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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.

The Scottish Government has had a wide range of discussions with Police Scotland over many years about its use of technology to support effective policing in communities through its Change Programmes.

In 2019-20 the Scottish Government provided an additional £12 million in capital funding to support the introduction of mobile devices for 10,000 officers, as part of an investment programme to build operational capacity enhance digital capabilities and enable frontline officers to spend more time in communities.

Police Scotland is the lead delivery partner for the Digital Evidence Sharing Capability (DESC) Programme – a collaborative transformation programme supported and funded by the Scottish Government and currently being piloted in Dundee. It will deliver significant efficiencies to Police Scotland and its partners, making the process of collecting, editing and sharing evidence with the prosecutor much simpler and quicker for officers than current processes. DESC is also a critical platform for future transformation, such as the national roll out of a body worn video capability, and greater use of pre-recorded evidence.

The Scottish Police Authority provide oversight and scrutiny when new technologies are being introduced to ensure that ethical, legal and human rights are considered, so that public confidence can be maintained.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information. Businesses may become TrustMark registered and information on these businesses is available on the TrustMark website.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-23652 on 21 December 2023 regarding targeted marketing at the over 55 age group. I further refer the member to my answer to question S6W-23657 on 21 December 2021 regarding the part of his question regarding specific forms of marketing activities.

The Home Energy Scotland ‘Warmer Homes Scotland’ campaign includes a specific target audience of the over 60s. This campaign includes a digital advertising strand targeted at this age category who live in the 20% most deprived postcodes in Scotland. In addition, press is included to help target those who are not digitally engaged, alongside TV advertising on daytime STV and C4 Scotland.

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 .

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.

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.

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:

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.

The Scottish Government has not undertaken economic modelling on this particular point. We will continue to engage with the sector in ensuring it can respond to the increasing take up of clean heating systems over the next decades, including undertaking economic analysis if this is appropriate.

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.