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Organic farming statistics for the UK are published annually by Defra. The following table shows the area of fully organic land farmed in Scotland since 2007:

The scoring process for applications is based on criteria that do not require information on whether the applications are creating new, expanding or reinvigorating existing growing sites. Since 2021 we have awarded over £491,000 to Green Action Trust, with 55 community organisations and projects across Scotland receiving a share of this funding.

The Scottish Government’s expenditure on international letter postage for each year from 2021 is as follows.

Between January 2021 and July 2025 a total of £2,463,260.88 of Payment Adjustment Factors (PAFs) have been applied to our Trunk Road Maintenance Contracts. The table below provides and annual summary and totals.

The Scottish Government’s universal Baby Box programme, the only one in the UK, opened for registration on 15 June 2017 and nationwide delivery of Baby Boxes began on 15 August 2017. Every baby born and resident in Scotland is eligible for a Baby Box.

To receive a Baby Box parents have to opt in to receive a Baby Box through the registration process via their midwife.

The following table details the number of births registered each year, the number of Baby Box registrations and the number of families who did not register for a Baby Box.

Scottish Government funds the Scottish Rural Colleague, SRUC, which supports investigations and analytical testing on complex mastitis cases. SRUC also provides education, advise and consultancy services for private vets and farmers as part of our funding. Scottish Government also funds Scotland’s Farm Advisory Service (FAS) as part of the Scottish Rural Development Program (SRDP) which provides information and resources aimed at increase the profitability and sustainability of farms and crofts, including education and guidance for farmers and vets on mastitis in cattle.

Scottish Ministers are committed to spending on cladding remediation at least the equivalent of the £97.1 million consequentials received from UKG in relation to cladding.

The Scottish Government expects the cost of cladding remediation work to be met through a combination of responsible developers assessing and remediating their own buildings, consequential funding from the UK Government, and a devolved Building Safety Levy. This effectively matches the funding approach that the UK Government is taking in England.

We publish spend relating to the programme on a quarterly basis. The latest figure for the programme can be found at Single Building Assessment programme: spending information - gov.scot. These figures will be updated in due course to reflect latest spend.

Our spending on remediation costs can only follow a full end to end process - checking buildings are in scope, commissioning a Single Building Assessment, completing that robust technical assessment, identifying the works that need to be carried out, designing those works and gaining the necessary approvals, and then carrying out the remediation itself.

Now that we have the necessary statutory basis, the Cladding Remediation Programme is making rapid progress, and we anticipate spending the entirety of this year’s budget of £46.7 million. Since the launch of the Single Open Call in March 2025, we have received 600 expressions of interest as of 30 June 2025 and 480 grant offers letters have been issued as of 22 August 2025.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-39850 on 5 September 2025. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-39850 on 5 September 2025. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

The Scottish Government does not hold information on payments to consultants for (a) the introduction and development of AI across the public sector or (b) staff training on the use of AI.

However, the Scottish Government has prioritised building internal capability and expertise to ensure sustainable and responsible adoption of AI technologies.

Work to support the development and implementation of AI has been led by civil servants, supported by specialist input from The Data Lab, in line with the Scottish Government’s AI Strategy which promotes inclusive, ethical, and trustworthy use of AI. Staff training and upskilling in AI have also been delivered internally including by the Scottish Digital Academy.