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Scottish Water is required to test both drinking water and wastewater in line with legislative requirements and to submit these to the relevant regulator. Annual reports are provided by both the Drinking Water Quality Regulator for Scotland and the Scottish Environment Protection Agency which provide a commentary on the levels of compliance with mandatory standards. Scottish Water also publishes water quality information which is searchable by postcode.

The numbers of entrants to first degree pre-clinical medicine courses, by university, have been provided in the following table.

The tables only cover those entering ‘pre-clinical medicine’ and do not include other students entering medical schools on ‘clinical medicine’ or students in continuing years of study.

Data has been provided in two tables due to a change in the subject classification coding used by universities in 2019-20.

Progressing work to enable the establishment of a US pre-clearance facility is primarily a commercial matter for Edinburgh Airport and would ultimately need to be approved by the relevant authorities in the United States.

The Scottish Government works closely with Scotland’s airports to help grow international connectivity, while not returning to previous levels of emissions. Direct connectivity between Scotland and the United States has improved significantly in recent years but there are other US routes where a direct link would be positive for Scottish businesses, the tourism sector and the economy as a whole. Pre-clearance would help ensure the ongoing success of established routes and encourage the development of new ones.

In July, I wrote to the then UK Secretary of State for the Home Office to invite the UK Government’s view on Edinburgh Airport’s ambition to establish pre-clearance for outbound flights to the US given the role they would need to play in the process. While the Minister for Safe and Legal Migration recognises that this is a commercial matter, I am pleased that the response from the UK Government indicates that the Home Office, together with the Department for Transport, would be keen to explore this matter further should there be a commercial decision to proceed. We also remain in close contact with Edinburgh Airport.

The Scottish Government is monitoring with Creative Scotland the position of cultural organisations in the current crisis. The Creative Scotland board meets on 19 December to consider the option of using its UK National Lottery reserves to help maintain standstill funding for Regularly Funded Organisations through 2023-24.

This would include support for Eden Court which receives £500,000 per year. Creative Scotland will also offer ongoing flexibility in the use of existing Regular Funding, whilst also exploring support for organisations and the sector to innovate and explore new ways of working.

The Scottish Government recognises that this is an incredibly worrying time for the culture sector as a whole and is in regular dialogue with the sector. We are holding a series of roundtables including one planned for Inverness in January 2023.

The latest estimates from the Farm Business Survey suggest that in the accounting year 2020-21, the average Farm Business Income (FBI) for businesses in the survey was £39,347. This represented an increase of 20 per cent (£6,517) in real terms from 2016-17, when the average income was £32,830. FBI includes income from grants and subsidies; when these are excluded farms are, on average, not profitable. Figures for other years are shown in the following table.

This one off funding was allocated to organisations to help manage visitors in 2022 as we continue to recover from the Covid-19 Pandemic and manage increased domestic visitors to Scotland’s countryside. It has supported the following:

The Scottish Government remains committed to reforming crofting law. A decision on the timing of a Bill will be taken by Cabinet in the context of setting the content of future legislative programmes in the normal way.

The Crofting Bill Group was reinstated in May 2022, to consider crofting legislation, including those issues raised by the Crofting Bill Group in 2016-2018. Five meetings have taken place between June and November 2022. The Crofting Bill Group discussions will resume in early 2023.

The Scottish Government will continue to encourage creative industry tax reliefs, delivered by the UK Government, which includes the Video Games Tax Relief.

The Scottish Government is disappointed that the UK Government will be reducing the rates of Corporation Tax Relief for the culture sector, in particular the Theatre Tax Relief and Orchestra Tax Relief from 1 April 2023. We support calls for the higher rate of tax support to be extended, given the ongoing impact of the Cost Crisis which is hampering the Culture sector’s recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic.

The Cabinet Secretary for Culture, Angus Robertson, raised this issue when meeting with DCMS Secretary of State Michelle Donelan on Tuesday 13 th December.

Funding allocations for ventilation upgrades and maintenance will be at the discretion of each individual local authority or public body, on the basis of local needs and priorities whilst also fulfilling any statutory obligations where applicable.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-12739 on 13 December 2022. 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

All of the 16 new R100 subsea cables connecting 15 Scottish islands - Colonsay, Iona, Lismore, Eigg, Eday, Flotta, Hoy, Rousay, Sanday, Shapinsay, Stronsay, Fair Isle, Unst, Whalsey and Yell – were laid during Summer 2022.

Planned post-laying activity is now continuing with work to establish terrestrial connections on those islands underway.