Chamber and committees

The level of funding required to support any ferry service from Scotland to Europe will depend on the nature of the route, the strength of the commercial case and an assessment of value for money for the taxpayer.

Investment in ferry services to Europe from Scotland will be released once a full assessment of proposals for any such routes has been completed.

We have already invested an additional £100 million in 2026-27 to support delivery of commitments set out in the 25–26 Operational Improvement Plan, including action to reduce waiting times.

This funding is being allocated to Health Boards to support increased activity, including delivery of the commitment to undertake at least 50,000 operations and procedures within the first 100 days. Boards have flexibility to target this funding towards the specialties and services where waiting times are most challenged.

Information on the breakdown of these additional operations and procedures by specialty and location is not held centrally, as decisions on service delivery are made locally by Health Boards to reflect differing pressures and capacity across Scotland.

We are working at pace with Police Scotland to explore how to ensure we implement this manifesto commitment in the right way to effectively tackle the antisocial and criminal use of vehicles, including illegally modified e-bikes and e-scooters. The Scottish Government will keep Parliament updated regarding all progress made towards achieving this commitment.

Any conditions attached to grant funding for ferry services from Scotland to Europe will depend on the terms of scheme under which such a grant is made.

There is currently no fully established national clinical pathway for Ehlers–Danlos syndromes (EDS) or hypermobility spectrum disorders (HSD) specifically commissioned by NHS Scotland.

Clinical pathways, including any dedicated pathways for EDS or HSD, can be developed by individual NHS boards under established clinical governance arrangements, informed by clinical evidence, service needs and local population need.

Where proposals are put forward for pathway development, these are considered through established, clinically led processes by NHS and relevant national delivery partners.

Our public consultation on a range of family law matters closed to responses on 21 April this year. These matters included the Scottish Law Commission's Report and draft Bill on the reform of cohabitants' financial rights on separation, cohabitants rights where their partner dies without leaving a will and extending the simplified divorce and dissolution procedures.

The consultation responses will be analysed and used as part of our final decision making process, along with a range of other available information and evidence. We will publish a report of this analysis.

The Scottish Government’s legislative programme will be agreed by Ministers and announced to Parliament in due course in the usual way.

This is an operational matter for ScotRail. The Member may wish to contact ScotRail directly for this information.

Transport Scotland has yet to commence discussions with Glasgow City Council regarding the Clyde Tunnel.

These discussions will help inform the development of a range of options on how the manifesto offer to “take on responsibility for the maintenance of the Clyde Tunnel, freeing around £1 million of cost to the local authority…”, could practicably be delivered. This work will also consider responsibilities for discharging statutory duties and likely cost of these options.

The occupancy rights those living as property guardians have depend on the circumstances of the case and the type of occupancy arrangement in place.

These types of arrangements usually offer a licence agreement to occupy the property rather than a tenancy, and the rights and protection they have will be determined by that contract. Licence agreements usually offer less security of tenure than afforded by a private residential tenancy (PRT) under the Private Housing (Tenancies) (Scotland) Act 2016 (the Act). However, if it is agreed that the guardian has exclusive possession for a specified period of time in return for the payment of rent, they could legally have a tenancy agreement.

A private residential tenancy exists where the property is let to a tenant as a separate dwelling, the tenant lives in it as their only or main home, and the tenancy isn't excluded under schedule 1 of the Act.

Under these conditions, a tenant will have a private residential tenancy even if they have signed a licence to occupy.

It is important that anyone considering entering into a property guardianship arrangement considers carefully the conditions, rights, and responsibilities proposed under the agreement. If a property guardian believes they may have a private residential tenancy agreement, they can seek legal advice.