Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government does not hold this information. RPAS use, including training, is a matter for Police Scotland.

Since the response to question S6W-15443 on 8 March 20232, further legal fee claims have been paid. As of 15 March 2023, £124,650 has been paid to 10 firms.

It is not appropriate to name the firms as to do so could be interpreted as guiding applicants to particular firms. Applicants are directed to the Law Society of Scotland for support in finding a solicitor. In addition, as some firms have a claim in respect of only one application there is a small risk of applicant identification if the full list is provided.

Table 1 : Breakdown of Legal Fees paid up to 15 March 2023

Violence towards anyone is unacceptable and the safety of our children, young people and staff at school is paramount.

We have produced guidance for local authorities and schools to promote positive relationships and manage behaviour, including de-escalation of violent behaviour. There are a number of programmes that they use to do this.

Last week I met the Teachers Panel to discuss their experiences and how we could better support schools and pupils. The fifth wave of our Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research started last month and will provide a robust national picture of current relationships and behaviour. We will use this research and engagement with stakeholders, including the Scottish Advisory Group for Relationships and Behaviour in Schools, to inform the development of further future policy, guidance and support for schools and school staff.

We will give full consideration to the recommendations of this report, which sets out both the challenges, and successes, of the continued recovery of our NHS from a global pandemic.

We are making good progress against our GP commitment and since 2017 GP headcount has increased by 291 and a record 5209 GPs are now working in Scotland.

Progress is measured by the annual GP Headcount Public Health Scotland publication. The latest publication can be found at:

General Practice - GP Workforce and practice list sizes 2012 - 2022 - General Practice - GP workforce and practice list sizes - Publications - Public Health Scotland

The assessment by Audit Scotland does not take into account GP Registrars in their final year of training, when assessing progress against this commitment. These registrars spend 12 months full time equivalent in a GP practice.

The Scottish Government provides local authorities with funding to allow them to deliver their statutory duty to ensure all eligible children can access 1140 hours of high-quality funded early learning and childcare. Scottish Government officials have spoken to Glasgow City Council regarding the closure of Rising Stars, and the Council's early years team is supporting families with children who attend these settings to discuss suitable alternatives - including through one-to-one support where required.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information centrally.

There are currently 56 stations equipped with defibrillators across the 359 railway stations on Scotland’s Railway. This includes stations with some of the highest footfall across the Scottish network, including Edinburgh Waverley, Glasgow Central and Paisley Gilmour Street.

The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service have confirmed that for the period 2018-19 to 2021-22:- there have been 8 charges reported. Of these charges, 2 were convictions and 2 marked no further action. 1 charge was marked for a Direct Measure (Warning) and 3 marked for No Action.

The Scottish Government welcome the report’s focus on contributing to delivery of Scotland’s statutory Climate Change Targets.

Some of the recommendations align with Scottish Government existing actions to support the bus sector, including £113 million funding for 548 modern, zero emission buses, the £500 million Zero Emission Bus Market Transition Scheme to help organisations to understand the steps required to replace their bus fleet with zero emission alternatives and £25.8 million Bus Partnership Fund for bus priority in 11 partnerships covering 28 local authorities across Scotland. Other recommendations fall out with the remit of the Scottish Government, with recommendations on fuel duty and other taxation reserved fully to Westminster.

More widely on transport’s contribution to emission reduction, our route map to achieve a 20% reduction in car kms by 2030 also sets out the range of actions that will support mode shift and measures that support bus use. The route map similarly notes the need to address the cost of motoring and outlines that we are taking forward research to explore equitable options for demand management measures to discourage car use.

I thank CPT for the report which I will consider in full and respond in due course.

Instances of trespassing recorded on the (a) Forth Rail Bridge, (b) Forth Road Bridge and (c) Queensferry Crossing each year since 2018, the estimated cost of this to the emergency services, and in how many instances the bridges were closed as a result is as follows: