- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 December 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 22 December 2023
To ask the Scottish Government when it anticipates that the proposed Land Reform Bill will be introduced to the Scottish Parliament.
Answer
As I noted in my response to a question from Jackie Dunbar MSP on 12 December, the Scottish Government remains committed to introducing Land Reform legislation to further improve transparency of land ownership, help ensure large scale land holdings deliver in the public interest, and empower communities by providing more opportunities to own land and have more say in how land in their area is used.
To allow time for this further consideration and ensure we get the proposals right for introduction, we are planning a slight delay to the introduction of the Bill but it remains a Programme for Government commitment for 2023-24.
- Asked by: Maggie Chapman, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 08 December 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Neil Gray on 22 December 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking in response to the reported decision by S-Mart in Forfar to close due to rising energy costs, in light of its aim to help social enterprise initiatives that support Scotland’s wellbeing economy.
Answer
We recognise the strain the UK cost crisis is placing on social enterprises. S-Mart have already made contact with Community Enterprise who co-ordinate a crisis recovery service for social enterprises, designed to help organisations get the right support quickly.
The Scottish Government understands the important role that Social Enterprises have to play in delivering our ambition for a Wellbeing Economy, helping to build a greener, fairer and more equal society.
To support the growth of the social enterprise ecosystem in Scotland we launched our Social Enterprise Strategy in 2016. This sets out a wide-ranging, ambitious and long-term programme to develop the potential of Scotland's social enterprise sector.
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 December 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Angela Constance on 22 December 2023
To ask the Scottish Government how many court hearings that were redirected to Aberdeen or Inverness, due to the pause to solemn criminal business in island courts, have been (a) delayed, (b) postponed and (c) cancelled due to the failure or inability of a witness or complainer to attend proceedings on the date and time summoned.
Answer
This question relates to operational matters that are the responsibility of the Scottish Court and Tribunals Service (SCTS) corporate body. The question has been passed to the Chief Executive of the SCTS who reply in writing within 20 days.
- Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 December 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Angela Constance on 22 December 2023
To ask the Scottish Government how many cases that would have otherwise taken place in island courts have now been heard at "hub" courts in (a) Inverness and (b) Aberdeen as a result of the pause to solemn criminal business in island courts, broken down by affected island court.
Answer
This question relates to operational matters that are the responsibility of the Scottish Court and Tribunals Service (SCTS) corporate body. The question has been passed to the Chief Executive of the SCTS who reply in writing within 20 days.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 December 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 22 December 2023
To ask the Scottish Government, in relation to the Good Food Nation (Scotland) Act 2022, for what reason the coming into force date of sections 3, 7 and 8 is proposed to be changed from 31 December 2023 to 30 June 2024.
Answer
Section 3 of the Good Food Nation (Scotland) Act 2022 (“the Act”) sets out the requirement to lay the proposed national Good Food Nation Plan before the Scottish Parliament. Section 3(2) stipulates that the Plan must be laid in front of Parliament not later than 12 months after the date that section 3 comes in to force. The Good Food Nation (Scotland) Act 2022 (Commencement No. 1) Regulations 2023 set this date as 31 December 2023, meaning that there would be a legal requirement to lay the Plan before Parliament no later than 31 December 2024.
As the consultation process for the draft Plan will not be launched until early 2024, it is likely that it would not be possible to complete the consultation, analysis period, and necessary re-drafting in time to meet this deadline. The Good Food Nation (Scotland) Act 2022 (Commencement No. 1) Amendment Regulations 2023 amend this date to 30 June 2024. This means that the draft Plan must be laid before Parliament no later than 30 June 2025, providing some extra flexibility in the timetable. It will be possible to lay the Plan before this date.
Sections 7 and 8 of the Act relate to reporting and review requirements for the national Good Food Nation Plan. These have been grouped together with Section 3 in a single instrument for administrative convenience and to minimise the amount of secondary legislation required.
- Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 December 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Jenni Minto on 21 December 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what its assessment is of (a) any financial impact of NHS Scotland’s individual NHS boards referring patients to NHS England for magnetic resonance-guided focused ultrasound (MRgFUS) treatment, (b) whether individual NHS England trusts have the adequate resources to allow proper access by patients from Scotland to MRgFUS treatment in light of this cross-border referral system and (c) how much NHS Scotland has spent on referring patients from Scotland for MRgFUS treatment in England in each year since 2019.
Answer
A small service offering MRgFUS for benign Essential Tremor is available in NHS Tayside, to which people who live within the catchment area of other Scottish health boards can be referred for assessment and potential treatment. While the service in Dundee remains small, we understand it has capacity to increase the number of accepted patients if necessary.
For this reason the Scottish Government has not undertaken any assessment of any potential financial impact of referring patients to NHS England for MRgFUS, or of NHS England resources regarding MRgFUS.
The Scottish Government does not hold information on whether NHS Scotland Health Boards have spent any money referring patients to England for MRgFUS treatment since 2019. Specialist treatment provided outwith NHS Scotland is managed by the National Services Division (NSD) as part of NHS National Services Scotland (NSS). We can confirm that NSD Scotland has not incurred any costs associated with MRgFUS referrals since 2019.
- Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 December 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Patrick Harvie on 21 December 2023
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-22629 by Patrick Harvie on 16 November 2023, what criteria it uses to assess whether a household is "able to consider installing a heat pump".
Answer
Our Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan scheme is open to all domestic owner occupiers in Scotland. Our Home Energy Scotland Advice Service provide free, tailored advice on the suitability of a heat pump for a property and advise on what support is available.
We run targeted marketing campaigns. As stated in the answer to S6W-22629, we are planning to run a campaign which will target early adopters alongside other strands of awareness raising activity. Evidence shows that this group tend to be owner occupiers, environmentally minded and aged over 40. Advice on the suitability of individual homes for heat pumps will continued to be provided to those responding to the campaign by Home Energy Scotland. We also run an annual campaign targeting those in or at risk of being in fuel poverty to encourage households to contact Home Energy Scotland for support via our Warmer Homes Scotland scheme which continues to provide free heating and energy efficiency upgrades for those most in need.
- Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 December 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Patrick Harvie on 21 December 2023
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-22666 by Patrick Harvie on 16 November 2023, what economic modelling has been completed to understand the ability of the current supply chain for heat pump maintenance to meet future demand.
Answer
No economic modelling has been undertaken. As we continue to engage with the sector, if a need for economic modelling emerges then we will consider it. Future demand for heat pump maintenance will be influenced by a range of different factors related to business needs and future local demands, including our recent regulatory proposals. We will continue to work with the sector to understand the impact of our proposals and the wider package of support we currently have in place. A key ask of the supply chain has been clarity about scope and timing of regulation which is central to their planning for investment in capacity and skills needed for manufacture, installation and maintenance. This is why we set out our draft proposals on regulation on 28 November.
- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 December 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Graeme Dey on 21 December 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what value it places on apprenticeships within the public sector, and what assessment it has made of the availability of these across different sectors, departments and professions.
Answer
Apprenticeships are a key way for employers to invest in their workforce, providing skills the economy needs now and in the future. Scottish Government recognise the importance of apprenticeships for the public sector, including health & social care. Our priority is to ensure apprenticeships are of high quality and lead to sustainable employment opportunities characterised by Fair Work.
To assess national demand for apprenticeships, a wide-ranging consultation process is carried out by Skills Development Scotland which includes employers, trade unions and trade bodies. This ensures that apprenticeships are developed and delivered in line with employer needs, including the public sector.
- Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 07 December 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Patrick Harvie on 21 December 2023
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-22629 by Patrick Harvie on 16 November 2023, what demographic data it is using to target its marketing campaign for the Home Energy Scotland (HES) Grant and Loan scheme towards households that are able to consider installing a heat pump, and from what source this data was gathered.
Answer
The data sources used to identify this audience are listed in the answer to question S6W-23654 on 21 December 2023. 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 .