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Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S6W-11823

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 28 October 2022
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 8 November 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on any plans it has to introduce legislation in relation to deer management.

We are progressing the recommendations made in the independent Deer Working Group (DWG) report , published in December 2020. The Scottish Government response to the DWG report is at the following link: https://www.gov.scot/news/deer-working-group-response/

The recommendations that require legislative changes are being taken forward via the legislative workstream of the Deer Management Strategic Board which has been established under the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy Programme. The legislative recommendations will be implemented in this parliamentary session, as we set out in our 2021-22 Programme for Government. We will provide more detail on the timing of changes to legislation in due course. We expect to consult on any proposed changes to primary legislation in the normal way.

Regular updates on all of the work from the Deer Management Strategic Board can be found at the following website: https://www.gov.scot/groups/strategic-deer-management-board/

Question reference: S6W-11822

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 28 October 2022
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 8 November 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on the number of deer management licences that NatureScot has issued since 1 January 2021.

NatureScot has provided the information below on the number of Deer Authorisations issued between 1 January 2021 to 31 October 2022:

Deer (Scotland) Act 1996 Section	Purpose	No. of Authorisations
10(2) and 10(4)	Emergency measures out of season authorisations	54
18(2)	Night shooting Authorisations	1088
5(6)	Out of season authorisations	721
5(6)	Out of season female authorisations	16
5(7)	Scientific research authorisations	1

Question reference: S6W-11736

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 October 2022
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 8 November 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the implementation of the Scottish Agritourism Strategy.

Question reference: S6T-00951

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 07 November 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 8 November 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to mitigate the threat of avian influenza outbreaks among domestic poultry populations, in light of its impact on wild bird populations in Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-11652

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 21 October 2022
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 7 November 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what funding is available for flood defences for individual homes, in particular for homes susceptible to flooding.

Grants towards the cost of flood resilient repairs and/or protection measures for individual homes are available from some local authorities. For example, the Scottish Borders Council make flood protection products available through a discount scheme. Further details are available through the attached link FINAL_Subsidised_Flood_Protection_Products_June_2021 (1).pdf or from the Council.

The Scottish Flood Forum, a charity funded by the Scottish Government, can provide households with informed impartial help and guidance in making the best choice of property flood protection. They can arrange a community Property Flood Protection Exhibition to show householders what options are available to help them reduce flood risks at homes and can arrange to carry out assessments of individual homes on request.

In recognition of the importance of reducing flood risk the Scottish Government has provided, since 2008, a total of £42 million a year through the General Capital Grant to local authorities to allow them to invest in flood protection measures. In addition the 2020 Programme for Government committed an additional £150 million over the course of this Parliament for flood risk management actions.

Question reference: S6W-11745

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 27 October 2022
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 3 November 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how many local authorities established a short-term let licensing scheme, as required, by 1 October 2022.

Question reference: S6O-01506

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 October 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 3 November 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its consultation on a new Agriculture Bill.

Question reference: S6W-11097

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 30 September 2022
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 17 October 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will outline its (a) rationale and (b) evidential basis for the licensing of muirburn.

The Scottish Government accepted the Grouse Moor Management Group’s recommendation that muirburn should be subject to tighter regulation and only be undertaken under licence.

In considering our response to the Grouse Moor Management Group report, we took into account a wide range of reports and evidence, including:

Phase 1 and Phase 2 of the Scottish Government commissioned research on the socio-economic impacts of grouse moor management.
The recommendations of the Independent Deer Working Group.
The Climate Change Committee report published in January 2020.

We also consulted with other Scottish Government agencies and non-departmental public bodies such as NatureScot, SEPA, and Scottish Forestry, as well as considering the evidence and views put forward by a wide range of stakeholders.

We recognise the benefits muirburn can have for certain types of land management, and although some aspects of muirburn, are already controlled, e.g. close seasons, our assessment is that increased monitoring and regulation of muirburn will reduce the negative impacts muirburn can have on biodiversity and carbon management.

Question reference: S6W-11098

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 30 September 2022
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 17 October 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will define any harm or ill it seeks to prevent through the licensing of muirburn.

Muirburn undertaken inappropriately has the potential to have serious negative impacts on wildlife, soil quality, carbon sequestration, and the wider environment. These potential negative impacts are outlined in detail in the Muirburn Code. For example, muirburn conducted on steep slopes or on thin soils can cause soil erosion.

Increased regulatory control through licensing linked to compliance with the Muirburn Code will mitigate these negative impacts by ensuring muirburn is undertaken in the appropriate manner and environment.

Question reference: S6W-10732

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 01 September 2022
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 26 September 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of how the scale of landholdings affects the ability of land managers to effectively manage deer populations in connection with its consultation, Land Reform in a Net Zero Nation.

Deer management is currently carried out across land holdings of varying size from 10Ha to over 10,000Ha. The extent of the deer management and any required collaboration is more dependent on the species and land type rather than any minimum size. For ‘territorial’ species such as roe deer the scale of management will often be at the individual farm unit; whereas for open hill red deer, that range across multiple large properties, the management scale expands to Deer Management Groups that cover many thousands of hectares.

The Code of Practice on Deer Management prescribes to everybody who owns or manages wild deer on someone else’s land (irrespective of the size of that land holding), how they should deliver sustainable deer management. A review of compliance with the Deer Code published 2019 concluded that where it was relevant to them, a majority of owner-occupiers, across varying land holdings, had undertaken actions to meet each of the themes outlined in the Deer Code. NatureScot, in their role as Scotland’s deer authority, work with a range of partners, including the Association of Deer Management Groups, local deer management groups and individual land managers to develop effective planning and deliver deer management across Scotland.