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The Scottish Funding Council (SFC) publish the number of ‘Funded Places’ and ‘Students Eligible for Funding’ in the Official Statistics release “Students Eligible for Funding” here:

https://www.sfc.ac.uk/publications-statistics/statistical-publications/2021/SFCST042021.aspx

with historic publications available here:

https://www.sfc.ac.uk/publications-statistics/statistical-publications/statistics-schedule/statistical-publication-schedule.aspx

No split by domicile for ‘funded places’ is available.

Concerns about the impact of fireworks on animals has been a strong theme to emerge from both the 2019 and 2021 public consultations on fireworks, and I am grateful to the Dogs Trust, and other animal charities, for their continued engagement throughout our journey with fireworks.

All of the measures within the Bill, including the licensing system, have been developed following a significant programme of consultation, engagement and evidence gathering. This includes the work of the independent advisory Firework Review Group, who considered all of the evidence available and took an options appraisal approach to make a series of recommendations for change to the Scottish Government. The licensing system implements the Group’s recommendation that mandatory conditions should be introduced at the point of sale of fireworks to ensure that the purchase and use of fireworks is a well thought out and planned transaction.

The licensing system has been carefully developed to ensure that robust checks and balances are in place before a member of the public can purchase and use fireworks. This includes a mandatory requirement to successfully complete a training course, which will inform applicants of how to use fireworks in a safe and lawful manner, as well as understanding the impact that fireworks can have on others, including animals.

It is considered that the licensing system strikes the balance between introducing proportionate measures without placing overly restrictive barriers on the legitimate use of fireworks by members of the public, and there are no current plans to require licence holders to record on the relevant local authority website any display that they intend to hold.

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service has robust procedures in place to ensure complaints are fully investigated and any complaint is considered confidential while being progressed. I am not aware of the details of any complaints made against the SFRS Chief Officer, but I was given initial notice of the situation on 18 February 2022.

The investigation of any complaints against the Chief Officer of SFRS is entirely a matter for the SFRS Board. The Scottish Government has no role in the process and therefore no approval would be required by Scottish Ministers.

The Bill includes a provision proposing to restrict the permitted days of supply of fireworks to the general public, as well as restrictions the permitted days the general public can use fireworks, to broadly align with what are already considered traditional firework periods when fireworks are used to celebrate certain religious festivals or cultural events. A strong message to come from both the 2019 and 2021 public consultations was that the unpredictable and sporadic use of fireworks was increasingly seen as problematic and disruptive to many people and animals.

The Bill proposes that permitted days of supply to the general public over the bonfire period is restricted from 27 October to 10 November. The proposed period is already a significant reduction from the current selling period at this time of year, which is from 15 October to 10 November. Following careful consideration and taking into account the feedback received on Bill proposals through the 2021 public consultation and engagement with stakeholders, the Scottish Government believes that the proposed period of supply is a proportionate balance between enabling the use of fireworks over traditional firework periods while allowing those impacted by fireworks to be aware of when they are likely to be used and put appropriate safeguards in place to minimise that impact.

While there are no current plans to reduce the days of supply further the effectiveness of the measures introduced will be monitored following implementation, and the Bill includes a regulation making power that can be utilised to amend the permitted days should evidence show that this is required.

Fireworks can currently be used by the general public on any day of the year, subject to existing rules about the time of day that they can be used. The Bill includes a provision proposing to restrict the permitted days of use of fireworks by the general public, as well as restrictions on the permitted days of supply to the general public, to broadly align with what are already considered traditional firework periods, when fireworks are used to celebrate certain religious festivals or cultural events. A strong message to come from both the 2019 and 2021 public consultations was that the unpredictable and sporadic use of fireworks was increasingly seen as problematic and disruptive to many people and animals.

The Bill proposes that the permitted days of use of fireworks by the general public over the bonfire period is restricted from 27 October to 12 November. This broadly aligns with the proposed permitted days of supply of fireworks to the general public, however it is considered appropriate to include an extra two days where fireworks can be used to mitigate for circumstances such as poor weather conditions. Following careful consideration and taking into account the feedback received on Bill proposals through the 2021 public consultation and engagement with stakeholders, the Scottish Government believes that the proposed period of use is a proportionate balance between enabling the use of fireworks over traditional firework periods while allowing those impacted by fireworks to be aware of when they are likely to be used and put appropriate safeguards in place to minimise that impact.

While there are no current plans to reduce the days of use further the effectiveness of the measures introduced will be monitored following implementation, and the Bill includes a regulation making power that can be utilised to amend the permitted days should evidence show that this is required.

The Welcome desk at Glasgow airport is staffed to coincide with individuals from Ukraine arriving who may require assistance and my officials continue to work in partnership with the local authority to provide support and services for all arrivals. The welcome desks are staffed during daytime hours, outwith these hours, they can phone the Scottish Refugee Council helpline number who can give advice based on the appropriate visa route.

Following the pandemic and the move to a publicly owned ScotRail we are committed to encouraging people to return to our railway. We now have the opportunity to ensure that passenger services reflect changing passenger needs and travel behaviours whilst restoring the financial sustainability of rail services in Scotland.

On 9 May, I launched ScotRail’s 50 per cent off peak ticket offer. This fares offer, funded by the Scottish Government, is the latest ‘Yours to Use’ initiative and is focused on welcoming customers back to rail as the country continues to recover from the pandemic.

The 50 per cent off tickets can be purchased in the following ways:

• Online at scotrail.co.uk/sale
• By phone on 0344 811 0153
• Via the ScotRail app, using the promo code SRSALE in the railcards/promotions field

Earlier this year, I announced that our National Rail Conversation will offer rail staff, passengers and communities an opportunity to contribute to the future Vision of Scotland’s Railway. This will help us to fully understand what the people of Scotland want and need when it comes to choosing rail as their mode of choice.

Scottish Government has not discussed the Treasure Cave building with Dumfries and Galloway Council as enforcement is wholly the responsibility of the local authority. Council officials did not seek support from Scottish Government in relation to addressing the state of the building.

Dumfries and Galloway Council served a Dangerous Building Notice under Section 30 of the Building (Scotland) Act 2003 on 19 November 2021. The owner of the building recently made arrangements to comply with the notice by appointing a contractor to demolish the building. Demolition is expected to begin on 16 May 2022 and last three weeks. The road will be reopened once the demolition works are complete and the danger has been removed.