Seòmar agus comataidhean

Funding decisions will be set out in the 2023-24 Scottish Budget later this year.

Our Internationalisation Plans take an evidence-led approach to trade and investment policy and delivery, focusing on those sectors and opportunities where Scotland strengths align to global trends in trade and investment. All of our plans were developed in collaboration with our key delivery partners including Scotland's enterprise and skills agencies. Implementation of the Plans align our priorities around trade and investment with those countries and markets where Scotland already does well, but could perform better. This evidence base enables Scottish Development International, on behalf of the enterprise agencies and Scottish Government, to align their resources, including international offices and specialist staff.

For details of the specifics in this question, I have asked Scottish Enterprise to write to you directly with the information you seek.

Prior to public ownership, CMAL paid a total of £83.25m split between £82.5m contract milestone payments and an additional contract variation of £0.75m to Ferguson Marine Engineering Limited.

The current budget to complete both vessels remains £123 million, as set out in the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy’s update to Parliament on 23 March 2022.

The CEO of Ferguson Marine wrote to the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee, on the delivery timetable and budget for vessels 801 and 802 on 28 September 2022. In his letter he forecast the costs in public ownership not to exceed £101 million for 801 and £108.6 million for 802. This includes a provision for warranty estimated at £3.5 million per vessel.

Our priority now is to undertake our own due diligence and this will be supported by external, independent financial advisors to ensure that a rigorous approach is taken to scrutinising this request for additional funding. This work is at an early stage. No decision has yet been made and will not be until this scrutiny has been completed.

The R100 contracts set out which premises Openreach will deliver to. Openreach has no flexibility to remove premises from contractual build without prior agreement from Scottish Government. To date, no premises have been removed from the R100 contracts.

Prior to contracts being awarded, commercial broadband infrastructure providers were invited to share details of their existing and planned build through an Open Market Review. The responses to this were then tested through a Public Review to ensure that only premises which were not in commercial build plans would be eligible for the build through the R100 contracts.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-09994 on 16 August 2022. 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 Scottish Government recognises the impact that eating disorders can have on people's lives. Questions on eating disorders will be considered, alongside other requests for new questions submitted as part of the recent review of the Scottish Health Survey content , for possible inclusion in the survey from 2024, if some existing questions can be removed. A report will be published by summer 2023 detailing the findings of the review and decisions on the survey content going forwards.

£25m digital inclusion funding was made available by Scottish Government in 2020-21 for local authorities to use to support learners, in line with their own local needs. This funding supported the provision of 14,000 internet connections and 72,000 tablets or laptops for learners across all local authorities. This included 2,905 devices in West Lothian.

A number of local authorities have also invested their own funding in technology and have distributed connections and devices to learners in line with their own digital strategies.

This is a complex and ambitious commitment, and we are currently undertaking preparatory work, including looking in detail at the available infrastructure in schools. We continue to work with local authorities on plans to ensure every school-aged child has access to a device and connectivity by the end of this parliamentary term.

I know that many consumers in rural and remote areas of Scotland, already facing higher living costs rely upon heating oil to heat their homes.

I am very disappointed at the inadequate support announced by the UK Government for users of these fuels, especially since the additional £100 offered does not come close to the increases in heating oil and LPG costs seen in recent months.

We have raised these concerns directly with the UK Government, and will continue to do so.

We know that households using prepayment meters are at particular risk of self-rationing and self-disconnection this winter.

While many of the powers in relation to price setting in the energy market remain with the UK Government, the Scottish Government is using all of its available powers to help these vulnerable consumers. The Emergency Budget Review will extend our Fuel Insecurity Fund through 2022-23, making available a further £10million to Third Sector Organisations to support those facing fuel insecurity. We have also provided an additional £1.2million to advice services across Scotland to enhance support available to those seeking advice on paying their bills and energy efficiency.

Sampling was carried out in the Chemical Investigation Programme 2 (CIP2) Scotland in areas of high density and low dilution wastewater treatment works (WwTW) at inland watercourses to identify WwTW at the greatest risk of non-compliance with the Priority Substance Directive. A selection of WwTW were chosen to represent influent, effluent, upstream and downstream of WwTW in order to keep the cost of testing the extensive suite of substances affordable. CIP2 Scotland consisted of over 160,000 results.

Aberdeen City, Dundee City, East & West Dunbartonshire and East Renfrewshire are served by WwTW that discharge to coastal waters rather than inland waters. In CIP3 Scotland, sampling is being carried out at WwTW which discharge to coastal & transitional waters. Sampling is being carried out from Dalmuir & Ardoch WwTW which serve East & West Dunbartonshire and Shieldhall WwTW which serves East Renfrewshire and Renfrewshire.