- Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 December 2023
Submitting member has a registered interest.
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 21 December 2023
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the International Union for Conservation of Nature reclassifying Atlantic salmon as "Endangered" in Great Britain, and what action it will take to protect this species, particularly with regard to threats from predators.
Answer
The Scottish Government takes the issue of declining wild Atlantic salmon populations very seriously and is committed to working with our partners, both domestic and international, to safeguard this iconic species.
The Scottish wild salmon strategy was established in January 2022 in response to the long term downward trend in the number of Atlantic salmon returning to Scottish waters. In February 2023 we published the wild salmon strategy implementation plan, which sets out over sixty actions to tackle the wide range of pressures affecting the species throughout their life cycle.
- Asked by: Kenneth Gibson, MSP for Cunninghame North, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 18 December 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 21 December 2023
To ask the Scottish Government how many warranted fishery officers are based in the (a) Oban, (b) Campbeltown and (c) Ayr fishery office, and how many additional warranted fishery officers were seconded to the Clyde marine region in each year from 2013-14 to 2023-24 inclusive.
Answer
The Scottish Government has a compliment of 2 warranted officers in Oban, 2 in Campbeltown and 4 in Ayr. Secondment records for the period requested are not retained, any secondment would be as a response to risk level and business need. In addition our Marine Protection Vessels carry warranted officers, these assets are regularly deployed to the Clyde area.
- Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness and Nairn, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 December 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 21 December 2023
To ask the Scottish Government for what reason the Cabinet Secretary for Finance has reportedly declined to meet the Scottish Hospitality Group to hear its case for provision to be made in the Budget for 2024-25 to match that provided to hospitality businesses in England.
Answer
Scottish Ministers met with the Scottish Hospitality Group on several occasions in advance of the Scottish Budget 2024-25.
The Scottish Hospitality Group are represented on the New Deal for Business Non-Domestic Rates consultative sub-group which is chaired by the Minister for Community Wealth and Public Finance who has portfolio responsibility for non-domestic rates. The sub-group has met regularly, and the meetings of 3 October and 24 November provided the opportunity for members, including the Scottish Hospitality Group, to share their views specifically on non-domestic rates in advance of the Scottish Budget 2024-25. The Minister for Community Wealth and Public Finance also met with members of the Scottish Hospitality Group’s board on 12 December to discuss the Scottish Budget 2024-25.
On 29 November, the Minister for Small Business, Innovation, Tourism and Trade met with the Scottish Hospitality Group and other key hospitality bodies to hear first-hand about the current issues facing the sector.Ministers value the insights provided by the trade bodies representing hospitality businesses and are aware of their asks and concerns.
- Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 December 2023
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Current Status:
Answered by Tom Arthur on 21 December 2023
To ask the Scottish Government whether it supports the campaign to amend the Consumer Protection Act to remove the current 10-year longstop limitation and extend the time period to 20 years.
Answer
While this particular issue is reserved to the UK Government, we believe that any measures designed to provide consumers with more protection should be given serious consideration.
- 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-22651 by Patrick Harvie on 16 November 2023, whether it can provide a breakdown of the information in the table by local authority area.
Answer
The following table sets out the total number of rural uplift applications approved, and the total number paid through the HES Grant and Loan Scheme between September 2022 and October 2023, broken down by local authority area.
Applicants have 9 months to complete works and claim their funding from the date that their funding application is approved. This means that payments to applicants are often made in the months following their application approval, which is why the numbers paid will not be equal to the numbers approved.
Local Authority | Rural Uplift Approved | Rural Uplift Paid |
Aberdeen City | 6 | 4 |
Aberdeenshire | 239 | 143 |
Angus | 53 | 36 |
Argyll and Bute | 207 | 146 |
City of Edinburgh | 11 | 9 |
Clackmannanshire | 4 | 2 |
Dumfries and Galloway | 127 | 75 |
Dundee City | 1 | 1 |
East Ayrshire | 30 | 18 |
East Dunbartonshire | 2 | 1 |
East Lothian | 30 | 18 |
East Renfrewshire | 4 | 4 |
Falkirk | 14 | 12 |
Fife | 47 | 27 |
Glasgow City | 0 | 0 |
Highland | 291 | 154 |
Inverclyde | 2 | 1 |
Midlothian | 16 | 10 |
Moray | 93 | 55 |
Na h-Eileanan Siar | 41 | 18 |
North Ayrshire | 24 | 10 |
North Lanarkshire | 7 | 6 |
Orkney Islands | 62 | 20 |
Perth and Kinross | 144 | 98 |
Renfrewshire | 4 | 4 |
Scottish Borders | 118 | 75 |
Shetland Islands | 47 | 27 |
South Ayrshire | 23 | 15 |
South Lanarkshire | 68 | 44 |
Stirling | 47 | 26 |
West Dunbartonshire | 5 | 3 |
West Lothian | 15 | 10 |
- 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 how many entities have been named as installers on Home Energy Scotland (HES) Grant and Loan scheme applications, broken down by (a) local authority area, (b) type of low-carbon heat technology and (c) type of energy efficiency measure.
Answer
From the launch of the Home Energy Scotland (HES) Grant and Loan Scheme in December 2022 to September 2023, 1013 unique installers were listed on applications to the scheme.
The following table shows the number of unique installers that have been listed on applications to the scheme in each local authority area:
Local Authority | Unique Installers |
Aberdeen City | 71 |
Aberdeenshire | 123 |
Angus | 69 |
Argyll and Bute | 82 |
City of Edinburgh | 189 |
Clackmannanshire | 35 |
Dumfries and Galloway | 100 |
Dundee City | 58 |
East Ayrshire | 50 |
East Dunbartonshire | 63 |
East Lothian | 91 |
East Renfrewshire | 52 |
Falkirk | 66 |
Fife | 149 |
Glasgow City | 119 |
Highland | 123 |
Inverclyde | 32 |
Midlothian | 60 |
Moray | 53 |
Na h-Eileanan Siar | 18 |
North Ayrshire | 56 |
North Lanarkshire | 80 |
Orkney Islands | 15 |
Perth and Kinross | 114 |
Renfrewshire | 60 |
Scottish Borders | 120 |
Shetland Islands | 17 |
South Ayrshire | 48 |
South Lanarkshire | 120 |
Stirling | 93 |
West Dunbartonshire | 28 |
West Lothian | 97 |
Where an installer has been listed on applications to the scheme in several different local authority areas, they have been counted as a unique installer under each area.
The information requested for type of low-carbon heat technology and type of energy efficiency measures could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
- 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-22661 by Patrick Harvie on 16 November 2023, how it defines “technology-neutral” in the context of its Heat in Buildings policy.
Answer
As set out in our consultation on Proposals for a Heat in Buildings Bill, the Scottish Government wants buildings across Scotland to be using clean heating systems by 2045. Clean heating systems are systems which do not produce greenhouse gas emissions at the point of use within a building, and the range of technologies would include individual heat pumps, communal clean heating systems within a building, connection to a heat network, smart storage heaters or other electric heating systems, and may also include heat from renewable hydrogen in some areas. Our technology-neutral approach deliberately avoids prescribing the use of one particular type of clean heating system, and instead gives building owners the option to choose whichever system best suits their needs.
We are aware that a limited number of properties may not have suitable clean heating options available to them immediately – for example, as a result of building fabric, construction type or location. We are seeking views in our consultation on what flexibility to provide these properties, and also considering the development of an assessment tool which would help owners understand what types of clean heating systems would be the most suitable for their property.
- 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 what the cost of operating the Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan scheme was in terms of (a) overall staff, (b) IT and (c) administration cost to the Scottish Government in the 2022-23 grant year.
Answer
Energy Savings Trust administer a number of Scottish Government heat and energy efficiency funding schemes through a competitively procured contract. The fee charged by EST is not broken down into staff and IT categories.
The Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan Scheme was launched in December 2022. The cost to operate the scheme in the 2022-23 grant year (December 2022 – March 2023) was as follows:
Scheme Management and Application Fees paid to EST: £647,044
The cost of Scottish Government Staff time associated with the operating of the scheme was estimated to be around: £60,000.
- 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-22672 by Patrick Harvie on 16 November 2023, what plans it has to “evolve and adapt” these schemes, in light of reports from the industry that current funding for energy efficiency retrofit projects needs to be more flexible and distributed from fewer sources.
Answer
The Scottish Government will continue to keep our schemes under review and working closely with stakeholders and our delivery partners will adjust as required to ensure that the outcomes delivered can be maximised for the funding allocated to them.
- 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-22651 by Patrick Harvie on 16 November 2023, for what reasons an approved application including rural uplift would not be paid.
Answer
As outlined in the response to question S6W-22651, applicants have 9 months to complete works and claim their funding from the date that their funding application is approved. This means that payments to applicants are often made in the months following their application approval.
Approved funding applications will not be paid if the applicant fails to submit a valid claim for the approved amount of their application.