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I recognise and welcome Mr McArthur’s sustained interest in this issue. Scottish Government officials have had preliminary discussions with SSE on this subject, with further talks planned in the coming weeks. I have asked to be kept updated on progress, and I hope that a positive conclusion can be reached and that any such opportunities are taken forward where possible.

As a condition of funding from the Scottish Government, we require Sacro to promote and provide guidance to potential referrers to ensure that awareness of these programmes is high.

The scheme is designed for individuals accused of offensive behaviour at football, and referrals can come from a range of sources including Criminal Justice Social Work teams; Early and Effective Intervention teams; and Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service. We look to these partners to decide, based on the facts and circumstances of individual cases, whether to make use of these programmes or if appropriate to prosecute individuals in court.

The ability to refer those who have or who are likely to commit offences related to the Offensive Behaviour at Football and Threatening Communications Act nationwide is still new and these schemes inevitably take time to prove their worth. The initial number of referrals to the Sacro Anti-Sectarian Service diversion from prosecution programme does not undermine the validity of the scheme.

In recognition of the important role that education plays in tackling offensive and abusive behaviour, Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service has given a commitment to considering diversion schemes for individuals accused of offensive behaviour at football whenever possible, particularly those under 18 years of age. The Crown Office considers each case and decides based on the facts and circumstances of the offence and the accused whether to prosecute or refer to Sacro. I will meet shortly with the Lord Advocate, James Wolffe QC, to discuss how more suitable young people can be referred to this valuable scheme as a diversion from prosecution.

Between 2013 to 2015 the Scottish Government provided £195,500 to Sacro. This funding was used to research and develop the Sacro Anti-Sectarian Service (SASS), a six module cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) programme to tackle sectarianism and to pilot a six module CBT programme to target racial attitudes and behaviours. Staff were recruited and appointed to facilitate the programmes, they held open days and met with relevant stakeholders such as Social Work, Police Scotland, British Transport Police and the Crown Office to raise awareness and promote the programmes.

In 2015-16, a further £143,333 was provided to continue to run the SASS programmes and develop a national four module CBT programme for individuals accused of offensive behaviour at football, particularly those under 18 years of age. Staff were trained in all Sacro offices to ensure national coverage across Scotland. A sectarianism awareness raising programme for prison professionals was also developed and ran in HM Prison Cornton Vale and HM Prison and Young Offenders Institute Polmont. Sacro also continued to promote and liaise with relevant agencies and stakeholders.

In 2015-16, £85,000 has been provided to SACRO to continue to promote, raise awareness, and facilitate the programmes, providing coverage across the country for those suitable for referral.

We remain committed to increasing the diversity of our people within the organisation and diversity and equality considerations continue to underpin all of our employment policies and practices. Ethnicity is self-declared by Scottish Government staff and has not been disclosed by 15% of our staff and as such we may not have the full picture. The table shows average hourly pay for known BME and non-BME staff on 6 April each year in each pay band, broken down by age group. We are unable to provide a breakdown by directorate as changes to the directorate structure over time make comparisons invalid. In addition, we have excluded senior civil service as this category is too small to disaggregate without potentially identifying individual staff members. The average hourly earning information provided is the average figure from across all pay bands and is reflective of the distribution of staff across the organisation. We actively publish pay gap information in our Equality Outcomes and Mainstreaming report which includes a breakdown by each individual pay band. This demonstrates that our policy towards equality of pay for work of equal value is delivered by our pay policy. The table is available in The Scottish Parliament’s Information centre under BIB number 58141.

We remain committed to increasing the diversity of our people within the organisation and diversity and equality considerations continue to underpin all of our employment policies and practices. Ethnicity is self-declared by Scottish Government staff and has not been disclosed by 15% of our staff and as such we may not have the full picture. The table shows the number of black and minority ethnic staff on 6 April each year in each pay band in the Scottish Government main staff group, broken down by age group where ethnicity has been declared. We are unable to provide a breakdown by directorate as changes to the directorate structure over time make comparisons invalid. In addition, we have excluded senior civil service as this category is too small to disaggregate without potentially identifying individual staff members. The table is available in the Scottish Parliament’s Information Centre under BIB number 58139.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-01754 on 23 August 2016. 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

At present, the UK remains a Member State of the European Union. The Scottish Government's priority is to protect all of our interests, and we are considering all options to protect Scotland's relationship with Europe. At present, trade and business should continue as normal and we remain of the view that European law and State aid rules require Scottish Government subsidised ferry services, such as those to the Northern Isles, to be tendered on a non-discriminatory basis.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-01754 on 23 August 2016. 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

We remain committed to increasing the diversity of our people within the organisation and diversity and equality considerations continue to underpin all of our employment policies and practices. Ethnicity is self-declared by Scottish Government staff and has not been disclosed by 15% of our staff and as such we may not have the full picture. The following table shows the mean salary pay gap for those of known ethnicity on 6 April each year in the Scottish Government main staff group, broken down by age group. We are unable to provide a breakdown by directorate as changes to the directorate structure over time make comparisons invalid. In addition, we have excluded senior civil service as this category is too small to disaggregate without potentially identifying individual staff members. The pay gap information provided is the average figure from across all pay bands and is reflective of the distribution of staff across the organisation. We actively publish pay gap information in our Equality Outcomes and Mainstreaming report which includes a breakdown by each individual pay band. This demonstrates that our policy towards equality of pay for work of equal value is delivered by our pay policy. Notable factors contributing to gaps are that new staff members start on lower points of the progression scale and that males are more likely than females to work past 60 in Band C. The tables show the pay gaps, with positive numbers indicating where black or minority ethnic / female staff have a pay lead and negative numbers indicating where non-black or minority ethnic / male staff have a pay lead. The table is available in the Scottish Parliament’s Information Centre under BIB number 58140.