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The Scottish Education Exchange Programme (SEEP) Test and Learn Project was launched in 2023.

In year 1 the project did not directly fund any student exchanges. Institutions prioritised staff mobility projects supporting the development of sustainable partnerships.

Projects in year 2 of the test and learn provided opportunities for students from Scottish institutions who would not meet the criteria for Turing Scheme funding to participate in a mobility project.

Year 2 projects concluded on 31 March 2025. Institutions are currently submitting end of project reports which will feed into the external evaluation of the project, the report from which is due to be published late summer.

Additional information on the year 2 projects can be found on the Scottish Government website: Scottish Education Exchange Programme: - Test and Learn: funded projects - gov.scot.

The information requested is not held centrally.

Information on university retention rates is published by the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) in the statistics publication Report on Widening Access. There is no breakdown by those with teacher assessed grades.

The latest publication is available on the SFC’s website: https://www.sfc.ac.uk/publications/report-on-widening-access-2022-23/.

The Scottish Government’s supplementary Financial Memorandum, to reflect the scaled-back care reform proposals for the Care Reform (Scotland) Bill, was published on the Health, Social Care & Sport Committee’s website on 25 March 2025.

Dualling of the A9 will improve connectivity of the Highlands with the Central Belt of Scotland, reducing journey times and improving journey time reliability. Whilst dualling of the A9 between Perth and Inverness is likely to support delivery of some of the projects identified in the Project Willow report, where those entail transportation of materials by road to or from the Highlands, it is unlikely that dualling would be necessary for delivery of those projects.

Project Willow sets out a truly transformative future for Grangemouth and will be possible if the public and private sectors work together. The current 10 year Deal was signed in November 2024, so our focus is on delivering the Growth Deal, which commits £50 million of Scottish Government funding over ten years to projects in the area. The Deal will complement the aims of Project Willow and we will work with partners to progress both the Deal and Project Willow. As previously stated, there are no plans for a further Deal.

Where payment is not made within the time permitted by the Court the case will be brought back before the Court at which time further enforcement to recover the outstanding balance will be considered. That may include, for example, the appointment of an administrator who will undertake the ingathering and management of realisable property.

Whilst the Scottish Government is not a social care employer, we are working with key stakeholders, including COSLA, trade unions and provider representatives to introduce sectoral bargaining for commissioned social care services.

The Scottish Government has not undertaken a specific analysis of the impact of the recent NHS pay deal on recruitment and retention in the adult social care sector, however for this financial year we are investing £125 million to enable adult social care workers in the third and private sectors to be paid at least the Real Living Wage rate, which takes the estimated total investment to deliver this policy up to £950 million.

This £12.60 per hour minimum pay rate that came into effect in April 2025 represents an increase of 5%.

Where a confiscation order has been made by the court, payment of the order is supervised by the Court which imposed it.

The Scottish Government recognises that achieving net zero is more than a moral imperative: it is an economic necessity and an opportunity to grow our economy. The Green Industrial Strategy sets out actions to achieve growth in priority areas, ensuring Scotland secures the maximum economic benefit from the energy transition, including the enormous opportunities provided by offshore wind and other net zero opportunities. Our Circular Economy Act (2024) can help grow the economy, by opening up new market opportunities, improving productivity and saving money. Both of these approaches are underpinned by our focus on growth in our National Strategy for Economic Transformation.

We are also clear in our support for a just transition for Scotland’s valued and highly skilled oil and gas sector, which recognises the maturity of the North Sea basin and is in line with our climate change commitments and energy security.

We are supporting businesses to transition and grow, including through our £500m 10-year Just Transition Fund and our investment of up to £500m over five years to help anchor the offshore wind supply chain in Scotland.

The recording of sex or gender in crime reporting and case management is an operational matter for Police Scotland. The Scottish Government expect Police Scotland to ensure its recording practices are compliant with legal obligations and support accurate, consistent data collection. The Scottish Government also recognises the importance of public confidence in how sensitive crimes are recorded and investigated. Police Scotland is currently undertaking a review of their recording and use of data relating to sex and gender.