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Table 1 shows the gender pay gap for each of the 8 Scottish Parliamentary Regions.

Table 1: Gender pay gap by Scottish Parliamentary Region (workplace-based analysis)

Source: Annual Survey of Hours and Earnings 2016, ONS

Notes

- Covers employees aged 16+ on the PAYE system on adults rates and whose pay was not affected by absence.

- Gender pay gap is defined as the difference between men’s and women’s median full-time hourly earnings as a percentage of men’s median full-time hourly earnings.

The measure used for the indicator is the pay gap in median hourly earnings (excluding overtime) between men and women working full-time in Scotland. The measure compares full-time workers as both men and women working part time earn less on average than full time employees, and a higher proportion of women work part time. The measure chosen matches the headline measure used by the Scottish Government, and the measure used by the Office for National Statistics for the UK and so allows comparison and provides consistency. Although there are no current plans to change the measure, the Scottish Government does plan to update the indicator page on the Scotland Performs website so that the latest figures and trends for all workers are provided as supplementary information.

The gender pay gap in Scotland is decreasing. The full-time pay gap fell to 6.2% last year, which compares with a UK-wide gap of 9.4%. However, we are not complacent and closing the gender pay gap is a priority issue for the Scottish Government, both in terms of promoting equality and boosting economic growth.

Within our powers, we are ensuring greater pay transparency by lowering the threshold for listed public authorities to publish their gender pay gap and equal pay statements, from those with more than 150 employees to those with more than 20.

Our Labour Market Strategy also sets out our commitment to tackling inequalities around pay gaps and occupational segregation for equality groups, including women. Through this Strategy we will put in place new activity and funding to support the promotion and implementation of the Fair Work Framework and will provide £200,000 to Business in the Community Scotland to support the Scottish National Action Plan for Responsible Business.

Our focus will be on engaging with businesses of all sizes to encourage fair pay and workplace diversity best practices, through for example;

Increasing the number of employers paying the real Living Wage which will be of particular benefit to women who dominate low paid, part-time work,

Continuing to champion our Partnership for Change 50/50 by 2020 campaign, encouraging organisations and businesses from the private, third, and public sectors, to make a voluntary commitment to work towards gender balance on their boards by 2020,

Encouraging businesses to sign-up to the Scottish Business Pledge, a mutual pledge between business and government to ensure that prosperity, innovation, fairness and opportunity develop hand in hand in Scotland,

Providing £205,000 to 'Close the Gap' in 2016-17, to encourage and enable action to address the gender pay gap. This includes encouraging stakeholders to go through the Think Business, Think Equality toolkit, an online self-assessment tool for small and medium businesses who want to find out how their business can benefit from improved gender diversity.

The Pregnancy and Maternity working group that I chair, includes actions to improve access to advice and guidance for employers and supporting small businesses to develop improved pregnancy and maternity practices within their workplaces.

Yes. This is why our investment in the airport is on a commercial basis with the loan funding attracting a market rate of interest in line with state aid rules. We expect all loan funding will be repaid, plus interest.

Marine

SCS

SG Main

Notes:

• SGMarine - data has been excluded from the grade breakdown in the above table due to the small proportion of female staff which makes meaningful statistical analysis impossible.

• SCS - data at Director General and Permanent Secretary is redacted due to potential disclosure of personal information.

Economic inactivity covers those not in work and not actively seeking work. Data from the ONS’ Labour Force Survey for the most recent quarter (November to January 2017) shows that the economic inactivity rate has remained unchanged over the quarter at 22.6 per cent. However, over the year to November to January 2017, the level of inactivity has risen by 65,000 to 770,000, with the rate rising by 1.9 percentage points. This annual change has been driven by increases in both male and female inactivity (up 38,000 and 27,000 respectively). In terms of age, the increases over the year were largely due to increases in inactivity amongst those aged 16 to 34 (up 55,000).

The most recent data available on reason for inactivity from the ONS’ Labour Force Survey indicates that the largest increases were seen amongst students and those considered to be in long-term sick or disabled (both up 30,000 over the year to October to December 2016).

Local authorities are best placed to communicate with individual households by council tax band. In recognition of this, the £2.44 million funding added to the local government budget in 2016-17 to cover the administration costs of implementing the reforms to council tax and the council tax reduction scheme includes specific provision for communicating the changes.

The first phase of the Scottish Government's benefit take up campaign began on the 6 March, directing people to Citizens Advice Scotland (CAS) whose website makes specific reference to the council tax reduction scheme.

Following research published in 2015 by the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC) and the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, we are working with the EHRC to tackle the issues around pregnancy and maternity discrimination highlighted in its report. This work is part of the Scottish Government’s wider measures to deliver a more inclusive workforce.

I am chairing a working group, made up of representatives from the public, private, union and third sectors. The working group met for the first time in December 2016 and again earlier this month. Its remit includes: improving employers’ access to advice to ensure best practice; developing an industry-specific communications strategy around the benefits of positive pregnancy and maternity policies; and strengthening health and safety advice. The working group is also exploring ways to include best practice within the Scottish Business Pledge, and seeking to improve public monitoring and reporting of pregnancy and maternity under the Scottish Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED).

The annual sums distributed from the non-domestic rates pool in each year from 1999-2018 are set out in the following table. Future years figures will be published in the relevant annual Budget (Scotland) Bill.

Glasgow Prestwick Airport operates on a wholly commercial basis and at arm’s length from the Scottish Government. The airport offers aviation services to a wide variety of customers through its in-house Fixed Base Operation (FBO), including military customers with appropriate UK Government clearance to land in the United Kingdom. As with any commercial FBO, contracts and agreements between Glasgow Prestwick Airport FBO and the customers who use this service are commercially sensitive.

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-04621 on 29 November 2016 and S5W-05717 on 10 January 2017.

My previous response contained the yearly figures for inbound military flights since the Scottish Government took ownership of the airport in November 2013 until 2015.

My response to S5W-05717 provided the number inbound military flights to Glasgow Prestwick Airport between January 2016 and November 2016. I can now confirm that in 2016 there was a total of 1,748 military flights into the airport.

All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx