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The information requested on what percentage of the total number of doctors have permanently left NHS Scotland in each of the last five years is not centrally available. We do not hold data on the number of staff that have permanently left NHS Scotland.

Information on the number of leavers by financial year, broken down by job family and NHS Board, can be found on the TURAS NHS Education for Scotland workforce statistics site at: NHSScotland workforce | Turas Data Intelligence

Information on Private Finance Initiative (PFI) or Not for Profit Distribution (NPD) projects in Scotland, including NHS projects is available online from

Infrastructure investment - Government finance - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

The following table presents how much has been paid for NHS projects delivered through Private Finance Initiative (PFI) and Not for Profit Distribution (NPD) in each of the last 10 years.

The information requested on what the highest amount paid to private agencies for a (a) nursing, (b) consultant and (c) care assistant shift has been in each of the last 10 years is not centrally available.

Information on Medical & Dental and Nursing & midwifery bank and agency spend by NHS Board since March 2014 can be found on the TURAS NHS Education for Scotland workforce statistics site at: NHSScotland workforce | Turas Data Intelligence Bank and Agency) tab.

The Scottish Government does not hold information on how much has been paid to private social care providers by any of the bodies as referenced within the query.

Social Care services are commissioned by Local Authorities and information on their expenditure can be found in the annual publication of the Scottish Local Government Finance Statistics report.

Should the information requested not be available from this resource then a direct enquiry should be made with the relevant local authorities.

This information is not held centrally; it is a matter for the individual Health Boards.

The Scottish Government is aware of the importance of rural bus services and is committed, in conjunction with operators and local authorities, to looking at ways of improving services. I recently convened the first Bus Taskforce to bring key players in the sector together to make bus travel a more attractive choice for passengers through joint commitments to reform and improve bus services.

We are supporting bus use through the under 22s free bus travel scheme, which means that around half of Scotland’s population are now eligible for free bus travel. As of 21 November, 71.6% of eligible children and young people in Fife had an active National Entitlement Card allowing them to access the Young Persons' Free Bus Travel Scheme, and those cardholders have already made over 2.6 million journeys.

We continue to provide financial support for bus services to keep services more extensive and fares more affordable than would otherwise be the case. Payments are based on the distance buses are operated, which is a particular advantage in rural areas where the routes are generally longer. Funding is also provided to local authorities in their annual settlement to support services they consider socially necessary and for community transport services, which can play an important role in rural transport networks.

In addition, the Scottish Government is supporting a number of local projects within Fife. This includes: multi operator ticketing schemes such as the ABC scheme and OneTicket; investing in the the University of St Andrews “MaaSterplan” pilot which aims to increase the utilisation of the existing Go-Flexi Demand Responsive Transport (DRT) service; and the £1.6 million award from the Bus Partnership Fund to Fife Bus Partnership to appraise bus priority options along key corridors in Fife.

Today, we have published the Interim Purpose and Principles for Post-School Education, Research and Skills.

This publication sets out and seeks views on the interim Purpose and Principles and the topics that have to be explored to develop a plan for implementation that will deliver against them. This has been developed on the basis of feedback from previous research, reviews, reports and engagement, including the SFC Review of Coherent Provision and Sustainability and the National Strategy for Economic Transformation , and sets out the priorities that must guide our decision making in the face of a challenging set of imperatives for reform. A stakeholder engagement plan for the next phase of work and a discussion guide to support people to hold their own sessions on the interim Purpose and Principles are also published today, which is available in Gaelic or easy read format.

Skills Development Scotland (SDS) has operational responsibility for the Modern Apprenticeship programme and administer funding, on behalf of the Scottish Government.

SDS have confirmed that no Modern Apprenticeship contracts have been terminated in line with clause (a) 22.1.2.1, (b) 22.1.2.2 and (c) 22.1.2.3, as set out under section 22, Termination for Reputational Damage in the Modern Apprenticeship Programme Conditions.

Trading Standards Scotland, when it takes possession of counterfeit and illegal goods, is subject to Section 34 of the Environment Protection Act 1990 which requires waste to be dealt with in line with the waste hierarchy. The Scottish Government has provided guidance on applying the waste hierarchy - https://www.gov.scot/publications/duty-care-code-practice/ .

I welcome the initiative shown by Falkirk Council and the local Trading Standards Scotland team in finding alternative destinations for seized counterfeit and illegal goods, to prevent them becoming waste. I would encourage others to follow this example.

This information is not held centrally.