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The Scottish Government offers a competitive non-domestic rates regime to support businesses and communities worth an estimated £730 million in 2025-26, with nearly half of all non-domestic properties in Scotland paying no rates. This includes the Small Business Bonus Scheme (SBBS), the most generous relief scheme of its kind in the UK, which reduces the rates bill for small businesses by nearly £250 million as at June 2025.

In its 2025-26 Budget, the Scottish Government maintained a competitive non-domestic rates package including the most generous small business rates relief in the UK.

The Scottish Government recognises the report’s findings on increasing pressure on Shetland’s marine space from energy developments and will use it to inform our fisheries co-existence work.

We are committed to managing Scotland’s seas to ensure sustainable use of resources and to minimise impacts on existing users, including fishers.

Shetland’s fishing fleet and the wider Scottish sector are vital to our economy and communities, and we aim to secure a prosperous future for them while meeting net zero targets. To achieve this, we are updating the Sectoral Marine Plan for offshore wind, developing National Marine Plan 2, and commissioning work on cumulative impacts.

Fishing representatives are key stakeholders in these processes, and we will continue to engage with them through planning and consenting stages, alongside workstreams under the Scottish Offshore Wind Energy Council to support coexistence between offshore wind and fisheries.

Following the decision in the UK Budget to implement a retail-specific discounted business rate in England from April 2026, the Scottish Government has received representations from retail representative organisations including the Scottish Retail Consortium and others through correspondence and through the Non-Domestic Rates Consultative Group.

The Scottish Government shares your concern about the harmful impact of cigarette litter, which makes up a significant proportion of litter in Scotland, and we are committed to taking action to reduce the environmental impact of single-use plastics.

While we currently have no plans to ban cigarette filters, we will continue work to prevent littering, improve enforcement and drive behaviour change in line with the National Litter and Flytipping Strategy.

Additionally, one of the most effective ways to reduce the volume of littered cigarette filters is through reducing smoking rates. Our Tobacco and Vaping Framework, published in 2023, sets out the actions we are taking to reduce smoking levels in communities to 5% or less.

The Scottish Government will consult on increasing the current threshold of 50MW for applications for onshore electricity generating stations to be considered by local authorities.

We therefore welcome the Eversheds Sutherland study as a contribution to the evidence base on energy consenting timescales and decision-making. Beyond just Sector Deal progress, the paper provides insight relating to consent rates, timescales and the comparative consistency of decision-making across different determination routes.

As noted in the answer to question S6W-42175 on 9 December 2025, the majority of applications determined in 2025 to date were submitted prior to this commitment taking effect. Many of these applications have legacy issues that must be resolved to ensure positive outcomes in the public interest for all relevant stakeholders. Accordingly, it is too early to assess whether the sector deal actions have achieved the intended impact on determination timescales. 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.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-42174 on 9 December 2025. 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.

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

SPS hold our serving staff and prospective staff to the highest of standards. While the vast majority of our staff adhere to the highest standards of conduct, SPS continue to be vigilant to any potential corruption concerns within our establishments. Maintaining the safety and security of Scotland’s prisons is and remains an absolute priority.

The below table sets out the number of prospective employees who have failed pre-employment checks in each of the last 5 full years across all SPS job roles.

Every area of government which is or may be affected by the Supreme Court judgment is reviewing policies, guidance and legislation. This action is co-ordinated by the Working Group on the Supreme Court Judgment, convened by the Permanent Secretary, to ensure a cross-government approach and understanding is taken to this complex area of work.

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

SPS hold our serving staff and prospective staff to the highest of standards. While the vast majority of our staff adhere to the highest standards of conduct, SPS continue to be vigilant to any potential corruption concerns within our establishments. Maintaining the safety and security of Scotland’s prisons is and remains an absolute priority.

The following table sets out the number of prospective or serving employees who have been removed, dismissed or prevented from taking up post due to security concerns.

SPS is only in a position to provide full year data from 2022 due to changes in reporting and recording processes.