Chamber and committees

An amendment to the New Build Heat Standard will shortly be laid in Parliament. This will demonstrate we have heard and responded to the concerns raised earlier in the year about the reliance on woodburning stoves and bioenergy, particularly in rural and island areas.

The review involved full consideration of previous and new evidence submitted, and a series of individual and group workshops with key stakeholders, and two Ministerial roundtables. The Standard will be subject to the usual Parliamentary process and remains an important and positive step in our journey to decarbonising buildings.

The Scottish Government is committed to introducing a Promise Bill in this Parliamentary term.

The Government’s future legislative programmes will be announced in the relevant Programme for Government in the normal way in due course.

We are currently conducting a number of consultations which will inform the next steps on key areas and, where appropriate to inform The Promise Bill.

This includes the next stages of reform of the children’s hearing system; the future of foster care; the definition of care experience; and the support available to those moving on from care.

The Scottish Government processed payment of £5.7 million (90%) to Angus Council on 10 April this year based on the interim Bellwin claim provided by the council. Following certification of the final claim and the supporting evidence provided, the balance will be paid to Angus Council week commencing 11 November.

The Scottish Government will provide a full response to the Committee’s report within two months of its publication as consistent with Parliamentary Guidance.

Education authorities have duties under the Additional Support for Learning Act 2004 to identify, provide for and review the additional needs of their pupils.

Where a young person needs support from other agencies to transition from school, the authority should work with those agencies, taking into consideration the views of the young person, to establish the support required and ensure it is put in place.

Skills Development Scotland’s careers advisers work closely with local schools to support young people with additional support needs, including disabled young people and this is captured in their school partnership agreements and close work with guidance and pastoral care to identify the young people who require more intensive support. They also offer support to transition planning and take an individual centred approach.

When a young person is expected to leave school the education authority has a duty to request and share information within specific timeframes to help support their transition. This should take place no later than 12 months before the expected leaving date. They must provide information to other agencies no later than six months before a child or young person is expected to leave school. Local authorities are encouraged to prepare for children and young peoples’ transitions wherever possible in advance of these timeframes.

All planning and support for disabled children and young people should be underpinned by ‘Getting it right for every child’ (GIRFEC) – Scotland’s holistic approach to upholding the rights and wellbeing of our children and young people. Using the GIRFEC approach, practitioners and lead professionals should support a child or young person's wellbeing through transitions by working alongside them and their family, and other practitioners involved in transition planning. They should ensure the views and rights of the young person and family are considered in decisions throughout a transition. Effective transfer of information between services during transitions, in line with information sharing guidance, is also essential to achieving successful outcomes for the child or young person and their family.

Glasgow Health and Social Care Partnership will assess the impact of the opening of the Safer Drug Consumption Facility on the community in which it is operating. This will be led by Public Health Scotland academics.

Significant time has been invested in engaging with the local community through drop in sessions. Feedback from these events has informed implementation planning, the formation of a Community Engagement Forum (that will address community concerns after the service is operational) and work with other relevant partners.

The independent evaluation team has also begun to gather community information on the impact of injecting drug use in the area. This will be monitored as the services becomes operational to assess the impact of the service on these issues.

Information on waiting times for occupational therapy for all conditions is not held centrally but can be provided by NHS Boards.

The Scottish Government is aware of complaints of bullying by senior members of staff in the Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS).

Whilst Scottish Government provide support in applying the appropriate policies, this is a contractual issue which, by law, must remain between an employee and SAS as their employer. We expect all health boards to thoroughly investigate any complaints made about bullying, regardless of grade, and to ensure that these are appropriately actioned.

Since 2018, NHS boards across Scotland have had a legislative duty to provide children and adults who have lost their voice or have difficulty speaking with communication equipment and support, necessary to meet their requirements.

As such, this information is not held centrally by the Scottish Government as it is for local NHS Boards to determine the levels of funding required for services providing Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC), based on local priorities and clinical needs.

Teachers in Scotland are directly employed by local authorities, who will have their own local payroll arrangements; therefore provisions relating to the backdated payment of pay awards will differ between authorities. The Scottish Government does not hold data on the number of teachers in Scotland who have received backdated payments, because this data is held locally by Councils as the employer of teachers.

On 2 October 2024 the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT) issued a joint circular to local authorities regarding the agreed 4.27% pay increase for teachers, at all points in the SNCT pay scales, to be backdated to 1 August 2024.

This information is not held centrally by the Scottish Government.

Since 2018, NHS Boards across Scotland have had a legislative duty to provide children and adults who have lost their voice or have difficulty speaking with communication equipment and support, necessary to meet their requirements.