Finance Secretary Derek Mackay called for an end to the £35 million police and fire VAT bill. Police and fire services in Scotland remain the only territorial forces in the UK unable to reclaim the VAT they incur on the purchase of goods and services.
The life-changing potential of a Scottish Government-funded project working with deprived young people was hailed by Deputy First Minister John Swinney.
Performance across accident and emergency departments was above the 95% target during June.