Seòmar agus comataidhean

Continued partnership is at the core of delivering and improving the Super Sponsor Scheme. The Scottish Government is grateful to the continued work of local authorities, including City of Edinburgh Council, in their support to displaced people who have had to flee their homeland.

The Scottish Government understand that arrangements underpinning the Super Sponsor Scheme have incurred costs which could be considered out of scope of the various UK tariffs. We continue to urge the UK Government to have parity of funding no matter the route through which someone arrives.

Officials are in discussions with COSLA to finalise a framework through which local authorities will be reimbursed for costs incurred due to the super sponsor scheme as well as engaging directly with City of Edinburgh council to understand and agree costs incurred by the council since the scheme opened for applications.

The Scottish Government would like to offer reassurance that reasonable costs associated with the super sponsor scheme will be met by the Scottish Government.

Education Scotland are currently learning more about the evidence-based Nuffield Early Language Intervention (NELI) programme and a related screening tool, Language Screen, which assesses four components of oral language skills. However, it is for individual schools and local authorities to decide if specific literacy screening tools and interventions such as NELI and Language Screen meet their strategic aims.

The Scottish Government recognises the impact that eating disorders can have on people's lives. Questions on eating disorders will be considered, alongside other requests for new questions submitted as part of the recent review of the Scottish Health Survey content , for possible inclusion in the survey from 2024, if some existing questions can be removed. A report will be published by summer 2023 detailing the findings of the review and decisions on the survey content going forwards.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-09994 on 16 August 2022. 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

Our Internationalisation Plans take an evidence-led approach to trade and investment policy and delivery, focusing on those sectors and opportunities where Scotland strengths align to global trends in trade and investment. All of our plans were developed in collaboration with our key delivery partners including Scotland's enterprise and skills agencies. Implementation of the Plans align our priorities around trade and investment with those countries and markets where Scotland already does well, but could perform better. This evidence base enables Scottish Development International, on behalf of the enterprise agencies and Scottish Government, to align their resources, including international offices and specialist staff.

For details of the specifics in this question, I have asked Scottish Enterprise to write to you directly with the information you seek.

I know that many consumers in rural and remote areas of Scotland, already facing higher living costs rely upon heating oil to heat their homes.

I am very disappointed at the inadequate support announced by the UK Government for users of these fuels, especially since the additional £100 offered does not come close to the increases in heating oil and LPG costs seen in recent months.

We have raised these concerns directly with the UK Government, and will continue to do so.

In this government’s first 100 days, we established six pilot schemes to provide free bikes for school age children who cannot afford one. A further four pilots were then established by the end of 2021.

The official pilot period for these pilots has now concluded, and a final evaluation is being collated. We expect to receive the evaluation in early November and will be publishing it on the Transport Scotland website thereafter.

The SPCB is committed to providing an inclusive working environment for all staff throughout their working lives. Recognising the impact of period and menopause on the workforce is key to the Parliament’s commitment to an inclusive working environment.  The Parliament’s Period and Menopause Policy and supporting guidance was launched in 2019. 

The policy and guidance are in place to help create a positive culture where staff experiencing problematic periods or menopausal symptoms get the support they need to manage their symptoms at work.  Managers and MSPs, in their capacity as employers, are encouraged to create a positive workplace culture, including holding regular conversations with team members about health and wellbeing, including periods and menopause. The policy also recognises the impact on partners, families and colleagues. 

The Parliament has hosted a number of sessions for staff to provide space to discuss the impacts of the menopause and the support that can be provided to those experiencing symptoms. 

The SPCB was recognised for its efforts in 2019 and was awarded the Public Sector Award for Championing Gender Equality, with specific reference to the removal of barriers to improve the working experience and engagement with staff.

Since 2019, the Parliament has been open in sharing the journey with other organisations, also enabling us to progress our own understanding. The SPCB is currently reviewing the policy against those that were published after and is committed to engage with staff on an ongoing basis.  This review will include benchmarking against other organisations, and feedback on provisions such as period leave. 

In addition, MSPs, their staff, and SPS staff have access to a range of health and wellbeing related policies, advice and services including the Parliament’s Occupational Health Service, which can provide assessments or referral to medical specialists.  Staff can also access flexible working arrangements, including flexible working hours and time off for medical appointments.  In addition, the SPCB are extending the availability of free period products to all toilets within Holyrood.  

The Scottish Government is determined to maximise the economic opportunity for the Scottish supply chain from our offshore wind potential. That is why we asked Crown Estate Scotland to introduce the Supply Chain Development Statement as part of the ScotWind leasing round to demonstrate how serious the Scottish Government is about holding developers to account if they do not honour their supply chain commitments and create green jobs.

The Scottish Government is determined to maximise the economic opportunity for the Scottish supply chain from our offshore wind potential.

Legislation relating to both the maritime industry as well as employment law is reserved to the UK Government. However, we remain fully committed to utilising every lever within our devolved competence to support and grow domestic supply chain and create new green jobs.

The introduction of a Supply Chain Development Statements by Crown Estate Scotland as part of the ScotWind and the current Innovation and Targeted Oil and Gas Decarbonisation (INTOG) leasing round is one of these measures - failure to deliver on Supply Chain Commitments could result in a fine or a termination of the seabed lease.

We will drive forward offshore wind skills development – working with stakeholders to focus on the opportunities for diversification and skills transfer from our oil and gas sector, in line with our commitment to a Just Transition.