Chamber and committees

Where new energy developments come forward, applications are subject to site-specific assessments by the decision maker. Our Fourth National Planning Framework (NPF4) policy 11 (energy) requires that project design and mitigation demonstrate how impacts on communities, landscape, biodiversity and other receptors, including cumulative impacts, are addressed. It also encourages development to maximise net economic impact, including local and community socio-economic benefits.

When an application is ready to be determined, the Scottish Ministers will consider all relevant material available to them before making any decision on an application. The merits of each proposal are considered on a case-by-case basis, and a careful balance must be struck between the potential impacts of the proposed development and the associated environmental, economic, renewable energy and climate change benefits.

The proposed consultation on phasing out the use farrowing crates for pigs was originally intended to have been delivered jointly across all UK administrations. However, progress on a number of important pieces of animal welfare legislation have been significantly delayed or has ceased due to delays in UK Government timetabling, such as the Kept Animals Bill.

Regardless, the Scottish Government is pressing ahead on improving the welfare of all animals in Scotland, including pigs. This included updating and publishing the Scottish Government’s Guidance for the Welfare of Pigs.

We continue to listen and work with the industry and stakeholders on how best to achieve improvements in animal welfare as well as monitoring industry information to allow us to determine how to ensure best practice is delivered, and remain committed to consulting on ending farrowing crate use.

The final report has been received and as agreed it will now be subject to peer review. I will provide a further update on progress as soon as that has been concluded. We are committed to publishing the report and will do so once the peer review process and any further action needed has concluded.

The Scottish Government continues to engage with the UK Government and the other devolved administrations to discuss animal welfare improvements and remains committed to consulting on phasing out the use of farrowing crates.

Latin can be taught in both primary and secondary state schools as part of the Scottish Government’s 1+2 approach to language learning. It is also offered as a National Qualification from National 3 to Advanced Higher level.

Education Scotland work closely with partners to develop resources to support the teaching of Latin and other classical subjects in schools.

This information is not held centrally. However all recommendations are published on the website of the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service and are publicly available.

Community pharmacists currently have access to the Emergency Care Summary (ECS) which provides information on recent acute and repeat prescriptions and allergies and the Key Information Summary (KIS) where available, which provides information about a person’s health issues, a carer’s name and contact details, preferences on how a person would like to be cared for, the treatment they would like and where they would like to be cared for. In addition, several health boards are providing community pharmacists access to their clinical portal which provides additional clinical information.

There are several barriers that currently make full access to clinical records difficult including the interoperability of the different IT systems used across the NHS and providing assurances on data protection and information governance requirements.

The Chief Pharmaceutical Officer has commissioned work to explore how the required level of access to clinical records by community pharmacists can be delivered.

Alcohol sales are subject to VAT, whilst any profits made by businesses selling alcohol are subject to Corporation Tax. Both of these taxes remain fully reserved to the UK Government. Scotland receives a share of UK-wide VAT and corporation tax, regardless of the place of purchase of products or location of businesses, as part of the annual block-grant allocation. The Public Health Scotland evaluation of MUP concluded from a range of studies that “some evidence of cross-border purchasing was identified, but its extent was observed to be minimal.

Statistics on more able pupil as a reason for support are published in the pupil census supplementary statistics. This is available on the Scottish government website here https://www.gov.scot/publications/pupil-census-supplementary-statistics/.

Local authorities oversee the delivery of education and have a statutory duty to identify, provide for, and to review the support that they provide for pupils with additional support needs, including more able pupils.