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The Scottish Government has already provided reassurances to independent hospices that the funding will be allocated as soon as practically possible, based on the analysis of financial data provided by the hospices.

As this is an operational matter for Scottish Water, I have asked them to respond. Their reply is as follows:

Scottish Water has already installed 1,000 event duration monitors to meet the commitment set out within its Improving Urban Waters Routemap. Scottish Water plans to go beyond this commitment and install a further 700 this year, aiming to cover around 50% of overflows. Scottish Water has installed 135 of these further monitors in 2025.

The Scottish budget for 2025-26 includes £5 million of investment to support independent hospices to provide pay parity with NHS levels. Officials are working with a variety of colleagues across the health directorates to explore mechanisms for providing this funding to hospices, while respecting existing commissioning arrangements with Integration Joint Boards (IJBs).

Scottish Government officials continue to consider the issue of ownership at Tarbolton Moss, engaging with partners, including South Ayrshire Council and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA).

There are provisions in the Pollution Prevention and Control (Scotland) Regulations 2012 and the Landfill (Scotland) Regulations 2003 to require companies to make adequate financial provisions for landfill aftercare, and this requirement will also be included in the Environmental Authorisations (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2025. However, in the case of Tarbolton Moss the company was dissolved without any such funds remaining.

Officials continue to work with SEPA to understand how this occurred to ensure that the risk for similar future scenarios is minimised.

Furthermore, to minimise risk of further site abandonment, we continue to work closely with local authorities and commercial operators to examine challenges faced before the commencement of the ban on landfilling biodegradable municipal waste on 31 December 2025.

The Scottish Government does not set targets for the number of breeding cattle or sheep in Scotland. Livestock numbers are primarily driven by market conditions and individual business decisions.

However, we are committed to supporting a resilient and sustainable livestock sector. This includes continued investment in schemes such as the Scottish Suckler Beef Support Scheme, which provides £40 million annually to support beef producers and encourage improvements in herd efficiency, and the Scottish Upland Sheep Support Scheme to provide support to breeding hill flocks.

We also provide broader direct support to sheep and cattle producers through the Basic Payment Scheme and Less Favoured Areas Support Scheme payments – in stark contrast to the UK Government approach.

Through our Vision for Agriculture and ongoing reform programme, we will continue to work with farmers and crofters to ensure future support enables productive, sustainable farming.

We remain concerned that recent UK trade deals, agreed without meaningful consultation with the Scottish Government, risk undermining domestic livestock production by allowing imports produced to lower environmental and welfare standards—potentially increasing global emissions and undercutting Scotland’s high-quality producers.

The Scottish Government strongly supports the production of accurate statistics, based on the transparent recording of information. In terms of crime-related Official statistics in Scotland, it is a matter for relevant public bodies that collect information on sex to establish the best approach in their individual institutional settings. For all Official statistics, producers are required to follow the Code of Practice for Statistics, which states that organisations should commit to releasing their statistics in an open and transparent manner that promotes confidence. In 2021, the Office of the Chief Statistician published guidance on the collection of data on sex and gender for public bodies in Scotland. This guidance recommends that statistics producers should collect and publish data that best serves the needs of users in their specific context, an approach that aligns with the guidance published by the Office for Statistics Regulation in 2024. The Scottish Government has committed to reviewing its guidance on collecting data on sex and gender by the end of 2026 as part of the Non-Binary Equality Action Plan.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6O-04747 on 4 June 2025 which is available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/official-report/search-what-was-said-in-parliament.

The Scottish Government is not planning to review ovarian cancer surgery provision nationally at this time as we see improvements following positive action taken by regional cancer networks and NHS Boards. The Scottish Government continues to monitor the improvement activities and support progress in improving overall care for patients experiencing ovarian cancer.

According to the most recent published data (October-December 2024), 98.4% of women are receiving their first treatment for ovarian cancer within 31 days of a decision to treat. The maximum wait during this quarter was 43 days, a decrease from 90 days in the same quarter in 2023. This includes a range of treatments, such as surgery.

I will be meeting with NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde board members and clinicians in September to seek further clarity in terms of progress they have made. Officials continue to seek regular updates from all the regional cancer networks on the improvement work being undertaken.

Formal multidisciplinary processes have been established for second opinions regarding treatment between the regional cancer centres, when required. Boards can explore the option of referral to other boards to facilitate earlier surgical dates where they feel clinically necessary.

The recording of sex or gender in crime reporting and case management is an operational matter for Police Scotland. The Scottish Government expect Police Scotland to ensure its recording practices are compliant with legal obligations and support accurate, consistent data collection. The Scottish Government also recognises the importance of public confidence in how sensitive crimes are recorded and investigated. Police Scotland is currently undertaking a review of their recording and use of data relating to sex and gender.