Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government, through policy initiatives such as Getting it right for every child, emphasises the importance of professionals such as social workers and teachers working together to achieve the best outcomes for children and young people. This will continue as we work towards delivering the Promise.

At present the Scottish Government does not routinely gather data regarding the exact locations where social workers are co-located in schools. The Whole Family Wellbeing Fund (WFWF) programme however has a key core component of implementing a whole systems approach and has supported several initiatives throughout Scotland to enable young people to engage with social workers school.

Examples of these are located in:

South Lanarkshire

A family support programme called ‘Pathfinders’ is working with secondary schools and social workers to contact and support young people who are disengaged from school, with a focus on preventing the child or young person being taken into care.

This programme was established prior to WFWF in three secondary schools in 2019, and expanded to seven in total. Evaluation has shown that by the end of March 2023-2024 the programme had worked with 534 young people and families.

South Lanarkshire reports indicate a range of improvements relating to young people’s meaningful participation in school or learning. The report also indicated that young people were able to recognise positive changes in their behaviour and wellbeing. Young people also expressed trust in Pathfinder officers, saying they feel listened to and understood.

Fife

A test of change project provided early access to social work support in two localities. The project provided drop-in services in schools that focussed on: building supportive networks for families within the local communities. The project also provided advice on benefits, housing, fuel poverty, social isolation and mental health. Senior practitioners were recruited to work with a small number of children and young people to provide early help in schools, specifically to avoid exclusions.

Freight Facilities Grants of over £25 million have been made to Scottish ports since 1997. This has enabled ports to purchase shore based handling equipment, has allowed piers and berths to be built or refurbished and enabled rail lines to be built into ports.

Information on Ministerial engagements is routinely published on the Scottish Government website and can be found at: Ministerial engagements, travel and gifts - gov.scot. Minutes of Ministerial meetings are not published routinely.

I last met with the BBC on 27 January 2025 for an introductory meeting with the new BBC Scotland Director. This meeting was arranged at my request to explore how the BBC can improve its support for Scotland-based productions and grow our broadcasting sector. The First Minister had an introductory meeting with the new BBC Scotland Director on 20 February. I have no future meetings currently scheduled with the BBC.

Over the last five years, several matters within my portfolio have been discussed with the BBC, including: plans and opportunities in Scotland; the BBC’s annual report and reports published by the regulator, Ofcom; the Media Bill and subsequent Media Act 2024; the BBC’s delivery of programmes and skills training; and the BBC’s provision of services and plans to grow the broadcasting sector in Scotland.

The Scottish Government remains committed to restricting the sale of horticultural peat as part of its commitment to environmental protection and climate change mitigation. We continue to work with gardeners, growers, environmental organisations and the UK and devolved governments to understand and overcome challenges, including those imposed by the UK Internal Market Act, as we explore all legislative options to implement effective restrictions as soon as feasible.

The Ministry of Defence’s (MOD) consultation on its proposals regarding its approach to safeguarding the Eskdalemuir Seismological Array closed on 20 December 2024. The MOD is currently reviewing the consultation responses.

The Eskdalemuir Working Group (EWG) receive a verbal update from the MOD on the timescales for completion of the review process at each EWG meeting. The next EWG meeting is scheduled for 1 April 2025.

There is a long standing convention that Law Officers will not be involved in decision making where an accused is a politician. In such cases decisions as to whether to take action will be taken by an Advocate Depute, who is an independent prosecutor.

VAT is a reserved power of the UK Government. Under the Barnett formula the Scottish Government is not entitled to a proportion of revenues raised by the UK Government under reserved powers. Changes to the Block Grant are calculated by reference to UK Government spend in devolved areas.

The UK Government had initially indicated that funding raised from the removal of the VAT exemption on independent schools would be ring-fenced and applied to the budget for the Department of Education in England to increase teacher numbers in England.

Under this arrangement the Scottish Government would effectively have received a population share of the total funding raised under the Barnett formula.

Following discussions with HM Treasury we have now been advised that there is no ring-fencing being applied to this funding stream by the UK Government. While additional funding was applied to the Department for Education as part of the UK Government’s Autumn Budget, on which Barnett consequentials were received, we cannot confirm the extent to which this has been funded by the removal of VAT on independent schools.

The Scottish Government is committed to working with the UK Government, including the Ministry of Defence, with the aim of developing a solution that opens up the possibility of onshore wind deployment in the Eskdalemuir area whilst ensuring the protection of the seismological array. Any such development would be subject to the normal consenting consideration process.

The Onshore Electricity Policy Unit leads on Eskdalemuir related matters for the Scottish Government. Discussions within the Eskdalemuir Working Group are ongoing, with the Scottish Government aiming to publish a consultation on new draft Eskdalemuir guidance in due course.

Before any Scottish Government guidance is put out to public consultation, a series of related work packages must be completed and then approved by the Ministry of Defence.

As head of the system for the prosecution of crime as Lord Advocate, I remain accountable and responsible for every case, regardless of not being personally involved.

Prosecutors take decisions independently, free from political influence or external interference, relying on evidence and the law in accordance with the principles set out in the Prosecution Code.

It is standard procedure that the identity of prosecutors considering individual cases is not publicly known until a case progresses to court.

Shona Robison: The Scottish Government respects the independence of Local Government and has no formal role in pay negotiations for non-teaching staff; these negotiations are undertaken through the Scottish Joint Council (SJC) which is a bilateral body formed of COSLA and recognised trade unions. The Scottish Government is a constituent member of the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT) which is a tripartite body alongside COSLA and recognised trade unions representing teachers.

The Scottish Government Public Sector Pay Policy for 2025-26 was published in December 2024 and sets out decisions taken by Scottish Ministers regarding pay for most public sector staff in Scotland. This policy is clear that, for Local Government employees, pay and other employment matters are delegated to local authorities. As such, the policy does not apply directly to Local Government and local authorities have flexibility to manage their own budgets and workforce accordingly. Like all employers, Local Government decisions on pay likely consider a range of factors including other public sector pay offers in Scotland and across the UK.

Scottish Ministers have been consistent in their recognition of the valuable contribution that Local Government workers make to delivering essential public services across the country and have worked constructively with Local Government to support a fair and sustainable pay position, including through providing additional funding where necessary. For example, the Scottish Government provided an additional £77.5 million for Local Government pay in 2024-25 and this has been baselined into the 2025-26 Local Government settlement. Similarly, the Scottish Government provided an additional £29 million to Local Government in 2024-25 to support the pay deal for teachers, with the full year cost of £43 million baselined.

Further, the Scottish Government supports local authorities to manage wider pay-related issues relating to delivery of shared priorities across both national and local spheres of government. For example, the draft 2025-26 Scottish Budget includes an additional £9.7 million for local authorities to deliver the Programme for Government commitment to increase the pay of Early Learning and Childcare workers in the private and third sectors delivering funded hours. Building on recurring investment of £16 million in 2024-25, this will ensure that staff delivering funded early learning and childcare are paid at least the Real Living Wage and demonstrates our commitment to the Fair Work agenda.