Chamber and committees

Following the cross party summit on violence among young people held on 13 January, Scottish Government officials are preparing a report on key issues raised. This will be published and shared across Scottish Government to help inform policy development on areas that contribute to violence prevention and harm reduction.

Preparations are currently being made for a further meeting involving those cross-party MSPs who attended the summit.

Please see the following table for a breakdown of how the staff budget contributed to the overall FSS’ baseline budget in each financial year since the establishment of FSS. FSS staff costs are not dependant on where staff are located but by pay grade, therefore there are no comparisons to be made between Aberdeen and other locations.

Food Safety is regulated through various pieces of legislation including the Food Safety Act 1990 and assimilated Regulation (EC) No 178/2002 on general food law, which create the regulatory framework in this respect.

In relation to public events, the Food Standards Scotland website provides specific advice on Food Safety at Community Events where those providing foods on an occasional basis may not be registered food businesses.

Food Business Operators are required to comply with food and feed law which sets the minimum legal requirements to ensure food and feed are safe. As the central competent authority FSS provide statutory guidance for other enforcement authorities and directly regulates meat plants. FSS has an audit programme of Official Controls which is risk-based and where there is non compliance the frequency of audit will increase until a food business is compliant. The FSS Annual Report and Account, the FSS Strategy and Corporate Plan also provide information on FSS activities with regards to food and feed safety compliance.

As a regulator FSS delivers its statutory functions to deliver Official Controls (OC) for the foods it is Competent Authority (CA) for. Food Standards Scotland (FSS) undertake risk-based l audits in meat plants with frequency of audit informed by compliance levels of the business.

FSS have a primary responsibility to monitor the performance of, and promote best practice by, enforcement authorities enforcing food legislation in Scotland where compliance does not meet legal requirements

The overarching aim is to provide assurance that the delivery of official controls for food and feed is compliant with Scottish and UK legal requirements and official guidance.

The audit programme is risk-based, and all reports are published. 

https://www.foodstandards.gov.scot/business-and-industry/safety-and-regulation/audit-and-monitoring

The Scottish Government has no plans to introduce a statutory duty of care for higher education institutions, however we do expect them to put in place measures to protect and support student wellbeing, as well as to comply with existing legal duties, such as the Equality Act 2010 and Online Safety Act 2023.

The Scottish Government does not hold the information requested centrally.

We remain committed to the provision of a community hearing service, however, there is no community hearing service at this time; a rephasing of funding has meant that not all the challenges we are facing will be addressed in a single budget. A new model of care suitable for the Scottish context, would address pressing issues faced by all health boards.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-34203 on 27 February 2025. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-34203 on 27 February 2025. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-35156 on 27 February 2025. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

The Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 gives local licensing authorities a wide range of discretion over the types of vehicle that they can licence as taxis or private hire cars (PHCs).

Chapter 5 (Vehicles) of the Scottish Government best practice guidance for local licensing authorities and taxi and PHC operators on the licensing of taxis and PHCs and their drivers, provides further details of the powers that licensing authorities have: https://www.gov.scot/publications/taxi-private-hire-car-licensing-best-practice-licensing-authorities-taxi-private-hire-car-operators-3rd-edition/pages/7/.

The legal requirement for taxis requires that they should be subject to an MOT test or its equivalent one year after first registration and annually thereafter. For private hire cars, annual MOT testing should commence after the vehicle is three years old. It is a matter for licensing authorities as to what requirements may exist over and above these legal requirements.

The Scottish Government recognises taxis and PHCs are an important link to the public transport chain, filling gaps in overall transport provision not least for those who do not have access to a car. Local licensing authorities are best placed to consider the role that taxis and PHCs play in public transport and ensure that the licensing system in place is appropriate, takes into account local circumstances and meets the need of local communities.

I refer the member to the answer to questions S6W-35156 and S6W-35159 on 27 February 2025. This information is not held centrally. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.