Seòmar agus comataidhean

National Records of Scotland publish a wide range of statistical data with regards to population and migration in Scotland.

Skills Development Scotland publish annual Regional Skills Assessments (RSAs), which provide detailed information on regional labour markets. The latest RSA for the South of Scotland region was published in October 2025. The data included in these publications, including Oxford Economics forecast data, is the most up-to-date available at the time of writing. Forecasts are provided by sector, occupation and for the medium and longer term up to 2035.

rsa-college-region-report-scottish-borders.pdf

rsa-college-region-report-dumfries-and-galloway.pdf

rsa-college-region-report-south-of-scotland.pdf

The Scottish Government do not hold the information being requested. Building owners or those responsible for its management have the responsibility for maintenance and repair, including as a consequence of storm damage.

The Home Office is leading the cross-government Emergency Services Mobile Communications Programme (ESMCP) to deliver the new Emergency Services Network (ESN) critical communications system, in which the Scottish Government is a Funding Sponsor Body.

In addition to funding the Scottish share of the programme, the Scottish Government is responsible for working in partnership with the Home Office and the Scottish emergency services to ensure that ESN meets their operational needs, and that the network coverage is at least as good as Airwave, the existing communications system. In addition, the Scottish Government provides funding directly to the Scottish emergency services to support and de-risk their transition to ESN.

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

The healthcare provisions within Scottish Prisons have been the responsibility of NHS since 2011, this includes but is not limited to, the delivery of Alcohol and Drug services and all clinical assessments used to develop individual care plans or referrals. SPS are therefore unable to provide the information required.

The regulatory regimes for offshore oil and gas licensing and consenting are matters currently reserved to the UK Government. The Scottish Government continues to call on the UK Government to approach decisions for North Sea oil and gas projects on a rigorously evidence-led, case by case, basis – with climate compatibility and energy security as key considerations.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-36263 on 22 April 2025. 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.

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

The Scottish Prison Service does not record instances of drug misuse. Included in the following table are incidents of Drug Possession:

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

Scottish Water Horizons drives sustainable growth by leveraging expertise and market position to maximise commercial, reputational, and carbon benefits. They support Scottish Water's strategic ambitions, contributing to Scotland’s prosperity by creating value from Scottish Water assets. Some examples include:

• Renewable energy (Solar, Hydroelectric, Wind) including large-scale battery energy storage schemes, which utilises Scottish Water’s land base.
• Heat recovery from sewers to help Scottish Water and other public sector organisations (e.g. NHS, Academia) to decarbonise their estate.
• Facilitating and delivering off site infrastructure (pipes & sewers) for Housing Developers.
• Commercial waste management, supporting business customers to dispose of their waste ethically via Scottish Water’s wastewater assets.

Scottish Water is not currently planning or exploring selling water for use in England as the bulk export of water is extremely expensive in terms of carbon and energy use. Additionally, climate change means that the availability of water in Scotland is changing, with periods of drought becoming more frequent and more prolonged as experienced in summer 2025. It is therefore important that water resources are managed carefully and more efficiently. As Scottish Water’s Long term strategy has noted, given the impacts of climate change, population growth and migration, the East of Scotland will face serious water deficits by 2050.

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

The healthcare provisions within Scottish Prisons have been the responsibility of NHS since 2011, this includes but is not limited to, the delivery of Alcohol and Drug services and all clinical assessments used to develop individual care plans or referrals. SPS are therefore unable to provide the information required.

SPS do however work collaboratively with key partners such as NHS, Scottish Drugs Forum, Crew 2000 and Scottish Recovery Consortium to enhance and develop approaches to deliver consistent recovery pathways that support integration back into our communities.

Furthermore, NHS and SPS Staff continue to work together to promote and support access to the Prison to Rehab Pathway, ensuring that people in our care are aware of innovative projects and structured programmes designed to support them on their recovery journey.

As part of our £85 million commitment to the Borderlands Inclusive Growth Deal, Scottish Government will invest up to £7 million in developing skills in the South of Scotland. The project will work with regional partners to respond to the identified future skills and knowledge exchange needs.

Our enterprise agencies play a key role in promoting economic and business growth and supporting capital investment in Scotland’s places and industries of the future. They also work closely with partners to resolve issues which can present a barrier to business growth, such as skills and training, transport and local housing provision, helping businesses expand, remain in their local area and employ more people. Last year (2024-25) South of Scotland Enterprise invested £12.5 million in business and community enterprises, supporting 377 full-time equivalent jobs and leveraging £23.5m of funding for the region.