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The usual timing of the annual implementation of changes to ferry fares has been consistent for many years and is defined in the Northern Isles Ferry Services (NIFS) contract as January and the Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Services (CHFS) contracts as the start of CHFS summer timetable.

Discussions regarding the 2025-26 budget remain ongoing, and as such we are unable to provide any details regarding the Place Based Investment Programme (PBIP) or other regeneration capital funding programmes for 2025-26.

The Government’s future legislative programmes will be announced in the relevant Programme for Government in the normal way.

The Scottish Government is committed to keep The Promise by 2030 and has recently set out further detail on activity underway in our Promise Implementation Plan Update 2024: Keeping The Promise to our children, young people and families: progress update 2024 - gov.scot (www.gov.scot). This includes a continued commitment to introduce a Promise Bill by the end of this parliamentary session, dependent on wider pressures on the Parliamentary legislative calendar.

We are currently conducting a number of consultations which will inform the next steps on key areas and, where appropriate to inform The Promise Bill.

This includes the next stages of reform of the children’s hearing system; the future of foster care; the definition of care experience; and the support available to those moving on from care.

Ofqual regulates qualifications, examinations and assessments in England. Its findings relate to the SQA Level 1 Health and Safety in a Construction Environment qualification delivered in England which was withdrawn by SQA in April 2019.

SQA is an executive Non-Departmental Public Body (NDPB), established under the Education (Scotland) Act 1996. As a NDPB, SQA is responsible for making its own operational decisions. I have asked the SQA to write to Mr Rennie setting out the measures taken and communications with stakeholders related to the undertaking.

The 2024-25 Scottish Budget delivers a competitive non-domestic rates regime including the lowest poundage in the UK for the sixth year in a row, and a package of reliefs worth an estimated £685 million. As at 1 June 2024, over 20,000 properties in the Clackmannanshire, Fife, Perth and Kinross, and Stirling council areas benefited from one or more non-domestic rates reliefs, worth almost £84 million.

The capital funding position remains challenging and infrastructure projects remain under review. The Scottish Government is assessing the full implications of the UK Autumn Budget and also await the outcome of the UK Government’s Spending Review in 2025. Full consideration will be given as to which projects are affordable and deliverable and can be included within our revised infrastructure investment plan pipeline.

We are working with all health boards to develop a whole-system NHS infrastructure plan which will reflect needs across Scotland and support continued safe operation of existing facilities, as well as determination of longer term investment priorities.

Carer Support Payment is replacing Carer’s Allowance in Scotland. Ahead of delivering the benefit we engaged extensively with carers and support organisations to consider how our benefit could work better, and we know the earnings limit is an area where people would like to see change.

Carer Support Payment largely mirrors Carer’s Allowance rules on earnings to protect a safe and secure transfer for people in Scotland already getting Carer’s Allowance. We have already improved how these rules are applied, for example with better ways of averaging earnings, reducing the impact of the ‘cliff edge’ for many carers.

We have also considered further changes which could be made once the transfer of benefits from Carer’s Allowance is complete. Our analysis found that an earnings taper to address the cliff edge earnings limit would add significant complexity for carers, operationally, and in terms of interactions with wider support. However we took feedback in our 2022 public consultation on two proposals which would help address this issue – an increase to the earnings threshold, with a link to 16 hours at a specific rate, such as Real Living Wage, and a proposal for a run on of support where carers earn over the limit so that they don’t lose all support immediately.

Ofqual regulates qualifications, examinations and assessments in England. Its findings relate to the SQA Level 1 Health and Safety in a Construction Environment qualification delivered in England which was withdrawn by SQA in April 2019.

SQA made the Scottish Government aware of the issue through its regular governance channels when it first arose in 2019 and have regularly updated the Scottish Government on developments throughout the process.

SQA formally notified the Scottish Government of the final and published version of the Undertaking given by the SQA to Ofqual on 11 October 2024.

NHS Grampian was allocated funding to support additional orthopaedic activity at Woodend Hospital as part of our £30 million investment in planned care.

Activity levels will increase over the coming months and the Scottish Government will work closely with the Board to support delivery.

The Scottish Government is committed to working in partnership with business and industry to deliver a just transition for Scotland’s valued oil and gas sector, which recognises the declining nature of the North Sea basin and is in line with our climate change commitments.