Question to the Scotland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what recent discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on the strength of the Union.

Answered by Alister Jack - Secretary of State for Scotland

I discuss the strengths and benefits of the Union with colleagues on a regular basis.

This Government is committed to protecting the Union and promoting the strengths that have made it the most successful political and economic union the world has ever seen.

Question to the Scotland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what recent discussions he has had with Cabinet colleagues on trends in the cost of living in Scotland.

Answered by Alister Jack - Secretary of State for Scotland

Supporting households and the most vulnerable by tackling cost of living pressures remains a core priority for this government. That is why the UK Government has introduced a £108 billion package of support over 2022-25, worth an average £3,800 per household, to mitigate against these pressures. We are also making good progress against the Prime Minister’s three economic priorities of halving inflation, getting the economy growing and reducing the national debt. Inflation is now at 3.2 percent - less than half its recent peak, and is expected to fall further to its 2 percent target one year earlier than expected.

Question to the Scotland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what steps he has taken to reduce the cost of fraud in his Department in the last three financial years.

Answered by Alister Jack - Secretary of State for Scotland

The Scotland Office reported no cases of fraud or amounts lost due to fraud or error in any of the last three financial years. This is disclosed as part of the Annual Report and Accounts available on GOV.UK.

The Government is determined to uncover fraud in the public sector and is proud of its record. As part of this, the Government established the Public Sector Fraud Authority (PSFA).

In 22/23, the PSFA set a target of delivering £180m of savings to the taxpayer. In fact, the PSFA far surpassed this within the first 12 months by preventing and recovering £311 million. As it enters its second year, the PSFA has a target of achieving £185 million of savings for the taxpayer.

The Government has also announced an additional £34 million to deploy cutting-edge tools and Artificial Intelligence tools to help combat fraud across the public sector, saving £100 million for the public purse. This is in addition to existing partnerships between PSFA and the tech sector.

Question to the Scotland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, whether he has had discussions with the Lord Advocate on the Scottish Government's proposed amendments to the Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill.

Answered by Alister Jack - Secretary of State for Scotland

Discussions with Scottish Ministers on the Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill have principally been led by the Minister of State in the Department for Business and Trade, Minister Hollinrake. I have not had discussions with the Lord Advocate regarding the Scottish Government’s proposed amendments to the Post Office (Horizon System) Offences Bill.

Noting Scotland’s historically separate legal jurisdiction and the unique role of the Lord Advocate and Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service in respect of prosecutions in Scotland, it is the UK Government’s view that it is appropriate for the Scottish Government to bring forward proposals to address prosecutions on this matter in Scotland, and for those to be scrutinised by the Scottish Parliament. The UK Government remains committed to supporting the Scottish Government in bringing forward its own proposals.

Question to the Scotland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, if he will provide a list of ministerial visits to the Midlothian constituency in each of the last five years.

Answered by Alister Jack - Secretary of State for Scotland

Scotland Office Ministers have conducted one visit to the constituency of Midlothian in the past five years. This was by Iain Stewart MP, while Parliamentary Under Secretary of State in the Scotland Office, to Midlothian Council Projects on 4 February 2022.

Question to the Scotland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, what recent discussions he has had with the Scottish Government on the protection of free speech in Scotland.

Answered by Alister Jack - Secretary of State for Scotland

This Government is committed to protecting free speech.

It is the responsibility of the Scottish Government and Scottish Parliament, working with Police Scotland, to ensure that the hate crime legislation is implemented and enforced in a way that protects freedom of speech and has the confidence of people in Scotland.

Found: focus on Scotland which highlighted the tense and somewhat combative relationship between the Scotland

Found: 023.1 Lord Offord, Parliamentary Under- Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade and Scotland

Found: 023.1 Lord Offord, Parliamentary Under- Secretary of State (Department for Business and Trade and Scotland

Found: Office 56 56 0 0 0 UK Export Finance 20 20 0 0 5 Wales Office 27 27 0 0 1 Table 1c: Other monitored

Found: Office 56 56 0 0 0 56 56 0 0 100 100 56 4 17 35 15 1 19 0 42.85714286 54.28571429 8 0 4 7 1 0 0 0 0

Found: Office Minister, Lord Offord.

Found: also be appointed by the: • Court of Protection – as a Deputy (England and Wales) or Guardian (Scotland

Found: Statistics Quarterly ONS Annual Population Survey Regional labour market: headline indicators for Scotland

Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it can provide an update on when it (a) last met and (b) will next meet with the UK Minister of State for Energy Security and Net Zero regarding Grangemouth refinery.

Answered by McAllan, Màiri - Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Net Zero and Just Transition

I was disappointed that the UK Government Minister for Energy Security was unable to attend the recent meeting of the Grangemouth Future Industry Board Industrial Leadership Forum on the 28th March. He did attend the previous meeting in January and met with Scottish Ministers.

However I was pleased that the UK Government Scotland Office was represented by John Lamont MP. It is my understanding that Lord Cameron will now take forward the Scotland Office interests on this group and I have written to him to ask for a meeting to discuss these important matters.

I am also regretful that the previous Minister for Energy Security declined my invitation to meet since taking up my new position, however I have since written to the newly appointed Minister and hope that he will be able to join trilateral discussion with Petroineos in the coming weeks.

Found: Criminal Justice Committee 26 October 2022 Criminal Justice Committee 15 June 2022 Reports by Audit Scotland