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Implementation of the reduction of class contact time requires agreement through the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers (SNCT).

The Scottish Government remains committed to reducing class contact time, and we will continue to work with COSLA and the teacher unions, through the SNCT to agree our approach to delivering this important commitment at pace.

Since 2011, the Scottish Government has provided over £65 million to support the development of public EV charging across Scotland. As a direct result of this funding, and increasing private sector investment, Scotland now has over 6,800 public charge points, a target for 6,000 public Charge points was met in October 2024, two years ahead of schedule. Scotland has one of the most comprehensive public charging networks in the UK, with, on a per head of population basis, more rapid public EV charge points than any other part of the UK except the South East of England.

Through our £30 million EV Infrastructure Fund we are continuing to supporting local authorities to work in partnership with the private sector to expand public EV charging across Scotland, with public funding prioritising those areas of Scotland less likely to benefit from stand-alone private sector investment in public EV charging infrastructure, including rural and island communities.

Through the EV Infrastructure Fund, Glasgow City Region, which includes the Greenock and Inverclyde constituency, has been awarded £3.5 million to support the installation over 3,000 additional charge points across the region. Glasgow City Region are now taking forward public procurement to deliver this project.

There has been no investment specifically related to Stranraer waterfront in the current Parliamentary term through Regeneration programmes.

Regeneration has supported a number of projects in Stranraer, including funding for Stranraer Development Trust, within the current parliamentary term.

Following the development of the Stranraer community’s Local Place Plan, the regeneration funding announced in the Scottish Budget will support the delivery of regeneration of the town centre with funding of up to £710k.

A decision on the consultation will be made in due course and after the peer review of the research paper on the role and functions of the Law Officers has concluded. The peer review is expected to conclude next month.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information.

Restorative Justice services can be offered by a wide range of organisations - not only by local authorities - including by third sector or faith-based organisations.

We continue to work in partnership with Community Justice Scotland and the Children and Young People’s Centre for Justice focussing on achieving our vision – to have restorative justice available at a time that is appropriate to the people and case involved; consistent; evidence-led, trauma informed and of a high standard.

Tovorafenib does not currently have a marketing authorisation from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA). Before a company can place a medicine on the market in the UK it has to obtain regulatory approval by submitting data demonstrating the quality, safety and efficacy of the medicine in terms of treating a specified condition. This data is derived from clinical trials. If a marketing authorisation is granted, the Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC) would welcome a submission for tovorafenib. The Scottish Government is aware that there is an international, phase 3 clinical trial looking at tovorafenib for the first line treatment of paediatric low-grade glioma which is open to people who meet the eligibility criteria. It is the responsibility of the clinician in charge of a patient’s care to advise on what treatment options may be available.

From 2025-26 we will align the support we provide for pay uplifts in the hospice sector to the outcomes of the NHS Agenda for Change negotiations. This will ensure that hospices will get the additional funding needed to see their healthcare staff match pay increases with NHS staff.

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 the Chair of the Scottish Hospice Leadership Group to explore mechanisms for providing this funding to hospices, while respecting existing commissioning arrangements with Integration Joint Boards (IJBs).

Officials have recently received further information from hospice colleagues to support this work, and we look forward to engaging further with Scottish hospices once this exploratory work has concluded.

The Scottish Government published a draft palliative care strategy ‘Palliative care matters for all’ on 02 October 2024 for consultation. The consultation closed on 10 January 2025. The responses have now been analysed, and the final version of the strategy and analysis report are due to be published in the summer. The strategy will be published alongside a delivery plan, which will set out our approach to ensuring that everyone who needs it can access timely palliative care and care around dying.

No changes are currently planned to the questions asked in the Scottish National Blood Transfusion Service (SNBTS) donor health check questionnaire as a result of the Supreme Court judgment. However, SNBTS will continue to review its polices in the light of any further guidance issued.

The Scottish Government is grateful to everyone who takes the time to volunteer to give blood. The questionnaire aims to treat all potential donors equitably, but it is essential that all questions are answered fully in order to ensure that blood can be donated safely. Nonetheless, the Scottish Government regrets any upset caused to people who are not able to donate blood as a result of not answering any of the questions in the questionnaire.

SNBTS adjusted the questionnaire in 2022 so that all donors are asked the same questions. In response to some concerns raised, SNBTS further amended the questionnaire in 2023 to make clear that if the question about whether a donor might be pregnant is not applicable then donors should tick ‘No’. Although some questions will not be relevant for many donors – male and female – the questionnaire is the most practical way of asking sensitive questions in a busy donor environment. Staff cannot know or make assumptions in all cases about a person’s biological sex, so the current approach avoids any risk that someone who could be pregnant does not answer the pregnancy question.