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The Fire and Rescue Unit is part of the Scottish Government Safer Communities Division. In common with all Scottish Government Divisions, strategic oversight is provided through Directors and Director Generals reporting to the Scottish Ministers.

The Scottish Government has the utmost sympathy for the women who may have been harmed by stilbestrol. However, Scottish Ministers have had no discussions with NHS England, NHS Wales and HSC Northern Ireland on this issue as the regulation for the licensing, safety and efficacy of medicines is reserved to the UK Government and is the responsibility of the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).

Members of the Abortion Law Review Expert Group did not receive payment for their work. The review was supported by existing staff resource in Population Health Directorate. There were no research, consultancy, communications or events costs.

Streamlining and process improvements have been made across a wide range of activities including application assessments, inspections, land maintenance records, and performance monitoring. These processing improvements allow us to continue to make payments at the earliest opportunity, for example commencing Basic Payment Scheme and Greening advance payments in September and achieving the majority of payments in the autumn, well in advance of the 30 June payment window closing in the following year. For example in 2025, by 30 November, we processed and issued payments to 98.04% of eligible businesses totalling 96.63% by value of the total BPS, Greening and Young Farmer Payment value due. In addition we have processed applications for the first LFASS 2025 payment run in early December 2025 to a total of 96.60% of businesses and 95.17% of the total scheme value due.

Issuing payments at the earliest opportunity for each scheme has been a feature of our payment service over recent years. We will continue to review how we administer payments to enhance customer experience and to meet delivery of our regulatory targets and payment strategy timetable, of which both are on course to be met again this year. Consistent delivery of payments aligned to the payment strategy provides farmers and crofters with financial stability and some assurance over cash flow.

The Scottish government does not hold finalised homelessness data beyond March 31 2025. The latest published homelessness statistics, including eligibility status and households in temporary accommodation can be found here Homelessness in Scotland: 2024-25 - gov.scot

Data covering 1 April to 30 September 2025 is due to be published in February 2026.

The Scottish Government plans to introduce an amending bill to Parliament early in the new year. If passed, the Bill will still allow local authorities to charge a percentage based visitor levy, but for those that require a different model the Bill will introducing additional flexibility to set either a single fixed amount or a range of fixed amounts for different purposes or areas. It will also include provisions to support the implementation of local schemes, including clarifying how the levy is to be charged in third party sales.

The Scottish Government will today publish the Early Years Speech, Language and Communication Action Plan.

This sets out a bold national vision to ensure every child in Scotland has the strongest possible foundation in speech, language and communication from the earliest stages of life. The Plan reflects our commitment to prevention, equity and partnership, recognising that early support is crucial to improving outcomes for children and reducing inequalities.

Supporting our Programme for Government commitment to reduce developmental concerns at the 27–30 month review by a quarter by 2030, the Action Plan outlines how we will embed speech, language and communication as a national priority, strengthen support for families and communities, and build a skilled and confident workforce across health, education and social care. Together, these actions will help ensure that all children, particularly those in our most disadvantaged communities, benefit from high-quality support for their early development.

The Early Years Speech, Language and Communication Action Plan will be available shortly at: https://www.gov.scot/isbn/9781806430925.

The Scottish Government held discussions about its plans for walk-in services with the British Medical Association on 12 and 15 October and on 12 November. Walk-in services were discussed with the Royal College of General Practitioners on 15 October and on 12 November.

There have been no discussions with the Royal College of Nursing.

As outlined in my response to the chamber on the 27 November, we are focused on securing a Just Transition for workers, including at Mossmorran. Our focus is on securing new opportunities for workers, utilising the experience through Scottish Enterprise’s work at Grangemouth, to bring propositions to Mossmorran.

The Scottish Government has granted ministerial approval for the introduction of charging for access to Calanais Standing Stones.

This decision follows a community consultation exercise and will ensure a sustainable income for the site management, ongoing conservation work and help support the local economy. The income generated will also be essential to sustaining the adjoining Calanais Visitor Centre which has key investment from the Scottish and UK Government jointly funded Islands Growth Deal as part of the Outer Hebrides Destination Development programme. Importantly the local community will retain free access.