Seòmar agus comataidhean

Social security is an investment in the people of Scotland. Our priority is to ensure that people receive the support to which they are entitled and that in doing so they are treated with dignity, fairness and respect. The Scottish Government are investing around £6.9 billion in Social Security benefits in 2025-26, this is projected to increase to around £8.9 billion by 2029-30.

Scotland does not have an equivalent body to NHS England, health services are managed by NHS boards, which operate within Scotland’s devolved system of government.

The UK Government’s decision to move the functions of NHS England to the relevant UK government department bring it in line with the situation in Scotland where NHS Scotland is already a part of the core Scottish Government civil service.

Regarding public bodies more widely our programme of Public Service Reform is addressing all opportunities identified to remove duplication from the public sector landscape, including consolidation of public bodies where appropriate and where a value for money case can be made. This work is part of our wider focus on driving a culture of continuous improvement to support efficiency and effectiveness across the delivery of public services.

The Scottish Government has already streamlined the public sector landscape by reducing the number of Scottish public bodies under our control from 199 in 2007 to 131 at the end of 2024. The Ministerial Control Framework also makes clear that establishing any new public bodies should be a last resort, ensuring any new bodies are established only when absolutely necessary.

The Scottish Government recognises the pivotal role played by Scotland’s world-class universities in our economy and wider society. Ministers listened closely to the sector in the development of this year’s budget and are investing over £1.1 billion in university teaching and research. Since February we have also announced a further £25 million to support universities facing financial challenges.

While universities are autonomous institutions with responsibility for their own strategic and operational decision making, the Scottish Government and Scottish Funding Council will continue to offer support to individual institutions, including Edinburgh, as they develop their own plans to mitigate financial challenges.

In line with our Fair Work principles, the Scottish Government expects universities to work with trade unions and staff representatives to reach the right decisions and ensure workers are treated fairly; and for workers to have appropriate channels for maintaining constructive and meaningful dialogue with the University. The Scottish Government expects universities to make every effort to protect jobs. Compulsory redundancies should only be considered as a last resort, after all other cost saving measures have been fully explored.

The Scottish Government recognises the pivotal role played by Scotland’s world-class universities in our economy and wider society. Ministers listened closely to the sector in the development of this year’s budget, and are investing over £1.1 billion in university teaching and research.

Scottish Government are unable to provide this information at present.

The recently announced £102 million apprenticeship funding for 2025-26 represents a projection of the funding Skills Development Scotland (SDS) will spend to support 25,500 new Modern Apprenticeship (MA) starts and 2,500 Foundation Apprenticeship (FA) starts, as well as MAs and FAs already in training.

Skills Development Scotland (SDS) are currently completing the contract/grant award process for 2025-26 so are unable to confirm the exact figure until all contracts are accepted by providers.

It should be noted that SDS are exercising a Plus 1 extension period to the Modern Apprenticeship (MA) contracts for 2025-26, therefore providers are allocated the same volumes as they were awarded at the start of the 2024-25 contract year.

The 2024-25 MA awards have been published and can be accessed via the link below for further insight into the distribution of provision: https://www.skillsdevelopmentscotland.co.uk/media/1r4etei1/modern-apprenticeships-april-24-25-contracts-by-framework.pdf

Foundation Apprenticeship Grant Awards totalling 2,500 opportunities have been issued to existing SDS-funded learning providers, including Local Authorities and Independent Learning Providers, for delivery commencing in academic year
2025-26. SDS is unable to confirm an exact figure until all contract awards are accepted by providers.

It should be noted that the Scottish Funding Council also support both Modern and Foundation Apprenticeships, and will provide 2,500 Foundation Apprenticeship opportunities this year.

Through the Scottish Funding Council’s (SFC) annual allocations process, universities are allocated funding for the provision of funded undergraduate places for eligible Scottish domiciled students. It is then for the universities themselves to decide how to distribute these places along with postgraduate and alternatively funded undergraduate places between faculties and the courses they offer. Universities are responsible for their own admissions policies but should consider their long-term stability by actively diversifying their international student intake and seeking alternative funding sources. Indicative allocations of funding for 2025-26 will be published on SFC’s website in the next few weeks.

I refer the member to the answer to the question S6O-02021 on 16 March 2023 All answers to Oral Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at Official Report: search what was said in Parliament | Scottish Parliament Website

We are committed to promoting apprenticeship opportunities in island and rural communities to encourage inclusive growth.

As part of this effort we provide a rural uplift for Modern Apprenticeship delivery, offering increased payments to training providers to support the expansion of apprenticeship programmes in these areas.

In addition, funding for travel and subsistence (including accommodation) is available for apprentices who are required to attend structured, formal off-the-job training beyond normal travel limits.

While the University of Edinburgh is an autonomous institution with responsibility for its own strategic and operational decision making, the Scottish Government and Scottish Funding Council will continue to offer support to individual universities, including Edinburgh, as they develop their own plans to mitigate financial challenges. The Scottish Funding Council, as part of its regular engagement with the University of Edinburgh, will continue to monitor the impact on students, staff and research of the University’s cost-saving programme.

In line with our Fair Work principles, the Scottish Government expects the University of Edinburgh to work with trade unions and staff representatives to reach the right decisions and ensure workers are treated fairly; and for workers to have appropriate channels for maintaining constructive and meaningful dialogue with the University.

The Scottish Government would also expect students to be appropriately supported by the University throughout this period, and to receive timely information about the impact of any proposed changes to provision.

The Scottish Government is resolutely committed to free tuition, and the position that access to university should remain based on the ability to learn and not the ability to pay. This commitment to free tuition also means that, unlike elsewhere in the UK, Scottish students studying in Scotland do not incur additional debt of up to £27,750 and average student loan debt in Scotland is the lowest in the UK.