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The Scottish Government has provided funding for 190 properties for energy efficiency measures through the Private Rented Sector Landlord Loan Scheme since it was established in April 2020.

In Dumfries and Galloway, a range of eating disorder care and treatment is provided in line with good clinical practice across primary care, community services and specialist services for children, adolescents and adults.

This includes the Child and Adolescent Mental Health Services (CAMHS) Specialist Eating Disorder Service which provides out-patient treatment to children and young people impacted by an eating disorder. In addition, there is a Specialist Eating Disorder Service for adults, SEDS, which is based within Mountainhall Treatment Centre. This service provides those over the age of 18 a safe, supportive and collaborative environment to support them to live a more fulfilled and independent life.

Furthermore, Dumfries and Galloway has pathways into paediatric, general adult and CAMHS inpatient facilities when admission for an eating disorder is required.

Through Scottish Government funding of over £600,000 per annum, Dumfries and Galloway also has access to a wide range of support services offered by Beat, the UK’s largest Eating Disorder charity, which include:

• Nexus – A Carer telephone support programme which provides a weekly scheduled coaching call to support recovery.
• Synergy - A new service that provides direct support to under 18s and their families through weekly sessions over Zoom.
• Solace - Structured weekly peer-to-peer support groups for carers via Zoom.
• Motivate - Weekly support for those aged 18+ to ensure service users remain motivated while waiting for treatment for anorexia or bulimia to begin.
• Bolster - Weekly support through telephone sessions for Adults (aged +18) who are unable to access treatment.
• Momentum - Self-help programme based on cognitive behavioural therapy for adults (aged 18+) who present with Binge Eating Disorder or regular binge eating episodes.

Phasing out fossil fuel heating is essential to meet our legal climate targets and makes us less dependent on volatile and increasingly expensive fossil fuel prices. As set out in the Heat in Buildings Strategy, published in October 2021, the Scottish Government considers “low and zero emissions heating systems” to be systems that have zero direct greenhouse gas emissions. This includes individual electric heat pumps and connection to heat networks, or electric systems such as storage heaters, and systems that have very low emissions, such as those that use hydrogen.

In line with the recommendation of the Committee on Climate Change, we agree that bioenergy – such as biomass, bio-heating oil and bio-propane - should only be used in those applications where its carbon reduction impact is maximised, where alternative options are not available, and where it comes from sustainable sources. We recognise that, for a small number of homes, bioenergy might offer the only feasible way to reduce emissions from heating to displacing fossil fuels, especially where electric heating or heat pumps are unsuitable. We will therefore consider how such homes may be dealt with under any future regulatory system.

East Lothian Council convened an Incident Response Group as the incident required a multi-agency, co-ordinated response. As part of the co-ordinated response, a sub-group consisting of the Scottish Environment Protection Agency’s (SEPA’s) Airborne Hazard Emergency Response (AHER) Team, Public Health Scotland and the local Health Board, provided scientific advice in relation to air quality and impacts on human health.

No additional assessment by Scottish Government on air quality, local people or wildlife was therefore required.

SEPA is continuing to engage with the operator and investigating the incident.

The reasons for the Commissioners’ resignations are a matter of public record as set out in letters to the Social Justice and Social Security Committee.

I am grateful to the Chair and Commissioners for their contributions to the Commission and thank them for their service.

As the Commission is an independent public body any issues relating to internal relationships are for the Commission to manage .

The information requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government. The Improvement Service’s annual Instrumental Music Survey of local authorities, does, however contain data on number of pupils that participated in instrumental music lessons from academic year 2012-13 to 2021-22 and can be found at the following hyperlink: Improvement Service Survey 2022 . The report highlights that not all local authorities were able to provide responses for all sections of the survey, so care should also be taken when comparing results between different years. We understand that results from the 2022-2023 survey will be published before the end of 2023.

Tables published on the Scottish Government website https://www.gov.scot/publications/teacher-workforce-planning-advisory-group-initial-teacher-education-intake-figures-2022/ show provisional information received from universities on intakes to initial teacher education in 2022-23. These are not official statistics, but indicative figures provided by universities at the start of the academic session. The Higher Education Statistics Agency is due to publish the official data in January 2024

The Scottish Government do not hold this information.

All local authorities in Scotland have a statutory responsibility to manage and maintain their school estate and the Scottish Government expect them to provide an accessible environment for all school users.

The Scottish Government’s Learning Estate Strategy is clear that learning environments should support the wellbeing of all learners, meet varying needs to support inclusion and support transitions for all learners.

Where house or pet-sitting does not involve payment for services, or other commercial considerations such as benefits in kind, that activity is classed as an ‘informal arrangement’ between individuals. There is no requirement for a short-term let licence.

Where that activity is performed as a paid service by a professional, there would be no requirement for a short-term let licence - if the accommodation is provided for the principal purpose of facilitating the provision of work or services by the guest.

Home exchanges are within scope of the short-term let licensing legislation - they include a commercial consideration in the form of a benefit in kind. The mandatory set of safety standards at the heart of the scheme, such as gas safety certificates and appropriate electrical equipment, still apply to homes being swapped. Anyone interested in using accommodation will wish to be assured that it meets required standards. Additionally, it is beneficial for ‘home swappers’ allowing guests to use their home to be able to advise those guests that the accommodation is licensed and complies with relevant conditions.

The Scottish Government acknowledges the findings from Age Scotland’s The Big Survey 2023 and the clear message they tell us.

We remain committed to delivering access to opportunities and services people need to ensure they are healthy, happy and secure in older age.