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The Scottish Government remains committed to ensuring that all children and young people who require access to services are able to receive the best possible care and support wherever possible and benefit from healthcare services that are safe, effective and put the patient at the centre of their care.

Whilst the Scottish Government provides the policies, frameworks and resources for high quality health care in Scotland, it is for each NHS Board to decide how best to deliver those services to meet the needs of the population to ensure they can provide safe and effective care for their patients. Operational matters - including staffing - are in the first instance the responsibility of the relevant NHS Board. This will depend on the service needs of each Board taking account of national, regional and local priorities, and we expect NHS Boards to plan and provide safe, effective and high-quality care, in line with their statutory service provision and workforce planning responsibilities.

All UK undergraduate education and training programmes recognised as a route into registered practice as a nurse or midwife are approved by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), which is the independent statutory regulator of these professions (and, in England, Nursing Associates). Nurses and midwives must comply with the NMC Code, which sets out the expected standards of professional practice in key areas such as prioritising people, practising effectively, preserving safety and promoting professionalism and trust. Registrants are also required to revalidate periodically, to demonstrate that they are keeping their skills and knowledge up to date and maintaining safe and effective practice. A key requirement of the NMC Code is that registrants must not undertake tasks for which they are not appropriately qualified and experienced.

The Scottish Government convened a Supplementary Staffing Task and Finish Group in late 2022 which, amongst other things, sought to strengthen arrangements for the recruitment and on-boarding of all bank staff. This resulted in the provision of additional guidance to Health Boards that highlighted the role of interviews, professional registration checks and induction shifts as mechanisms for ensuring bank staff demonstrated the necessary skills, knowledge and familiarity with services, systems and processes required to support the delivery of high-quality care. This aligns with the NMCCode (2018), which states that registrants are expected to ‘work within the limits of their competence’. Bank nursing staff, alongside others, have a professional responsibility to seek support, training and education as necessary to practise safely and to protect the public. This includes those working in psychiatric units. The Scottish Government recognises that demand for mental health support continues to grow along with a rise in complex support and services and ongoing staffing vacancies in some roles. This is why we are implementing the actions contained in the Mental Health and Wellbeing Workforce Action Plan that was published jointly with COSLA and the agreed actions from the Scottish Mental Health Nursing Review Report.

We are working in collaboration with the Phase Two locations, including Central Fife, on the development of three further sites in premises on the high street or former retail sites. It is important that any location is safe for clinical care and meets the strict criteria applicable to premises delivering NHS care. Once commercial and clinical agreements are in place, we will be able to provide further information on the specific location of the pilot.

Scotland’s strengths and areas of competitive advantages positions us well to seize the opportunities of net zero.

The Scottish Government welcomes the investment by SSEN Distribution, which will help upgrade the subsea network serving Scotland’s islands, improving its resilience, and supporting Scotland’s net zero ambitions. It will also support thousands of high-quality green jobs and drive growth across the local, regional, and national economies as part of our net zero transformation.

SSEN estimate the investment will support more than 450 specialist jobs for every year the agreements are in place with a minimum contract period of 5 years.

Scotland, along with the other UK nations, follows the expert advice of the UK National Screening Committee (UK NSC) when implementing screening programmes. We have fully implemented the UK NSC’s recommendations regarding cervical screening.

The UK NSC has previously considered the evidence regarding ovarian cancer screening, including the clinical data from the UK Collaborative Trial of Ovarian Cancer Screening (UKCTOCS), which recruited more than 200,000 women. This trial found that screening using the most viable methods did not have a meaningful impact on mortality compared with not screening at all. The Committee therefore concluded that there was not enough evidence to support a screening programme and did not recommend introducing one. Further information regarding their decision can be found on their website: https://view-health-screening-recommendations.service.gov.uk/ovarian-cancer/.

The UK NSC has not considered the evidence for any other gynaecological cancers. However, they welcome proposals to consider new conditions for screening during their annual call for topics. Guidance regarding this process is provided on their website: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/uk-nsc-annual-call-submitting-a-screening-proposal/uk-nsc-annual-call-how-to-submit-a-proposal.

If the UK NSC determines that there is an effective test and sufficient evidence to support implementing ovarian or other non-cervical gynaecological cancer screening, and issues a positive recommendation in the future, the Scottish Government will work with the NHS to implement that recommendation.

Our Heat Network Support Unit (HNSU) offers advice and grant funding for the pre-capital stages development including for feasibility studies, Outline Business Cases and strategic heat network support for local authorities to build on their Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategies (LHEES). To date, the HNSU has formally supported 55 pre-capital projects in 18 local authority areas, with the Scottish Government committing approximately £3.2 million of financial support. The HNSU also hosts a District Heating Mentoring Programme in collaboration with the Danish Board of District Heating and the Royal Danish Embassy to link Scottish local authorities directly with district heating experience from Denmark to build the capacity and skills required to deliver district heating.

Scotland’s Heat Network Fund (SHNF) provides capital grant funding to public and private sector organisations to support the rollout of zero-emission heat networks across Scotland which meet key criteria including to provide low carbon and affordable heat to end users. In total, through the SHNF and its predecessor, the Low Carbon Infrastructure Transition Programme, Scottish Government has committed approximately £62.6 million to 19 heat network projects, 11 of which are local authority led.

The Scottish Government recognises the important role that community organisations play in identifying and developing local energy solutions and encourage local authorities to undertake community engagement as part of their development of heat networks. As heat networks are inherently local assets, local authority involvement can help to align projects with LHEES and other local plans, and secure third party, private investment where needed. We are currently considering options for community heat network support.

Consumer protection including the price of heat is a reserved matter. We are working with the UK Government and Ofgem to support the introduction of GB-wide heat network authorisations under the UK Energy Act 2023. Authorisations came into effect in January 2026 and will introduce rules around fair pricing, clear and transparent billing and other protections for heat network customers for the first time.

Both the Cabinet Secretary for Climate Action & Energy and I have recently written to the UK Government to ask what action it plans to take to address the cost of electricity for heat networks. We await a response on this.

Meanwhile, we are developing further Scottish regulation under the Heat Networks (Scotland) Act 2021 and the future Buildings (Heating and Energy Performance) and Heat Networks (Scotland) Bill which will, in time, allow scrutiny of the expected outcomes and impacts on end users before projects begin construction. In March 2026 we will launch a public consultation on heat network licence proposals which will also set out our future plans in this area, in line with my statement to Parliament on 18 November 2026.

Since the new representations process was introduced on 16 January 2026, members of the public are expected to send representations about applications for energy consent via the Energy Consents Unit portal. This process replaces emailed representations for all new consultation windows.

The change of process was made following feedback from the public that their representations were not being processed quickly enough, were not displayed clearly, and there was inadequate assurance that representations had been received and would be considered by Scottish Ministers. The portal-based submissions system addresses these concerns and will streamline the administrative handling of virtual representations, while maintaining equivalent accessibility for all members of the public.

The option to send written representations by post remains available for those who cannot or prefer not to use digital platforms, ensuring no group is excluded from participating.

The National Framework for Adult Support and Protection (ASP) Learning and Development in Scotland provides a multi-agency, multi-disciplinary resource to ensure that all those involved in supporting and protecting adults are appropriately trained and skilled for their role. It prioritises workforce development and underscores the importance of dialogue, collaboration, and partnership across professional groups. The Framework aims to support a consistent approach across Scotland which can be adapted for local use to enhance existing local training approaches. An implementation plan has been developed and will be delivered by the by the National ASP Coordinator and supported by the multi-agency National Learning and Development Network. This includes work with early adopter sites to provide feedback and a multi-agency review on its use 10 months following publication. Colleagues in learning and development roles within multi-agency local partnerships are in a unique position to support best practice. They can develop the knowledge and skills required in practitioners across all organisations and services, promoting multi-agency, multi-service shared learning.

The National Framework for Adult Support and Protection (ASP) Learning and Development in Scotland provides a multi-agency, multi-disciplinary resource to ensure that all those involved in supporting and protecting adults are appropriately trained and skilled for their role. It prioritises workforce development and underscores the importance of dialogue, collaboration, and partnership across professional groups. The Framework aims to support a consistent approach across Scotland which can be adapted for local use to enhance existing local training approaches. An implementation plan has been developed and will be delivered by the by the National ASP Coordinator and supported by the multi-agency National Learning and Development Network. This includes work with early adopter sites to provide feedback and a multi-agency review on its use 10 months following publication. Colleagues in learning and development roles within multi-agency local partnerships are in a unique position to support best practice. They can develop the knowledge and skills required in practitioners across all organisations and services, promoting multi-agency, multi-service shared learning.

The Scottish Government does not hold this data.