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Our new Student Mental Health Action Plan, published on 13 September, seeks to move to a mainstreamed approach to student mental health which will help students better access services.

It is informed by a significant number of research sources, in particular, the Thriving Learners studies published by the Mental Health Foundation in 2021 and 2022 in relation to universities and colleges. In addition, college and university sector input was sought throughout the development of the Action Plan as were the views from NUS Scotland and Think Positive. The Action Plan was also shaped by student voices from the wider Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy consultation last year.

The Scottish Government will publish the required Impact Assessments for the Action Plan in due course.

The number of pupils registered for free school meals is published annually as part of our pupil census supplementary statistics, available in table 2.22 at the following link: Pupil census supplementary statistics - gov.scot (www.gov.scot). The total number of pupils in each local authority area is also available through the pupil census supplementary statistics, and is shown in table 5.2.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-29483 on 18 September 2024. 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.

Bus services in Scotland were deregulated by the then Conservative UK Government under the Transport Act of 1985 and are mostly provided by private operators.

Our commitment to bus travel includes investment of over £370 million to support concessionary bus travel and funding of almost £50 million to help ensure our bus operators can continue to provide access to affordable transport in the de-regulated market across all of Scotland. The Network Support Grant is aimed at keeping bus networks more extensive and fares lower than would otherwise be the case. This fund is paid on a per kilometre basis which favours longer distance routes more common in rural areas.

The Older & Disabled and Young Persons concessionary travel schemes provide free bus travel for over two million people in Scotland, including all children and young people under 22, eligible disabled people and everyone aged 60 and over.

The Scottish Government is committed, in partnership with operators and local authorities, to looking at ways of ensuring that everyone has accessible public transport regardless of where they live. The importance of local bus services to communities and ensuring the long-term sustainability of these vital local routes is a collaborative endeavour.

Funding is also provided to local authorities in their annual settlement to support services they consider socially necessary and for community transport services, which can play an important role in rural transport networks.

The Scottish Government is committed to an infrastructure solution to address landslip risks at the A83 Rest and Be Thankful and shares the urgency communities and businesses place on maintaining and improving connectivity of this vital route.

As part of the comprehensive route options assessment process for the permanent solution, five options were assessed, two of which included tunnels. The options were assessed across a range of criteria including Engineering, Environment and Economics along with performance against the Scheme Objectives.

In June 2023, the ‘Brown Option’, consisting of a 1.4km debris flow shelter on the line of the existing A83, was selected as the Preferred Route Option as it improves resilience and operational safety of the trunk road network by reducing the impact of disruption for travel to, from and between Argyll and Bute and the Central Belt of Scotland. The Brown Option performed most favourably across a broad range of environmental criteria including cultural heritage, visual, population and human health, climate, and materials and waste. It also had the greatest potential to be delivered quickly and provides the greatest opportunity to encourage sustainable travel.

While the tunnelling options would equally provide improved resilience and operational safety of the trunk road network, the associated costs for both construction and ongoing operation and maintenance of these options were significantly greater than the preferred route option.

The full assessment can be found in the Design Manual for Roads and Bridges (DMRB) Stage 2 Route Options Assessment Report which is available on the Transport Scotland website.

Design Manual for Roads and Bridges (DMRB) stage two route options assessment report - A83 Access to Argyll and Bute | Transport Scotland

The Scottish Government is committed to an infrastructure solution to address landslip risks at the A83 Rest and Be Thankful and shares the urgency communities and businesses place on maintaining and improving connectivity of this vital route.

During the Route Options Assessment process cost estimates were developed for each of the options under consideration. The two options considered which included a tunnel were the ‘Pink’ and ‘Purple’ options with estimated costs ranging from £1.3 billion to £1.38 billion and £968.3 million to £1.1 billion at 2023 prices respectively, which are, individually, more than double the cost of the preferred ‘Brown’ route option, at £404.2 million to £465.4 million at 2023 prices.

A comparative assessment of operation and maintenance costs was also undertaken, which estimated that the preferred route option had the lowest cost, totalling approximately £24.6 million. In comparison the Pink and Purple Options were estimated to have operation and maintenance costs of £117.5 million and £138.8 million respectively.

The estimated costs of all options can be viewed in the DMRB Stage 2 Route Options Assessment Report available on the Transport Scotland website.

Design Manual for Roads and Bridges (DMRB) stage two route options assessment report - A83 Access to Argyll and Bute | Transport Scotland

Communities are at the heart of our renewable energy ambitions, and we are committed to working with partners to ensure the delivery of renewable energy comes with benefits for people in Scotland and contributes to community wealth building (CWB).

Where communities have an ownership stake in energy production, we are seeing surpluses being used to support local employment and other initiatives. For example, in North Tolsta, on Lewis, one of five Scottish Government Community Wealth Building pilot areas, revenue from a community owned wind turbine supports local jobs, provides grants for home energy improvements and offers financial support for young people attending further and higher education.

The Community Energy Generation Growth Fund, through our Community and Renewable Energy Scheme (CARES), recently awarded £1.5 million in grants to 19 community groups across Scotland to develop their own renewable energy projects. These communities are able to earn money from their projects, for example by selling excess energy generation.

As confirmed in the Programme for Government, we will shortly publish the Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan to support Scotland’s just transition to a green economy.

Scottish Government capital investment is primarily focussed on the demand sectors of heat, transport and industry.

In support of the delivery of our energy ambitions this financial year (2024-2025) we have allocated:

• over £145 million for active travel, in addition to the over £2 billion we invest in public transport annually.
• £266 million budget for Heat in Buildings.
• £12.2 million for hydrogen projects.
• £9 million to Scotland’s manufacturing industries through the Scottish Industrial Energy Transformation Fund.
• £2 million to support the Acorn Carbon transport and storage project.
• Our Just Transition Fund for the North East and Moray continues to support a range of pioneering projects with an allocation of £16.4 million

Funding for future years will be subject to annual budget allocations.

In Scotland, employability services are delivered through the No One Left Behind approach. Through this approach, Scottish and Local Government are working together with public, private, and third sector organisations to design and deliver place-based, person-centred employability services in Scotland.

Self-employed people on low-income and experiencing poverty, particularly parents, are eligible for support through our No One Left Behind offer.

Our services recognise self-employment as a positive destination for participants, with 400 people achieving this outcome between April 2019 and March 2024. Services will ensure on-going support is available to those supported to enter self-employment.