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The proposal for the procurement of what became vessels 801 and 802 was set out in the Vessel Replacement and Deployment Plan (VRDP) Annual Report 2014 vrdp-annual-report-2014.pdf (transport.gov.scot)

The recently published Ferries Plan 2013-2022 had concluded that the level of services then in place on the Uig-Tarbert/Lochmaddy routes met identified community needs. Vessel 802 was earmarked for initial deployment to those services, to bring additional vehicle deck capacity; noting that the deployment plan would be reviewed prior to delivery.

The Scottish Government established the Independent Strategic Review of Funding and Commissioning of violence against women and girls services to develop a new funding model to ensure victims have access to high-quality, accessible specialist support.

The call for written evidence is one part of the overall data collection process undertaken by the Review team, which includes around 80 engagement sessions with stakeholders. The final report will be considered by Ministers once complete, and it would be premature to comment on the views expressed by those who submitted responses before the Review has analysed all data collected and made recommendations.

Our Equally Safe Strategy for preventing and eradicating violence against women and girls emphasises the importance of challenging the underpinning attitudes which enable such violence to take place, including in education settings. That is why we provide over £900k per year of funding to support education-based programmes and initiatives aimed at preventing gender-based violence including Rape Crisis Scotland’s National Sexual Violence Prevention Programme, Equally Safe at School, and the Mentors in Violence Prevention peer education programme. Our Gender-Based Violence in Schools Working Group is also developing a framework to carry forward this work.

The Scottish Government’s consultation on Gaelic and Scots closed on 8 December 2022 and the responses from this consultation will help inform part of the work to develop Scots language policy and the proposed Scottish Languages Bill.

As part of the consultation process, the Gaelic and Scots Division undertook a variety of public engagement events to ensure the views of Scots speakers and stakeholders were heard. This included attendance at the Scots Cross Party Group. The responses to the consultation are now being analysed and will help shape any future legislation.

The Scottish Government recognises the substantial challenges that Brexit, the Covid-19 pandemic and the cost crisis have presented to self-employed people and freelancers in the creative industries, including the literature, languages and publishing sectors.

The Scottish Government’s vision is for Scotland to be a leading Fair Work Nation by 2025. We want fair work to be the norm for workers and employers in workplaces across Scotland – in all types and sizes of organisation and in all locations.

The Scottish Government will consider the report in parallel with the Culture Radar review of Fair Work within the sector, commissioned by Creative Scotland on behalf of Scottish Government. This review has now concluded and Scottish Government is currently considering the recommendations. We will also review the findings of the Creative Industries Policy and Evidence Centre’s recently published ‘Good Work Review’, an independent review of working conditions in the creative sector.

Officials continue to meet regularly with the STUC and affiliate unions representatives of the cultural sector to discuss key issues impacting workers in the culture sector, including issues around freelancers and Fair Work.

As part of the Scottish Government’s work to increase provision of Changing Places Toilets, we are aiming to transform attitudes across Scotland so that more organisations, including businesses, are aware of, and understand the importance of, Changing Places Toilet facilities.

The Scottish Government has already introduced Scottish Building Regulations in 2019 requiring the provision of Changing Places Toilets in larger new buildings to which the public have access.

We also published our Changing Places Toilets: Planning Guide and an accompanying easy read in November 2022. This guide, written in collaboration with PAMIS (Promoting A More Inclusive Society), details practical considerations when considering installing a Changing Places Toilet in both existing and new buildings. This helpful toolkit has been designed to improve and encourage Changing Places Toilet provision in the immediate term and ensure that new toilets built following our changes to legislation are appropriate and well considered.

The Scottish Government is committed to investing in Changing Places Toilets during this parliamentary term, in order to increase the number of these facilities across the country and to support mobile Changing Places Toilets to allow people easier access to events and outdoor venues. This investment will be delivered in phases over the course of this parliamentary term.

The Scottish Government published the Changing Places Toilets: Planning Guide and an accompanying easy read in November 2022. This guide details practical considerations when considering installing a Changing Places Toilet in both existing and new buildings.

The Scottish Government works closely with Promoting a More Inclusive Society (PAMIS) who are co-chairs and co-founders of the Changing Places Consortium and offer expert advice on Changing Places Toilets to a range of organisations in Scotland. From this work, and drawing on the lived experience that PAMIS brings, we know that there is significant demand for increased provision of Changing Places Toilets across the country.

This information is not held by the Scottish Government. Statistics on registration and participation can be found on the Public Health Scotland website ( Publications - Public Health Scotland ).

The Scottish Government has identified space as a priority in our Inward Investment Plan and the National Strategy for Economic Transformation.

We are committed to delivering the joint Scottish Space Strategy, developed in partnership with industry and academia, which sets out our ambition to grow the space sector in Scotland by capturing £4 billion of the global space market and 20,000 jobs by 2030.

We actively engage with the industry, both directly with individual companies and through our economic development agencies and collectively through Space Scotland as the industry body.

The SDI Inward Investment team is engaging with Lockheed Martin to learn more about the company’s plans to develop a satellite manufacturing facility in the UK and illustrate the advantages of locating a manufacturing site into Scotland.

The Scottish Government is committed to investing in Changing Places Toilets over this parliamentary term, in order to increase the number of these facilities across the country and to support mobile Changing Places Toilets to allow people easier access to events and outdoor venues.

Our Scottish approach to delivering Changing Places Toilets will respond to local needs in communities across the country. Our Changing Places Toilets: Planning Guide makes clear that anywhere the public has access should be considering the requirement of installing a CPT.
We are committed to designing a funding programme that ensures that the Changing Places Toilets which are built are fit for purpose and are installed in appropriate locations to meet the needs of those that will use them.

This investment will be delivered in phases over the course of this parliamentary term.