Chamber and committees

The project to put in place the new Parliament website was a significant and complex change project.

The business case for the project was considered and agreed by officials on the Digital Strategy Board. This is the usual governance for digital projects undertaken in the Parliament.

The budget for the project was included in the SPCB’s budget process in each of the financial years that the project was running.

The fourth and final meeting of the Building Standards (Fire Safety) Review Panel 2020-22 took place on 24 January 2022. Draft minutes of the meeting were circulated to members of the panel for comment on 03 March 2022. The final minutes will then be published by the end of March 2022.

Our decision-making criteria agreed between the Scottish Government and the Scottish Information Commissioner defines the roles and responsibilities of different parties in relation to FOI request handling, including the role of Special Advisers in providing views and comments and is available here .

Documentation for all FOI requests is held in individual case files. We do not keep a collated record of all cases on which Special Advisers have been asked to comment, since we have no business need to do so.

The Scottish Government is working to deliver the Care Experience Grant which will provide young care experienced people age 16-25 with, additional financial support and security as they move into adulthood; and support their financial wellbeing. This £200 annual grant will benefit around 50,000 young people. Officials are currently engaging with stakeholders and potential partners to identity the best delivery mechanism for the Grant.

In 2021-22 the Scottish Government distributed over £12 million to support the provision of free welfare and debt advice. This vital funding ensures that people who are struggling the most can access the support they need in a way that works for them – be it face to face, online or over the phone. Care leavers and individuals with care experience can access this advice.

Additionally, eligible care leavers can request aftercare from the local authority who had responsibility for providing their care. Aftercare support can include: financial support to meet essential accommodation and maintenance costs, such as travel and other necessary living expenses; information or advice.

Under Schedule 1, Part B, Rule 8(1) of the 2009 Act it is for the Parliament to appoint all trustees by resolution on nomination by the SPCB.  The SPCB recently agreed to nominate Gordon MacDonald MSP, Murdo Fraser MSP and Mark Ballard (pensioner trustee) as Fund Trustees of the Scottish Parliamentary Pension Scheme.  The motions for the Parliament to approve the appointment of the above named were moved on Wednesday 9 March 2022.

Funding for devices was provided to local authorities by the Scottish Government. As such, local authorities undertook their own procurement exercises and devices purchased became assets of, and are managed by individual local authorities. Decisions on their use, are taken locally. We do not hold information on how devices are used and monitored.

Both new vessels; the MV Glen Sannox and Hull 802 will have an accessible toilet with changing facilities, which includes a height adjustable bench and ceiling hoist. There will also be a smaller standard accessible toilet on each of the vessels.

The period a transport appraisal or business case, undertaken in accordance with STAG, is valid and relevant is dependent on the evidence and information provided in the report. The purpose of this evidence is to reflect the current conditions in the study area and other aspects of appraisal as set out in current STAG guidance, such as the problems and opportunities. Therefore, the appraisers and decision makers must take a view on whether that evidence base is sufficient to make the investment decision, which includes the relevance of the data used in the analysis.

As set out in the STAG Managers Guide , STAG is a key part of a transport related business case needed to inform decision making on transport interventions. A transport appraisal in accordance with STAG aligns with the Strategic Business Case (SBC) stage, the initial stage of business case development in line with Transport Scotland’s Guidance on the development of Business Cases .

If there is an intervening period between evidence gathering and decision making, appraisers would be expected to update an existing STAG report, where appropriate, to take into account any changes in the intervening period affecting the evidence and information in the report. Examples may include: changes in transport demand or provision in a study area; changes in demographics and needs of an area; newly published and relevant national policies, strategies and plans; and updates to STAG.

The Scottish Government currently has no plans to legislate on the model adopted by land-owning land maintenance companies.

We are however, currently working on a non-statutory voluntary Code of Practice in relation to the dismissal and replacement of land-owning land maintenance companies. The Code would introduce guidance on the minimum standards expected from any land-owning land maintenance company following a request from homeowners formally requesting to dismiss and replace them. This would include information that such companies should provide to homeowners, following the transfer of the ownership of the land, and future arrangements for maintaining the land.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information. It is the responsibility of individual local authorities to manage their own budgets and to allocate the total resources available to them on the basis of local needs and priorities