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The Scottish Government does not hold recorded information on the number of leakage incidents of sulphur hexafluoride (SF6) from onshore and offshore power generation sites that have been recorded in the last three years.

The Scottish Government is aware of the impact of this potent greenhouse gas on the environment and of the risk of leakage incidents. We are currently working with the UK and Welsh Governments to review the F-gas Regulation. We have already done a retrospective assessment of the Regulation and will publish an assessment report on the findings in the coming weeks.

Following the report, we will jointly consider policy options to ensure our regulations continue to support our ambitious Net Zero targets. As part of this, we will also consider other important issues including leakage. We expect to publish a joint consultation on these future policy proposals in due course.

The legislative changes recommended by the completed review of the Storage and Spreading of Sewage Sludge on Land in Scotland (‘The Sludge Review’), are being implemented via the forthcoming Integrated Authorisation Framework (IAF) regulations.

The proposed changes are designed to strengthen SEPA powers to ensure effective management practices are implemented and followed by operators within the industry.

A consultation on proposed IAF regulations is due to be published early next year and stakeholders will have the opportunity to comment on the proposals relating to sewage sludge.

Information setting out the requested methodology is in the public domain: Heat in building strategy modelling: EIR release - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) .

We are committed to delivering a just and fair transition to net zero, where the distribution of costs and impacts protects those in the most vulnerable circumstances while also optimising benefits for everyone. This means continuing to take account of changes in the external environment so that our modelling of funding and support remains appropriate. We are currently reviewing our cost estimates to deliver the heat transition on this basis, and will provide a further update in due course.

The original published budget for Digital Health and Care was £112.9 million, not £108.729 million. See https://www.gov.scot/publications/scottish-budget-2022-23/pages/5/ . Since the budget was published in December 2021 there has been a Scottish Government wide Emergency Budget Review and the agreed corporate savings from this exercise have resulted in a budget of £99.6 million being allocated to Digital Health and Care in 2022-23.

This budget provides funding for the delivery of ‘ Care in the Digital Age’ , with individual activities as set out in the accompanying Delivery Plan . Funds that are allocated are based on need, and final confirmation of spend will be included as part of the Scottish Government provisional outturn.

A national oversight group responsible for a review of AHP Education and Workforce Review has recently concluded its work. The collaborative group involving a wide range of AHP stakeholders including professional bodies, HEIs and NHS Boards have produced a number of recommendations. Workforce and recruitment and education delivery models have been considered and, although I will not pre-empt the recommendations of that group, I look forward to receiving the suite of recommendations the group has put forward regarding the future of training and development of AHP staff.

This budget provides funding for local Primary Care Improvement Plans and core primary care support. Funds that are allocated are based on need, and final confirmation of spend will be included as part of the Scottish Government provisional outturn.

The majority of this budget relates to Corporate Running Costs (CRC) which supports staffing and other costs of central functions, with this allocated out across all portfolios, as set out in annual budgets. The remainder of the spend is fully allocated in support of staffing costs within two Health and Social Care Directorates – Health Finance, Corporate Governance and Value and Directorate of Chief Operating Officer. Final confirmation of spend will be included as part of the Scottish Government provisional outturn.

NHS Forth Valley has been unable to demonstrate the necessary governance, leadership and culture required to drive sustainable improvements in poor performance.

The Scottish Government has established an Assurance Board, chaired by Christine McLaughlin, co-Director of Population Health. The Assurance Board is supporting NHS Forth Valley in determining what steps are necessary to ensure the delivery of high quality governance, leadership and culture in, and in doing so is intended to support improvements in performance in out of hours, unscheduled care, mental health, and integration.

The ongoing work to address the underlying issues impacting poor performance is even more crucial as NHS Forth Valley faces one of the toughest winter periods ever experienced.

This budget covers the purchase of pandemic influenza vaccine on behalf of NHS Scotland as part of the UK four Nation agreement. Funds that are allocated are based on need with the majority of spend occurring later in the financial year. Final confirmation of spend will be included as part of the Scottish Government provisional outturn.

My officials in Transport Scotland are currently considering the most appropriate route for continuity of these services. I will consider this advice as soon as I receive it. The most important factor for passengers and staff will be seamless provision, irrespective of future models considered.