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Ministers and officials take steps to ensure that their decisions, including where necessary in relation to international law, are informed by appropriate analysis of the legal considerations and implications.

The Scottish Government recognises the importance of Financial Education in equipping learners with key life skills. Financial literacy is embedded in the curriculum in Scotland through numeracy and maths, business studies and personal and social education classes. Financial Education is a key feature of Curriculum for Excellence “Experiences and Outcomes” for Numeracy and Mathematics, assisting learners in understanding the benefits and risks of bank cards, effectively managing money, making appropriate use of technology and appreciating the importance of budgeting.

Education Scotland provides professional learning resources enabling educators to reflect on their own understanding and knowledge and to support future learning and teaching about money. Guidance is available for primary and secondary schools highlighting the links between financial education and Curriculum for Excellence. In addition, a wide range of teaching resources are provided by the private and Third Sector. These include Barclays LifeSkills, financial education guidance from the Money & Pension Service and the work of the charity, Money Ready.

Education Scotland are currently reviewing the curriculum in line with the Curriculum Improvement Cycle programme. As part of this review, work is taking place to review the place of financial education within the curriculum. Education Scotland are engaging with a wide range of practitioners and stakeholders, including children and young people, to review current Financial Education teaching and practice and plan how it can most effectively be integrated into the curriculum, ensuring an equitable approach.

Under the Children’s Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011, board members of Children’s Hearings Scotland are appointed through a public appointments process regulated by the Ethical Standards Commissioner (ESC). Appointments are typically made for a standard term of up to four years, with the possibility of reappointment for up to four more years. Where the legislation governing the body allows, and the ESC and the appointing minister are content, short-term extensions beyond the 8 years, such as the one specified here, can also be granted in exceptional circumstances. This is highlighted in The Code of Practice, under Section H.2:

In exceptional circumstances, the Scottish Ministers may make appropriate appointments (including reappointments or extensions), with the agreement of the Commissioner, to ensure the effective continuing governance of boards.

Due to a delay in the appointment process for new board members, an existing member of the Board had their appointment extended. This process was managed by the Scottish Government, with the agreement of CHS.

The news release announcing this extension states that it was regulated by the Ethical Standards Commissioner, and can be accessed publicly here: https://www.gov.scot/publications/public-appointment-member-appointment-extended-on-the-childrens-hearings-scotland-board/

Information is not held centrally on the number of dog thefts in Scotland. When the theft of a dog is reported to the police, it may be recorded under a number of crimes, depending on the circumstances (for example theft, housebreaking or robbery). The data the Scottish Government receive from Police Scotland on recorded crime is a simple count of recorded crimes by crime type and does not contain any detail on the specifics of each crime e.g. the type of item stolen.

As this is an operational matter for Scottish Water, I have asked them to respond. Scottish Water have provided estimates for the average total daily leakage levels in each month since January 2021 from water mains in the area requested (covering Argyll Islands, Argyll Mainland, Caithness, Fort William, Orkney, Ness, Shetland, Skye, West Coast, and Western Islands) in the following table. Figures are given in megalitres per day.

Barring a minor and temporary amendment during the pandemic, the Scottish Government has not changed the Primary Medical Services (Premises Development Grants, Improvement Grants and Premises Costs) Directions 2004 since 2004.

Plans to revise the directions are being discussed with the Scottish GP Committee as part of our current contract negotiations.

The deployment and management of Police Officers are matters for the Chief Constable. However, I am aware that the cancellation of rest days can be due to a number of reasons, including attendance at court and the policing of events.

The Scottish Government is supporting its justice partners in achieving the outcomes described in the Vision for Justice in Scotland by taking forward a programme to drive key areas of reform, including criminal justice efficiency.

One element of this is the Summary Case Management currently being rolled out across Scotland. This initiative aims to improve the management of summary criminal cases in Scotland and reduce the number of unnecessary hearings. A pilot evaluation report published in September shows a significant reduction in the volume of witness citations being issued, this relates to police officers, victims and witnesses. The impact on police witnesses has been positive with a reduction of citations for domestic cases by up to 34% in all pilot courts. This equates to around 5000 citations not being served on operational officers in pilot areas.

Police Scotland are also progressing work to reduce the impact policing of events on officers such as the Force Mobilisation Model.

On 4 September 2025, the Scottish Government will publish a new paper which evidences and updates the right of people in Scotland to decide their future.

Your Right to Decide demonstrates that the right to decide has been accepted across the political spectrum, including by former UK Prime Ministers and calls on the current UK Government to respect this key democratic principle.

Your Right To Decide will be available to view on the Scottish Government website from 4 September 2025 at https://www.gov.scot/isbn/9781806430321.

Details of applications made to the Energy Consents Unit under Sections 36 and 37 of the Electricity Act (1989) in the last five years are as follows:

The Scottish Government is working with Forth Valley College, UK Government, Skills Development Scotland and Petroineos as part of the Refinery Skills Intervention, which is currently ongoing.

To date the skills intervention targeted at Petroineos workers has had a high uptake. As of 20 August, 306 workers have enrolled in the reskilling programme and over 200 workers have either completed training or are actively undergoing retraining. The remaining individuals who are registered for training will commence according to redundancy schedule and personal preference.