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There are five recommendations for the Scottish Government in the report. These include improved data gathering, setting standards and funding for out of area placements. We will consider these recommendations in detail and provide a full response to the Mental Welfare Commission in due course.

The recommendations of the ongoing Active Travel Transformation Project will be made publicly available. It is intended that these will be shared in the coming months.

A report which summarises the work undertaken and lessons learned from the first stage of the Project will be also published. This report will include learning from Project workshops, and summarises issues surfaced through wider Project engagement.

The Scottish Government has provided funding for 215 properties through the Private Rented Sector Landlord Loan Scheme since the Scheme was established in April 2020. 

The Agricultural Reform Route Map sets out the proposed timescales for information and interaction with the agricultural industry. As we continue to make progress with the Agriculture Reform Programme, there will be further opportunities to share key information with farmers, crofters and landowners to help them plan and prepare for change.

Scottish Government officials have been sharing information about RAAC with local authorities’ Scottish Heads of Property Services (SHOPS) and Association of Directors of Education in Scotland (ADES) networks since July 2022. Scottish Government officials shared the latest guidance from the Institution of Structural Engineers with the SHOPS and ADES networks in May.

In recent weeks, I have personally met with COSLA to discuss RAAC on 31 August, 5 September, 11 September and 21 September. We have agreed to continue doing so weekly during this phase of the response. Minutes of such meetings are not routinely published.

I wrote to local authorities regarding RAAC on 2 September and 5 September, along with the Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information. Building safety is a matter for the owner - who in this case would be individual local authorities - acting in accordance with the relevant health and safety legislation. Moreover, health and safety legislation is not devolved to the Scottish Government.

It is imperative that there is transparency around the schools where RAAC has been identified and the mitigations that are in place. This is why, on 8 September, a list of the 16 local authorities where reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) has been found in some schools was published in a Scottish Government news release ( Local authorities publish RAAC data - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) ).

Ministers were provided with an interim analysis on 23 February 2023 prior to a finalised report being provided on 4 May 2023.

The Scottish Government is aware of commentary provided in the formal reports of the Public Local Inquiries into the Sanquhar II and Clauchrie windfarm planning applications. The Inquiry's focus was not regarding the conduct of Glasgow Prestwick Airport.

Glasgow Prestwick Airport is run on a commercial basis at arm's length from the Scottish Government, therefore commercial agreements reached by the airport and windfarm developers are a commercial matter between the parties involved.

GPA continues to perform well in a highly competitive aviation market and is now a profitable business. The Scottish Government has full confidence in the Board and senior management and its strategy to grow and develop the airport. The airport is a key enabler for the Ayrshire aerospace cluster, sustaining 300 direct and 4,000 indirect jobs and Scottish Ministers remain committed to supporting their investment in the airport.

Out of all pupils recorded with an additional support need in the 2022 pupil census:

(a) 8% were reported as having language or speech disorder as reason for support

(b) 5% were reported as having communication needs as reason for support

(c) 5% were reported as having learning disabilities as a reason for support

(d) 11% were reported as having autism spectrum disorder as a reason for support

Note that each pupil may be recorded as having multiple reasons for support.

Statistics on additional support needs are published in the pupil census supplementary statistics, available on the Scottish Government website: https://www.gov.scot/publications/pupil-census-supplementary-statistics/

The Recovery Fund for Independent Cinemas , launched in February 2022, was the second of two funds designed to support the independent exhibition sector during and in the immediate aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic.

It followed the Independent Cinema Recovery and Resilience Fund, which was launched in September 2020 and provided funding until March 2021.

Both these funds were part of exceptional measures instigated by Scottish Government and administered by Screen Scotland in response to the immediate challenges posed by Covid-19. There are no plans to re-open either fund or for the creation of a new Recovery Fund for Independent Cinemas.