Chamber and committees

Scottish Water’s list of high priority assets identified for investment under Improving Urban Waters commitments can be found at High Priority UIDs.pdf (scottishwater.co.uk) . There are currently 163 High Priority Unsatisfactory Intermittent Discharge (UID) needs across Scotland, 155 Medium priority UID and 259 Low priority UID needs. Whilst this list is not updated annually, classification and prioritisation of unsatisfactory combined sewer overflows is ongoing in response to instances of pollution and water quality monitoring. More information about how these assets have been prioritised is available at: Prioritisation of Sewer Overflows in Scotland - Scottish Water

The Scottish Government has not had discussions with the Council regarding specific congestion charging schemes including charging for drivers not resident in Glasgow. The Scottish Government has had discussions with the Council in the context of local measures to support delivery of the 20% car km reduction target, and the Government’s commissioned research on equitable options for car demand management.

The Transport (Scotland) Act 2001 established the discretionary power for local authorities to implement road user charging schemes, and they are best placed to determine whether a local road user charging scheme supports the objectives set out in their local transport strategy and the amount of charge that supports these local objectives.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-21029 on 13 September 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 .

The Scottish Government’s Heat in Buildings Strategy, published in October 2021, uses an estimate from the Electronic Property Information Mapping Service (e-PIMS) of 23,000 public sector buildings in Scotland.

Since 2015-16, around 180 public bodies have been under a legal requirement to report annually on compliance with their climate change duties. Individual reports are published on the Sustainable Scotland Network (SSN) website.

The Public Bodies Climate Change Reporting 2021-22 Analysis Report , prepared by SSN with grant support from the Scottish Government, shows total scope 1 and scope 2 emissions were 30.2% lower in 2021-22 compared to 2015-16. In 2021-22, scope 1 emissions were 1,197,089 tCO2e (tonnes of CO2 equivalent) and scope 2 emissions were 567,734 tCO2e. Scope 1 are direct emissions typically from heating of buildings and the use of fleet vehicles, with refrigerants with some other emissions associated with sector specific processes also included. Scope 2 are indirect emissions from grid electricity consumption.

The annual Analysis Report provides some sectoral breakdown of reported information. The Scottish Government does not routinely hold information from individual reporting bodies as the reports are publicly available.

The Scottish Government thanks Audit Scotland for a thorough, clear and wide-ranging report on Adult Mental Health Services in Scotland. Ministers recognise how closely some of the content of the report mirrors our vision, outcomes and priorities that we set out in our Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy. We will now take the time to carefully consider both the specific recommendations and the wider substance of the report. We will publish the Delivery Plan for our Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy, together with our Workforce Plan, this Autumn, which will set out the actions we will take to address many of the issues set out by Audit Scotland.

Scottish Child Payment is delivered using Section 79 of the Social Security (Scotland) Act 2018, which enables Scottish Ministers to top-up a qualifying reserved benefit, such as Universal Credit.

The groups mentioned may qualify for Scottish Child Payment if they are eligible for one of the qualifying benefits. However the eligibility criteria for students when applying for Universal Credit is stricter than that for individuals who are not undertaking studies and is set by the Department for Work and Pensions.

Eligible student nurses and midwives in Scotland continue to receive the highest level of support across the United Kingdom, including our non-means tested, non-repayable annual bursary of £10,000, plus associated allowances.

The information requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government.

We recognise the importance of swimming pools and other sports facilities in supporting the physical and mental health of the nation. sportscotland, our national agency for sport, are supporting Scottish Swimming to deliver the Scottish Swimming Facilities Project to accurately understand the current swimming pool provision, life cycle and predict the landscape in the short, medium and long term.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-21029 on 13 September 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-20938 on 26 September 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

The Scottish Government welcomes the report from Public Health Scotland as a contribution to the evidence base on probable suicides in Scotland. It is positive that the trends show there has been a reduction in the rate of suicide in Scotland from the position in 2011. However, from such reports and listening to those with lived experience of suicide, we know there is still much work to do to reduce suicide deaths and for people at high risk of suicide – including middle aged men. The report confirms many of the contributing factors and experiences faced by those who die by suicide such as poverty, homelessness and the cost of living crisis, and the findings will inform the delivery of our Creating Hope Together Action Plan.

Taking a whole of government and society approach focused on addressing the social determinants of suicide, which we know are concentrated in particular communities of place, interest and experience, is fundamental to our Strategy. This dedicated work is further complemented by our new Mental Health and Wellbeing strategy , published jointly with CoSLA on 29 June 2023, that places early intervention at its heart, which we know is key to reducing suicide deaths.

We are also supporting a range of local suicide prevention initiatives across Scotland through our £15 million per annum Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund . The Fund is focused on tackling inequalities and supported nearly 300 suicide prevention initiatives in 2022-23, as well as projects aimed at building social connection in our communities, which we know promote good mental health and wellbeing.