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Whilst the Office of Tax Simplification (OTS) is a UK Government body, many of the taxes within its remit apply across the whole of the UK, including Scotland. The OTS provides an independent and objective perspective on taxes such as Inheritance Tax and Capital Gains Tax, which apply in Scotland and are widely considered to be complex and in need of reform.

One of the principles of good tax policy making set out in the Scottish Government's Framework for Tax is ‘convenience’, which states that "tax policy should be as simple, clear and straightforward as possible and opportunities to streamline the tax system should be taken where they arise." The UK Government's decision to close the OTS contrasts with this principle and the Scottish Government's approach to tax policy. The closure was announced without consultation or notice and has led to bodies such as the Chartered Institute of Taxation to call for the decision to be reversed – a call the Scottish Government agrees with.

This information is not held centrally; it is a matter for the individual Health Boards.

AposHealth for osteoarthritis of the knee is being reviewed by the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence (NICE) and their draft guidance on AposHealth is currently out for consultation, with an expected publication date of March 2023.

Although NICE medical technology guidance does not have official status in Scotland, the Scottish Government is awaiting publication of the NICE guidance before deciding next steps.

The Scottish Government are aware that living with chronic pain and painful musculoskeletal conditions can be extremely challenging and debilitating, which is why we are committed to ensuring people experiencing chronic pain can access appropriate support, when they need it.

The Scottish Government’s Framework for Pain Management Service Delivery – Implementation Plan was published in July 2022 and sets out the Actions we will take to improve the quality and coordination of care for people with chronic pain. We want people living with chronic pain to take control of their condition to improve their quality of life and be more empowered to participate in decisions on their care.

The R100 contracts are far surpassing our superfast commitment by delivering gigabit capable infrastructure right across rural Scotland. Delivering this connectivity to rural communities requires the construction of new spine infrastructure, comprising many miles of new ducts and cables which link back through distribution points and exchanges into a core network.

This is a huge civil engineering undertaking that takes time but will ensure a resilient, future-proofed network for decades to come. Once contract build is completed, we expect over 114,000 premises to be connected with 12,000 of those located in island communities. A number of key areas were mandated as part of the bidding process for the R100 contracts, this included the Uig/Timsgarry area.

Expenditure on clinical and associated travel costs arising from mesh removal surgery undertaken by the independent providers will be incurred following receipt of invoices from the contracted providers and travel agency. Separately, administrative costs have arisen in the NHS from the process of referring patients to the providers in question, however it is not possible at present to break these down in the manner requested.

The costs for maintenance of the swimming pool at the Scottish Government's Victoria Quay property in each of the last five financial years is:

2018-2019 - £31,365 - inclusive of Facilities Management planned preventative maintenance costs and sub-contractor specialist costs.

2019-2020 - £31,365 - as above.

2020-2021 - £30,345 - pool closed to staff for part of the year due to COVID and ppm maintenance reduced.

2021-2022 - £26,945 - pool closed for entire year and ppm maintenance reduced.

2022-2023 - £20,862 - pool closed for entire year and maintenance paid to date in the current financial year.

There are no lifeguards employed.

Bullying, harassment and unacceptable behaviour of any form cannot be tolerated within society or within policing, and there must be trust in how matters are handled if things go wrong. This includes having robust, clear and transparent mechanisms in place to investigate complaints, misconduct or other issues of concern.

Protecting public confidence in policing in Scotland is fundamental to a healthy democratic society. That is why the Scottish Government commissioned and subsequently accepted the majority of the recommendations from Dame Elish Angiolini’s Independent Review, and outlined its commitment to introduce a Police Complaints and Misconduct Handling Bill later this parliamentary year.

The introduction of this Bill will provide greater transparency around the police complaints process, the standards we expect from officers and further strengthen public confidence in policing. It will build on the improvement work already delivered which includes a new operating model for complaint handling within Police Scotland and the establishment of a Strategic Oversight Board to mainstream equality, diversity and inclusion. This further underlines that unacceptable behaviour will not be tolerated in policing in Scotland.

The Lady Dorrian Review Governance Group has met on six occasions since it was established in December 2021 facilitating cross justice sector consideration of the Review's recommendations. The Governance Group established four working groups to conduct detailed consideration of a number of recommendations made by the Review. Three of the working groups have now concluded and their findings have been considered and endorsed by the Governance Group. The findings and recommendations of those working groups will be published in December 2022.

The independent analysis of responses to the consultation on improving victims' experiences of the justice system was published on 12 December 2022. The report can be accessed at https://www.gov.scot/isbn/9781805253235 .

Responses to the consultation, where permission to publish them has been given, can be accessed at Improving victims' experiences of the justice system: consultation - Scottish Government - Citizen Space .