The Scottish Government is committed to introduce legislation to end conversion practices in Scotland that is as comprehensive as possible within devolved competence.

Conversion practices, which aim to change or suppress a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity, are damaging and destructive acts that violate people’s human rights. Whilst our proposals will protect people from the harms of conversion practices, our approach also recognises and respects established rights and freedoms. This includes freedom of thought, conscience and belief and private and family life as well as parents exercising their rights and responsibilities in relation to their children.

Our public consultation, containing detailed proposals, ran for 12 weeks and closed on 2 April 2024. Responses to that consultation will now be analysed and considered.

Future legislative programmes will be announced in relevant Programmes for Government in the usual way.

This is an operational matter for ScotRail. The Member may wish to contact ScotRail for further information on this matter.

Auditory Verbal therapy is one of a number of methods used to provide support for deaf children. NHS Boards and local authorities are responsible for ensuring the services they deliver best meet the needs of their local population.

As such, any decisions around provisions of training for staff in any of the professions described should be made locally following a thorough assessment of needs.

There are no plans at present for any additional funding of additional Auditory Verbal therapists.

Auditory Verbal UK is a suitable therapeutic intervention for some young people, and it remains an option that can be pursued by local health boards.

The provision of services including suitable therapeutic intervention remains a matter for local authorities and health boards.

Repowering existing and operational wind generating stations will, in most cases, involve the full or partial replacement of a constructed generating station. This requires extensive construction works, such that a new development consent will be required. The process to consider these applications is already well established.

The recently signed Onshore Wind Sector Deal has a number of commitments that support the streamlining and speeding up of the consents process, as well as commitments from industry to collaborate with communities, engage at all stages of the project life cycle and offer impactful community benefits. These commitments all apply to repowering applications.

The Scottish Government is committed to working with partners to continue to grow a thriving community energy sector. The latest Community and Locally Owned Energy statistics show that, at the end of December 2023, there was an estimated 1,028 MW of community and locally owned renewable energy in Scotland. This is a progression of 51% towards the Scottish Government’s target of 2 GW of community and locally owned energy by 2030.

Our target includes different types of community and local ownership to reflect the different needs, requirements and opportunities available to communities across Scotland. It also recognises the role these projects play in making Scotland’s net zero transition more local, democratic and inclusive, with energy projects and solutions better tailored to local needs.

As set out in the draft Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan (ESJTP), the Scottish Government is committed to maximising the benefits flowing into our communities from a just energy transition. The final ESJTP will build on this commitment, as well as the successes of our Community and Renewable Energy Scheme, the Onshore Wind Sector Deal and our Good Practice Principles, to support sustainable and thriving communities as part of our renewables revolution.

I welcome this report and look forward to discussing it with Community Energy Scotland and partners to explore actions to further grow a thriving community energy sector in Scotland.

The powers to mandate community benefits are reserved to the UK Government.

The Onshore Wind Sector Deal, signed in September 2023, builds on the success of Scottish Government Good Practice Principles and commits the sector to updating the register of Community Benefit on an annual basis. This will ensure greater transparency and effective reporting on the benefits offered to Scotland’s communities.

The register, administered by Local Energy Scotland on behalf of the Scottish Government, indicates that 273 developments offered over £26 million worth of community benefits to Scottish communities in the past 12 months. The register can be accessed here: https://localenergy.scot/community-benefits-register/ .

We continue to call on the UK Government to explore mandating community benefits and shared ownership of onshore renewable energy projects alongside plans for electricity transmission networks.

The Scottish Government remains committed to addressing labour market inequalities for racialised minorities. Our Anti-Racist Employment Strategy published in December 2022 supports and encourages employers to address these inequalities. It provides guidance on improving data as well as recruitment, retention and progression practices to improve the representation and experience of racialised minority staff.

The strategy further sets out a series of actions for the Scottish Government, including developing an anti-racism workplace training framework; supporting employers in their use of positive action measures; and continuing to engage with public sector leadership on recruitment and representation, data and on understanding institutional racism.

The Scottish Government is also currently reviewing the operation of the Public Sector Equality Duty in Scotland with a view to improving the Scottish Specific Duties, including data reporting on ethnicity. We have consulted on proposals which include extending the existing gender pay gap reporting duty to ethnicity and disability, with listed public authorities required to make more evidence-based decisions on the information they publish.