The Scottish Government school estate statistics are collected and published annually at: School education statistics - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

The number of schools refurbished since April 2021 is (a) 88 in primary and (b) 13 in secondary. Only projects with a cost of at least £500,000 for primary and £1m for secondary have been included.

To date, 9 school infrastructure projects have opened through the £2bn Learning Estate Investment Programme (LEIP). Furthermore, 16 projects are currently in construction.

The LEIP aims to deliver 47 projects by the end of 2027-28.

As reflected in Scotland’s Cancer Strategy for Scotland, published June 2023, we are committed to “expanding and evaluating Rapid Cancer Diagnostic Services (RCDS) to ensure population-based coverage”.

To date, we have five fully operational RCDSs across NHS Scotland, with our Programme for Government committing to establish a sixth service in 2024/25.

The University of Strathclyde’s independent evaluation provided an incredibly positive assessment of the Rapid Cancer Diagnostic Service innovation, as they are finding cancer faster.

The Scottish Government and the whole of the public sector faces a financial position that is extremely challenging. The utmost importance is placed on balancing the Scottish Government’s budget each financial year, and it is always necessary to ensure resources are used economically, efficiently, and effectively, and increased additional scrutiny is being applied to expenditure.

Despite financial pressures, colleagues in the Centre for Sustainable Delivery (CfSD) continue to work with territorial health boards and regional networks across Scotland to embed the learning from the University of Strathclyde’s evaluation report and support them to develop full business cases.

The International Council for the Exploration of the Seas (ICES) provides annual advice on the population of Northern Shelf cod which currently includes the West of Scotland (6a) and the Clyde areas.

During the 2024 closure we enhanced our data collection in the Clyde and intend to share those findings and reflections on monitoring of the closure with stakeholders when available. We intend to continue the data collection programme in 2025. This along with the ICES advice will contribute to the evidence base and help inform a consultation on future management measures.

We work closely with partners, including through the Older People’s Strategic Forum (OPSAF) on a range of issues related to age equality. This includes the Strategic Action Framework ‘A Fairer Scotland for Older People’, in which Ensuring Financial Security is a priority area. We are running a number of Roundtables throughout Scotland to hear from older people and older people's organisation as part of the refresh of the Framework.

We support projects that enable older people to live independent and fulfilling lives. Our Equality and Human Rights Fund provides over £2.2M to support older people’s organisations and age equality projects and programmes. We also launched a £3.8m Social Isolation and Loneliness Fund on 8 March 2023 which funds 53 projects supporting people at risk of social isolation and loneliness.

On the 3 September 2024, the Scottish Government pre-budget fiscal update outlined "other" savings measures of £27.7M in the Health and Social Care budget, with funding redirected to support emerging pressures within Health and Social Care, not used for wider SG spending.

The breakdown is as follows:

The Climate Change Committee were not consulted in advance of the savings in Net Zero and Energy portfolio set out in the Fiscal Statement on 3 September 2024. There is no legislative requirement for Ministers to seek such advice and it is not common practice to do so. The Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009 sets out when Scottish Ministers must request advice from the CCC as well as when Scottish Ministers must have regard to CCC advice. There is no requirement on Ministers to ask the CCC for advice in relation to financial budgets.

An FCDO official was not present at this meeting. This is in accordance with standard practice for my meetings with Members of the European Parliament. FCDO officials were of course informed of the visit and programme in the normal way.

In 2021-22, there were 973,604 recipients of Winter Fuel Payment in Scotland. This number increased to 991,431 recipients in 2022-23.

A Final Report will be published in the Autumn setting out the progress that has been made since publication of the Women’s Health Plan in 2021.

The Women’s Health Plan has brought about positive change, driving changes to policy, guidance and training in many of the ways envisaged for a Scottish Institute for Women’s Health. There is now a Women’s Health Leads Network; a specialist menopause service in every mainland health board and a ‘buddy’ support system in place for the Island health boards; there is a women’s health platform on NHS Inform; there is a menopause and menstrual health workplace policy for NHS Scotland and a Women’s Health Champion, Professor Anna Glasier OBE, has been appointed. In addition, the Scottish Government, primarily through the Chief Scientist Office, has invested in a range of women’s health related research, providing funding for grants and fellowships.

In light of the financial circumstances facing the Scottish Government, it is not possible at present to develop proposals for a Scottish Institute for Women’s Health.