Scotland Office

The International Relations reservation set out in the Scotland Act 1998 is clear that the United Kingdom Government is responsible for international relations. The Foreign Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) promotes the international interests of the United Kingdom and all its constituent parts. The UK Government recognises that the devolved administrations will have an interest in international policy making in relation to devolved matters and also in obligations touching on devolved matters that the UK may agree as a result of concluding international agreements (including UN Conventions). Such work is conducted by the Scottish Government, including from a number of overseas offices, which are usually co-located with British overseas missions.

The UK Government has been very clear that our immediate responsibility must be the economic recovery from the consequences of the pandemic, supporting people back into work and building back better.

In accordance with the Statement of Funding Policy and the Scottish Fiscal Framework, the Scottish Government is not required to set out its spending decisions to the UK Parliament. The Scottish Parliament, its MSPs, the committees and independent bodies, such as Audit Scotland, scrutinise the Scottish Government’s spending decisions.

In addition, the Scottish Government published this year’s National Statistics on public spending in Scotland - Government Expenditure and Revenue Scotland - on 18 August 2021, including estimates of public sector expenditure by organisation and type of spend.

In the time period outlined, the Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland has received 11 letters (attached to emails) from Scottish Ministers in relation to reserved matters.

The Department is unable to provide information on other means of communication.

We have introduced the Turing Scheme, a UK-wide programme that will support students who wish to take up opportunities for education and training in over 150 destinations around the world. Scottish universities are on course to receive more than £8.2 million support under the scheme.

The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy works closely with the Scottish Government and other devolved administrations on the implementation of the Hydrogen Strategy, and will continue to do so.

The Secretary of State for Scotland holds regular conversations with Cabinet colleagues regarding the implications of the Northern Ireland Protocol.

This Government is unequivocal in its commitment to ensuring unfettered access for Northern Ireland goods moving to the rest of the UK and will ensure the required resources are deployed at Scottish ports.

From 2022, the UK Shared Prosperity Fund will target the people and places most in need, and we will publish our prospectus in due course.

This will complement work already underway on the Levelling Up Fund, Community Renewal Fund and Community Ownership Fund where applications are currently being considered.

From 2022, the UK Shared Prosperity Fund will target the people and places most in need, and we will publish our prospectus in due course.

This will complement work already underway on the Levelling Up Fund, Community Renewal Fund and Community Ownership Fund where applications are currently being considered.

The Hunterston Strategic Development Area is one of three projects within the Energy, Circular Economy & Environment Programme. The Hunterston investment is supported by £18 million from the UK Government. Good progress is being made and we expect to receive the Business Case by the end of the year.

Scotland Office officials and officials from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS) have been working closely with officials in the Devolved Administrations, including in the Scottish Government, throughout the development of proposals regarding the now published draft Online Safety Bill, and will continue to engage throughout the legislative process.

The new regulatory framework will hold platforms to account for tackling harmful content and behaviours online.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland sponsors one Non-Departmental Public Body, the Boundary Commission for Scotland. The Boundary Commission for Scotland is responsible for reviews of UK Parliament constituencies in Scotland.

The relationship between the Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland and the Boundary Commission for Scotland is governed by a Memorandum of Understanding. This acknowledges the Boundary Commission for Scotland’s performance of the duties given to it by Parliament as an independent body, while following the Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland’s best practice in financial and corporate governance. The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland reports bi-annually to the department’s Audit and Risk Assurance Committee, on the sponsorship relationship.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland’s accounts include the costs of the Boundary Commission for Scotland, which are audited by the National Audit Office. The Boundary Commission for Scotland prepares an annual report, which is available on the Boundary Commission for Scotland’s website. This is in addition to progress reports, which are compiled when the Commission is undertaking a Review, and are submitted to the Speaker of the House of Commons. These progress reports are published on the Boundary Commission for Scotland’s website annually, in January.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland (OSSS) has received 122 items of correspondence from honourable Members since 1 April 2020.

In that period, OSSS Ministers answered 104 items, OSSS officials answered five items and one item was transferred to another UK Government department. Six items of correspondence are yet to be answered.

A further six items did not require a response or were answered by way of discussion.

I refer the honourable Gentleman to my answer of 1 July to question 21266, to my answer of 16 June to question 13125 and to my answer of 9 June to question 10486. Information about Ministerial meetings with external organisations for the period January to March 2021 is due to be published on gov.uk on 15 July 2021.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland incurred the following actual costs for the financial years listed:

These costs relate to our Edinburgh office. The energy charges for Dover House, our London office, are not separately identifiable and are part of the service charge. In 2021, our Edinburgh office relocated to the new UK Government hub in Edinburgh. Energy charges are now similarly part of the service charge.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland (OSSS) is committed to minimising the impact we have on our environment and supporting the UK Government’s Net-Zero commitment.

The OSSS does not own and is not the sole occupant of either of its buildings in London or Edinburgh. Dover House in London is leased from the Government Property Agency and Queen Elizabeth House in Edinburgh is leased from HMRC. The OSSS does promote and adhere to the recycling policies in both buildings.

The Office has referred Freedom of Information requests for advice on handling to the Cabinet Office’s clearing house for Freedom of Information requests since 2016, in accordance with the referral criteria which are available at the following link: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/cabinet-office-and-freedom-of-information.

I refer the Hon Gentleman to my answers of 9 and 16 June to questions 10486 and 13125 respectively. The government publishes details of Ministerial meetings with external organisations on a quarterly basis. Information for the period January to March 2021 is due to be published on gov.uk in July 2021.

The UK Government is providing continued UK-wide support and security to manage the ongoing impacts of Covid-19.

One in three jobs in Scotland has been supported by the UK Government’s unprecedented employment support package.

Scottish businesses have benefited from more than £3.4 billion of loans and support driven by UK Government schemes.

We have also provided a much needed boost to Scottish tourism and hospitality with our UK-wide VAT reduction.

We have agreed a deal with the EU which delivers for Scotland and the rest of the UK.

Our deal provides Scottish businesses with exceptional access to the EU’s market - It is the first time the EU has ever agreed a zero tariffs, zero quota deal.

This provides the right conditions for the Scottish economy to recover from the Covid pandemic and flourish in the future.

My Department does not operate a red, amber, and green rating system for categorising Freedom of Information requests according to their presentational sensitivity.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland has made no assessment of artificial intelligence in respect of its responsibilities.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland does not use artificial intelligence in the implementation of its policies and has not incurred any such expenditure.

I refer the Hon. Member for Kilmarnock and Loudoun to the answer of 9 June 2021 to Question 10486. Ministerial meetings with external organisations are published on gov.uk.

Ministers of the Office for the Secretary of State for Scotland meet regularly with representatives of Scottish renewables companies to discuss a range of energy matters of importance to Scotland. Policy on marine and tidal projects is a matter for the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy.

As the Secretary of State for Scotland, I have responsibility for the Scotland Act and I am the custodian of the Scottish devolution settlement. The role of the Lord Advocate is protected in the Scotland Act 1998. I have not received any representations from the Scottish Government to amend it in this way.

Since the independent Union Connectivity Review (UCR) began in November 2020 it has published a call for evidence, which attracted 145 responses and has led sector specific roundtables with around 100 organisations. The UCR did not receive a submission from the Scottish Government or Transport Scotland. Sir Peter Hendy, who is leading the review, has spoken to Ministers in the Scottish and Welsh Governments and the Northern Ireland Executive.

The Office delivers public information campaigns in Scotland to communicate important messages to the public, such as national awareness campaigns and policy initiatives. Total Office expenditure on digital campaigns from 1 October 2020 to 24 March 2021 was as follows:

* The Office has not run any public information campaigns since 24 March 2021, in line with pre-election requirements.

The Communications team cost for 2019-20 was £870,159, and for 2020-21 was £906,177.

The Office is resourced to enable effective engagement and communication with the public and organisations across Scotland. These functions have been essential to supporting the UK’s response to the coronavirus pandemic and providing information to people and businesses as we left the EU.

My officials and I are in regular contact with counterparts from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs on a range of issues of importance to the seafood sector in Scotland, including the establishment of the UK Government's new £100 million support fund. We will provide further information after 6 May.

UK Government Ministers are in frequent contact with Scottish Government Ministers on all aspects of the response to Covid-19, including the vaccination programme.

The UK Government's vaccine taskforce has successfully procured the vaccines we need and ensured they are available to all across the whole of the UK.

The Government remains deeply disappointed with the BBC’s decision to restrict the over-75 licence fee concession to only those in receipt of pension credit.

We recognise the value of free TV licences for over-75s in Scotland and the rest of the UK and believe they should be funded by the BBC.

Scotland Office Ministers are in regular discussions with Ministerial colleagues and the Scottish Government on the preparations for COP26 in Glasgow.

My Rt hon Friend the Secretary of State met the COP President last month and Scotland Office Ministers attended the COP26 Devolved Administration Ministerial Group.

I discuss a wide range of issues relating to the Coronavirus pandemic with Cabinet colleagues on a regular basis. However, The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland is not the lead UK Government Department responsible for the NHS Test and Trace database system policy. The lead department is the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC).

Public Health is a devolved matter in Scotland. NHS Scotland has created NHS Test and Protect and supports the Scottish Government’s test, trace, isolate and support strategy.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland is not the lead UK Government Department responsible for the NHS Test and Trace database system and does not therefore develop policy relating to the use of the system. The lead department is the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC).

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland is not the lead UK Government Department responsible for the NHS Test and Trace database system, therefore does not allocate resources, including financial resources to investigate future uses of the system. The lead department is the Department for Health and Social Care (DHSC).

DHSC has been clear that blanket application of DNACPRs is unacceptable and that standards and quality of care should be maintained even in pressurised circumstances.

It is important that we work across the health and care system, throughout the whole of the UK, to build understanding of the role DNACPR decisions play in high quality personalised care. Any advanced care decisions, including DNACPRs, must be discussed with patients and families, who must be given all the relevant information and any critical decisions must be made on an individual basis.

As Public Health is a devolved matter, I would call on the incoming Scottish Government, following Scottish elections in May, to listen to patients, families and care organisations who have serious concerns about the use of DNACPR orders during the covid pandemic.

The Scotland Office has regular discussions with other UK Government Departments and the Scottish Government regarding COP26 and I am confident that preparations are in good shape.

The Secretary of State for Scotland has raised concerns previously about BBC Scotland broadcasting the First Minister's daily press briefing, which so frequently is about SNP politics rather than public health information. In the run-up to the Holyrood elections, BBC Scotland must look carefully at its legal requirement for impartiality.

We are continuing to support the Scottish hospitality sector through a combination of UK Government initiatives.

This includes the now extended VAT reduction for the sector and support for businesses, such as business loans, which includes the new Recovery Loan Scheme.

This is in addition to the extended furlough scheme and grants for the self-employed.

This Government understands that the cultural and creative sectors rely on the ability to move people across borders quickly, simply, and with minimal cost and administration.

We are now working urgently across Government and in collaboration with the music and wider creative industries, including through a new working group which includes the devolved administrations, to help address these issues.

The Scottish economy continues to gain hugely from the UK Government’s ambitious investments in data connectivity.

I want to see every area of Scotland, including the constituency of Caithness, Sutherland and Easter Ross, be able to take full advantage of the digital technology available.

This year my Ministerial colleagues and I have had an unprecedented number of meetings with Scottish exporters and their sectoral representative organisations.

On issues like supporting seafood, this Government has held extensive consultations with the industry.

We have been working tirelessly to resolve issues around the new arrangements for getting our world class seafood to customers in Europe.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland is not responsible for the funding of either a ‘Union Unit’ or ‘Union Taskforce’.

As the Secretary of State for Scotland, I have responsibility for the Scotland Act and I am the custodian of the Scottish devolution settlement. In that role, I hold regular meetings with a range of external stakeholders on a variety of subjects and listen to their views. I regularly feed these views back to my ministerial colleagues where appropriate.

The Government remains clear in its support for Scotch Whisky, and other Scottish spirits, and we have taken action to this end. The freeze in spirits duty at Budget 2020 and at five of the six budgets before that ensured the price of a typical bottle of Scotch is £1.54 lower than it otherwise would have been since ending the spirits duty escalator in 2014.

More broadly, the Government announced at the 2020 Budget it would review the alcohol duty system in the round. A call for evidence concluded in November and further announcements will be made in due course.