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The SG’s position is consistent with and informed by legal advice but, due to long-standing convention, any such advice is confidential and we cannot disclose who provided any such advice or its content.

The Scottish Government receives NHS Scotland sickness absence management information on a fortnightly basis, but this data does not include detailed absence reasons. This sickness absence data enables us to review and compare against the known seasonal pattern, with generally higher sickness absence in the winter months commonly caused by cold and flu.

Furthermore, management information is collected by NES on individual level absence which contains detailed absence reasons, including a cold, cough and flu category. NES have been developing this data to enable more detailed analysis.

The Scottish Government accepts the judgment of the Supreme Court which ruled that woman in the Equality Act 2010 is defined by biological sex.

The Scottish Government's Equally Safe Strategy is a national plan to prevent and eradicate violence against women and girls by addressing its root causes, such as gender inequality. First published in 2014 and refreshed in 2023, the strategy promotes collaborative work across public and third sectors, with a goal of creating a Scotland where women and girls are safe and protected from all forms of violence. The refreshed strategy is supported by a delivery plan outlining specific actions and is backed by the Delivering Equally Safe Fund.

While the Scottish Government will always work to support trans people in Scotland - this is not at the expense of our vital support for women and girls.

We believe the vast majority of people in Scotland want to live in a country that is respectful, compassionate and caring – and we are committed to protecting the rights of all.

The Scottish Government accepts the judgment of the Supreme Court that in the Equality Act 2010, sex means biological sex, and that a Gender Recognition Certificate does not change a person’s sex for the purposes of the 2010 Act.

The Scottish Fishermen’s Federation has collected data as part of the Scottish Demersal Observer Programme with the Marine Directorate since 2014. The data collected by the scientific observers are provided to the Marine Directorate and are used for the annual estimation of bycatch weights and numbers by species, size and fishery in March of each year for the previous calendar year. These estimates are provided during April-July of each year to the International Council for the Exploration of the Sea (ICES) for use in stock assessments, to the Scottish and UK governments to inform fisheries management, and to the fishing industry to provide evidence towards Marine Stewardship Council Sustainability Certification. A report summarising the time series of bycatch estimates is compiled each summer by the Marine Directorate. The report is available on request to the Marine Directorate and work has recently begun to make this publicly available online.

Skills Development Scotland (SDS) produce annual Regional Skills Assessments (RSAs) and Sectoral Skills Assessments (SSAs) to inform modern apprenticeship (MA) contracting, helping to ensure that provision aligns with regional and sectoral demands.

These assessments identify current and projected skills needs across Scotland’s regions. They are informed by labour market intelligence, stakeholder engagement, and economic forecasting. They are publicly accessible via the SDS website Skills Planning - Skills Development Scotland.

The Scottish Government remains committed to ensuring that Modern Apprenticeships (MAs) are responsive to both regional and sectoral needs. We are taking responsibility for national-level skills planning, while also strengthening regional approaches to better align with local economic priorities and workforce demands.

The Scottish Government remains committed to collaborate with key partners across the NHS in Scotland to ensure that relevant information, with the appropriate safeguards in place, is available to all healthcare professionals, including community pharmacists, when and where they need it. The Scottish Government is continuing to explore the possibility of granting further access to clinical records. Health Boards continue to work with community pharmacists prescribers to ensure the safe and effective prescribing of medicines.

The Digital Health & Care Strategy, published 2021, sets out ambitions for greater access to medical information both for staff and the public. In the medium to longer term, as part of the Digital Health & Care strategy, a National Digital Platform is being developed and has started to bring together service data that is appropriately accessible to the workforce regardless of where they are based.

Scottish Government officials attend regular meetings of the Asylum and Refugee Partnership Board (ARPB) and associated Delivery and Procurement Group, at which representatives of Mears Group are generally also present. Mears Group is the current UK Government asylum accommodation contract holder for Scotland.

Asylum is a matter reserved to the UK Parliament and handled by the Home Office. This includes provision of asylum accommodation to people who require it while awaiting the outcome of their asylum application. The Scottish Government has no control of asylum accommodation and support.

The Minister for Housing and the I met with the Managing Director of Mears Group on 19 June 2024 regarding asylum accommodation in Scotland.

We have been working through an extremely complex legal landscape – and it, rightly, has taken time to do that work.

Every key area of government which is or may be affected by the Supreme Court judgment is carrying out assessments across legislation, guidance and policies as part of a Working Group convened by the Permanent Secretary.

The Scottish Government has already taken action that includes:

• Updating our guidance for the Gender Representation on Public Boards (Scotland) Act 2018;
• Amending the public appointments recruitment process for public bodies subject to the Act, now collating and using biological sex at birth data to apply the Act;
• Moving to an interim Trans and Non-Binary Inclusion Policy for Scottish Government staff, removing a line regarding facilities use, while we develop new policy and guidance in consultation with trade unions; and
• Publishing revised Supporting Transgender Pupils in Schools Guidance, while recognising that the EHRC are also reviewing Technical Guidance for schools.

We have been working through an extremely complex legal landscape – and it, rightly, has taken time to do that work.

Every key area of government which is or may be affected by the Supreme Court judgment is carrying out assessments across legislation, guidance and policies as part of a Working Group convened by the Permanent Secretary.

The Scottish Government has already taken action that includes:

• Updating our guidance for the Gender Representation on Public Boards (Scotland) Act 2018;
• Amending the public appointments recruitment process for public bodies subject to the Act, now collating and using biological sex at birth data to apply the Act;
• Moving to an interim Trans and Non-Binary Inclusion Policy for Scottish Government staff, removing a line regarding facilities use, while we develop new policy and guidance in consultation with trade unions; and
• Publishing revised Supporting Transgender Pupils in Schools Guidance, while recognising that the EHRC are also reviewing Technical Guidance for schools.

In relation to Scottish Government guidance, SG has already taken action that includes:

• Updating our guidance for the Gender Representation on Public Boards (Scotland) Act 2018;
• Amending the public appointments recruitment process for public bodies subject to the Act, now collating and using biological sex at birth data to apply the Act;
• Moving to an interim Trans and Non-Binary Inclusion Policy for Scottish Government staff, removing a line regarding facilities use, while we develop new policy and guidance in consultation with trade unions; and
• Publishing revised Supporting Transgender Pupils in Schools Guidance, while recognising that the EHRC are also reviewing Technical Guidance for schools.