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Regarding applications for onshore wind development with a capacity in excess of 50 megawatts (including applications to extend and vary wind farms in excess of 50 megawatts where an application was made to Scottish Ministers) that have been granted in each of the past 10 years, broken down into planning authority areas, is presented in the following table.

Consents made between 2013 - to date.

The Programme for Government commitment to publish proposals for a market framework will be taken forward during 2023-24. It will be developed as part of the commitment in the National Strategy for Economic Transformation to develop a values-led high integrity market for responsible investment in natural capital. It will be developed with engagement and input from a wide range of interests and be evidence-led.

The Scottish Government has not assessed or commissioned any such independent analysis in respect of nature-based carbon credits or prices to date. Analysis of recent carbon prices commissioned by the Woodland Carbon Code will be published in due course.

The information requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government. The Member may wish to contact ScotRail Trains Ltd to obtain this information.

After coming into public ownership, ScotRail has created 24 posts for Revenue Protection Officers whose role is to prevent ticket fraud and provide support at the stations. The number of these posts will rise to 42 in the coming months.

There are no plans to hold a public consultation regarding staffing requirements at ScotRail stations and booking offices.

In January 2023 we published the draft Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan for consultation, after a delay to ensure wide stakeholder engagement and to allow for the finalisation of the technical evidence base.

The consultation closed on 9 May 2023 and received a very high level of responses. We published an independent consultation analysis report in September 2023. It is critical that we respond to the views expressed in the consultation and continue to engage with stakeholders as we work towards the final publication by Summer 2024, including the Just Transition Commission.

Support for young people now forms part of our all-age employability support delivered through No One Left Behind. Employability support is designed and delivered at a local level by Local Employability Partnerships.

Local Authorities have the responsibility of developing approaches with partners, including engaging with employers, to meet local needs. Local Employability Leads will be able to provide local information on employer engagement.

Employability contacts for each local authority can be found on the Employability in Scotland website which can be accessed here: https://www.employabilityinscotland.com/local-employability-services/

The Young Person’s Guarantee was introduced in response to the Covid-19 pandemic as a measure to prevent long-term adverse impacts for young people in the labour market. It contained a number of aspects, covering skills, education, and employability. Employability support for young people is now delivered through No One Left Behind, as part of the long-term ambition to simplify the employability landscape for service users.

In recognition of the importance of the employability aspect of the Young Person’s Guarantee, we commissioned a joint Implementation evaluation of No One Left Behind and the Young Person’s Guarantee to inform future direction of devolved employability support. This was published on 10 August 2023.

We will consider the recommendations from the evaluation alongside the outputs from our recent national stakeholder discussion events and actions will be reviewed to identify how we can improve.

The Scottish Government continues to work closely with local government partners in each local authority to promote and drive an increase in the reach of our services across all of Scotland.

The Scottish Government set out the policy approach to Employability within the No One Left Behind: review of employability services report which was published on 5 December 2018. Support and Guidance has been provided through the development of national products, including the Customer Charter, Shared Measurement Framework, Service Standards and other materials which are designed to support development and implementation of services at a local level whilst maintaining national coherence.

We continue to work in partnership with local government, key stakeholders, and service users to build capacity for promoting and delivering the Scottish Approach to Service Design in Employability and inter-related national products. This creates the optimum conditions and framework for quality services and how to evaluate them.

Scottish Ministers are currently processing applications from SSE Renewables (via its project company Berwick Bank Wind Limited) for the construction and operation of the proposed Berwick Bank offshore wind farm. This process includes consultations with statutory and non-statutory consultees, as well as the opportunity for the public to make representations.

SSE Renewables has also submitted proposals to compensate for the potential adverse environmental impacts of the proposed wind farm, if a derogation under the Habitats Regulations is required. This includes a proposal regarding the guga hunt, which SSE Renewables has submitted on a without prejudice basis.

As this is a live application, it would be inappropriate to comment on the application further.

In determining an application for any project, the Scottish Ministers will consider a wide range of issues, including the environmental impacts it may have and whether a derogation under the Habitats Regulations is required. Any derogation under the Habitats Regulations, will include an assessment of the feasibility of compensation measures.