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The Scottish Government's Heat in Buildings Strategy has committed to phasing out the need to install new or replacement fossil fuel boilers, in off-gas grid homes from 2025 and in on-gas grid homes 2030, with consideration of additional trigger points and subject to technological developments and decisions by the UK Government in reserved areas.

The Scottish Government will consult further on these proposals during 2022.

Councils must give due regard to the statutory guidance published by the Scottish Government in contracting for retrofit and energy efficiency projects. We would expect councils to apply relevant and proportionate selection criteria to establish the suitability of bidders as part of their procurement. These are the minimum standards or requirements that bidders must meet in order to progress. For example by establishing their suitability; financial standing; and their technical and professional ability to undertake the necessary works.

Councils must clearly target fuel poor areas as part of projects funded through our Area Based Schemes (ABS). For example by showing that a project is located in one of the most deprived 25% of areas by SIMD classification. Councils are expected to obtain the necessary information to confirm that relevant households and properties are also eligible for grant-in-aid based upon the guidance provided by the Scottish Government.

When applying for support through the Social Housing Net Zero Heat Fund projects are required to provide a variety of information including a financial model, a feasibility study, project programme and risk register.

The Scottish Government already provides grant funding support for SME businesses to replace fossil fuel heating systems with zero emissions systems. Since 2020, the SME loan/cashback scheme has been offering interest-free loans of up to £100,000 with a 75% cashback grant of up to £10,000 towards the costs of a renewables heating system and a further 30% cashback grant up to £10,000 for energy efficiency measures.

We have committed to continuing our SME loan and cashback (or grant replacement) schemes until at least 2023.

The focus of the Scottish City Region and Growth Deals carbon management guidance is the minimisation of greenhouse gas emissions, in support of Scotland’s national target to reach net zero by 2045. The guidance is already fully aligned with the Environmental Impact Assessment process, which also addresses adaptation and ensures resilience to the locked in impacts of climate change. This enables the guidance to be used in conjunction with other sources of information (e.g. projections of future changes in climate) to undertake climate change impact assessments in accordance with relevant planning requirements and building standards.

We have been proactive in our approach to minimising carbon emissions associated with the City Region and Growth Deals programme, taking expert advice from industry on the latest national and international best practice. We have now rolled out our innovative carbon management guidance across all 12 Deals. This is an ongoing and proactive carbon management process, facilitated by our dedicated Deals Sustainable Development Manager. Support and training is being provided to all regional partners to ensure the guidance is correctly applied, and that carbon emissions are minimised in accordance with best practice.

Scotland House London is clearly not an overseas office, but is a hub in a crucial city for Scotland. The facility provides a platform to develop trade and investment links, strengthen government to government relations and facilitate collaboration on economic, academic and innovation projects. Through Scotland House we are enhancing the range and depth of engagement with international partners across areas of shared ambition and common challenge, in order to inform and support the delivery of the Scottish Government policy agenda. Scotland House London is a unique collaboration between the Scottish Government, Scottish Enterprise (including Scottish Development International), VisitScotland and Highlands and Islands Enterprise.

As was announced in the programme for government, this year we will open a Scottish Government office in Copenhagen to increase Scotland’s economic and cultural visibility in the Nordic region. During this parliamentary session, we will also open an office in Warsaw, as part of our continued commitment to enhancing our external reach and voice.

The budget allocation for Copenhagen in 2022-23 is £598,000 this includes salary costings, upkeep, day-today running and hospitality costs. We anticipate that the Warsaw office will be similar in budget to existing Scottish Government overseas offices.

This funding has been allocated to institutions through the Scottish Funding Council for the 2021-22 academic year. Scholarships will be considered by universities for citizens or permanent residents of an EU or EEA country, and have a conditional or unconditional offer of a place at a Scottish university or college, on an eligible course.

All institutions must have a fair and robust assessment selection and award process in place. They will consider students for full time courses, in any subject area at the following levels:

• University - Masters/Taught Postgraduate (TPG) level.
• College - Higher National (HN) level, i.e. Higher National Certificate (HNC) or Higher National Diploma (HND).

Full eligibility criteria can be viewed on the SFC website.

There are very strong links between education and health on the matter of mental health and wellbeing in schools.

Formally, the Children and Young People’s Mental Health and Wellbeing Joint Delivery Board, established in 2021, oversee reform across relevant areas of education, health, community and children’s services and wider areas that impact on the mental health and wellbeing of children and young people. Membership on the delivery board includes a wide range of stakeholders from health and education.

The Mental Health in Schools Working Group was established in 2019 to support the Scottish Government’s ongoing commitment to supporting positive mental health in children and young people in school. The Group has a large membership including national organisations who work to support children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing and representatives from the education and health sector.

The Working Group has sought to establish a comprehensive approach to supporting children and young people’s mental health and wellbeing in schools through a Whole School Approach Framework, published in August 2021. The framework is clear on the importance of a holistic approach to mental health and wellbeing and encourages partnership working with community and health partners.

Our commitment to invest in school counselling services across secondary schools in Scotland, announced in our 2018-19 Programme for Government, is now delivered across all local authorities. The first reporting exercise for the commitment highlighted the various referrals made by schools to health services, including GPs, school nurses and other health professionals. The approach to counselling in schools has been developed and implemented by education officials using resources provided by the health department and progress has been jointly reported to Ministers with portfolio responsibility for both health and education.

Health and Wellbeing is one of the eight curricular areas in Curriculum for Excellence. Its substantial importance is reflected in its position at the centre of the curriculum and at the heart of children’s learning. Mental health and wellbeing has specific experiences and outcomes, within this framework.