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The creation of the Counter Fraud Service (CFS) and the introduction of the Counter Fraud Toolkit is a significant step forward in the Scottish Government’s (SG) management of the risks to public resources posed by fraud and corruption. Both the CFS and toolkit exist within a broader range of policies, processes, guidance and support within SG that are concerned with the identification and mitigation of fraud and corruption risks. The CFS routinely collaborates with colleagues across SG and wider public bodies in this, including Internal Audit, Risk Control & Assurance Division, Security Division and Procurement on fraud and corruption risk management, and the response to incidents of alleged fraud that occur.

This approach aligns with current best practice in public sector counter fraud, and the CFS is engaged with external partners and colleagues from the UK Government Public Sector Fraud Authority, the International Public Sector Fraud Forum, Audit Scotland and the Scottish Public Sector Counter Fraud Network. This facilitates the sharing of expertise and current counter fraud practice, as well as horizon scanning on future risks of fraud and corruption, providing assurance on the management of fraud and corruption risk and the protection of public resources.

Supported Businesses make an important contribution to the Scottish economy. Not only through the goods and services they deliver, but also by providing meaningful employment, training, and social support for those who may otherwise be excluded from the workplace.

The following information is derived from the supported business suppliers included in Scottish national framework agreement for goods and services that was reserved for supported businesses. This framework was open to the whole of the public sector in Scotland, charities and third sector. The contract ran from 2018 to 2023.

A total of seventy-six contracts have been awarded to the supported businesses on this framework by the Scottish Government (including its agency organisations) over the last five calendar years.

The Scottish Government published a capacity mapping report in 2021 which found that residential rehabilitation provision was disproportionally located around the Central Belt.

We acted on this by announcing the second round of the Residential Rehabilitation Rapid Capacity Programme in 2022, with a specific priority to support new or expanded residential rehabilitation facilities which were regional or would accept placements on a national level.

Over £14 million was made available to support the successful projects, which included the expansion of CrossReach’s service in Inverness (with outreach support to the Highlands and Islands), the extension and refurbishment of the Maxie Richards Foundation’s service in Tighnabruaich, and the creation of a new national residential rehab service in Aberdeenshire by Phoenix Futures.

These projects are progressing well and we expect all to be operational by the end of the year.

On 21 June 2024, I represented the Scottish Government at the Summit meeting of the British-Irish Council hosted by the Government of Isle of Man and chaired by the Chief Minister – Alfred Cannan. The meeting was attended by Ministers from all eight of the BIC Member Administrations.

The theme of the Summit focussed on “Unlocking the Economic and Social Opportunities of Renewables Across These Islands ” which offered the opportunity to share and learn from the range of initiatives being taken across these islands to enable the benefits of renewable energy to be realised across jurisdictions, with Ministers noting the importance of a just transition to net zero.

On the Latest Political Developments item, the Council welcomed the return of the Northern Ireland Ministers to the table following the restoration of the Executive. Ministers also reflected on international issues including the ongoing situations in Ukraine and Israel/Gaza as well as issues closer to home such as the continuing cost crisis. I took the opportunity to set out Scotland’s missions of eradicating child poverty, building the economy and supporting jobs, improving the health service and addressing the climate crisis.

I noted that the Scottish Government will host the next Summit in December.

During the Summit, I held bilateral meetings with the Taoiseach, the Northern Ireland deputy First Minister who was joined by Junior Minister of the Executive, Aisling Reilly in the absence of the First Minister of Northern Ireland, and the Chief Minister of the Isle of Man.

The Communiqué that was issued by the British-Irish Council after the meeting can be found on its website at: britishirishcouncil.org

41st British-Irish Council Summit

Isle of Man, 21 June 2024

Communiqué

The British-Irish Council (BIC) held its 41 st Summit today hosted by the Isle of Man Government and discussed a range of political and economic developments across their administrations. The Summit meeting was chaired by Isle of Man Government Chief Minister Alfred Cannan MHK, who welcomed several Heads of Administration attending a BIC Summit for the first time.

Unlocking the Economic and Social Opportunities of Renewables Across These Islands

The Council discussed various ways administrations are developing initiatives to realise the opportunities of renewable energy to stimulate economic growth and support decarbonisation efforts.

Latest Political Developments

The Council warmly welcomed the return of the Northern Ireland Executive to the British-Irish Council table, as well as the restoration of the devolved institutions and the North South Ministerial Council. The Council also noted that 2024 marks the 25 th anniversary of the British-Irish Council following its establishment under the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement and commended its work on promoting positive relations across these islands.

The Council also reflected on a range of developments across their administrations and internationally, and on topics of mutual interest.

Next Summit Meeting

The Council noted that the next BIC Summit will be hosted by the Scottish Government.

BIC Secretariat

21 June 2024

Plenary Participants

I have asked Janet Egdell, Chief Executive of National Records of Scotland to respond. Her response is as follows:

National Records of Scotland have today published: ' Scotland’s Census 2022: Demography and Migration' .

Scotland’s Census results are designated as Accredited Official Statistics and form an integral part of the statistical system in the UK. The Office for Statistics Regulation (OSR), the independent regulatory arm of the UK Statistics Authority , awards Accredited Official Statistics designation based on the quality, good practice and comprehensiveness of official statistics.

More detail about the schedule for future reports can be found here .

Supported Businesses make an important contribution to the Scottish economy. Not only through the goods and services they deliver, but also by providing meaningful employment, training, and social support for those who may otherwise be excluded from the workplace.

The following information is derived from the supported business suppliers included in Scottish national framework agreement for goods and services that was reserved for supported businesses. This framework was open to the whole of the public sector in Scotland, charities and third sector. The contract ran from 2018 to 2023.

A total of 277 contracts have been awarded to the supported businesses on this framework by public bodies over the last five calendar years.

The key measures to identify and mitigate the risk of corruption in the management of public resources are found in the SG’s Scottish Public Finance Manual (SPFM), and within the SG’s polices and Civil Service Code.

Requirements within the SPFM cover the appropriate standards for the handling of all elements of public finances in terms of payments made, received, and in how they are documented and authorised. All SG organisations are required to demonstrate their adherence to the SPFM standards on an annual basis.

SG employees are required to adhere to employment policies, including adherence to the Civil Service Code, which requires all civil servants to always act with due regard to core principles relating to honesty, integrity, and fairness, and to uphold its standards whilst carrying out any function of government business.

The Integrity Group brings together expertise from across SG from areas such as Propriety & Ethics, Cyber Security, Counter Fraud, Legal and People Services. The group is focussed on providing advice and leadership to the SG on cross-cutting issues related to managing the risk of corruption and breaches of the Civil Service Code.

The Water and Sewerage Services to Dwellings (Collection of Unmetered Charges by Local Authority) (Scotland) Order 2023 provides a mechanism for Scottish Water to pay Local Authorities for the costs of billing and collecting water and sewerage charges. The Scottish Government therefore has no requirement to hold the requested information.

The funding provided by Scottish Government, since 2020 for the National Wellbeing Hub for health and social care staff is broken down as follows:

2020-2021: £57,000

2021-2022: £85,000

2022-2023: £87,000

2023-2024: £191,000

2024-2025: £96,000

Residential rehabilitation services in Scotland are regulated by appropriate governing bodies independent of the Scottish Government; namely the Care Inspectorate, Healthcare Improvement Scotland or the NHS.

It is the responsibility of these bodies to monitor and ensure that residential rehabilitation services are providing safe, quality support to people in recovery across the country.

The Scottish Government entrusts these bodies to carry out this responsibility diligently, and in line with the qualified levels of clinical expertise that they provide.

The Scottish Government commissioned Scotland Excel to develop a National Commissioning Framework to support the procurement of residential rehabilitation placements. The Framework launched in April 2024 and includes a service specification as part of the contractual arrangement. This service specification was developed in conjunction with the regulators to ensure a minimum level of care provided by each provider on the framework.