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The procurement process for Montrose is now complete, and the formal papers are due for submission for funding agreement with Transport Scotland week beginning 26 August.

Works are due to commence in the Autumn, with a 12 week delivery programme leading to completion of the works by early 2020.

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-24772 on 2 September 2019. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx .

Transport Scotland meets regularly with North-East of Scotland Transport Partnership (NESTRANS) who represent the views of the local communities, local authorities and other key regional stakeholders.

In the first instance, promoters of new schemes should discuss their proposals with the relevant Regional Transport Partnership who consider the proposal and determine whether it fits with regional transport priorities.

NESTRANS were successful in the latest round of the Local Rail Development Fund (LRDF) and will be taking forward an appraisal in respect of cross-Aberdeen rail travel which includes consideration of new stations South of Aberdeen, including Cove.

Transport Scotland meets regularly with North-East of Scotland Transport Partnership (NESTRANS) who represent the views of the local communities, local authorities and other key regional stakeholders.

In the first instance, promoters of new schemes should discuss their proposals with the relevant Regional Transport Partnership who consider the proposal and determine whether it fits with regional transport priorities.

NESTRANS were successful in the latest round of the Local Rail Development Fund (LRDF) and will be taking forward an appraisal in respect of cross-Aberdeen rail travel which includes consideration of new stations South of Aberdeen.

This Government is committed to improving rail connectivity, reliability and journey times throughout Scotland. However, any transport project which requires Government funding, must be supported by a transport appraisal to ensure that the solution is arrived at impartially, based on evidence and is objective rather than solution led. The Scottish Government’s £2 million Local Rail Development Fund can help with the cost of these appraisals and NESTRANS has recently secured £80,000 to carry out a multi-modal transport appraisal to look at opportunities to improve connectivity across Aberdeen.

The Scottish Government and partners are committed to delivering new railway stations at Kintore and Dalcross. In addition, NESTRANS has recently been successful in securing a share of the Scottish Government’s £2 million Local Rail Development Fund. This funding will allow NESTRANS to carry out a multi-modal transport appraisal to look at opportunities to improve connectivity across Aberdeen.

Due to the nature of the Design, Build, Finance and Operate (DBFO) contract the cost of snagging works cannot be disaggregated from the construction cost of the project. All snagging costs will be borne by the AWPR/Balmedie to Tipperty contractor.

I refer the Member to the answer to question S5W-24987 on 29 August 2019. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx

The Scottish Ministerial Code states that Ministers must not ordinarily divulge either the source or content of legal advice. Legal advice is confidential and it is a very long established convention that legal advice provided to the Scottish Government is not published, and that the Government does not disclose the source of advice.

I look forward to discussing my reasoning on prisoner voting at Committee and when the Parliament debates the Scottish Elections (Franchise and Representation) Bill.

The Scottish Government is delivering, as part of our Cyber Resilience Strategy, bespoke action plans for the private and third sectors which aim to develop a common, aligned approach to cyber resilience across Scotland to ensure all parts of society benefit from being digitally safe and secure.

The Scottish Government has made £500,000 available for businesses and charities to adopt accreditation which demonstrates that they have taken sufficient steps to defend themselves against the most common internet-based threats.

A cyber catalyst network has been established in both the private and third sector to provide a leadership and support model. This includes sharing knowledge and experience to influence the uptake of cyber resilient behaviours in these sectors.