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Scottish Ministers are absolutely committed to a publicly owned and operated NHS, and for the people of Scotland to have free and timely access to health services. Our NHS in Scotland makes very limited use of the independent sector for targeted services and to supplement NHS capacity, where necessary.

In 2020-21, use of the independent sector in NHS Scotland represented just 0.5% of the frontline health budget. For NHS England, use of the independent sector was 7%, £12.2 billion, of the English health budget for the same period.

Total spend with independent providers is published annually in NHS Board accounts which are available on each Board’s website. Detail not included in the accounts would require to be requested from Health Boards.

We are committed to publishing a national framework for schools on addressing gender based violence. This work is being delivered by the Gender Based Violence in Schools Working Group who will also review existing resources and develop new resources where needed. We have also established the Gender Equality Taskforce in Education and Learning to identify ways in which systemic gender inequality in education can be eradicated. In accordance with the Bute House Agreement, in September 2021 the Gender Based Violence in Schools Working Group and the Harmful Sexual Behaviour Delivery Group met to consider existing work on addressing gender based violence in education settings and identify any gaps in the current approach. The minutes of this meeting can be found here . The Scottish Government have committed to commissioning an independent review following the completion of the work of both groups, which will consider the impact of the work, establish positive practice, and any further areas for improvement. In addition, we are taking forward a range of actions in schools such as teaching our children and young people about safe and healthy relationships through relationships, sexual health and parenthood education; and funding programmes, such as Mentors in Violence Prevention, aimed at reducing and preventing sexual harassment and violence in schools. Further and Higher Institutions are expected to adopt and adapt the Equally Safe in Higher Education Toolkit, assessing their own policies and practices against the Toolkit.

A new forensic laboratory based at Junction 24 Business Park in Glasgow is being prepared for the handover of the Post Mortem Toxicology Service from the University of Glasgow to Scottish Police Authority (SPA) Forensic Services.

In July 2022, I visited the laboratory which is now fully-fitted out and being set up for the transfer of the service which is due to take place on 1 December 2022.

SPA Forensic Services are also working closely with the University of Glasgow and the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service to ensure continuity of the Post Mortem Toxicology Service throughout this transfer period.

Building on a rich shipbuilding heritage, the future for Scottish shipbuilding, marine engineering and fabrication is very strong. The latest official statistics show Scottish shipbuilding generated £408 million of gross value added in 2019 – a 45% increase from 2018 – and Scotland contributed 19% of the total UK shipbuilding output. The sector supports direct employment of approximately 7,500 highly skilled people in Scotland with many thousands more supported through the supply chain.

The major shipbuilding yards in Rosyth and on the Clyde continue to deliver substantial programmes of work for defence and ferries programmes, whilst a host of smaller facilities throughout Scotland service the ship repair, fabrication, fishing and aquaculture sectors. And, through our ownership of Ferguson Marine, Scottish Ministers are working to ensure the Port Glasgow yard has a secure and sustainable future.

The broader Scottish marine engineering sector continues to service offshore oil and gas markets both in the North Sea and across the globe, while the sector gears up for the truly transformational opportunities that will come through ScotWind – the world’s largest commercial round for floating offshore wind – putting Scotland at the forefront of offshore wind development globally.

Lease agreements with all 17 successful ScotWind applicants have now been signed and we welcome the commitment of developers to invest an average projection of £1.5 billion in Scotland per project, equating to more than £25 billion across all projects. Through these initial awards, ScotWind will not only deliver c.£700 million in revenues to the public purse, but also wider economic supply chain benefits to help power Scotland’s green recovery in communities across Scotland.

The Scottish Government has also committed to invest £580 million over 5 years in vessels and ports, as part of our Infrastructure Investment Plan. This substantial funding will improve Scotland’s ferry services by delivering greater resilience to the network and will allow a wider range of vessels to be used. The Islands Connectivity Plan (ICP) will replace the current Ferries Plan from January 2023 and, as part of the ICP, we will produce and maintain a long-term plan and investment programme for new ferries and development at ports.

The following table provides an overview of P1 learners who have undertaken (a) one or (b) both parts of the Scottish National Standardised Assessments since 20 September 2018, broken down by (i) school year and (ii) local authority.

Please note that figures less than five have been suppressed to prevent the potential identification of individuals.

The row "n/a" denotes publicly-funded schools outwith local authority control.

Table 1 - Number of P1 Children undertaking SNSA since 20 September 2018 - by year and local authority

This information is not held centrally.

The Roads (Scotland) Act 1984 places statutory responsibility for local roads, including structures, improvements, maintenance and repair with local roads authorities. As such it is the responsibility of the local authority to determine how best to meet its duties on local roads in their respective areas including the format of public reporting and no formal guidance is issued on this matter.

The recruitment and deployment of Police Officers is a matter for the Chief Constable, who along with the Scottish Police Authority, will continue to ensure the capability and capacity of Police Scotland to improve the safety and wellbeing of people, places and communities in Scotland.

We currently have 31 officers per 10,000 population in Scotland compared to around 24 in England and Wales and despite constraints on Scotland’s public services through a decade of UK austerity, policing services have been maintained and improved.

On 2 August the HMICS published its Assurance Review of Police Scotland’s Strategic Workforce Plan and I look forward to discussing the recommendations with both Police Scotland and the Scottish Police Authority.

Scottish Ministers cannot commission the Migration Advisory Committee (MAC) to consider changes to the Shortage Occupation List (SOL).

The Scottish Government responded to recent reviews of the SOL with detailed evidence on labour market shortages and how the SOL could more suitably meet Scotland’s distinct needs. We also provided evidence calling for the permanent addition of social care roles to the SOL with key roles subsequently added to the List as per the MAC’s recommendation.

Scotland has distinct population challenges, the January NRS population projections reinforce the need for a migration policy tailored to our needs. We remain dependant on a UK Government immigration system that fails to address Scotland’s distinct demographic, labour market and economic challenges. We need a responsive system that allows us to decide how to accommodate our distinct labour market needs.

Given the changes to the UK immigration system, the role of the SOL must be reviewed so that there is clarity as to its purpose and benefits. The Scottish Government must also be given a formal role in determining occupational shortages in Scotland.

Transport Scotland are continuing to consult with local authorities and others to develop both the secondary legislation required to allow them to enforce the National pavement parking prohibition and the Parking Standards Guidance, which will underpin the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019.

Additionally we have been consulting with the public on some areas contained within secondary legislation where local authorities will need to undertake an assessment to consider whether they wish to exempt, subject to certain criteria, any areas of pavement from the prohibition. The analysis report of the responses to this consultation, which closed on 11 March, is available to view at https://consult.gov.scot/transport-scotland/scotlands-pavement-parking-prohibitions/ .
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As such, the majority of the secondary legislation is likely to be in place by late 2022, including those giving local authorities the powers to exempt sections of pavement. We have always stated that we will give local authorities 12 months to assess their streets and get the required signs and lines in place following the completion of those exemption regulations.

Some other aspects of the implementation process, such as the powers to issue Penalty Charge Notices and a drivers right to appeal such a notice, will not be in place until early in December 2023.