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There has been no new awards made under Freight Facilities Grant in any of the previous three financial years but funding for the Freight Facilities Grant is contained in the 2025-26 Scottish budget

There are currently no plans for the Scottish Government to include new types of projects or industries within the criteria for the Freight Facilities Grant scheme.

Information provided in any application for Freight Facilities Grant (FFG), including personal information, may be subject to publication or disclosure in accordance with legislation including the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 (FOISA), the Environmental Information (Scotland) Regulations 2004 (EIRs) and the Data Protection Act 1998.

In April 2023, the Chief Pharmaceutical Officer (CPO) announced an Independent Medicines Homecare Review in response to reports of failings in the standards of care provided across Scotland and the increasing demand for medicines homecare provision.

The CPO will be publishing the Homecare Medicines Review before the end of March. In terms of next steps, the CPO has met with NHS National Procurement to discuss what actions can be taken forward within their remit and what actions require further consideration through a task and finish group. The group will be established shortly and will be chaired by a Director of Pharmacy and a Director of Nursing. The Group will help to outline the next steps and timescales to delivery.

The worrying of livestock by dogs is completely unacceptable and is something the Scottish Government takes very seriously and any dog attack is one too many.

We welcome the fact that in Scotland we have tough legislation in place to deal with livestock worrying. The Scottish Government supported Emma Harper’s member’s bill when it was introduced, to provide Police Scotland and the courts with greater powers to deal with those who allow their dogs to worry, attack or kill livestock in Scotland’s countryside. Under this law owners of dogs that attack or worry livestock can be fined up to £40,000 or face a prison sentence of up to 12 months.

Please find below the number of accused convicted based on the financial year of conviction in relation to the fines and custodial sentences handed down. Please note that The Dogs (Protection of Livestock) (Amendment) (Scotland) Act 2021 came into force on 5 November 2021. The 2021 Act amends the offence under the 1953 Act so all proceedings are still under the 1953 Act (as amended).

Table 1: Number of accused convicted with at least one protection of livestock from dogs crime, given a fine or imprisonment

The information on potential job creation as a result of an award is unavailable to the Scottish Government as it does not form part of the criteria for an applicant to receive a grant under the scheme.

The following table sets out the total number of premises currently contracted to receive connections through the R100 North contract by 2028, the number of premises connected as of 13 January 2025 and the number of premises yet to be connected as of the same date.

Openreach are also delivering a number of additional connections to premises that were not in the contracts, but have been connected as a result of nearby R100 contract build. This is known as overspill. The number of such connections delivered are also provided in the following table.

It should also be noted that our demand-led R100 Scottish Broadband Voucher Scheme (SBVS) remains available for those not expected to benefit from superfast broadband through R100 contract or commercial build plans.

The following table sets out the total number of premises currently contracted to receive connections through the R100 North contract by 2028, the number of premises connected as of 13 January 2025 and the number of premises yet to be connected as of the same date.

Openreach are also delivering a number of additional connections to premises that were not in the contracts, but have been connected as a result of nearby R100 contract build. This is known as overspill. The number of such connections delivered are also provided in the following table.

It should also be noted that our demand-led R100 Scottish Broadband Voucher Scheme (SBVS) remains available for those not expected to benefit from superfast broadband through R100 contract or commercial build plans.

The latest data, as provided on our address checker at www.scotlandsuperfast.com, shows that a total of 7,924 connections are expected to be delivered through the R100 North contract in 2025. This information is broken down by Local Authority in the following table.

Please note that these figures are subject to change, as connection plans can change, based on a number of factors such as adverse weather or issues with securing access to land or property, etc.

The Scottish Government has provided £8.25m to Seafood Scotland since 2021 in their role as Scotland’s national trade and marketing organisation for the seafood industry. This includes funding to help Seafood Scotland facilitate projects which support export market development. We are also providing £672k in 2024-25 towards the Scotland Food & Drink Export Plan, which is helping the food and drink industry exploit the most significant opportunities for Scotland with a team of Scottish Development International (SDI) food and drink in-market specialists situated in key countries around the globe.

SDI has a dedicated food and drink specialist based in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), who works to promote and support Scottish food and drink companies, including the seafood sector, to unlock new opportunities and increase their exports to the UAE and the wider Middle East. Seafood Scotland, alongside SDI’s in-market specialist, has also worked with Scottish seafood companies to expand opportunities in the UAE. Examples of upcoming activity include:

• SDI hosting a pavilion at the Gulfood Trade show from 17-21 February 2025, collaborating with Seafood Scotland to showcase and promote Scottish seafood to international delegates.
• SDI hosting a showcasing & tasting networking event at Gulfood for international buyers which will include Scottish seafood, shellfish & salmon.
• Coordination of a learning journey experience to look at specific opportunities for Scottish seafood sales within a group of high end UAE based restaurants.

The SDI in-market specialist is also working with Emirates’ catering and in-flight shopping experience buying teams to promote Scottish products, influence and educate them on the breadth and quality of Scotland’s food and drink offering. Activity is underway to ensure that Scottish suppliers are fully aware of any relevant tenders and opportunities with the airline.