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Since 2021, Scottish Ministers have regularly met with Council Leaders, including Highland Council, to discuss a range of issues of mutual interest.

The First Minister and previous First Minister have also committed to meeting with the COSLA Presidential team biannually to discuss key priorities and issues for local government. The First Minister and previous First Ministers have also delivered keynote speeches at the COSLA Annual Conference since 2021.

The Scottish Government is committed to continuing its work on preventing, raising awareness and improving our understanding of Lyme disease and ticks.

As part of the Scottish Government Lyme Disease Awareness Campaign, which ran in May to coincide with Lyme Disease Awareness Month , a campaign toolkit is distributed to stakeholders such as NHS24, Public Health Scotland and Visit Scotland. This provides stakeholders and partners with films, social media and print materials to raise awareness of Lyme Disease and ticks and directs the public to NHS Inform page as source of further information which also contains information on safe tick removal.

Tick removal devices are widely available at most pharmacies and outdoor stores as well as some retail shops and online.

The Scottish Government remains committed to delivering medium and long term solutions to address landslip risks at the A83 Rest and Be Thankful.

Delivery of a permanent and resilient solution is a priority and we continue to seek ways to achieve that as quickly as possible. Following identification of a preferred option last year, the next step for the permanent solution, which is the detailed development and assessment of the preferred option, is progressing at pace and will conclude with the publication of draft Orders for comment, currently expected by the end of this year. As with all infrastructure projects, delivery of the scheme can only commence if approved under the relevant statutory authorisation procedures and thereafter a timetable for construction can be set.

At the same time, improvements to the existing Old Military Road (OMR) through the Glen Croe corridor are being made to make it a more resilient diversion route until the long term solution is in place.

Funding is included in the 2024-25 Budget to continue to deliver the medium term solution and progress the essential preparatory work on the long term solution.

Funding to construct the long term solution to the landslip risks will be determined annually as part of the annual Scottish Budget setting exercises. However, this scheme is a priority for the Scottish Government, noting it is a key recommendation in the second Strategic Transport Projects Review (STPR2).

As a result of £65m of public investment since 2011, and increasing private sector investment, Scotland has one of the most comprehensive public EV charging networks of any part of the UK, with over 5,800 public EV charge points, and is on target to have 6,000 public charge points by 2026. On a per head of population basis Scotland has more public charge points than any other part of the UK except London, and more rapid charge points than any other part of the UK.

The Scottish Government does not collect information about how many public EV charge points are suitable for any particular vehicle type. However, EV charge point parking spaces designed to accommodate passenger cars should also be able to accommodate the majority of light commercial vehicles which have broadly similar dimensions. Engagement with industry suggests that many larger fleets do not intend to make use of the public EV charging network in Scotland and are instead working with commercial charge point operators to develop fleet-specific solutions.

Support with travel costs for music instructors in rural local authority areas is ultimately the responsibility of local authorities as their employer.

Music instructors working in remote schools or who are employed in a school on a distant island, receive a remote school or distant islands allowance as stipulated by the Scottish Negotiating Committee for Teachers Handbook (SNCT) in addition to the normal salary. These payments are made directly by the relevant local authority. There are, however, conditions to these allowances which are outlined in the SNCT handbook (Appendix 2.5).

The third vessel will be designed to serve the Sound of Barra and Sound of Harris routes; however, it will also have the flexibility to provide cover across a variety of other routes. As we progress the SVRP, this will improve resilience and flexibility within the fleet.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-29198 on 5 September 2024. 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.

Please see the following table for details of annual spend on repairs landslide mitigation infrastructure on the trunk road network for the years 2021-2024 to date:

Please see the following table for details of annual spend on landslide mitigation infrastructure on the trunk road network for the years 2021-2024 to date:

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-29198 on 5 September 2024. 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.