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Local authorities are independent data controllers for their use of educational technology and are responsible for ensuring compliance with the UK General Data Protection Regulation and the Data Protection Act 2018, including completing Data Protection Impact Assessments where required.

Transport Scotland is committed to undertaking a complete procurement via the Restricted Procedure. Due attention is being given to the cost to the public purse as the specification is being developed, the impact of which will be limited by an effective tender process. There are expected to be time and resource savings through the use of the Restricted Procedure.

Transport Scotland will set a time limit which is proportionate and appropriate for this competition. This will be applied consistently to all invited bidders and will exceed the minimum time limit of 30 days set out by Regulation 29(6).

Screen Scotland continues to support filming and post-production activity across the Highlands and Islands. Recent projects supported by the Scottish Government via Screen Scotland which have filmed in the Highlands and Islands or completed elements of their post-production work in the region include the BAFTA Award-nominated feature film The Outrun (Orkney); TV series The Traitors (Easter Ross and the wider Highlands) and Karen Pirie (Argyll & Bute); as well as feature films Silent Roar (Na h-Eileanan Siar), Falling into Place (Skye), Harvest (Argyll & Bute) and The Incomer (Caithness) which premiered at the Sundance Film Festival earlier this year where it won the NEXT Innovator Award. The Netflix drama Department Q (which filmed partly in Caithness) and feature film Jack of Spades (Argyll & Bute) were attracted to film in Scotland in the last 24 months by Screen Scotland’s Production Growth Fund.

The Screen Scotland Screen Commission has also recently facilitated filming in the Highlands and Islands on productions including The Diplomat for Netflix (Argyll & Bute), the Star Wars series Ahsoka and Andor (Skye, Sutherland, and Argyll & Bute), and The Crown for Netflix (Badenoch & Strathspey).

Screen Scotland also supports a range of projects alongside BBC/MG ALBA each year. As well as part funding both series of An t-Eilean, Screen Scotland funded its predecessor An Clo Mor, the documentary projects produced by Stornoway-based Mac TV entitled Rain Stories, and Secrets of the Peat, and quiz show Mas Fhior.

Since 2022, Screen Scotland has supported The Highlands & Islands Training Programme, run by MG ALBA in partnership with Screen Scotland and the BFI Skills Cluster Fund, contributing circa £170k annually towards delivery of the programme. This six-month paid traineeship develops emerging talent in the film, TV, and digital media sectors from the Highlands & Islands, with a focus on Gaelic language, providing on-the-job experience across scripted drama, factual entertainment, and social media and digital-first projects.

Screen Scotland also supports the Young Film Foundation’s residential Screenwriting Lab on Skye.

Screen Scotland’s talent development programme Opening Shot is delivered by Stornoway and Glasgow-based production company Astar Media. The programme works with local community groups to deliver community engagement workshops and short film opportunities. Opening Shot is currently working with Highland Cinema in Fort William to support four filmmakers in producing short films with guidance from an experienced filmmaker. In addition, they are working with Moray Arts Development Engagement and Cairngorm Community Cinema to deliver community-based workshops in Elgin and Aviemore to 12 filmmakers.

The Scottish Government recognises the benefits of walking for physical and mental wellbeing regularly reported in the Scotland Walking and Cycling Index. However, as with the response to PQ S6W-44458 on 24 March 2026 pavement maintenance is the responsibility of councils as entirely separate entities from the Scottish Government. The Scottish Government has committed to respecting local government’s democratic mandate as part of the Verity House Agreement.

Local authorities have statutory duties under the Roads (Scotland) Act 1984 and the Road Traffic Regulation Act 1984 to maintain footways and secure expeditious, convenient and safe movement of people using their footways.

It is the responsibility of individual local authorities to manage their own budgets and to allocate the total financial resources available to them, on the basis of local needs and priorities, having first fulfilled their statutory obligations and the jointly agreed set of national and local priorities.

It is for all external bodies, including local authorities, to ensure that they comply with all legal requirements. This includes the Public Sector Equality Duty and the Equality Act 2010. Responsibility for oversight of compliance with the Equality Act 2010 rests with the Equality & Human Rights Commission. The Commission is independent and cannot be directed by Scottish Ministers. Private individuals can seek to enforce their rights under the Equality Act in courts and tribunals.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

The Scottish Government recognises that social isolation and loneliness is a public health issue. Our social isolation and loneliness strategy, A Connected Scotland, outlines a number of actions we are taking to tackle this issue and is underpinned by a delivery plan, entitled ‘Recovering Our Connections’, that we published in 2023. The Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) as the key representative organisation for local government in Scotland, was a key partner in developing this plan. We continue to work with the Social Isolation and Loneliness Advisory Group to drive forward the actions in the plan and are providing £3.8m over three years to 53 community projects across Scotland through the Social Isolation and Loneliness Fund that is providing opportunities for people to connect.

As with the responses to PQs S6W-44458 & S6W-44459 on 24 March 2026, pavement maintenance is the responsibility of councils, as entirely separate entities from the Scottish Government. The Scottish Government has committed to respecting local government’s democratic mandate as part of the Verity House Agreement and believes that locally elected representatives are best placed to make decisions at a local level. We would therefore not provide guidance to councils on what footway routes they should prioritise.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

Screen Scotland’s Professional Development Fund has awarded the following sums to applicants based in the Highlands and Islands region, in each year since 2021:

2021-22 - £0

2022-23 - £2,435

2023-24 - £1,015

2024-25 - £1,387

2025-26 – data not yet available

Local authorities have the statutory responsibility to manage their school estate, including assessing the impact of all housing developments on school capacity.

The Scottish Government’s Determining Primary School Capacity guidance provides a consistent framework for assessing planning and working capacity, supporting local authorities to respond to pressures arising from windfall sites. Decisions on mitigating capacity pressures, including infrastructure timing, are matters for each local authority.

NatureScot has taken forward a range of actions following the 2025 Gull Summit in Inverness. This has included hosting four regional roundtable events to gather information to support local management approaches and inform further guidance.

In addition to this we have made £100,000 available to support area-based gull management by local authorities, including funding provided to Highland Council and additional funding for the Inverness Gull Management Pilot.

NatureScot is also developing gull survey methods at national and regional levels, the member will also be aware of the provisions in the Natural Environment (Scotland) Act 2026 for NatureScot to report on gull species populations every five years.

A national awareness campaign was launched on 5 March 2026 to discourage the feeding of gulls, to secure waste and take measures to gull-proof properties and buildings.

NatureScot also continues to develop policy and procedures for area-based licensing, which ensures that licences are available where public health and safety is at risk as a result of gulls.

Local authorities have the statutory responsibility to manage their school and early learning and childcare (ELC) estate. While the Determining Primary School Capacity guidance focuses on primary school capacity, authorities are expected to consider ELC requirements in their wider estate planning and to secure any necessary developer contributions. The Scottish Government has no plans to issue updated guidance at this time, as decisions on forecasting and securing contributions sit with local authorities.

National Planning Framework 4 supports an Infrastructure First approach, recognising the importance of aligning development and infrastructure provision. Local development plans are expected to be informed by evidence on the infrastructure of the area, including ELC settings, primary and secondary schools. Where infrastructure is necessary to enable development, it is a decision for the planning authority whether it should be funded – in full or in part – through developer contributions, taking local needs and development viability into account.