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As the aircraft carrier was constructed using a modular approach supported by multiple supply chains throughout Scotland and the rest of the UK, identifying the exact economic impact of the project to a regional area such as Fife is highly complex. However, we do know that the Aircraft Carrier Alliance has placed a number of sub-contracts directly with Scottish-based companies, totalling c.£300 million across 21 suppliers.

The Aircraft Carrier Alliance has also stated that to the end of January 2016, the MOD had paid around £3.462 billion to BAE Systems on the Clyde (c.£2.073 billion) and to Babcock at Rosyth (c.£1.389 billion) on the Queen Elizabeth Carrier programme.

Any further expansion of Aberdeen Airport would be a commercial decision for the owners of the airport, AGS Airports Limited.

The First Minister visited Aberdeen International Airport in February 2016 to unveil details of a £20 million investment plan for the airport. I am aware that the airport are making progress with their terminal transformation with the recent opening of their new international arrivals facility in May this year, closely followed by their new domestic arrivals facility in July. We will continue to support Aberdeen Airport to secure new routes which improve connectivity for business or provide new opportunities for inbound tourism.

The Scottish Government periodically commissions analysis which benchmarks the level of air service connectivity to and from Scotland against peer regions in Europe. The most recent benchmarking analysis for 2011-2015 was completed in July 2015.

After compiling the benchmarking report, a gap analysis of the destinations served by peer regions which Scotland might also aspire to have, based on economic importance, origin and destination demand, along with the identification of potential airline operators, was used to identify potential new short and long haul routes that could be served from Scotland. A significant amount of work has already been done to secure these routes, working in partnership with Scotland’s airports. That work will continue.

We have also recently undertaken further route analysis work to assess potential demand which we have used to help identify the airlines we aim to meet at the World Route Development Forum next month. This event brings airlines, airports and aviation stakeholders together to discuss both existing routes as well as potential new routes.

Given the commercial nature of the analysis undertaken, we have not published this information as by doing so could put Scottish airports at a disadvantage when competing with other airports to secure new routes.

Aviation is pivotal in supporting the Scottish Government’s purpose of sustainable economic growth and we work closely with Scotland’s airports to help secure new routes that improve business connectivity and inbound tourism.

Our commitment to deliver a 50% reduction in the overall burden of Air Departure Tax (ADT) by the end of this parliament and to abolish the tax entirely when resources allow will support these efforts.

Additional runways in Scotland will not be required in the short to medium term and the Scottish Government does not plan to create additional runways at the airports it owns.

The Edinburgh Airport Masterplan 2016-2040 outlines that the airport have safeguarded land for a new second runway, however they believe that future growth can be handled by the current runway.

Glasgow Airport’s 2011 draft Master Plan identified that by the end of the period reviewed, nearing 2040, the existing single runway would approach its capacity limits and there would be a need to either evaluate the means of increasing runway capacity or reviewing options for a second runway. Their plan considered both options.

The number of care homes in each local authority area by (a) public and (b) private care homes is set out in the following table.

LGBTI+ Training

Social Service workers and employers must adhere to the Scottish Social Services Council (SSSC) Codes of Practice. The Codes set out the standards of practice and behaviour expected of everyone who works in social services in Scotland. The standards include protecting the rights of people who use services; respect the rights of people who use services; promote diversity and respect different cultures and values. Employer must ensure that their staff have the skills and knowledge to undertake their role.

We do not hold information centrally on specific training carried out in care homes. All registered care workers must meet the minimum standards of education set by the SSSC and continuously update their skills and knowledge to maintain their registration.

My officials are currently working with the Department for Transport, HS2 Ltd and Network Rail to identify options that could be implemented between 2019 and 2029 to improve journey times, capacity, resilience and reliability on routes between England and Scotland.

The High Speed Rail Scotland study, published on 21 March 2016, considered the viability of a Maglev system in Scotland. This study, which was undertaken in line with Transport Scotland’s Scottish Transport Appraisal Guidance (STAG), found the Maglev system to be less favourable than a number of the other options being considered.

As I said in the debate on 21 June, the Scottish Information Commissioner who is completely independent of government is already scrutinising our FOI performance. We are co-operating fully with that scrutiny and have a programme of action under way to improve our performance. At this stage we do not think any alternative independent inquiry would be more effective than the Commissioner’s current intervention, given the Commissioner’s independence, expert knowledge and experience.

It is not for Government to tell Committees of this Parliament how to conduct their business or what business to conduct but if any committee decides now is the right time to review the FOI legislation then we would welcome that and would be fully cooperative.

We continue to look for opportunities to release information proactively. For example, from 3 July we have begun publishing all FOI releases as requests are answered.

The Scottish Government is determined to deliver excellence and equity in education and driving improvements in numeracy is a priority.

We are investing £1.3 million over the period 2014 to 2018 in professional learning opportunities for both primary and secondary teachers through the Numeracy and Mathematics Hub which provides free learning resources and support to teachers. In addition, we have published new curriculum benchmarks for mathematics and numeracy in order to clarify the standards expected.

Numeracy is a priority in our Attainment Challenge programme and in the National Improvement Framework and the Scottish Attainment Challenge is providing £750 million during the course of this Parliament to tackle the poverty-related attainment gap.

Our Making Maths Count initiative seeks to boost the mathematics achievement of our young people. We are working closely with a range of partners to take forward the recommendations from the Making Maths Count report on raising levels of mathematics confidence and skills.

The Broad options for upgraded and high speed railways to the North of England and Scotland Report, published by HS2 Ltd in March 2016, contained an economic analysis of the benefits that the HS2 rail line could bring to Scotland. The report acknowledges that further analysis would be needed to understand all potential benefits. Further benefit analysis work is currently being undertaken by Transport Scotland and Network Rail.