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We remain committed to sustained investment to strengthen provision of education in Scotland and we are providing local authorities with £185.5m in this year’s budget to maintain teacher numbers.

We remain committed to working with the teacher unions, and COSLA, through the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers, to agree our approach to delivering a reduction in class contact time. We are clear that reducing class contact time will help address critical concerns around teacher workload, thereby creating the space to drive improvement and reform in our schools and improve outcomes for pupils.

The 2021 SNP manifesto included a commitment to give teachers more time out of the classroom to prepare lessons, undertake professional development and tackle the challenges of closing the attainment gap.

We remain committed to delivering a reduction in teacher class contact time of 90 minutes per week, which we believe will create the conditions to achieve these improvements.

That is why we are working with teacher unions and COSLA through the SNCT to make meaningful progress towards delivering the reduction.

The Scottish Government reached a budget agreement with COSLA in December 2024 which included a commitment to make meaningful progress towards the implementation of a 90-minute reduction in teacher class contact time.

The Scottish Government regularly meets with representatives of teacher trade unions, including the Educational Institute of Scotland.

Teacher numbers increased by 12 between 2021 (2020 census baseline) and 2024. Teacher numbers for 2025 will be published with the teacher census statistics in December 2025.

The Scottish Government commissioned the report: Pupil projections and implications for teacher resourcing needs: education workforce modelling and research, which was published on 7 May 2024. This independent research has informed our engagement with partners on the commitment to reduce class contact time for teachers.

The Scottish Government are awaiting the outcome of the Scottish Parliament Finance and Public Administration Committee (FPAC) inquiry on the cost-effectiveness and timescales of public inquiries in Scotland before making any legislative and non-legislative commitments.

The Scottish Government has increased police funding to £1.64 billion in 2025-26, an increase of £90 million on 2024-25.

As Public Inquiries are independent of Ministers, it is for the Chair to direct how an Inquiry carries out its duties whilst being mindful of their responsibilities under section 17(3) of the Inquiries Act 2005 to avoid unnecessary costs.

While this particular issue has previously been raised by Police Scotland, it is for public bodies to determine whether to apply to be core participants in a public inquiry and the extent of legal representation required.

Police Scotland is operationally independent of the Scottish Government, and decisions on the allocation of resources are for the Chief Constable, under the oversight of the Scottish Police Authority. This includes the allocation of budget and staff to support the work of Public Inquiries.

Public inquiries are set up when no other avenue is deemed sufficient given the issues of public concern. In many cases, such as the Sheku Bayoh Inquiry and the Emma Caldwell Inquiry, they are set up with the support of, or in response to calls from, the Scottish Parliament.

The SPPA is required to issue annual benefit statements to scheme members by 31 August of each year. Where statements have not been issued by that date, it is not solely due to delays on the part of SPPA. In some cases it is not possible due to insufficient data, and statements were subsequently issued when that data became available. In the years 2023 to 2025, there was an additional requirement to issue remediable service statements to scheme members eligible for the McCloud remedy. The following tables set the available information out, and reflect numbers reported to the Pensions Regulator in each year.

Table 1: Scheme members that did not receive an annual benefit statement in 2021 and 2022, by scheme.

Status of major projects at outline business case stage or later – including NTC Forth Valley – is published on a 6-monthly basis in the Scottish Government’s major capital projects progress update. This is published on the Scottish Government’s website: Infrastructure Investment Plan: progress reports - gov.scot

As set out in the latest update (August 2025), the new ward continues to be delayed and an opening date is not yet confirmed for that ward. Work to agree a route to completion is ongoing. However, existing theatres (previously unused) have already been commissioned and in a phased opening, the National Treatment Centre began treating patients in October 2024.

There is an ongoing dispute with the contractor over final works required to bring the facility into appropriate condition for operational service. The final costs remain a point of negotiation and have not been finalised.

The Scottish Government requires Local Authorities to estimate future housing need and demand in a report called the Housing Need and Demand Assessment (HNDA). This includes the use of National Records of Scotland (NRS) household projections and the Scottish Government also provides authorities with an Excel-based model, called the HNDA Tool, to help them do this.

The HNDA Tool includes the household projections, as well as several other data inputs, and is available on the Scottish Government website Housing Need and Demand Assessment (HNDA): tool 2020 - gov.scot. The household projections take account of assumptions about migration into and out of Scotland.

Local Authorities also have the option to detail the housing needs of Asylum Seekers and Refugees in their HNDAs. HNDAs are completed by all Local Authorities every five years and they are used as an evidence-base to formulate local housing policies within their Local Housing Strategy (LHS) reports.