Building on 2020’s Scottish Budget consultation exercise, the Scottish Government has been exploring ways to enhance its approach to tax policy making at the beginning of this new session of the Scottish Parliament.
This consultation seeks views on our overarching approach to tax...More
The first phase of this study, the Initial Appraisal (Case for Change), was published in March 2021 and concluded that there was evidence for a ‘Case for Change’ within the study area. We are now progressing through the Initial Appraisal stage of this process which involves reviewing the...More
The Adult Support and Protection (Scotland) Act 2007 is designed to protect those adults who are unable to safeguard their own interests and are at risk of harm because they are affected by: disability; mental disorder; illness; physical or mental infirmity.Harm means all harm including self-harm...More
Following on from the period of simplicity and stability we are moving forward to put in place a successor to the Common Agriculture Policy that will guide farming, food production and land use for many years to come.
Our approach will support farmers and crofters to ensure their...More
The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring secure, reliable and affordable energy supplies within the context of long-term decarbonisation of energy generation. Continued growth of the renewable energy sector in Scotland is an essential feature of the future cle an energy system and...More
We are consulting with employees and retail businesses on whether the law should be changed to close large retail businesses on New Year’s Day. A large shop is defined as one with a relevant floor area over 280 square metres (for comparison purposes a tennis court is 260 square metres). The...More
Scotland has some of the best food and drink in the world, enjoyed around the globe and creating jobs the length and breadth of the country. Since 2007 the Scottish Government has dramatically improved the landscape for food in Scotland, from school lunches to whisky exports, from...More
As one of the steps to harness lessons from the Covid pandemic, the Scottish Government is committed to reviewing the impact of Covid on the Scottish statute book. The Government wants to remove measures no longer needed in order to respond to the pandemic whilst keeping those where there is...More
What this consultation is about
This consultation consists of two sections. The first considers changes to how fireworks can be sold and used in Scotland; while the second section considers the use of pyrotechnic devices.
More specifically, Section 1 seeks views on four...More
This consultation seeks views on the Scottish Government's short-term lets draft Licensing Order and Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment (BRIA). The Scottish Government intends to lay the Licensing Order at the Scottish Parliament in September 2021.
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This consultation sets out our proposals to improve the way we deliver social care in Scotland.
The importance of our social care services has never been clearer than during the pandemic. In future, we want to make sure that our social care system will consistently deliver high quality...More
Section 7 of the Aquaculture and Fisheries (Scotland) Act 2007 (“2007 Act”) empowers the Scottish Ministers to approve a code of practice, in whole or in part, in order to give practical guidance to fish farmers, promoting desirable practices with respect to the containment of fish on fish...More
Population decline is a real threat to the sustainability of many, although not all, of Scotland’s island communities. During the consultation for the National Islands Plan, depopulation was the top priority issue identified by respondents.
That is why, through the National...More
The Scottish Government has heard various calls over the last few years from Local Authorities detailing how they think improvements can be made to the regulations which govern how traffic flows on our roads and streets. Some view the current processes as no longer fit for purpose hence why...More
Scottish building regulations set minimum standards applicable to new buildings and to new work to existing buildings.
Our recent draft Heat in Buildings Strategy sets out our vision for decarbonising heat and reducing energy demand across all buildings in Scotland, setting out the scale of...More
The 'Once for Scotland' Workforce Policies Programme is designed to review and transform existing workforce policies (previously known as Partnership Information Network (PIN) Policies) in line with our vision:
"'Once for Scotland' workforce policies will promote NHSScotland as a modern,...More
Child contact centres can play an important role in allowing a child to have a relationship with a parent. Child contact centres are safe venues for conflict-free contact between children, parents, and other people in the child’s life.
The Children (Scotland) Act 2020 gives the Scottish...More
The Children (Scotland) Act 2020 (the 2020 Act) gained Royal Assent on 1 October 2020. The 2020 Act builds on the existing Children (Scotland) Act 1995 (the 1995 Act).
During the passage of the 2020 Act through the Scottish Parliament, the Scottish Government committed to a full...More
Whether the University of the Highlands and Islands (UHI) should provide a Further Education Teaching Programme for individuals seeking registration as a further education teacher with the General Teaching Council for Scotland (GTCS)
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This consultation seeks views on the impact on island communities of the introduction of free bus travel throughout Scotland for those under age 22 .
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Local Place Plans are community led plans providing proposals for the development and use of land. Introduced by the Planning (Scotland) Act 2019 these plans will set out a community’s aspirations for its future development.
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The Scottish Government, in collaboration with Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (DEFRA), the Welsh Government (WG), Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs Northern Ireland (DAERA) and the UK Statutory Nature Conservation Bodies, have developed this UK...More
In response to a public petition in Scotland and work undertaken by Public Health England to review dependence and withdrawal associated with some prescribed medicines, Scottish Government established a short life working group (SLWG) to look at the scale of the issues in Scotland and the...More
In October 2020, the Cabinet Secretary for Justice announced that the Scottish Government accepted in principle the recommendation made by an independent review panel, that subject to establishing suitable criteria, the Scottish Government should introduce legislation to pardon miners convicted...More
The Scottish Government's Programme for Government 2020-21 commits the Government to establishing a Patient Safety Commissioner for Scotland. This paper therefore seeks views on what that role should look like; who the Patient Safety Commissioner should report to; and how the role should interact...More
The consultation proposes changes to allow the statutory notifications of abortions in Scotland to be sent to the Chief Medical Officer (CMO) electronically in future. It also proposes to remove the current requirement to submit information about each abortion with each notification (the yellow...More
The landmark Forensic Medical Services (Victims of Sexual Offences) (Scotland) Act 2021 was unanimously passed by the Scottish Parliament on 10 December 2020 and received Royal Assent on 20 January 2021. This consultation seeks views on the appropriate retention period for evidence collected...More
Our draft Heat in Buildings Strategy sets out our vision for decarbonising heat and reducing energy demand across all buildings in Scotland, setting out the scale of the investment opportunity and supporting our green recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic. This vision can only be achieved if there...More
This discussion paper seeks views on steps that might be taken to improve the way in which the criminal law may deal with dog owners where their dogs act in a dangerous way.
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This draft Strategy sets out proposed actions for transforming our buildings and the systems that supply their heat, ensuring a transition to zero emissions by 2045.
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