Scotland Office

The UK and Scottish economies have proven remarkably resilient during the pandemic, and whilst the pandemic is not over, it proves the UK Government’s Plan for Jobs is working, with latest labour market data showing unemployment is down and the numbers of people on the payroll across Scotland above pre-pandemic levels.

The specific performance of Scotland relative to the rest of the UK in the PAYE data is complex. North Eastern Scotland significantly underperforms on this indicator and this is likely to be as a result of its industrial mix and reliance on the oil and gas sector as the Commission suggests. The Commission’s analysis that the labour market impact of the recent upturn in oil prices is probably not reflected in this data release either is one with which the Scotland Office would agree. Moreover, the North East of Scotland’s PAYE data probably dampens Scottish PAYE activity relative to the UK average and, therefore, this is likely to overstate the level of difference between Scotland and the other regions and nations of the UK.

I have not received any communications from the Scottish Parliament regarding changes to the role of the Lord Advocate.

Ministers and officials from this Department are in regular contact with counterparts from the Department for Digital, Culture, Media and Sport on a range of matters.

The UK Government has a strong record of demonstrating its commitment to minority language broadcasting to ensure that our broadcasting sector services all audiences of the UK nations and regions.

The UK Government has been undertaking a strategic review of public service broadcasting, which includes the important role of minority language broadcasting to audiences such as Gaelic speakers. The conclusions from that review will be set out in the Broadcasting White Paper.

In October 2021, the UK Government reached agreement with the Scottish Government to jointly commission an independent report that will cover the Block Grant Adjustment arrangements. This independent report will inform a broader review of the Scottish Government’s Fiscal Framework later this year.

We are currently working with the Scottish Government to finalise the arrangements for commissioning the independent report.

Ministers from this Department are in regular contact with counterparts from the Home Office on a range of matters affecting Scotland, including labour market issues.

The UK Government recently announced that the Seasonal Agricultural Worker visa route has been extended until the end of 2024, to allow migrant workers to come to the UK for up to six months to pick both edible and ornamental crops.

Further information is available online:

https://www.gov.uk/government/news/industry-given-certainty-around-seasonal-workers-but-told-to-focus-on-domestic-workforce

My officials and I fully appreciate the importance of Scotland’s seed potato industry, not only for ware production across the UK but also for export, and its deserved reputation for high quality.

Currently, the Scottish potato sector exports to over 40 countries worldwide, with recent data suggesting that the majority (around 80%) of Scottish seed potato exports already go to countries outside the EU, including Egypt, Morocco, Thailand and Turkey, demonstrating that Scottish seed potato exporters already take advantage of world markets.

We have a responsibility to support economic growth UK-wide. This year the Levelling Up Fund has delivered over £170m to locally championed Scottish projects, with MPs Scotland-wide supporting these applications.

The £2.6bn UK Shared Prosperity Fund will launch next year building on this success to support communities in every corner of our UK.

We have, and have had, a number of apprentices in the Department.

We remain committed to apprenticeships as part of a modern employment route into the Civil Service and across the wider economy.

This year we also had a number of diversity interns as part of a wider Civil Service scheme.

I regularly discuss issues of importance to Scotland with Cabinet colleagues, including the impact on businesses of recent global energy price rises.

Energy security is an absolute priority for this Government and we continue to actively monitor market activity and prices.

One of the main impacts of both Storm Arwen and Storm Barra was disruption to electricity networks.

The UK Government worked closely with local network operators to provide support, particularly to the most vulnerable.

Our fantastic British armed forces responded rapidly to a request from Aberdeenshire Council, and service personnel were deployed door-to-door, providing a lifeline to many.

This information is not collected. At the time, staff were expected to work from home and undertake meetings remotely, wherever possible.

As reported in the annual report and accounts publication, the Scotland Office and Office of the Advocate General’s spending for 2020-21 was £12.8m.

This does not include the transfer of £43.371 billion of funding to the Scottish Consolidated Fund, the details of which can be found at:

https://assets.publishing.service.gov.uk/government/uploads/system/uploads/attachment_data/file/1002998/Office_of_the_Secretary_of_State_for_Scotland_and_Office_of_the_Advocate_General_for_Scotland_Annual_Report_and_Accounts_2020-2021.pdf

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland is a small Ministerial Department, which does not employ staff directly. Those that join, do so on an assignment, loan or secondment from other government Departments, principally the Scottish Government and the Ministry of Justice who remain the employers.

Detailed staffing information is already published annually, within the Staff Report of the Scotland Office Annual Report and Accounts 2020/21 - Scotland Office Annual Report 20/21. Copies are also available from the Library of the House.

I have not received any recent communications from the Scottish Government regarding the role of the Lord Advocate.

In 2020-21, the Office spent a total of £75,681 on advertising.

The number of staff working at the Office to deliver the communications functions in 2020-21 was 13.

Expenditure on communications staffing was £906,177 in 2020-21.

The number of staff working at the Office to deliver the communications functions in 2020-21 was 13.

Expenditure on communications staffing was £906,177 in 2020-21.

As part of Budget 2020, the Government committed to relocating 22,000 Civil Service roles from Greater London to locations across the UK, including York, with the Places for Growth Portfolio delivering on this commitment.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland, is a Territorial Office with specific responsibility for representing Scotland. The Office is based in London and Edinburgh. We have no plans to relocate to York.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland is a small Ministerial Department which does not employ staff directly. Those that join, do so on an assignment, loan or secondment from other government Departments, principally the Scottish Government and the Ministry of Justice who remain the employers.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland and Office of the Advocate General provide combined headcount reporting through the Office of National Statistics and other Civil Services bodies. Such information is routinely published in National Statistics, Civil Service Statistics, the latest of which, are as at 31 March 2021.

However, due to the small number involved (less than 5) specific information on SCS headcount relating to the Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland can only be provided as follows:

Ministers holding meetings or phone calls on government business are routinely accompanied by a private secretary or other official, in line with the expectations of paragraph 8.14 of the Ministerial Code. Specific procedures are in place for external meetings involving ministers. These are publicly available and can be found in the Guidance on the management of Private Office Papers.

No Ministers from the Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland travelled to COP26 by airplane.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland is a small Ministerial Department, which does not employ staff directly. Those that join do so on an assignment, loan or secondment from other government Departments, principally the Scottish Government and the Ministry of Justice who remain the employers.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland and Office of the Advocate General provide combined headcount reporting through the Office of National Statistics and other Civil Services bodies. Such information is routinely published in National Statistics, Civil Service Statistics, the latest of which are as at 31 March 2021.

However, specific staffing information relating to the Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland is as follows:

Formal, structured meetings are usually minuted, however, not all meetings need to be minuted. It is expected that the general guidance that departments give to their staff will help officials make judgements as to what meetings need to be minuted, noting their Civil Service Code obligation to ‘keep accurate official records.’

Specific procedures are in place for external meetings involving ministers. These are publicly available and can be found in the Guidance on the management of Private Office Papers.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland does not hold the relevant information that is being requested. Both public health and prison management are policy matters devolved to the Scottish Government who will be able to provide the information requested.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland does not hold the relevant information that is being requested. Both public health and prison management are policy matters devolved to the Scottish Government who will be able to provide the information requested.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland does not hold the relevant information that is being requested. Both public health and prison management are policy matters devolved to the Scottish Government who will be able to provide the information requested.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland does not hold the relevant information that is being requested. Both public health and prison management are policy matters devolved to the Scottish Government who will be able to provide the information requested.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland does not hold the relevant information that is being requested. Both public health and prison management are policy matters devolved to the Scottish Government who will be able to provide the information requested.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland does not hold the relevant information that is being requested. Both public health and prison management are policy matters devolved to the Scottish Government who will be able to provide the information requested.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland does not hold the relevant information that is being requested. Both public health and prison management are policy matters devolved to the Scottish Government who will be able to provide the information requested.

My officials and I are in regular contact with a range of stakeholders from the agricultural sector, including representatives of the Scottish seed potato sector.

The UK Government is continuously monitoring the agriculture sector and is in regular contact with EU counterparts to help mitigate trade issues, including in relation to seed potatoes.

My officials and I are in regular contact with the Northern Ireland Executive on a range of issues including those affecting the agri-food sector, most recently at an Inter-Ministerial Government EFRA meeting.

The UK Government is in regular contact with the Government of Ireland on similar issues.

My officials and I are in regular contact with counterparts from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the Scottish Government on a range of issues of importance to the seed potato sector in Scotland, including assessment of the contribution the sector makes to the economy.

The Scottish potato sector’s output contributes over £208 million to the economy. They are exported to over 40 countries worldwide.

The Scottish horticulture and potato sector accounts for a sixth, nearly 17% of Scottish agricultural output by value, despite using less than 1% of Scottish farmland. Scottish agriculture employs over 67,000 people and generates a gross output of £3.3 billion annually, directly resulting in a contribution of some £1.3 billion to the Scottish economy.

I have not received any representations from the Scottish Government to amend the Scotland Act 1998 in this way.

We have not made any estimates of the number of ivory items owned by or collated in this Department or institutions owned or managed by the Government.

As set out in the Written Ministerial Statement on 29 October, the £12 billion contingencies fund advance will meet the Scottish Government’s cash requirement in advance of parliamentary approval at Supplementary Estimates 2021-22, at which point this advance will be repaid. The Scottish Government is operating within its budgets, so this does not represent additional expenditure, but ensures they have the cash they need on top of what was included at Main Estimates.

The FCDO provides a range of services to all parts of the UK, such as promoting trade and investment, delivering security and providing consular services. UK policy in this area was set out earlier this year in the Integrated Review. My Department is committed to representing Scottish interests on the world stage as demonstrated by my ministerial colleague, Lord Offord, on his recent visit to Mumbai.

The chancellor has announced £171,708,259 of UKG investment directly in Scotland under round 1 of the Levelling Up Fund.

From the Inverness Zero Carbon Cultural Regeneration to improvement to the B714 in Ayrshire, these are projects championed by local areas which will make a real difference to communities.

The Scottish Government will receive the biggest funding settlement since devolution began in 1998. An extra £4.6 billion a year in Barnett Consequentials on top of the block grant means a record £41 billion a year for the Scottish Government. So, there can be no excuses for underfunded public services in Scotland.

I regularly discuss issues of importance to Scotland with Cabinet colleagues, including the Secretary of State for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy and HM Treasury. There is significant potential for Scotland to benefit from the development of tidal stream energy and I recently wrote, in my capacity as a champion of the Scottish renewables sector, urging my Cabinet colleagues in both BEIS and HM Treasury to look closely at a separate allocation to support tidal stream development in the Contracts for Difference Allocation Round 4.

The Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland has been a member of the Stonewall Diversity Champion Programme since 1 April 2019. The Office pays an annual membership fee of £3,000 per annum.

No Minister from the Office of the Secretary of State for Scotland has travelled to a country while the country was on the covid-19 red list for the purpose of conducting official business.

The latest Scottish Quarterly National Accounts estimate that Scottish imports in 2019 from the rest of the UK had a value of over £66 billion, this compares to over £34 billion of imports from the rest of the world.

The Scottish Quarterly National Accounts do not provide estimates on UK international exports. However, the latest UK National accounts estimates total UK international exports for 2019 with a value of £699.3 billion, as published by the ONS. It is important to note that there are methodological differences and the numbers are not comparable for the avoidance of any confusion; the ONS figures for exports do not include sales to Scotland.