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The Scottish Government provides core funding annually to Health Boards for sexual health and blood borne virus (BBV) services. From 2018-19 to 2023-24, Health Boards received funding through the annual Outcomes Framework allocation to cover a range of outcomes, including sexual health and BBVs. It was up to Health Boards to decide how much to allocate to each outcome within this envelope. In order to give Boards more control over local priorities this funding was baselined in 2023-24.

The total value for Outcomes Framework allocations since 2018-19 is set out in the following table.

Given the wide range of bodies that make up the public bodies landscape in Scotland, and that not all public bodies share the same relationship with Government, there are no set rules as to the frequency ministers and officials should meet with them. Ministers with portfolio responsibility for public bodies do meet with them on a regular basis, and I have met with multiple public bodies over the past 6 months.

Of the 131 public bodies referred to there are some public bodies such as Parliamentary Commissioner that Ministers are not responsible for, but those public bodies that Ministers have responsibility for, civil servants make up the public body sponsor team within the Scottish Government.

Sponsor teams are the first point of contact between an Non-Departmental Public Bodies (NDPBs) and the Scottish Government. They provide advice, help and support to the public body and advice on accountability, governance and performance to Ministers and Portfolio Accountable Officers both on an ad-hoc basis and as part of regular meetings. Sponsorship is flexible, proportionate and responsive; and facilitates positive relationships between the body and the Scottish Government. Each public body will have a Framework Document that outlines the working relationship between itself and the Scottish Government. The Framework Document should be published on the public bodies website and will set out expectations for regular meetings.

The Scottish Government expects all women receiving maternity care to be treated with dignity and respect and is developing a Delivery Framework for Miscarriage Care, which includes the provision of separate private spaces in hospitals with maternity wards for women experiencing miscarriage or baby loss. Officials are currently working with stakeholders to finalise the content and we expect to publish the Framework by the end of 2024 or early in 2025.

The Scottish Government funded National Bereavement Care Pathways for pregnancy and baby loss and accompanying bereavement care standards are clear that women and families experiencing pregnancy or baby loss should be treated sensitively and compassionately and difficult news should be delivered in a quiet private space. All 14 NHS Boards are signed up to the pathways and at different stages of implementation.

Caravans and static homes provided by employers through a Service Occupancy Agreement are not subject to housing standards. Where agricultural land is used for the accommodation of people involved in farming operations on a seasonal basis, a site licence for a caravan is not required.

Employees’ rights will depend on what is written in their employment contract and will depend on the individual circumstances of the case. However, if an employee has a Private Residential Tenancy, then they will have the same rights as a private tenant.

The following provisions of the Act have come into force

• Section 76 dealing with the effect of divorce, dissolution or annulment on special destination;
• Section 77 involving the rights of succession to intestate estate respectively;
• Section 7, under which an unfit trustee may be removed by the court for the purposes of section 8; and,
• Parts of section 9 concerning removal from office by a majority of co-trustees of a trustee who is no longer a member of a regulated profession or entitled to practice, and who was appointed or assumed to provide professional services in managing the trust, together with sections 13 and 14 by which decisions on the removal of a professional trustee by co-trustees are to be governed for these purposes.

The remaining provisions of the Act will come into force in due course although no decision has been taken about a date for that. The decision on when to commence the rest of the provisions generally is closely related to ongoing work with UK Government regarding the provisions covering the reserved matter of pension trusts.

The Scottish Government have no plans to request this.

Scottish Water has a programme of installing blue top up taps in communities across Scotland, with over 120 installed and providing fresh drinking water for bottle refills. However they are not in a position to support the refurbishing/reuse of existing architecture and historic fountains and wells. These older pieces of equipment present a number of issues around health and safety risks, use of historic materials, location, the bespoke nature of every site and ultimately the inability to guarantee water quality. The taps provided by Scottish Water are Water Regulation Approval Scheme (WRAS) approved, which provides an enhanced level of water quality protection. This level of assurance would be very difficult and costly to achieve via pre-existing historic structures – and in some cases it may not be possible.

The Scottish Government has no current plans to update the 2005 Guidance for Local Authorities and National Park Authorities on Part 1 of the Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003.

Section 40 of the Regulatory Reform (Scotland) Act 2014 introduces an offence of significant environmental harm and sets maximum penalties for convictions for this offence. As set out in the Scottish Government’s draft Annual Report on the Scottish Government's commitment to align with the European Union where appropriate that was laid on 31 October 2024, we are considering Directive (EU) 2024/1203 of the European Parliament and of the Council of 11 April 2024 on the protection of the environment through criminal law. As a part of our consideration of this Directive, we are assessing the provisions for qualified offences for conduct that causes widespread and substantial environmental damage to particular features of the environment, and comparing this with existing provisions in Scots law to protect the environment.

The Scottish Government continually reviews the support available to communities through the CARES scheme and uses this information to inform future support. An evaluation of the current contract, which is due to end on 31 March 2025, will be completed prior to the beginning of a new contract. Stakeholders will have an opportunity to input into this evaluation.

The Scottish Government has published an Invitation to Tender for the new CARES contract with a submission deadline on 26 November 2024. Ahead of publication, the Scottish Government gathered information from stakeholders via an in-person supplier engagement event and Request for Information. The feedback gathered from these engagements were taken into consideration when developing the new CARES Statement of Requirement.

Taxis and private hire cars (PHCs) are a vital part of transport networks for citizens, businesses and visitors across Scotland, and all taxi and PHC drivers should be able to go about their work without the threat of any violence and abuse from their customers.

Taxis and PHCs are licensed under the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 (“the 1982 Act”). While the Scottish Government has responsibility for the overarching legislation, the day to day administration of the licensing regime, as set out in the 1982 Act, is devolved to independent licensing authorities – in effect the 32 Scottish local authorities.

Within this context, any reports of non-payment of fares, and/ or abuse of drivers would be directed to the local licensing authority and the local police. The Scottish Government does not hold data in relation to the non-payment of taxi and PHC fares or abusive conduct towards taxi and PHC drivers.

The Scottish Government recommends that licensing authorities should actively promote and facilitate good links between the taxi and PHC trades and the local police force, including active participation in any crime reduction initiatives.

Owners and drivers of vehicles will often want to install security measures to protect the driver. Licensing authorities may consider that this is a matter best left to the judgement of the owners and drivers themselves. However, it is recommended practice for licensing authorities to consider, as part of their licensing policy under the legislative framework of the 1982 Act, sympathetically, or indeed actively encourage, their installation.

Further information about security measures in vehicles is available in the taxi and PHC licensing best practice guidance document published by the Scottish Government, in conjunction with Transport Scotland, last year: https://www.gov.scot/publications/taxi-private-hire-car-licensing-best-practice-licensing-authorities-taxi-private-hire-car-operators-3rd-edition/pages/7/.