Seòmar agus comataidhean

Ministers and Civil Servants travel for a range of reasons including ensuring that the people of Scotland are effectively represented and ensuring that Scotland’s voice is heard on important issues.

The purpose of the trip to Catalonia was to further engage with Catalonian Government on agriculture, food and drink and climate change following engagement at COP26 and moreover attend Seafood Expo Global event. The Seafood Expo is a major seafood event where many key Scottish seafood companies exhibit as well as international companies and organisations.

Total costs (Flights and hotels for Minister, Private Office and Food and Drink officials) was: £3165.49. This can be split into circa £1340 in flights and £1850 in accommodation.

Incidental and meals expenses maybe claimed by officials in line with travel and subsistence policy and Ministerial expenses will be published in due course.

This information is not held centrally.

SEEMiS may be able to provide this information if you contact them directly.

This information is not held centrally.

SEEMiS or local authorities may be able to provide this information if you contact them directly.

The Chief Executive of NHS Scotland and Director-General Health and Social Care put in place a temporary pause on filling vacancies not currently advertised within Health and Social Care Directorates from 4 April 2022. Over the last two years, the Health and Social Care directorates have expanded to respond to the pandemic. The pause has been put in place for a short period to recognise the changing nature of the response now needed from the Portfolio. It allows time to consider the future size, shape and services that need to be delivered and how staff can be supported appropriately. The recruitment pause is designed to ensure that any planned activity is aligned to the organisation’s longer term workforce plan.

The Chief Executive of NHS Scotland and Director-General Health and Social Care put in place a temporary pause on filling vacancies not currently advertised within Health and Social Care Directorates from 4 April 2022. The pause will remain in place for no longer than necessary, while consideration is given to the future pandemic response.

The Scottish Government fully recognises the role of genomics in improving patient outcomes particularly for people with cancer. Our genetic laboratories across Scotland already provide a range of cancer genetic tests to support the diagnosis and treatment of cancer.

We have committed £6.2 million of funding to genomics in 2022-23 which will support expanding our genomics capabilities in NHS Scotland.

Delivery partners hold the ScotSpirit budget enabling them to book breaks for unpaid carers and low-income families with participating businesses rather than issuing physical break vouchers. This person centred approach ensures that delivery partners work with individuals to broker and book the type of break that best meets their individual needs.

From October to December 2021 just over £58K was spent on breaks.

A public consultation on improving victims’ experiences of the justice system will open from today, 10 May 2022, until 3 August 2022. It will be available at https://consult.gov.scot/justice/victimsconsultation .

The consultation focuses on proposed legislative reforms with particular reference to victims of sexual offences. It takes forward our Programme for Government commitments to introduce a statutory right to anonymity for complainers in sexual offence cases, establish a Victims’ Commissioner and carefully consider the recommendations from Lady Dorrian’s Review into the management of sexual offence cases that require a legislative basis to deliver.

The Scottish Government is committed to improving victims’ experiences of the justice system by putting them at its centre. This consultation explores how to do this by making the justice system more trauma informed and person centred. It is an important part of a wide-ranging programme of work to bring about transformational change necessary to ensure our justice system is trusted, modern, smart and effective.

We will continue to take an open and collaborative approach to achieve this aim, and this consultation will seek to capture the views of a broad range of stakeholders including legal professionals, the third sector and those with lived experience of the system.

I look forward to considering the full range of views received.

Court programming is a matter for the senior judiciary, supported by the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS). SCTS advise that jury trials resumed in Dumfries Sheriff Court in April 2021. Under present arrangements, the jurors for these trials attend the remote jury centre in Ayr . However, from July the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service will begin decommissioning remote jury centres for most purposes. That process is due to be completed by October, and so on current planning assumptions jurors should be cited back to local courts - including Dumfries - by October.

Allotments and their provision are the responsibility of local authorities. That is set out in the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015. However, since 2012, the Scottish Government has allocated more than £1.6 million to directly support and increase the land that is available for community growing.

This funding includes:

The Community Growing Fund, a grant scheme for the years 2019/2020 and 2020/21, providing a total of £80,000 to local community growing groups public bodies and third sector organisations.

For the years 2016 to 2022, nearly £490,000 has been allocated to various growing groups in Scotland, amongst them are Trellis, Social Farms and Gardens and Grow Green.

Funding to the Green Action Trust (previously Central Scotland Green Network (CSGN)) to allocate grants to projects that aim to increase the amount of land for community growing. Since 2012 around £1.04 million has been provided.