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The Scottish Government does not hold the required level of information to assess levels of income that Scottish Universities derive from the enrolment of Chinese students.

In 2021-2022 Academic Year, the Student Awards Agency Scotland (SAAS) paid a total of £219.6m in higher education tuition fee awards for eligible Scottish domiciled students. In addition, the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) allocated approximately £694m in block teaching grants to universities in respect of funded places.

Early intervention in psychosis (EIP) and improving services and support for people experiencing a first instance of psychosis in Scotland, are key priority areas for the Scottish Government, as set out in the Early Intervention In Psychosis Action Plan 2019, Mental Health Strategy 2017 to 2027 and the Coronavirus (COVID-19): Mental Health - Transition and Recovery Plan 2020.

To deliver this improvement we commissioned Healthcare Improvement Scotland to undertake a national needs assessment for EIP services across all 14 health boards which was published in March 2021. This assessment outlines the specific needs of communities across Scotland when considering the delivery of improved EIP services. The assessment report and recommendations from this work can be accessed here: https://ihub.scot/media/8111/20210316-eip-report-v21.pdf

In April 2021 we began work with Healthcare Improvement Scotland to deliver a second phase of EIP improvement, which is ongoing. This work builds on the national needs assessment and is focused on piloting models of service delivery which take account of the needs of different communities across Scotland.

The Scottish Government engaged with a range of industry stakeholders as part of the development of the draft Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan, including through the Scottish Energy Advisory Board and its Strategic Leadership Groups, as well as engagement with research organisations and independent experts. Officials regularly draw on the expertise of organisations, such Wood Mackenzie. We will continue to engage with industry experts and wider stakeholders, and encourage the broadest possible range of responses to the consultation on the draft Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan.

The Scottish Government engaged with a range of industry stakeholders as part of the development of the draft Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan, including through the Scottish Energy Advisory Board and its Strategic Leadership Groups, as well as engagement with research organisations and independent experts. Officials regularly engage with stakeholders including OEUK, Scottish Renewables, Energy UK and Solar Energy Scotland, and that engagement has informed the development of the draft Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan. We will continue to engage with industry experts and wider stakeholders, and encourage the broadest possible range of responses to the consultation on the draft Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan.

Information on the number of public access defibrillators in Scotland is available here: Scotland’s Out-of-Hospital Cardiac Arrest Report 2019-2022

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

The following table provides the total number of drug tests conducted in each financial year, along with the results.

The Scottish Government is committed to continuing to work with partners across Tayside to support sustainable change, which ensures the safe and effective delivery of mental health services.

It is crucial that, as the workforce responds to additional pressures and challenges, leaders model and promote compassion. People working in health, social care and social work are the most significant asset for creating positive culture change.

Leaders must examine the needs of staff, ensuring their wellbeing is a priority to help them deal with the rapidly changing situation. This is why the Scottish Government has created Leading to Change, a national leadership development programme, which will be focused on growing compassionate and inclusive leaders who role model these values and create an open and welcoming culture that will help to improve recruitment and retention, and supports staff wellbeing.

To complement the wellbeing support available at a local level, we are continuing to provide a range of resources including the National Wellbeing Hub, a 24/7 National Wellbeing Helpline, confidential mental health treatment through the Workforce Specialist Service, Coaching for Wellbeing and funding for additional local psychological support.

We also continue to work with leaders across health, social care and social work, as well as hearing directly from staff, to understand where the current pressures are, and what further actions can be taken to mitigate their impact on staff wellbeing. Our ongoing response will be informed by a new Improving Wellbeing and Workforce Cultures strategy that will be launched in 2023. The Scottish Government is committed to improving the mental health and wellbeing of Scotland’s population and to ensuring everyone receives the best possible care and support from our health and care services. Delivering this can only be achieved with the right workforce capacity and capability. With substantial investment, we have record numbers of staff providing more varied support and services to a larger number of people than ever before.

Individual NHS Boards are responsible for undertaking the local workforce planning required to deliver safe and high quality services with a sustainable workforce. The Scottish Government works continuously with NHS Boards and Health and Social Care Partnerships to improve workforce planning. The report concurs with Scottish Government feedback to NHS Tayside on the content of its 3 year workforce plan, and draws attention to the need for the Board to ensure this links appropriately to the workforce required for mental and learning disability services in Tayside.

We are currently consulting on our strategic approach to workforce planning for mental health and wellbeing, this will contribute to the forthcoming Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy, which is due to be published in spring 2023.

We will also be working closely with partners to identify short, medium and long term actions for a Mental Health and Wellbeing Workforce Plan, to be published in 2023. The Plan will build on the National Health and Social Care Workforce Strategy, published in March 2022, which sets out a new framework to shape Scotland’s health and social care workforce over the next decade, placing training, wellbeing, job satisfaction, retention and the principles of Fair Work at its heart. It will look at the whole workforce journey and how we can plan for, attract, train, employ and nurture our mental health workforce.

As independent institutions, it is vital universities continue to develop their own mitigating strategies to minimise negative impacts on their short, medium and long-term financial sustainability.

The Scottish Government along with the Scottish Funding Council, continue to explore options in conjunction with the university and colleges sectors, to ensure institutions across the whole tertiary sector are sustainable in the longer-term. To further support universities we have increased higher education resource funding by £20 million in cash terms as part of the 2023-24 Budget. This ensures that our universities continue to deliver a high standard of education for all students against the backdrop of the cost-of-living crisis.

Scottish universities are autonomous institutions and as such are responsible for their own entry requirements and admissions policies. As independent institutions, it is vital universities continue to develop their own mitigating strategies to minimise negative impacts on their short, medium and long-term financial sustainability.

The Scottish Government along with the Scottish Funding Council continue to explore options in conjunction with the university and colleges sectors, to ensure institutions across the whole tertiary sector are sustainable in the longer-term. We currently have record numbers of enrolments and full-time first degree entrants from Scotland, International students and those from other parts of the UK are not eligible to access funded places.

To further support universities we have increased higher education resource funding by £20 million in cash terms as part of the 2023-24 Budget. This ensures that our universities continue to deliver a high standard of education for all students against the backdrop of the cost-of-living crisis.

The Scottish Government welcomes the contribution that international students make to our society, culture and economy. International students add to the diversity of our communities, enrich the learning experience and support local businesses and jobs.

Data published on 19 January 2023 by the Higher Education Statistics Agency shows record numbers of non-EU international students (65,300), and we welcome that these numbers are diversifying with noticeable increases in students from India, Nigeria and Pakistan.

Any decision about dredging the River is for the local authority to take forward. In relation to dredging, there are circumstances in which this can be an appropriate measure to reduce the risk of flooding. However, it is important to avoid inappropriate dredging. This is partly to avoid damaging the river environment, but also because dredging and other river engineering work can often prove ineffective, or in some cases counter-productive, as a tool for managing flood risk. The scale of these risks depends on the river characteristics and the design of the works, which is why large scale dredging operations require an authorisation from SEPA under the Water Environment (Controlled Activities) (Scotland) Regulations 2005.