The management of the interim Vulnerable Persons Database (iVPD) is a matter for Police Scotland. As with any other organisation, Police Scotland has a duty to gather and process personal data lawfully.

The iVPD is used to source information for both (i) the annual Official Statistics on police recorded domestic abuse incidents and (ii) social research on the volume and type of police recorded hate crime in Scotland.

As part of producing these reports, Scottish Government statisticians have regular and ongoing communications with their counterparts in Police Scotland about the iVPD and the topics of domestic abuse and hate crime. Examples of this include both the planning of updated publications (such as timings for data receipt and quality assurance) and discussions on any future changes that might be made to the methodology for producing these statistics.

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

I refer the member to the response provided for S6W-27211 on 15 May 2024.

There is no equivalent standard to “certified normal accommodation” or “uncrowded capacity” for prison cells in Scotland.

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 management of the interim Vulnerable Persons Database (iVPD) is a matter for Police Scotland. As with any other organisation, Police Scotland has a duty to gather and process personal data lawfully. The Scottish Government has had no communication with the office of the Scottish Information Commissioner regarding the iVPD during this period.

For further information on the iVPD please refer to answer S6W-27225 on 17 May 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 Scottish Government commissioned an expert report from Malcolm McMillan on the roles and functions of the Scottish Law Officers. The purpose of the report is to outline the history and development of the roles and functions of the Scottish Law Officers; describe their current roles and functions; highlight the role of Law Officers in a number of other jurisdictions; describe the constitutional context relevant to a review of the roles of the Scottish Law Officers; and provide a summary of insights and comments on the Scottish Law Officers’ roles from former and current holders of these offices and relevant officials. The work to publish the final report is ongoing.

This is a matter for Police Scotland and therefore the information requested is not held centrally.

Bathing water quality samples are taken by the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) at each bathing water throughout the bathing season from 1 June to 15 September. Bathing water classifications are calculated at the end of each bathing water season and apply for the duration of the following season. They are calculated using data from the four previous years. There are three freshwater sites designated as Bathing Waters in Scotland: Luss Bay (Loch Lomond) and Dores (Loch Ness), both designated in 1999 and classified as sufficient and Loch Morlich, designated in 2008 and classified as excellent. A pre-season sample is also taken during the last fortnight in May.

The Scottish Government has not had any communications on organised crime with the Scottish Football Association or individual football clubs in the last 24 months.

The Scottish Government consulted on a Report into the Effectiveness of Environmental Governance last year, as required by section 41 of the UK Withdrawal from the European Union (Continuity) (Scotland) Act 2021. The Report included consideration of issues relating to access to justice on environmental matters in Scotland. Section 41 required us to publish the report and launch the consultation within six months of ESS publishing their strategic plan, and in due course to publish recommendations in response to the consultation. The Scottish Government will complete the environmental governance review process as soon as practical.

Scotland has a current total reported potential pipeline of over 40 GW of offshore wind projects.

Our Offshore Wind Policy Statement (2020) set out the Scottish Government’s ambition for 8-11 GW of offshore wind in Scotland by 2030. This is currently being reviewed in light of the significant market ambition of around 28 GW across 20 projects demonstrated by the private sector via the ScotWind leasing round.

We remain committed to achieving the ambitions as set out in the 2020 Offshore Wind Policy Statement, and will invest up to £500m over the next five years to develop the infrastructure and supply chain critical to growing Scotland’s offshore wind sector.

Following the announcement on 7 March 2024 that the Scottish Government would be holding a public inquiry into the investigation of Emma Caldwell’s murder, immediate preparatory work to set up an Inquiry was commenced. Scottish Ministers have been liaising with the Lord President and the Caldwell family to explore different options for who could lead the Inquiry however, no decision has been taken on this yet.

A statutory Public Inquiry is a significant undertaking and will take time to set up. I will provide further updates to Parliament as work is progressed including, appointing a Chair and setting the Terms of Reference.