Questions and answers

Question reference: S6O-04450

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to support the mental health of police officers and ensure that they have access to the appropriate specialist services.

Question reference: S6O-04447

Asked by: Stuart McMillan, MSP for Greenock and Inverclyde, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what engagement it has had with the UK Government regarding re-joining the European Single Market.

Question reference: S6O-04443

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what steps Historic Environment Scotland is taking to ensure that women have access to a safe working environment.

Question reference: S6O-04469

Asked by: Clare Adamson, MSP for Motherwell and Wishaw, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 20 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that local authorities provide co-ordinated support plans for pupils who need extra support.

Question reference: S6O-04425

Asked by: Karen Adam, MSP for Banffshire and Buchan Coast, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 12 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what immediate steps it can take to ensure that vulnerable individuals are not harmed as a result of the reported planned withdrawal of some health and social care services in Aberdeenshire.

I am aware of the reported proposal to withdraw some services in Aberdeenshire and, while statutory responsibility for these decisions does not rest with Ministers, I expect Aberdeenshire Health and Social Care Partnership to closely monitor the impact of any decisions and take action as required.

It goes without saying that the safety and wellbeing of all members of society is of paramount importance. I would encourage all partners to work together to find solutions that not only address financial pressures, but put the needs of local people, particularly those most vulnerable, at the centre.

Question reference: S6W-35417

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 12 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it excludes the funding for any local authorities for the purposes of calculating average per person funding for local authorities as part of the policy, as stated in the Scottish Public Finance Manual, that each local authority receives at least 85% of the Scottish average revenue funding per head, and, if so, which local authorities; when they were first excluded, and for what reason.

The 85% funding floor is a key element of the needs-based distribution formula that is discussed and agreed with COSLA on behalf of all 32 local authorities each year.

Funding for all local authorities in Scotland is included in the calculation of the 85% Floor although the contribution of the three island councils and Argyll and Bute to the average calculation, is capped at 115%.

The capping adjustment has no effect on funding actually provided to those four authorities and it only applies for the purpose of calculating the average, in part to mitigate the risk that the Special Islands Needs Allowance (SINA) has a distortive impact on the calculation.

The capping adjustment has been in place since the 85% Floor was introduced in the 2012-13 Settlement (see Annex I of Local Government Finance Circular 11/2011).

Question reference: S6W-35415

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 12 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what the value of the 85% per person funding floor, as described in the Scottish Public Finance Manual, would be if assumed council tax revenues are excluded and funding for all local authorities in Scotland is included.

The 85% funding floor and assumed council tax revenues are key elements of the needs-based distribution formula that is discussed and agreed with COSLA on behalf of all 32 local authorities each year.

Funding for all local authorities in Scotland is included in the calculation of the 85% Floor although the contribution of the three island councils and Argyll and Bute to the average calculation, is capped at 115%.

The capping adjustment has no effect on funding actually provided to those four authorities and it only applies for the purpose of calculating the average, in part to mitigate the risk that the Special Islands Needs Allowance (SINA) has a distortive impact on the calculation.

The adjustment to a maximum of 115% effectively lowers the target Scotland average. This may sometimes reduce the number of LAs qualifying for support through the 85% floor but would also lower the level of that support guaranteed.

Distribution involves a complex and dynamic calculation with the impact on subsequent years being influenced by prior year calculations, primarily through the operation of the main funding floor.

The following table provides a hypothetical static analysis of the impact, on each of the last five settlements in isolation, if the 115% limit were not applied.

	85% Floor in the actual settlement	change if we didn’t use the 15% cap
2021-22	Edinburgh received £8m	Edinburgh would have received an additional £10m

2022-23	Edinburgh received £10m	Edinburgh would have received an additional £9m

2023-24	none	Edinburgh would have received £2.4m

2024-25	none	no change

2025-26	none	no change

The inclusion of Assumed Council Tax in the overall distribution calculations reflects structural differences in the housing stock across the country and ensures that local authorities with a greater proportion of houses in band A to C are not disadvantaged, relative to those with a higher proportion of their houses in band E to H.

The absence of an Assumed Council Tax adjustment in the formula would disproportionately benefit more affluent local authorities. By way of illustration, for every £1 raised on a band D council tax bill more affluent authorities receive 50% more income than the least affluent authorities. Including Assumed Council Tax in the settlement calculations is therefore a critical element of the needs-based distribution by ensuring that the impact of those structural differences is partially redistributed.

Excluding Assumed Council Tax from the 85% floor would remove this partial redistribution and would therefore be incompatible with the concept of a needs-based distribution methodology.

The following table provides a hypothetical static analysis of the impact of excluding both Assumed Council Tax and the 15 per cent upper limit from the calculation, in each of the last five settlements in isolation.

	85% Floor in the actual settlement	change if we didn’t use ACT or the 15% cap
2021-22	Edinburgh received £8m	Aberdeen City would have received £10m, Edinburgh would have received an additional £54m

2022-23	Edinburgh received £10m	Aberdeen City would have received £11m, Edinburgh would have received an additional £53m

2023-24	none	Edinburgh would have received £50m

2024-25	none	Edinburgh would have received £38m

2025-26	none	Edinburgh would have received £45m

Question reference: S6W-35335

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 12 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the availability of unscheduled care services in the NHS, and how it ensures that people can access these.

At the heart of our NHS Scotland Renewal Plan, which is supported by £200 million to address backlogs and improve capacity, is that we have a person-centred, cohesive healthcare system that is built around the patient journey, ensuring appropriate care is provided at home and in community, primary and secondary care settings.

The budget will deliver direct access to specialist Frailty teams in every Emergency Department by summer 2025. This will enable people who experience frailty to be referred directly by GPs and the Scottish Ambulance Service to specialist frailty services as an alternative to admission or attending A&E.

Our Right Care Right Place marketing campaign messaging advises the public on how to access the services they need and help alleviate pressures being felt across the whole of the NHS. By assisting the public, we aim to ensure that A&E resources and the valuable skills of frontline staff are available for those that need emergency care and minimise delays for patients waiting to be seen and treated.

Question reference: S6W-35195

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 12 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what percentage of the Scottish budget is allocated to public bodies and how this has changed over the past decade.

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