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The recruitment and retention of staff is a matter for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service as the employer. There is currently one on-call stations in the Comhairle nan Eilean Siar Council area with a full staffing complement. When an appliance is not available, a response will be provided from the next nearest available location.

The recruitment and retention of staff is a matter for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service as the employer. There is currently one on call station in the Moray Council area with a full staffing complement. When an appliance is not available, a response will be provided from the next nearest available location.

The Scottish Government is currently undertaking a programme of Sexual Health and Blood Borne Virus local area visits to Scottish territorial NHS Boards which provides an opportunity to explore the levels of psychological support available for people living with HIV.

Throughout visits we have observed areas of excellent practice in relation to psychological support for people living with HIV, including some Boards bringing clinical psychology pathways into routine HIV care to ensure holistic HIV management and digital solutions for those who live in more rural areas where peer support may be more challenging. We continue to work with NHS Boards and encourage sharing best practices to address any gaps identified throughout these visits.

Protecting our marine environment is a shared responsibility and the Scottish Government welcomes community-led initiatives. The Kyles Coastal Community Group is a member of the Coastal Communities Network that engages directly with the Scottish Government on many marine issues. The Kyles Coastal Community Group can contact Scottish Water or the Scottish Environment Protection Agency to raise any local wastewater concerns.

Serco NorthLink Ferries (SNF) carry out ongoing assessments to monitor capacity across the Northern Isles routes.

The dates of Scottish Screening Committee (SSC) meetings since January 2023 are listed below and hyperlinked to the published minutes where available.

18 April 2023 Scottish Screening Committee minutes

The SSC last met on 6 March 2024. The minutes for this meeting are due to be published shortly.

The Scottish Government is committed to equitable access to HIV support services and we continue to work with NHS Boards who provide targeted community outreach, peer support initiatives and digital health solutions particularly focused on underserved groups.

The landmark anti-stigma campaign had a significant impact and laid strong foundations to challenging HIV-related stigma and reducing barriers to HIV prevention. Building on this successful campaign, we are funding further training for health and social care staff to increase awareness and reduce stigma, particularly for underserved groups.

Recently, in partnership with Scotland’s Migration Service, we have developed tailored information on accessing sexual health and HIV services for new arrivals to Scotland, which can be found here Healthcare in Scotland | Scotland.org.

In June 2023 the Scottish Government introduced new Building Guidance on the installation of charge points in new buildings and developments to help further increase the provision of electric vehicle charging. These regulations mandate the provision of electric vehicle charging in new domestic dwellings to support the transition to electric vehicles.

For households that require on-street solutions Section 59 of the Roads (Scotland) Act 1984 prohibits placing anything on the public road that could cause an obstruction without the written consent of the local authority. Under Section 109 of the New Roads and Street Works Act 1991, a local authority has the power to regulate the installation and use of equipment in or under public roads, including electric vehicle charging infrastructure. It is under this Act that permission may be granted by local authorities for the installation of on-street charging solutions.

The Scottish Government is committed to supporting the transition to electric vehicles and is supporting the Scottish Collaboration of Transport Specialists (SCOTS), a network representing transport officers from Scotland’s local authorities and Regional Transport Partnerships, to develop guidance on cross-pavement charging which addresses legal and safety issues and supports all local authorities to enable cross-pavement charging.

The Scottish Government has no jurisdiction over the flying of flags in Scotland. It is for Local Authorities to ensure that schools meet the requirements of the Equality Act 2010 in relation to these matters.

Regulations for hydrogen transport through pipelines and storage are reserved to the UK Government. As such, Scottish Government officials are in regular contact with UK Government counterparts on these matters as they relate to Scotland's hydrogen interests.

The UK Government has recently published a consultation on the economic regulatory framework for 100% hydrogen pipelines. This was published on the 15th of July and will run until the 9th of September and invites stakeholder's views on the suitability of the regulatory framework set out under the Gas Act 1986 for the needs of the hydrogen economy. The Scottish Government is currently considering the framework proposed and is formulating our response to be submitted in due course.

The Scottish Government continues to work with the UK Government to ensure the geographical variations across the UK, particularly in Scotland, are considered in any changes to hydrogen regulations, as well to ensure the UK Government develops a fit for purpose regulatory regime that enables us to achieve our shared hydrogen ambitions.