Chamber and committees

Following detailed discussions between the Scottish and UK Governments, we have today announced that there will be two Investment Zones in Scotland, to be designed and delivered on the basis of a partnership approach alongside the successful Regional Economic Partnerships.

We have together decided, on the basis of a robust and evidence-based joint selection process, that the Glasgow City Region and North East of Scotland are the two most suitable areas in which to locate them.

Each Investment Zone will benefit from a package of funding worth £80 million, made up of capital and revenue spending and targeted tax reliefs, to promote innovation, stimulate business growth in sectors of the future and create high-quality, well-paid jobs.

We will now jointly begin discussions with the two Regional Economic Partnerships to co-develop detailed proposals, aligned to our National Strategy for Economic Transformation and the recently published Innovation Strategy.

We will publish more information in due course on the policy approach and on the selection process.

Ferguson Marine Engineering Limited (FMEL) was put into administration in 2019 and since then the company has been dissolved. Operating the Crane at Ferguson Marine Port Glasgow is classed as an operational matter for Ferguson Marine as such the Scottish Government does not hold this information.

The Scottish Government has allocated £6 million from the City Centre Recovery Fund 2021-22 to the member cities of the Scottish Cities Alliance in support of City Centre recovery, to take forward the priorities identified by the City Centre Recovery Task Force. Funds were divided between the cities based on city centre population and paid directly to each local authority, rather than directly to the Scottish Cities Alliance.

The Scottish Government also contributes £196,000 per annum directly to the Scottish Cities Alliance. This is in addition to the £28,000 contributed by each of the 8 cities. It is from this contribution that any ongoing work undertaken by the Scottish Cities Alliance on City Centre Recovery is funded.

The information requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government. We advise the member to contact the NHS Board directly.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-19355 on‎ 29 June 2023. 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

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-19355 on 29 June 2023. 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

Transport Scotland owns and manages a small number of buildings but has not carried out any assessments of this kind. They have confirmed with its building occupiers that no assessments for this material have been carried out. Transport Scotland lease their corporate office space, so don't have any property management responsibilities in this regard. They will now consider the relevant guidance, explore what may be needed and advise once these investigations have been carried out.

The information requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government. We advise the member to contact the NHS Board directly.

Ferguson Marine Engineering Limited (FMEL) was put into administration in 2019 and since then the company has been dissolved. Operating the Crane at Ferguson Marine Port Glasgow is classed as an operational matter for Ferguson Marine as such the Scottish Government does not hold this information.

We recognise that points have been made around the minimum age of marriage and civil partnership and whether young people need more protection.

This is why we have been meeting with interested stakeholders.

There are a range of views here. Increasing the minimum age can be argued to increase safeguards for young people, but such a change can also be seen as removing their right to marry or to enter a civil partnership. Additionally, given the range of rights that people acquire when they reach 16, we need to consider carefully whether broader implications would arise from a change to the minimum age of marriage.

The number of registered marriages in Scotland involving 16- and 17-year-olds is very low. However, we are also aware that there are some concerns regarding unregistered marriage ceremonies and about children and young people being taken abroad to be married.

The forced marriage offence in England and Wales has recently been extended, so that it is an offence there in all circumstances to do anything intended to cause a child to marry before they turn 18. No form of coercion requires to be used and the offence applies where the marriage is to take place outside England and Wales, and regardless of whether the marriage would have legal effect.

We would need to assess if this approach would be right for Scotland. Introducing a similar measure here might have the adverse impact of driving forced marriages even further underground. Forcing someone into marriage is already a criminal offence in Scotland and applies to any religious or civil ceremony of marriage whether or not legally binding. This offence will extend later this year to include forced civil partnerships.

The Scottish Government will continue to listen to stakeholders and the wider debate, as we actively consider our next steps. This will help ensure that we properly assess the potential impacts of changes and, if we take forward a full public consultation, that this includes robust evidence.