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We are aware of concerns about the current capacity within planning authorities. The skills and capacity challenges faced by planning authorities are not unique to Scotland and are not restricted to minerals development. The Scottish Government is taking forward a programme of actions to boost planning capacity across Scotland.

Our Investing in Planning consultation last year identified a range of interventions to increase the capacity within planning authorities. In September 2024 we published a blog outlining the proposals we were intending to take forward, those which required further consideration and those which we did not intend to take forward at this time.

The Scottish Government has established the Hydrogen Planning Hub and the Housing Emergency Hub in response to concerns about capacity and skills. We are currently considering the further role that Hubs can play in supporting planning authorities to address the skills and capacity issues they are facing.

The National Planning Improvement Champion (NPIC) is working with individual planning authorities to pilot a new National Planning Improvement Framework. Planning authorities will carry out a self-assessment and work with the NPIC and others to identify areas for improvement and develop an action plan. We expect the first reports will be published shortly.

We also continue to engage with Heads of Planning Scotland to understand the pressures facing planning authorities in Scotland and how they can best be addressed.

We are continuing to seek further information from the UK Government about consumer protections in respect of the ECO4 and GBIS schemes.

The UK Minister for Energy Consumers made an oral announcement in the Westminster Parliament on 23 January 2025 stating that 39 companies had been suspended as installers for solid wall insulation as part of these schemes.

We have been assured by the UK Government that these issues are particular to solid wall insulation installed under the Energy Company Obligation 4 and Great British Insulation Scheme. However we have asked them to advise Scottish Ministers further about any concerns raised about the quality of retrofit work undertaken in Scotland as part of these schemes.

As part of the Scottish Government’s commitment to reducing single use plastics, the use of plastic straws was discontinued in Scottish Government buildings in February 2018.

Since August 2022, there has only been one purchase of 1,500 paper straws in 2023 at a cost of £17.21.

Due to a change of catering contractor following a contract re-let, information is not available prior to August 2022.

Public Health Scotland (PHS) publishes statistics on the length of time patients wait to be seen as a new outpatient or admitted for treatment as an inpatient or day case in the Stage of Treatment (SoT) publication. The latest publication release contains data up to quarter ending 30 September 2024.

Statistics relating to the total number of ongoing waits and the number of waits with a wait length over 52 weeks by specialty from 31 December 2019 can be found in the ‘Waits over 52 weeks’ data table in sheets ‘Table 3.1.1’ for new outpatient appointments, and ‘Table 3.2.1’ for inpatient or day case admissions.

https://publichealthscotland.scot/media/30453/waits_over_52_weeks_nov24.xlsx

Longer trend information can be found in the following tables:

New outpatient appointments (‘1.6 Table’): https://publichealthscotland.scot/media/30080/newop_nov24.xlsx

Inpatient or day case admission (‘2.6 Table’): https://publichealthscotland.scot/media/30452/ipdc_nov24.xlsx

The Scottish Government supports participation in recreational fishing in several ways.

The Scottish Government has committed through its 2024 Programme for Government to review the way the culture sector is supported, which includes exploring alternative and additional funding mechanisms to grow the overall funding pot for culture in Scotland. A Percentage for the Arts scheme is one of the mechanisms that will be considered as part of this review.

The Scottish Government recognises that high quality, accessible and affordable early learning and childcare is vital in rural and island areas, including fishing communities, to support children’s outcomes and to enable parents or carers to train, work or study.

Myself and the Minister for Agriculture and Connectivity have not met formally with the Scottish White Fish Producers Association since we were appointed to our roles in May 2024.

Myself and the Minister for Agriculture and Connectivity have not met formally with the Fife Fishermen’s Association since we were appointed to our roles in May 2024.

The Scottish Government recognises the particular health challenges faced by those in rural areas. In addition to the support outlined in response to S6W-33562 on 3 February 2025, we have invested in a number of funding streams which have included allocations for community-led health initiatives in rural areas, including:

• £66 million in our Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund for adults since 2021, with more than 4,800 grants made to local projects across Scotland over the first three years. Of these more than 900 grants were made to community projects supporting people disadvantaged by geographical location (including rural areas) - Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund for Adults Year 3 – Monitoring and Reporting Summary
• Over £65 million since 2020 to fund community-based mental health and wellbeing supports and services for children, young people and their families, including those in rural areas -

Independent-Evaluation-of-Community-Mental-Health-Supports-and-Services-April-2023.pdf

Access to counsellors in secondary schools and children and young people’s community mental health services: summary report - January to June 2023 - gov.scot

• Over £29 million of Community-led Local Development (CLLD) funding since 2021 to deliver over 1000 grassroots community-led projects across rural & island Scotland in partnership with rural organisations. Some of which have health related benefits ranging from mental health and wellbeing to physical health. Communities are empowered and supported to design and implement the solutions to the challenges and opportunities they identify in their local area, which may include community led health and social care provision
• A further £11.4 million in 2024-25 to support Community-led Local Development and similar initiatives in our rural and island communities.

Links to the most recent evaluation reports of each of these initiatives, including information on outcomes, are included above where available. A review of CLLD funding began in 2024-25, and will continue throughout 2025-26.

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