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The 2021 Country and Regional Analysis (produced by HM Treasury) includes analysis of expenditure on public services in Scotland and comparisons with other parts of the UK as a whole. In 2020-21 public order and safety spending in Scotland was £3.1bn. On a per capita basis, spending in Scotland was 11% higher than in England and 7% higher than in Wales, as shown in the following table:

Public Order & Safety Expenditure (per capita)

We welcome people from Hong Kong who have chosen to move to Scotland. The Scottish Government is committed to supporting their integration into our communities and we have also published a dedicated British National (Overseas) welcome pack, in both English and Cantonese, on our website.

The Scottish Government is taking a coordinated cross-portfolio approach to support BN(O) nationals coming to Scotland, working with COSLA to assess the impact on public services in key local authorities. We have been pressing the UK Government to provide clarity on when the £2.98M funding for integration support will be transferred to the Scottish Government.

Additional support needs, as defined under the Education (Additional Support for Learning) Act 2004 (as amended), arise if a child or young person is, or is likely to be, unable without the provision of additional support to benefit from school education. An additional support need can be of short or long-term duration. Under the Act, education authorities are required to identify, provide for and to review the additional support needs of their pupils. Local authorities are supported to carry out their duties under the Act by the statutory Supporting Learners’ Code of Practice.

Under the Act, a formal diagnosis is not required in order for support to be provided. The Pupil census: supplementary statistics - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) , published on 15 March 2022 includes the latest information and a local authority level breakdown of the reasons why additional support was provided. The data collected does not distinguish between support not being provided and a need being identified and support not being in place.

These matters are at an early stage and we understand that the UK Government is currently considering next steps. We are aware, however, that MG ALBA is making preparations for a possible media bill and will be meeting the Minister for State at DCMS to discuss these matters soon. We are also aware of what MG ALBA would hope to see included in a bill and the Scottish Government will support MG ALBA with its requests to ensure greater equity between minority indigenous languages across the UK and to defend and strengthen public service broadcasting in Scotland.

All 32 Scottish local authorities welcomed refugees under the Syrian resettlement scheme. Local authorities have also re-affirmed their continuing support for resettlement with all 32 Scottish local authorities committing to participate in the Afghanistan resettlement and relocation schemes and to support those arriving from Ukraine.

The Scottish Government continues to work with local authorities, COSLA, UK Government and wider partners to support people arriving through the UK Resettlement Scheme, Afghanistan relocation and resettlement schemes and the Homes for Ukraine scheme.

We have a wealth of experience and learning from previous schemes to support and resettle displaced people. Scotland stands ready to offer refuge and sanctuary to anyone who may need it.

The numbers of confirmed strokes admitted during 2016 - 2021 showing median time (minutes) to brain imaging are shown in the following table:

The Scottish Government welcomes the work of the European Stroke Organisation and agree that it is vital to ensure improvements are made to stroke pathways and services, including prevention, treatment and care.

Through our Programme for Government commitments and the Stroke Improvement Plan, we are already reflecting the aims of the European Stroke Organisation’s appeal targets.

We are supporting the National Advisory Committee on Stroke to develop a progressive stroke pathway document which will set out the vision of what stroke services across Scotland should deliver across the whole patient pathway, including access to stroke rehabilitation, and access to support for people who have experienced a stroke. However, at this time, the Scottish Government does not have plans to use the tracker. The Scottish Stroke Care Audit will continue to track our progress against the Scottish stroke care standards.

The Scottish Stroke Improvement Team have reported on a 12 hour Standard for brain imaging since the Scottish Stroke Improvement Programme National Report (2020). Prior to this, the standard had been within 24 hours. This change in Stroke Standard was in response to a change in the evidence base, with some new treatment regimes being shown to improve outcome when initiated within 12 hours of stroke onset.

Some cases of stroke are time critical emergencies and should be scanned immediately, for instance those patients requiring hyperacute interventions such as thrombolysis and thrombectomy. These specific cases have their own stroke standards on door-to-needle times which ensure that processes are audited and service improvement packages are put in place.

The Scottish Government continue to support the development of clinical trials on the use of Cannabis Based Products for Medicinal Use (CBPMs).

Through the work of the Chief Pharmaceutical Officer, we continue to engage with the National Institute for Health Research on two randomised controlled trials into epilepsy.

We also continue to encourage manufacturers of CBPMs to support further research, and bring their products forward for trials.

The Scottish Government is fully committed to the Ayrshire Growth Deal and supports all the projects included within it. To that end, the £103 million commitment from the Scottish Government to the Ayrshire Growth Deal is secure.

We recognise that construction costs have increased globally as a result of international market forces primarily related to the global pandemic, over which government has very little control. This is an issue which is not unique to Ayrshire but felt across Scotland and internationally.

As the Deal is a partnership between Scottish Government, UK Government, and Local Authorities, we are working collectively to explore regional responses to these global challenges, and will continue to support regional partners as they develop their preferred solutions.