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The regulation of consumer protection is reserved to the UK Government therefore the Scottish Government cannot take all the action it would like to do in this area. However, we recognise the importance of consumers being confident that any work carried out is done to a high standard.

On the matter of advice, we encourage anyone considering energy efficiency upgrades to seek expert advice from trusted sources, such as the Scottish Government’s Home Energy Scotland service. We also fund support for consumers who have such concerns in the form of a Scotland-specific consumer advice service that provides clear, practical advice on all consumer issues, including scams prevention. Anyone seeking this kind of help should contact Advice Direct Scotland at https://consumeradvice.scot/ and also on 0808 164 6000.

Using installers such as TrustMark registered businesses is a requirement of accessing Scottish Government funding for energy efficiency work. By adopting these standards for our own schemes we hope to encourage a greater level of skills and competence in the industry more generally and foster a more secure sector that householders can be confident in regardless of how their work is funded.

The UK Government’s role extends to the ability to legislate in ways that can provide increasing protection for consumers against scams of all kinds, and which it would be expected to review in the face or emergence of specific instances or patterns which require a distinct or additional approach.

As set out in the draft Scottish Government budget, the capital funding position is extremely challenging due to the UK Government’s decision to cut our capital budget by nearly 10%.

The capital budget settlement allows for Health Boards’ delegated capital budgets to be maintained at 23-24 levels, for all major projects in construction to be completed and for continued support for the national replacement programmes for ambulances and radiotherapy equipment. Given the current uncertainty regarding availability of funding, regrettably, we have advised boards to pause any new capital projects until capital funding becomes more certain.

Our Infrastructure Investment Plan identified priority health capital projects for funding within that period. As a result of UK Government cuts, we will bring forward a revised Infrastructure Investment Plan in the spring. All due consideration will be given to what projects can be included to ensure the revised Plan is affordable and deliverable.

The Scottish Government received approximately £8.5 million in consequentials from this Spring Statement announcement. Consequential funding is not ring-fenced and Scottish Ministers decide how to allocate this funding. These consequentials were used to support Scotland’s overall 2023-24 budget position.

Scotland is delivering against a backdrop of continued austerity at Westminster, catastrophic cuts to Scotland’s block grant and a UK Government Autumn Statement that was the worst-case scenario for Scotland. Our Barnett funding – which is driven by UK spending choices – has fallen by 1.2% in real terms since the 2022-23 budget was presented. Nor did the UK Government inflation-proof their Capital Budget, which has resulted in nearly a 10% real terms fall in our UK capital funding over the medium term.

The Scottish Government has not provided any funding to Lochaber Sensory Care from 2019 to present.

The Scottish Government has not provided any funding to Hayfield Limited from 2019 to present.

The Scottish Government is considering using the proposals for a Heat In Buildings Bill (as set out in consultation document “Delivering Net Zero for Scotland’s Buildings: Changing the way we heat our homes and buildings”, published November 2023) to make two potential changes to the Heat Networks (Scotland) Act 2021. Both potential changes arise from the need to harmonise our heat networks legislation with the recently-passed UK Energy Act 2023. These potential amendments are:

• To align our 2021 Act’s definitions of ‘supplier’ and ‘operator’ with those of the UK Energy Act 2023. Given that Ofgem will be acting as both the UK authorisation authority and Scottish licensing authority, it will be beneficial to the regulator and industry alike to have aligned definitions. This will foster a more streamlined application and determination process.
• To modify Part 7 of the 2021 Act, in order to take into account the ‘step-in’ and ‘supplier of last resort’ provisions of the UK Energy Act 2023. It may be necessary to remove similar Scottish provisions in this area (‘register of key network assets’ and a ‘transfer scheme’) in order to avoid duplication and potential confusion for market participants.

During the consultation process, additional potential amendments may be identified.

Figures regarding the demographic of the social care workforce are published annually in the Scottish Social Services Council Workforce Report.

The Scottish Government has a long-standing commitment to the principles of Fair-Work as we recognise and value the work that the social care sector do.

We are committed to lifting standards for adult social care workers and for those people who are in receipt of care, which is why we have increased spending within the sector.

The £12 minimum pay-rate from April 2024 for Adult Social Care workers represents a 14.3% increase for these workers in the last two years; with pay rising from at least £10.50 per hour in April 2022.

We have continued to progress a number of key projects to take forward and improve Fair Work principles, which will not only improve the current experience of the workforce, but also help to attract and retain new staff into the workforce.

The Scottish Government invested £1.7 billion in social care support and health and care integration in 2023-24, and the Scottish budget for 2024-25 provides and additional £2 billion investment in social care and integration. This delivers on our commitment to increase spending by 25% over this parliament – two years ahead of our original target.

Whilst the Scottish Government has overall responsibility for health and social care support policy, local authorities and health and social care partnerships are responsible for commissioning appropriate services for local and individual needs.

We have protected and prioritised additional investment into social care despite the extreme pressure the Scottish Government is under as a result of the ongoing impacts of Covid, Brexit and inflation, and UK Government spending decisions, this years Budget has managed to increase the social care and integration budget by over £1 billion compared to 2021-22, exceeding our commitment to increase funding for social care by 25% over the life of the Parliament.

Social care workers delivering direct care in commissioned services will see their pay increase to a minimum of £12 per hour from April 2024 thanks to an additional £230 million investment. This represents a 10.1% increase from the £10.90 minimum rate that was introduced in April 2023, and a 14.3% increase in the last two years.

We acknowledge the importance of social care as an investment in the health of the Scottish population, this is why we continue to work closely with Health and Social Care Partnerships to support people out of acute settings and back into the community or home as quickly as possible using a 'Home first' approach.