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All applications for a European Protected Species (EPS) licences must provide the number of individual animals affected by the proposed work, and applicants must show how this number was calculated.

Marine Scotland has published a document that provides guidance and advice for any aquaculture production business that wishes to apply for a licence to disturb EPS as a result of ADD use - faq_adds_and_eps_including_annex_1_and_annex_2_-_version_5_-october_2021_-_final.pdf (marine.gov.scot) . The guidance provides links to how areas are defined and the cetacean abundance estimates that should be used for calculations, While this document focuses on finfish farms, the information provided can be of use to anyone applying for an EPS licence.

While not published yet, Marine Scotland are in the process of updating its guidance on the use of finer scale distributions to account for uneven densities of marine mammals across SCANS blocks. Previously, the block estimates from SCANS III (Hammond et al. 2021) were recommended, however finer scale density surfaces are now available: Modelled density surfaces of cetaceans in European Atlantic waters in summer 2016 from the SCANS-III aerial and shipboard surveys (Lacey et al. 2022) . These estimates can be downloaded as shapefiles for each species here , and are considered the best available density estimates to use in EPS license assessments. Finer scale density estimates allow for a better characterisation of uneven distributions within SCANS blocks however the issue of temporal effects remains a challenge. For a specific site, there may be other, more suitable information on the cetacean species likely to be present along with their densities. However, MSS would only recommend using robust, effort-related survey data that is appropriate for absolute density estimation.

Marine Scotland bases its decisions on the best available scientific evidence at any particular time including any relevant peer reviewed literature. Any such literature is subject to a critical review to determine its applicability. Marine Scotland’s decisions will reflect the outcome of this process as well as consideration of information provided by the applicant and any expert advice received.

Marine Scotland is currently updating the above guidance to include finer resolution species density surfaces and this will be published in 2023. All applications for EPS licences will be expected to follow the updated guidance.

The 'Bringing Home the Bacon: Reducing Greenhouse Gas Emissions from the Scottish Pig Sector' report was part of the Farmer-Led Group initiative to develop advice and proposals for the Scottish Government on how to cut emissions from agriculture. The Scottish Government is grateful to the Pig Industry Leadership Group and the other Farmer Led Groups (FLGs) for the work they undertook in short order to provide recommendations to support our ambitious vision for Scottish agriculture.

The recommendations of the FLGs informed the 'Agricultural Transition in Scotland' consultation, which was carried out between August 2021 and November 2021. This consultation has informed policy development to support the progression of our forthcoming agriculture bill.

To continue our co-design process with industry as part of the Agriculture Reform Programme we established the Agriculture Reform Implementation Oversight Board (ARIOB) to advise on progressing the broad recommendations of the FLG's and support implementation of policy reform. The ARIOB is comprised of representatives from all key Scottish agricultural sectors including members of the Pig Industry Leadership Group.

In the Bringing Home the Bacon report there was a reference to the role of Carbon Audits in supporting businesses to reduce emissions. As part of the National Test Programme we are funding farmers to undertake carbon audits which establish a business’s carbon footprint, and identify areas where emissions can be reduced.

The report also refers to the need for investment in on-farm slurry storage and management. Through the Sustainable Agriculture Capital Grant Scheme (SACGS) the Scottish Government funded investment in slurry management equipment for farms in 2022 and in 2023 support for slurry storage is available through the Agri-Environment Climate scheme.

In addition to statutory surveillance for Avian Influenza in poultry and wild birds, he Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) conducts surveillance in wild mammals at risk of being infected with the avian virus on behalf of the Scottish Government. In the event of a positive result, genetic analysis is performed by the APHA and the UK Health Security Agency.

In February 2023 genetic analysis carried out on historical samples from two positive Scottish seals, collected in 2021 and 2022, identified a genetic mutation associated with increased risk to mammals. As a single mutation, this does not indicate that this virus is becoming fully adapted to a mammalian host, nor will trigger mammal to mammal transmission.

Responsibility for public libraries sits with the relevant local authorities, and as such, this information is not held centrally by the Scottish Government. However, Scottish Government officials work closely with the Scottish Library and Information Council (SLIC) and the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) to ensure that Ministers are kept aware of relevant local issues as they arise. Information provided by the Scottish Libraries and Information Council showed that no Scottish Libraries have permanently closed in the last three reporting years.

This is an operational decision for Boards. We continue to work closely with them to ensure delivery of the CAMHS waiting times standard and implementation of the CAMHS Specification.

The regulation of product standards and of consumer protection are reserved to the UK Government. Retrofit standards are set by the British Standards Institution (BSI). We are working with the BSI to support delivery of these standards in Scotland, ensuring they are relevant and reflect Scotland’s different climate, geography and housing types.

A Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment has been completed for the domestic quality assurance standards of the Scottish Government’s Heat in Buildings programme. It can be found at: https://www.gov.scot/publications/domestic-quality-assurance-heat-buildings-programme-bria/

The PAS 2030 standard is a requirement for Warmer Homes Scotland (WHS). Warmworks, the managing agent for WHS, are responsible for ensuring their staff and sub-contractors are adequately trained. However, the Scottish Government also has a Quality Assurance and Audit (QAA) contract for WHS. This contract is managed by Pennington Choices who carry out audits on Warmworks sub-contractors to make sure that they have the appropriate accreditations.

WHS is due to end in 2023, and procurement is currently underway for a successor. The successor will adopt PAS 2035 standards. As the contract has not yet been awarded, the details of how this will be achieved are not yet available. A new QAA contract will also be procured for the successor.

The capacity and capabilities of the retrofit supply chain in Scotland are generally sufficient to meet the needs of our Area Based Schemes (ABS). Local councils have access to a framework of specialist contractors through Scotland Excel. Often these contractors have been PAS compliant for many years with longstanding training and apprenticeship programmes.

Inevitably some ABS individual projects are delayed due to a wide range of factors. The Scottish Government is working with councils and the supply chain to increase local delivery capacity and expand existing capabilities. This will help to reduce the risk and impact of unexpected project delays.

The regulation of product standards and of consumer protection are reserved to the UK Government. Certification of PAS 2030 is carried out by independent certification bodies, therefore the information requested is not held centrally. PAS 2035 is currently a standard that installers can work to and is not a certification. Therefore installers cannot obtain PAS 2035 certification.

The regulation of product standards and of consumer protection are reserved to the UK Government. Certification of PAS 2030 is carried out by independent certification bodies, therefore the information requested is not held centrally. PAS 2035 is currently a standard that installers can work to and is not a certification. Therefore installers cannot obtain PAS 2035 certification.