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Freight works on a commercial basis so the decision to move products by rail is a decision for the customer and its logistics provider.

However, I can confirm that a dedicated express rail logistics service is currently running into Scotland. This service which runs between Birmingham and Mossend, started with a trial period on 17 October 2022 followed by a full operational service running five nights a week from 9 January 2023, is operated by Varamis Rail.

Since the establishment of Research Data Scotland (RDS) at the end of 2021 my officials have had ongoing engagement with RDS.

Information on annual spend on the Affordable Housing Supply Programme is reported through our published annual out-turn reports and can be accessed through the following link Affordable Housing Supply Programme - More homes - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) . The following table provides the expenditure on the Affordable Housing Supply Programme (AHSP) in each financial year since 2016-17.

The expenditure incurred in a particular year does not correlate directly to the number of completions within that year as the construction of new affordable housing developments can span a number of years:

(a) Transport Scotland received the following number of applications for the Mode Shift Revenue Support scheme since 2018:

2018-19 2 applications for support in Scotland and contributed to 6 cross border flows.

2019-20 2 applications for support in Scotland and contributed to 5 cross border flows.

2020-21 2 applications for support in Scotland and contributed to 5 cross border flows.

2021-22 2 applications for support in Scotland and contributed to 6 cross border flows.

2022-23 2 applications for support in Scotland and contributed to 7 cross border flows.

(b) Transport Scotland received the following number of applications for the Freight Facilities Grant scheme since 2018:

2018-19 - 0

2019-20 - 1

2020-21 - 1

2021-22 - 0

2022-23 - 2

The Bank’s three missions are - achieving a Just Transition to net zero carbon emissions by 2045; extending equality of opportunity through improving places by 2040; and harnessing innovation to enable our people to flourish by 2040. These missions, which reflect the ‘grand challenges’ facing Scotland over the coming decades, were set by Scottish Ministers in December 2020 to give the Bank long term strategic direction for its investment activity. Given the long term nature of these challenges and that the Bank is only just entering its third full year of operation, Ministers have no plans to review the three missions at this point.

The Bank’s recently published Impact Report provides an assessment of the Bank’s performance, including against its three missions, in 2022. This report was published on the Bank’s website on April 3 2023 ( Impact Report | Scottish National Investment Bank (thebank.scot) .

The Scottish Government’s Ministerial Population Taskforce recognises the significance of long-term projected demographic change and since publishing the Population Strategy in 2021, it has focused - across government, and with local and regional partners – on ensuring Scotland’s population profile provides a platform for sustainable and inclusive economic growth and wellbeing.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-16389 on 14 April 2023. 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 .

There is strong national planning policy support for approval of good quality conversions to residential development following thorough planning assessments. We have no plans to introduce new permitted development rights providing for the conversion of business premises to housing without a planning application. We sought views on this during the second phase of the ongoing review of permitted development rights. More than 90% of respondents agreed this should not be taken forward and that residential development should continue to be plan-led. National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) was adopted in February 2023 and is now part of the development plan. Policy 9 (Brownfield, vacant and derelict land and empty buildings) of NPF4 supports the sustainable reuse of brownfield land including vacant buildings. Furthermore, Policy 27 of NPF4 (City, town, local and commercial centres) specifically supports town centre living and the re-use of vacant buildings within city and town centres for residential development.

The First Minister and the Prime Minister spoke on the telephone on 28 March 2023 and have exchanged letters. The First Minister looks forward to meeting the Prime Minister in person in due course.

The Scottish Government remains committed to supporting the Scottish Covid-19 Inquiry in its work to explore the handling of the pandemic and to identify and report on lessons learned. We will consider the Inquiry’s findings and recommendations once available.