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Dr Henrietta Hughes published her report, which was about financial and non-financial redress for persons affected by transvaginal mesh or the medicine sodium valproate, on 7 February 2024. The report was commissioned by the previous UK Government, but the present UK Government has undertaken to consider and respond to it. Regrettably, it has not yet responded.

Dr Hughes is the Patient Safety Commissioner for England and her report and recommendations were concerned in the first place with affected persons in England, but both Dr Hughes and the UK Government have acknowledged that people across the UK have been affected, and also that issues relevant to the report, notably the regulation of medicines and medical devices, concern UK-wide responsibilities of the UK Government.

Since the publication of the Hughes Report the Scottish Government has been working closely with the other Devolved Governments to seek a response from the UK Government. Scottish Government Ministers wrote to Ministers of the present UK Government about the report in October 2024, in February 2025 and again in July 2025, to seek meetings and assurances that the Devolved Governments would be consulted about any potential UK Government response. Ministers from the other Devolved Governments wrote in similar terms, also on a number of occasions.

A meeting between the four UK Health Ministers was finally agreed to in December 2025, and took place last month. Despite this meeting, it remains the case that the UK Government has made no substantial proposals about how it might respond to the recommendations concerned with financial redress; nor so far has it stated a date by which it might seek to publish a response.

Whilst the UK Government published a spending review on 11 June 2025 setting out plans from financial year 2026-27 to the end of 2028-29, there was no specific provision to respond to the Hughes Report.

The second anniversary of the Hughes Report’s publication approaches and anyone affected will have wholly reasonable expectations that the UK Government would have responded to the report by now, and in a substantial way. I consider it unreasonable and unfair that they have had to wait for two years and possibly now for even longer.

I therefore wish to note in particular that, to date, the Scottish Government has received no proposals from the UK Government for any schemes of financial redress that would constitute a substantial implementation of the recommendations made by Dr Hughes. We stand ready to consider any proposals from the UK Government, but we do not consider we are able to make proposals independently of them.

I appreciate that this information will be disappointing for those affected, but I wish to assure the Parliament that I will continue to push for a resolution.

Both the Scottish Government and the NHS in Scotland will continue to offer help and assistance to women affected by transvaginal mesh and people affected by sodium valproate. We will continue to offer mesh removal surgery, both in the NHS and with independent sector surgeons, if that is what patients prefer. We also continue to explore how support for people harmed by valproate might be organised in Scotland. Public Health Scotland has established a National Medicines in Pregnancy ‘surveillance asset’ focussed on anti-seizure medicines, including valproate, that are known or suspected to have potential to increase the risk of birth defects and development disorders when taken during pregnancy.

The Scottish Government appreciates that there is interest in these issues and support for people affected among members in all the parties represented in the Parliament. We will continue to keep Members informed about significant developments.

The Scottish Government is taking a range of actions to support people to access affordable home ownership in rural and island communities.

We operate the Low Cost Initiative for First-Time Buyers (LIFT), which includes:

• Open Market Shared Equity (OMSE) Scheme – helping eligible purchasers buy a home available on the open market.
• New Supply Shared Equity (NSSE) – enabling people to buy a newly built home from a housing association or local authority.

At the National Farmers Union Conference later today, the First Minister will also make clear his intention to develop a Rural and Island Housing Grant Scheme (RIHGS) in collaboration with the rural and housing sectors. The scheme will have an indicative budget of up to £20 million over four years and will provide modest capital grants to help people secure properties as permanent homes in rural and island communities.

We recognise that access to good-quality, affordable housing is essential to attracting and retaining people in rural and island areas. The new RIHGS will complement the Rural and Islands Housing Action Plan, published in October 2023, which was shaped through strong partnership working with stakeholders across rural and island communities.

The NHS Grampian Assurance Board was established in July 2025. It commissioned an independent diagnostic review to help inform NHS Grampian’s approach to system redesign and service transformation.

A sub-group of the Assurance Board has been established to advise on the Board’s approach to a strategic review of their workforce planning. This work is in the early stages of development, and the Assurance Board is expecting to consider the approach and associated work plan in the coming weeks.

Confirmed on 2 February 2026, the appointment of four members to the independent Gill Review on the valuation methodology applied to licensed hospitality premises: Alison Andrews, Bob Mowat, Hugh Munro and Graham Whyte.

The first meeting of the Review Group was held on 2 February. Invitations to join an Advisory Panel of the independent Review have also been issued to selected individuals.

The Review Group will report by the end of 2026.

The Scottish Government will work with third sector partners to deliver Scotland’s first ever “Third Sector Partnership” which will further strengthen the role and place of the sector in Scotland. This new Partnership creates a unique and valuable opportunity for government to work more effectively with the sector and build on progress made through our Fairer Funding pilot.

The principles underpinning the partnership, in line with those set out by SCVO, will include alignment with Fairer Funding principles, protection of the sector’s independence, outcomes-focussed to reflect shared goals, ensuring accountability and alignment with relevant legislation and strategies. We will work closely with a diverse range of third sector partners to co-design the partnership.

We already recognise the essential role played by the third sector in delivering for communities across Scotland everyday. We recently announced a £20 million investment for third sector partners in the draft Budget to deliver the support that people need in their communities, underlining the importance of the government and third sector organisations working to tackle the challenges of the day together. This is in addition to delivering on our Fairer Funding pilot that provides multi-year funding worth £130 million over 2025-2027, prioritising those that deliver frontline services and tackle child poverty.

Acknowledging the impact of the revaluation, we are protecting business by introducing a Revaluation Transitional Relief to protect those most affected and will cap increases in gross bills up to the next revaluation in 2029. Increases in non-domestic gross liabilities due to revaluation will be capped at 15 per cent (cash terms) in 2026-27 for small properties, rising in subsequent years, with higher caps for larger properties. This relief will ensure that the gross bills of around 60,000 properties are lower in 2026-27 than they otherwise would have been. Table 1 shows the year-on-year caps by rateable value bracket. No property class or size is excluded from Revaluation Transitional Relief eligibility.

Table 1: Year-on-year Revaluation Transitional Relief caps (%), 2026-27 to 2028-29

The Scottish Government is prioritising longer-term reform so that Employment Injury Assistance best meets Scotland’s needs. This approach was backed by the largest number of responses to our consultation in 2024.

As set out in the consultation response, protecting the continuity of payments is our first priority during the devolution of disability benefits and it will continue to be our priority for the approximately 22,000 people currently in receipt of awards under the IIS in Scotland.

The Scottish Government established an Employment Injury Assistance Steering Group in June 2025. The Steering Group has been asked to consider overarching policy principles and identify priorities for reform. We expect the Group’s final report this summer.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring the involvement of trade unions in the development of Employment Injury Assistance. A public consultation was held in 2024 on the next steps for the delivery of Employment Injury Assistance. This consultation was targeted at organisations with a specific interest in industrial injuries benefits, including trade unions. For example, the Scottish Government ran online engagement events to enable trade unions to share their views on the development of Employment Injury Assistance.

The Scottish Trade Union Congress (STUC) is a core member of the Employment Injury Assistance Steering Group. The Steering Group was established in June 2025 to provide expert input to help address the unique complexities associated with replacing the UK Industrial Injuries Scheme. The Group is expected to produce a report with recommendations for Ministers’ consideration which will inform next steps.

The Scottish Government has taken into account the commissioning of the Gill Review on the valuation methodology applied to licensed hospitality premises in its financial planning. The Review is independent of government.

Each year the Scottish Government updates its online non-domestic rates calculator at Non-domestic rates calculator - mygov.scot. This will be updated in due course for 2026-27.