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We are aware of local authority interest in Compulsory Sales Orders and continue to work with them to explore the justification for, and potential practical operation of this tool. In the meantime, Compulsory Purchase Order powers are available, and are being well utilised to return empty homes into use. We have committed to progress work to reform and modernise Compulsory Purchase Orders, starting with the appointment of an expert advisory group in 2023-24.

Responsibility for policy on oil and gas exploration and production is a reserved matter and sits with the UK Government.

The Scottish Government continues to call for the climate compatibility checkpoint to be strengthened and to seek a four nation approach to developing climate compatibility tests, and is disappointed that the UK Government has again made announcements without consulting the devolved Governments.

The Scottish Government has made our position clear, we are committed to a just transition for Scotland's energy sector. Our focus, as outlined in the draft Strategy, must be meeting our energy security needs, reducing emissions and ensuring a just transition for our oil and gas workforce as North Sea resources decline.

We are already investing in the transition, through the Just Transition Fund and Energy Transition Fund, over half a billion pounds (£575m) to support a just transition. We will take the workers with us on our journey to net zero. We won’t do what Margaret Thatcher did to our mining and steel communities, where workers were discarded without hope.

A key commitment in our Diabetes Improvement Plan is to further increase access to existing and emerging technologies which can significantly benefit people with Type 1 diabetes and improve their quality of life. We do, however, understand that there are still some barriers to achieving equitable access across Scotland.

To tackle this, we have recently invested £350,000 through the Accelerated National Innovation Adoption (ANIA) pathway, to test new models of care and accelerate the distribution of existing technologies. We also continue to work closely with local Managed Clinical Networks (MCNs) to address any concerns around the distribution.

We will continue to actively engage with the diabetes community and those living with Type 1 diabetes to better understand the barriers they face, while also working with suppliers, NHS services and wider industry partners to increase access to technologies in the near future.

The enforcement of drinking water standards for private supplies, as set out in the Water Intended for Human Consumption (Private Supply) (Scotland) Regulations 2017 and The Private Water Supply Regulations (Scotland) 2006, is a matter for local authorities. Compliance with the standards is reported annually in the Drinking Water Quality Regulator’s annual report, available at Annual Report (dwqr.scot) .

The draft route map to achieving a 20% reduction in car km by 2030, published in January 2022, outlines over 30 interventions across all parts of government to support people reduce their reliance on cars for a fairer, safer, and greener Scotland. The route map is designed to be as inclusive as possible for disabled people’s mobility and access needs, but it recognises that there will be some who cannot reduce their car use, or for whom it will be more challenging.

Just transition considerations run through the route map and reducing the volume of private vehicles on the road can have a number of wider benefits, including helping to create space and improve journey times for those where travel is more car-dependent, such as blue badge holders, buses, the emergency services and freight. Supported by the Transport Just Transition Discussion Paper , published in June 2023, engagement is being undertaken over the Summer, including with disabled people, to co-design the forthcoming draft Transport Just Transition Plan, embedding evidence of protected groups in order to tackle existing inequalities.

I further refer the member to the answer to questions S6O-02079 on 29 March 2023 and S6W-20314 on 28 August 2023.

The answer to the Oral question can be found on the official report and the link can be accessed here: Meeting of the Parliament: 29/03/2023 | Scottish Parliament Website

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 £28 million fund has been launched for England and Wales only. The Scottish Government is not expecting any new Barnett consequential funding. We remain committed to preventing and tackling hate crime, including religiously motivated hate crime. The Scottish Government’s recently published Hate Crime Strategy makes a number of commitments including continued investment in raising awareness, improved support for victims and increased efforts in prevention.

We continue to work with Police Scotland and others to safeguard all communities and potentially vulnerable people and sites. We would encourage organisations with concerns about their security or the safety of their members to contact Police Scotland.

The Scottish Government is clear that unlimited extraction of fossil fuels is not consistent with our climate commitments. That is why we are calling for a robust and transparent climate compatibility test to be applied to all new developments.

The Scottish Government has made our position clear, we are committed to a just transition for Scotland's energy sector. Our focus, as outlined in the draft Strategy, must be meeting our energy security needs, reducing emissions and ensuring a just transition for our oil and gas workforce as North Sea resources decline.

I met with the UK Government’s Minister of State for Media, Tourism and Creative Industries on 13 June 2023, to discuss the imminent publication of the UK Department for Culture, Media and Sport’s Creative Industries Sector Vision.

The UK Government have not confirmed if there will be any Barnett consequentials as a consequence of their announcement.

The Scottish Government places great importance on sport and leisure facilities, they are vital in supporting the physical and mental health of the nation. The Scottish Swimming Facilities Project will help accurately understand the current swimming pool provision, life cycle and predict the landscape in the short, medium, and long term.

The project has three phases:

1. Provide a high-level update on change since the Ticking Time Bomb report was produced in 2001. That report reviewed Scotland’s public swimming pools and the costs associated with maintenance, upgrades, and refurbishment. This new work will provide an update from the 2001 report, with a focus on the age, condition, numbers, categories, and locations of pools.

2. Provide good practice guidance on creating a more economically and environmentally sustainable swimming pool estate. This will consider energy consumption, operational costs, refurbishment, replacement, and adaptations in relation to both new and existing pools. It will also provide guidance on the development and operation of school swimming pools for community access.

3. Work with pilot local authority areas to implement the guidance developed in phase two, to demonstrate the future sustainability of the swimming estate.

In March 2023, Scottish Swimming appointed OLM Consulting to undertake this work. The work is well underway, and we expect Scottish Swimming to publish the results of phases one and two in the coming months.

Ensuring healthcare professionals have the appropriate knowledge and understanding to provide care to the required standard remains the responsibility of local NHS Boards.

To monitor the provision of education within stroke services, the Scottish Stroke Improvement Programme reviews ask NHS Boards to demonstrate how they are actively upskilling and maintaining the knowledge of their stroke workforce. The criteria for demonstrating the development of a skilled and knowledgeable stroke workforce have been expanded, based on recommendations made in the Progressive Stroke Pathway. The full criteria can be found in Annex A of the Stroke Improvement Plan at: Stroke Improvement Plan .