Chamber and committees

Contingency planning in the event of industrial action is a matter for individual local authorities.

In previous years, the Scottish Government has worked collaboratively with Local Government when needed to act in order to prevent industrial action.

The Scottish Government will continue to provide vital assistance to enable older people to heat their homes, to help disabled people live independent lives and will keep thousands of children out of poverty. The Scottish Fiscal Commission’s May 2025 forecasts show that our investment in Social Security over and above the money we get from the UK Government is projected to be less than 3.5% of the total Scottish Government Resource Budget by 2029-30.

As part of our Medium-Term Financial Strategy, which we will publish on 25 June, we consider the medium to longer-term drivers of public spending and assess these against forecast funding. It is then for Ministers to prioritise expenditure, as part of the annual budget process and Spending Reviews, in line with the principles and policies on the use of borrowing and reserve powers.

The Fiscal Sustainability Delivery Plan which will publish alongside the Medium-Term Financial Strategy on 25 June will set out the actions we’re taking to improve the sustainability of the public finances over the medium-term.

The Scottish Government is working across the economy to maximise opportunities that prioritise economic growth, using our limited devolved powers.

Scotland’s economy remains one of the best performing parts of the UK with GDP per person in Scotland growing by 10.3%, compared to 6.1% in the UK and productivity has grown at an average rate of 1.1% per year compared to the UK average of 0.4% since 2007.

The Scottish Government published its National Strategy for Economic Transformation (NSET) in 2022, setting out a ten year transformation plan with the objective of creating a fair, green and growing economy. This year’s Programme for Government places economic growth and working to create business opportunities, sustainable fair work, higher wages, more housing and better infrastructure, at the forefront.

However, our limited powers mean we also require decisive action from the UK Government to counter the damaging economic impacts of Brexit and the employers national insurance increases, and tackle the economic uncertainty currently being felt by business.

Scottish Income Tax is forecast to raise a record £20.5 billion in 2025-26 with the latest SFC forecast showing a positive contribution to the 2025-26 Scottish Budget of £616 million. This is additional revenue raised to support our investment in public services.

Scotland’s tax base continues to grow strongly, with the SFC forecasting higher average earnings growth in Scotland over the next five years compared to the OBR’s outlook for the UK.

We have undertaken a full policy development process in order to reach a finalised position on onshore conventional oil and gas in Scotland, in line with statutory requirements.

Having considered stakeholders’ views and the evidence received alongside wider Scottish Government energy and climate change policies, our preferred policy position of no support for onshore conventional oil and gas development in Scotland was confirmed in January 2023.

The preferred policy position was subject to statutory and other assessments before the policy-making process was completed, including in our draft Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan, and our National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4).

Following this comprehensive policymaking process, the Scottish Government’s finalised policy position is of no support for onshore conventional oil and gas in Scotland. The finalised policy statement can be viewed here: www.gov.scot/publications/onshore-conventional-oil-and-gas-policy-position.

The Scottish Government does not hold the information you have requested regarding CPR training in each local authority area.

The Scottish Government does not hold the information you have requested regarding defibrillators in nurseries and schools.

The Scottish Government recognises that NHS Scotland’s oncology capacity has been increasingly tested due to steady, long-term increases in demand driven by new medicines approvals, increasing complexity of treatment, an ageing population, more treatments for incurable cancers, and delayed presentations exacerbated by the pandemic.

The National Oncology Taskforce commissioned the Scottish Cancer Network to undertake an Oncology Workforce Review, completed January 2023 with a proposal for an Oncology Transformation Programme (OTP). We have mobilised the ambitious Oncology Transformation Programme and work to progress this is moving at pace. This includes consideration of workforce and training requirements, recognising that our NHS workforce is fundamental in delivering excellent and equitably accessible cancer care.

The Scottish Government provides direct funding for Business Gateway but does not hold information on how that funding is spent within each hub. Please contact Business Gateway on [email protected] if you would like to address this question to them directly.

There are provisions in the Pollution Prevention and Control (Scotland) Regulations 2012 and the Landfill (Scotland) Regulations 2003 to require companies to make adequate financial provisions for landfill aftercare and this requirement is also included in the Environmental Authorisations (Scotland) Amendments Regulations 2025. However, in the case of Tarbolton Moss the company was dissolved without any such funds remaining.

Officials continue to work with SEPA to understand how this occurred to ensure that the risk for similar future scenarios is minimised.

Furthermore, to minimise risk of further site abandonment, we will continue to work closely with local authorities and commercial operators to examine challenges faced before the commencement of the ban on landfilling biodegradable municipal waste on 31 December 2025.