Questions and answers

Question reference: S6O-03473

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 May 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 23 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the implementation of ferry travel measures contained in the Fair Fares Review, including free foot passenger travel on inter-island ferries and the extension of the existing National Ferry Concessionary Scheme for island residents under 22 years old.

Question reference: S6W-26607

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 29 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what action has been taken since the publication of the Future Planners Project Report, which highlights the need for an additional 700 new planners over the next 10 to 15 years.

The Scottish Government has been working with Heads of Planning Scotland (HOPS), the Royal Town Planning Institute (RTPI) and other partners to progress the short, medium and longer term recommendations of the Future Planners Project Report since its publication in July 2022, to increase the number of new entrants into planning authorities and other parts of the planning sector. The recommendations cover diverse areas of action including support for funded postgraduate opportunities; extending opportunities for students to gain relevant work experience; supporting universities to maintain the viability of RTPI-accredited planning courses and increasing the number of home students where possible; as well as exploring possibilities to retain more international students in the workforce.

In 2023 HOPS launched a campaign toolkit for use by local authorities, employability services, government departments and other planning associated organisations to give young people an insight into planning as a career option. The pack contains links to promotional videos, social media graphics and a downloadable leaflet for use at careers fairs.

The Scottish Government has also provided funding for ten RTPI bursaries for students undertaking post graduate planning degrees in Scottish planning schools in 2023/24. We intend to continue support for bursaries and will confirm arrangements as soon as possible.

RTPI and the Scottish Government have been promoting the case for a planning or practice-based planning degree and will continue to support delivery of such routes into the profession. I wrote to planning schools in October 2023 to encourage their continued support for higher education in this discipline. I will shortly be meeting colleagues from across the planning sector, including industry, at the University of Glasgow, to discuss potential practical initiatives to support planning education and routes into a career in planning.

Work to develop a planning skills strategy is underway, drawing on experience from the approach taken to developing a strategy for building standards. The new National Planning Improvement Framework will gather data on workforce and skills requirements which will help inform the strategy for Scotland as a whole.

Our Investing in Planning consultation provides a more detailed update on the Future Planners report recommendations and action in relation to skills, recruitment and retention within the planning sector. The consultation seeks views on prioritisation of actions already identified and any other measures with the potential to make a significant impact. The consultation is open until 31 May 2024.

Question reference: S6W-26890

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 25 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what work is being done to reduce any reliance the salmon farm industry has on new technological measures to mitigate against reported rising fish mortalities, in light of the finding in the article published in Nature on 7 March 2024 that the "risks [of mass mortality events] are often introduced [by human cause] and can increase in frequency and scale when dependent on technology and infrastructure to produce in environments not naturally conducive to the scale of production".

The Scottish Government supports innovation where it contributes to the sustainable production of salmon, including adaptive husbandry, health and welfare, nutrition and the reduction and monitoring of environmental impact. We recognise that there is no one-size-fits-all approach to farmed fish production, and that technological innovations must be designed to operate in the conditions of the surrounding environment. The Government’s Vision for Sustainable Aquaculture, published in July 2023, sets out our expectation of producers that they must drive mortalities to lowest possible levels and that technology is always used appropriately where it is deployed.

Question reference: S6W-26889

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 25 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what work it has done to assess any impact of salmon farm mass mortality events on the welfare of (a) salmon farm workers and (b) local communities, in light of the article published in Nature on 7 March 2024, which found that mass die-offs on salmon farms have reportedly been increasing over the last decade in every country where salmon farming operates, including Scotland.

The 7 March 2024 publication by Nature Scientific Reports concerning mass mortality events in salmon aquaculture focused on the community impacts in relation to specific catastrophic events in Chile. Similar impacts on communities have not been experienced in Scotland and the Scottish Government does not consider that speculative extrapolation between Chile and Scotland on community impacts or worker safety is appropriate given differences in circumstances and approaches including health and safety regimes.

Question reference: S6O-03384

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 April 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions the rural affairs secretary has had with ministerial colleagues regarding what steps it can take to protect horticultural workers on seasonal worker visas from unfair work practices and substandard accommodation.

Question reference: S6W-26891

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 24 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether open net salmon farming is a sustainable method of food production, in light of the article published in Nature on 7 March 2024, which found that mass die-offs on salmon farms have been increasing over the last decade in every country where salmon farming operates, including Scotland, and that increasing mortality results in increased waste along the supply chain, including wild-caught fish and soy used for feed, wrasse used as cleaner fish, and medicines and chemicals used for treatments.

Salmon production contributes to our food security, producing healthy, nutritious food for people in Scotland and around the world with a greenhouse gas emissions profile that is lower than many other farmed sources of animal protein. The sector is heavily regulated and subject to robust legislation and policies relating to animal health, environment protection and local authority planning. The Scottish Government’s Vision for Sustainable Aquaculture is clear on our ambitions for an aquaculture sector which operates within environmental limits and which recognises social and economic benefits, and includes specific outcomes on fish health, cleaner fish welfare, best use of by-products and responsibly sourced fish feed.

Question reference: S6W-26888

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 23 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government when it will announce its decision on whether it will be adopting the recommendations by the UK Government's Animal Welfare Committee on farmed fish welfare.

The recommendations made by the UK Government's Animal Welfare Committee are still being considered. Improving aquaculture health and welfare is an ethical responsibility and is one of the main priorities that is enshrined in our Vision for Sustainable Aquaculture.

The Scottish Government is committed to the highest possible welfare standards for animals, including fish. It is now standard practice for all farmed salmon and large farmed trout in Scotland to be killed using a percussive or electrical stunning methods delivering irreversible instantaneous unconsciousness. Small farmed trout are killed using electrical stunning methods and all salmon killing facilities in Scotland operate CCTV on a voluntary basis. These were both recommendations made by the UK Government’s Animal Welfare Committee.

Question reference: S6W-26283

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 17 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government to which agricultural grants the new Fair Work conditionality in public sector grants will apply.

Scottish Ministers announced on 6 December 2022 that organisations applying for public sector grants awarded on or after 1 July 2023 will need to pay at least the real Living Wage and provide appropriate channels for effective workers’ voice.

It was agreed that the application of Fair Work conditionality would be implemented from 1 April 2024 to Agricultural grants that meet the criteria of the overall SG Fair Work Policy.

The five grant schemes listed below will have Fair Work conditionality added to the existing grant conditions

• Agri – Environment Climate Scheme (AECS),

• Crofting Agricultural Grants Scheme (CAGS),

• Food Processing, Marketing and Co-operation (FPMC),

• Forestry Grant Scheme (FGS), and

• Sustainable Agriculture Capital Grant Scheme (SACGS).

For CAGS and FGS Fair Work Conditionality will apply from 1 April 2024, for the three other schemes Fair Work Conditionality will be applied from the opening of the next application window for each scheme.

Question reference: S6W-26284

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 16 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether the new Fair Work conditionality in certain agricultural grants will extend to temporary workers in Scotland on a seasonal worker visa.

The following five grant schemes listed will have Fair Work conditionality added to the existing grant conditions

• Agri – Environment Climate Scheme (AECS),

• Crofting Agricultural Grants Scheme (CAGS),

• Food Processing, Marketing and Co-operation (FPMC),

• Forestry Grant Scheme (FGS), and

• Sustainable Agriculture Capital Grant Scheme (SACGS).

For CAGS and FGS Fair Work Conditionality will apply from 1 April 2024, for the three other schemes Fair Work Conditionality will be applied from the opening of the next application window for each scheme.

Fair Work conditionality applies to all employees irrespective of contractual length who are working on activity that relies on one of the grants listed above.

Question reference: S6F-03007

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 15 April 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 18 April 2024

To ask the First Minister, in light of the recent report by the Climate Change Committee, how the Scottish Government plans to accelerate action to ensure that Scotland achieves net zero by 2045.

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