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The Scottish Government reached a budget agreement with COSLA in December 2024 which included a commitment to make meaningful progress towards the implementation of a 90-minute reduction in teacher class contact time.

Revenue Scotland is responsible for the collection and management of the fully devolved taxes, including Air Departure Tax (ADT) which will replace UK Air Passenger Duty (APD).The Scottish Government and Revenue Scotland have joint responsibility for delivery of ADT.

I exchanged correspondence with Justin Madders MP, the then Minister for Employment Rights, Competition and Markets, who advised the Scottish Government that providing a specific carve out from the Subsidy Control Act 2022 for the Highlands and Islands exemption is not possible.

The Scottish Government is clear that financial uncertainty should not be a barrier to women leaving an abusive partner.

We are investing £1.5 million in a national Fund to Leave, which aims to help reduce the financial burden of leaving an abusive partner by providing financial support to help to pay for the essentials women and children need.

Our £26.1 million a year Delivering Equally Safe Fund supports a range of services for survivors of gender-based violence. The Victim Centred Approach Fund provides £12 million to 23 organisations between 2025 and 2027 for advocacy support for survivors of gender-based violence. Additionally we have increased funds to Financially Included to establish an economic abuse helpline.

This year we have allocated £2.2 million to roll out a national Council Tax Debt project, delivered by Citizens Advice Scotland to increase the support available to those that need advice and support on any aspect of Council Tax including arrears.

Local authorities and commercial waste operators have made significant progress to prepare for the ban on landfilling of biodegradable municipal waste and the overwhelming majority already have compliant solutions in place. There has been a significant expansion of energy from waste facilities in Scotland in recent years. The Scottish Government will continue working closely with the waste sector and with public and private sector partners to ensure we build on progress and support a smooth transition away from landfill. It will be for SEPA to determine its regulatory position beyond 31 December 2027.

I refer the member to question S6O-04953 taken in the chamber on 18 September 2025, the answer to question S6W-40769 on 8 October 2025 and my subsequent letter to him dated 8 October 2025, a copy of which has been placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 66234).

With regards to the UK Energy Minister as you will be aware he has no role in the planning and consenting process in Scotland and therefore does not have to adhere to Scottish Ministerial Code and our Scottish Ministerial Code: 2025 Edition - gov.scot expands on the guidance in relation to planning matters for all Ministers.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

We are clear that no patient should be treated in a space not fit for clinical care. To address the wider pressures that can lead to this, we are investing £200m through the Operational Improvement Plan to address high hospital occupancy and improve patient flow. This is why this funding is being targeted towards reducing delayed discharges and increasing capacity by expanding Hospital at Home services to 2,000 beds by the end of 2026.

Although there is existing data already collected and published such as 12 hour A&E waits and acute receiving occupancy we are actively considering ways in which data collection can be further developed with Public Health Scotland. This includes how to improve consistency of four-hour recording for A&E attendances. We will continue to work with Public Health Scotland, National Services Scotland and the Centre for Sustainable Delivery to understand and identify any gaps in the current data to improving urgent and unscheduled care analysis.

The Scottish Government recognises that poverty is a barrier to learning, and eradicating child poverty in Scotland is a national mission and this Government’s top priority.

Our action is making a real difference to families. On average, households with children in the poorest 10% of households are estimated to be £2,600 a year better off in 2025-26 as a result of Scottish Government policies. This value is projected to grow to an average of £3,700 a year by 2029-30.

We are absolutely committed to meeting the 2030 child poverty targets and will continue to do everything within our powers and budget to deliver the change needed in the face of challenging economic conditions. We will publish our third child poverty delivery plan by the end of March 2026, setting out the actions to be taken between 2026-2031 to meet the final targets.

In terms of poverty and education, research has shown that the poverty-related attainment gap emerges early in a child’s life, with data indicating a disparity in cognitive development in the Early Years and Primary School – the Growing Up in Scotland (GUS) longitudinal study found that at age 5, compared to children in the lowest income quintile, those in the highest income quintile were around 13 months ahead in their knowledge of vocabulary, and 10 months ahead in their problem-solving ability.

The negative impacts of poverty on children and young people continue right through the learner journey, with the GUS survey finding that, at entry into primary school and at age 8, children in the lowest income group were more likely to have high levels of social, emotional and behavioural difficulties and to have lower life satisfaction. The Health and Wellbeing Census found that the mental health gap between the most and least deprived pupils reaches its highest between S1 and S3, with evidence suggesting that pupils from more deprived areas were less likely to have a high level of support from parents/carers, trusted adults, and peers.

In recognition of those challenges, the Scottish Government has a range of policies to support children and young people to engage with education and support their readiness to learn. These policies include:

?Investment of up to £1 billion in the Scottish Attainment Challenge to improve outcomes for children and young people impacted by poverty, with a focus on closing the poverty-related attainment gap. There is a vast body of analysis of this programme, including consideration of readiness to learn and the views of children and young people.

?Supported by the Scottish Attainment Challenge, there are lots of examples of how schools are supporting young people to overcome the barriers of poverty, including St Machar Academy in Aberdeen which has a highly effective partnership with the local football club, with an alternative curriculum offer focusing on health, wellbeing, communication and confidence building. Another example is St Ignatius Primary School in North Lanarkshire, which has invested PEF in developing a bespoke tracking system. This allows them to target tailored interventions such as Forest clubs, to encourage improved attendance, attainment and the engagement of children – all underpinned by a lens-like focus on data.

?Free school meals are a crucial element of the Scottish Government’s ambition to eradicate child poverty. This offer is currently available to over 230,000 pupils in primaries 1 to 5 and in special schools across Scotland, plus eligible pupils in Primary 6 to Secondary 6, saving families who take up this offer around £450 per child per year.

?In the current financial year, we have also provided local authorities with funding of £14.2 million in 2025-26 to enable them to maintain the school clothing grant.

Further, in August 2024, the Scottish Government published a national relationships and behaviour action plan to address the concerns raised in the Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research (BISSR). The plan is jointly owned with COSLA, given the statutory responsibility for the delivery of education rests with our councils. The plan was developed in collaboration with SAGRABIS, which NASUWT are a member of. The plan sets out 20 actions to be taken by 2027, including actions to reduce violence in schools in response to the current evidence on relationships and behaviours in Scotland’s schools. As well as tackling violence, it will address issues including attendance, young people’s mental health, exclusion and empowering staff.

As part of the action plan, in June we published new guidance to support school staff in fostering a positive, inclusive, and safe school environment, including the use of consequences alongside guidance on risk assessments for violent, aggressive, and dangerous behaviour. The guidance was developed in collaboration with key stakeholders including teaching unions (including NASUWT), Headteachers, COSLA and ADES.

The Waiting Times Guidance was published in November 2023, and preparations for implementation began in early 2024. NHS Boards engage on a monthly basis with Public Health Scotland’s Waiting Times Coordinator to provide updates on progress across all aspects of the guidance.

In addition, Health Boards and Public Health Scotland, participate in the Waiting Times Information Group, which meets every two months to discuss changes to the statistics and share best practice. These meetings have included presentations from system suppliers to support implementation. The next meeting of this group is scheduled to take place later this month.

The Scottish Government has held, and continues to hold, regular meetings with Public Health Scotland regarding the changes to Waiting Times Statistics. These meetings take place on a monthly basis, complemented by fortnightly updates to monitor and review progress on the implementation of the Waiting Times Guidance.