Seòmar agus comataidhean

The number of Special Advisers as at 26 May 2021, broken down by pay band, is set out in the answer to S6W-00255 on 23 August 2021. One further Special Adviser was appointed on 27 September 2021 taking the current total to 16.

For the period 1999-2000 to 2002-03 the available data is:

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-02466 on 28 September 2021. 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

From March 2020 to 25 August 2021, the Scottish Government has received 26 offers from MSPs (25), MPs (0) and councillors (1) on behalf of a company offering assistance with the making and supply of PPE. Of these offers, 20 were made on behalf of named companies and 6 were speculative contacts that did not name a specific company.

The Scottish Government did not enter into a contract or arrangement for the supply of the equipment with any of these companies.

Further information on the companies which have supplied the Scottish Government with PPE and hand sanitiser since 2020 is detailed in the linked Parliamentary Question, S6W-02212 on 31 August 2021.

From the outset of the Covid-19 pandemic, the Scottish Government has worked with the NHS, and on a four-nation basis to ensure Scotland has adequate supplies of PPE. At no point during the pandemic did Scotland run out of PPE, and our robust stocks allowed us to provide PPE in mutual aid to other parts of the UK during the first wave. PPE supply is now stable, as it has been since summer 2020, and Scotland currently has 4 months’ worth of PPE stockpiled and approved for medical use

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

Professor Ken Muir has been appointed as an independent advisor on education reform and formally started work on 2 August 2021, and is expected to take around 6 months to conclude.

Professor Muir’s work will include designing the implementation of the OECD’s recommendations for structural change of the SQA and Education Scotland, including delivery of the national curriculum, assessment, qualification and inspection functions. This will include consideration of the role, remit and purpose of both the SQA and Education Scotland, their functions and governance arrangements.

Professor Muir is expected to conclude work and report recommendations to Scottish Government early 2022 and we will seek to publish Professor Muir’s findings as soon as practically possible.

Updates on Professor Muir's work will be provided via https://www.gov.scot/policies/schools/education-reform/

Scottish Government is aware of the Burgenland pilot project which has been underway since 2019. We understand that 250 relatives providing care for family members have participated in the pilot in a population of 20,000 people in receipt of care allowance. We are also aware that the model will be evaluated over the coming months.

The Social Care (Self-directed Support) (Scotland) Act 2013 outlines that individuals who choose to employ a Personal Assistant may employ family members where this is deemed appropriate, under certain circumstances. Joint COSLA and Scottish Government Covid-19 Self-directed Support guidance currently advises that consideration to employ family members on a temporary basis should be given, particularly if family members lose income as a result of taking on a caring role during the pandemic period.

The guidance is available on the Scottish Government website and is currently being updated: https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-guidance-on-self-directed-support/

Our priority is keeping children, young people and school staff safe. The COVID-19 Advisory Sub-Group on Education and Children’s issues keeps the mitigations in schools and ELC settings under constant review. It considered the issue of parental attendance at school sporting events at its meeting on 21 September. Scottish Ministers are considering the sub-group's advice on this and other issues, and will announce the outcome as soon as possible.

As previous Scottish administrations have done in the past, we are committed to enhancing our external reach and voice. Our new offices in Copenhagen and Warsaw will promote Scotland’s interests and expertise in the Nordic and Central European regions, attracting investment and supporting the exchange of knowledge and best practice. We will set out the costs of the Copenhagen office in due course but would expect them to be broadly in line with those of several other existing offices. It is too early in the planning process to provide an estimated cost for the Warsaw office.

The Scottish Government is committed to minimising the carbon emissions impact of all City Region Growth Deals, including the assessment of their contribution to the achievement of the national net zero target. All City Region Growth Deal projects must follow Green Book guidance by quantifying their whole life carbon emissions impact and incorporating this value into the economic case. This is an ongoing and proactive carbon management process, facilitated by the City Region Growth Deals Sustainable Development Manager.

The Biodiversity Intactness Index focuses on nature in the past, reflecting the many pressures in the past over which we now have no control. I am pleased to say that of the four UK nations, Scotland is highest in the list. However, our Statement of Intent on biodiversity published in December 2020 acknowledges that more needs to be done and sets out our ambition and our commitment to tackling the twin crises of climate change and biodiversity loss.

We have made a commitment to produce a new Scottish biodiversity strategy within a year of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) Conference of Parties (COP15), to be held in October 2021 in Kunming, China. A delivery plan will follow, to be developed in conjunction with NatureScot. These will set out our proposals for delivering the step change in our action to address biodiversity loss which is required.

Through the ground-breaking agreement between the Scottish Government and the Scottish Green Party, we have committed to introduce a new Environment Bill which will include targets for nature restoration that cover land and sea based on an overarching goal of preventing any further extinctions of wildlife and halting declines by 2030, and making significant progress in restoring Scotland’s natural environment by 2045.

The Statement of Intent has already made several other key announcements, including:

• an ambitious commitment to protect 30% of our land for nature by 2030 (this has now been further strengthened with a commitment for 10% of land to be highly protected).
• endorsement of the Leaders’ Pledge for Nature, launched at the UN General Assembly in September 2020.
• our work on National Planning Framework 4 will develop new proposals to secure positive effects for biodiversity through development.

We have made significant funding commitments to protect and restore biodiversity.

• We will invest at least £500 million in the natural economy over the course of this Parliament, including: £100 million to increase forestry planting, £30 million to expand Scotland’s national forests and land, and £20 million to increase nursery stocks.
• We have committed £250 million for peatland restoration over 10 years as part of our climate change plan.
• We have committed £214 million through the Agri-Environment Climate Scheme (AECS) since 2015.
• In July 2021 we launched the Nature Restoration Fund, which provides an additional £10 million capital funding for projects that will restore nature, safeguard wildlife and tackle the causes of biodiversity loss and climate change. We have now committed to extending that Fund throughout this Parliament and allowing multiyear funding.
• The Nature Restoration Fund adds to almost £7 million already committed this year through the Biodiversity Challenge Fund.

Our Programme for Government 2021-22 commits to the creation of at least one new National Park by the end of this Parliament, provided relevant legal conditions can be met.

This is a significant project which will involve widespread consultation, Parliamentary engagement and secondary legislation. There are a number of stages to this work, including scoping of candidate areas and analysis of proposals. The process for selecting and establishing a new National Park is set out in the National Parks (Scotland) Act 2000 which has a number of consultation and drafting stages. The legislation sets out that the first step to identify appropriate candidate areas is a thorough consultation process. Once that consultation has been carried out and a location agreed upon, work can begin on establishing a new public body. Assessment of the resources required to take forward this work is under way and recruitment will follow, with work expected to commence in Spring 2022.