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There has been no discussion between the UK and Scottish Governments over the introduction of a digital sales tax in Scotland. The Scottish Government is closely monitoring the UK Government’s planned forthcoming consultation on the arguments for and against an online sales tax, as announced in its final report to their fundamental review of business rates published alongside the UK Budget on 27 October.

The following table below shows the number of directly employed staff on Fixed-Term appointment contracts at 30 June 2017, 2018, 2019 and 2020, broken down by Directorate. 30 June has been selected for consistency with PQ S6W-03819 on 8 November 2021 which contains 30 June 2021 data.

The following table shows the number of directly employed staff on Fixed-Term appointment contracts at 30 June 2021, broken down by Directorate. These are our most recently published data.

As set out in the draft Framework for Tax, which only recently closed for consultation on 26 October, the Scottish Government is committed to exploring the introduction of a digital sales tax in Scotland.

Scottish Ministers, alongside Scottish Government officials, have been in regular contact with the UK Government to bring forward legislation to implement the Ivory Act 2018 later this winter. The ban is then expected to come into force in Spring 2022.

The Scottish Government is required to obtain approval from the Scottish Parliament to proceed with proposals by Scottish Ministers to consent to the making of UK secondary legislation affecting devolved areas. I wrote to the Rural Affairs, Islands and Natural Environment Committee in September with notification of our intent to proceed with this secondary legislation. Formal consent to proceed with the legislation is then possible, once the Committee has given it due consideration.

The Scottish Government is working with retail businesses, trade unions, academia, public sector and trade organisations to develop a Retail Strategy that will enable the retail sector in Scotland to play its part in creating a fairer, greener and stronger Scotland. The Minister for Public Finance, Planning and Community Wealth Building made a statement to Scottish Parliament on 26 October confirming that the Retail Strategy will be published later this year.

The UK Government is responsible for determining which airline or country is allowed to operate flights into the UK and there is no role for the Scottish Government in approving any flights.

The process to return Glasgow Prestwick Airport to the private sector continues and decisions have still to be taken in relation to the prospective sale of the business.

We have committed to updating Parliament on the sale process at the appropriate stage.

Glasgow Prestwick Airport is operated on a commercial basis and at arm’s length from the Scottish Government, in compliance with our obligations under the Trade and Co-operation Agreement between the UK and the EU.

It is for the airport’s management team to consider all potential business opportunities to maximise the use of the assets of the airport. Handling military flights has been a key part of Prestwick’s business for decades and remains an important and specialised part of its overall offering.

Once the Clyde 2020 initiative’s remit is agreed then the appropriate level of financial and administrative support will be identified along with the associated timeframe for this support.