing. All subgroups are considering retention as part of their remit. Each subgroup will formulate and provide recommended actions to the main taskforce. The Taskforce is making good progress with the development of its recommended actions and will continue to work until members have agreed a comprehensive action plan. We anticipate the publication of a report later in 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 .

The security of fuel supplies relates to a reserved policy area, however as a responsible government we frequently engage with key industry partners and the UK Government to continuously monitor any developments in the sector.

A commitment was made in 2018 to create 10 additional clinical radiology training places per year over a five-year period. This commitment was met in full in 2022 following five years of consecutive uplifts. This saw the overall training establishment rise from 139 in 2017 (before the commitment was made) to 192 in 2022 (after the commitment had been met). The number of established clinical radiology training posts in Scotland has not decreased between 2023 and 2024 in any region. There are 192 established posts in clinical radiology spread across the five year training programme (ST1-ST5) and this has been the case since 2022 i.e. since the latest funded increase was applied. The number of posts advertised per year by NHS Education for Scotland is determined by two factors: i) the number of vacant posts, due to trainees completing training, resigning from post or undergoing an inter-deanery transfer, and ii) whether any additional posts have been created. The number of posts which are available for new applicants to apply for varies annually due to trainees working on a part-time basis (and therefore taking longer to complete training and vacate their post).

The following table sets out the number of clinical radiology training places advertised and filled per year from 2017 onwards (broken down by region) as well as the overall training establishment in each year. ‘Training establishment’ is the term given to the overall number of funded places on a training programme. Please note that the 2024 recruitment cycle is currently underway and will conclude in November.

The recruitment round has not yet closed for 2024. The 19 positions currently advertised on the recruitment portal is a provisional figure and is therefore subject to potential change.

The number of posts advertised per year by NHS Education for Scotland is determined by two factors: i) the number of vacant posts, due to trainees completing training, resigning from post or undergoing an inter-deanery transfer, and ii) whether any additional posts have been created. The number of posts which are available for new applicants to apply for varies annually due to trainees working on a part-time basis (and therefore taking longer to complete training and vacate their post).

The Scottish Ambulance Service are currently in the process of recruiting five clinical advisor vacancies, after which recruitment will commence for one first line manager vacancy.

All staff across all roles in the Integrated Clinical Hub work nationally to support patients throughout Scotland. Whilst they may work in specific locations reflecting their employment base, technology allows them to work seamlessly across the country.

As set out in my answer S6W-26968 on 25 April 2024, the information requested on how many colorectal (a) clinical nurse specialists and (b) surgeons were employed by NHS Lanarkshire in 2019 is not centrally available.

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 .

In NHS Scotland, human resource departments only use private contractors or external organisations for specific services such as training or coaching which cannot be delivered within the organisation. Private companies are also used to provide certain IT platforms to the service. However, all core human resource functions in NHS Scotland are delivered in-house.