Seòmar agus comataidhean

The Scottish Government's concessionary bus travel schemes are the most generous in the UK, with free travel for under-22s, over-60s, and people with disabilities. The Partnership and Franchising powers in the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019 allow Local Transport Authorities, such as those covering Greater Glasgow, to gain control over the fares in their area, but that would be a matter for the relevant Local Transport Authority.

The Scottish Government welcomes the City of Edinburgh Council’s commitment to cut car kilometres by 30% by 2030, and will work with all local authorities to support equitable measures which discourage car use to accompany greater investment in public transport and active travel for a fairer and greener transport system. As outlined in our route map to achieving a 20% reduction in car kilometres by 2030, jointly developed with COSLA, the scale of the climate challenge means that we need to take forward a broad combination of interventions including infrastructure, incentives and regulatory actions, taking into account the needs of people on low incomes to help ensure a just transition to net-zero.

Proposals to amend legislation relating to muirburn were included in our Wildlife Management in Scotland consultation. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service provided a full response to this consultation and their responses are being taken into account as the provisions for the Bill are developed.

I recently met with Bruce Farquharson, Deputy Assistant Chief Officer and Head of Training for SFRS to discuss their consultation response in more detail.

The Oban Craignure project is currently at the initiation stage where service and operator requirements are being developed for the new vessel project. Simultaneously options are being investigated for an interim option to replace MV Isle of Mull.

Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL) have never chartered the MV Arrow, which is owned by the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company. Any charter has been between the publicly funded ferry operator and the owner of the vessel.

The following table details, from January 2012, when either CalMac Ferries Ltd or Serco NorthLink Ferries have chartered the MV Arrow.

The Scottish Government alongside NatureScot have had regular engagement with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service. This includes most recently when my officials and I met with Bruce Farquharson, Deputy Assistant Chief Officer and Head of Training for SFRS to discuss regulatory proposals for muirburn.

The Scottish Government welcome the report’s focus on contributing to delivery of Scotland’s statutory Climate Change Targets.

Some of the recommendations align with Scottish Government existing actions to support the bus sector, including £113 million funding for 548 modern, zero emission buses, the £500 million Zero Emission Bus Market Transition Scheme to help organisations to understand the steps required to replace their bus fleet with zero emission alternatives and £25.8 million Bus Partnership Fund for bus priority in 11 partnerships covering 28 local authorities across Scotland. Other recommendations fall out with the remit of the Scottish Government, with recommendations on fuel duty and other taxation reserved fully to Westminster.

More widely on transport’s contribution to emission reduction, our route map to achieve a 20% reduction in car kms by 2030 also sets out the range of actions that will support mode shift and measures that support bus use. The route map similarly notes the need to address the cost of motoring and outlines that we are taking forward research to explore equitable options for demand management measures to discourage car use.

I thank CPT for the report which I will consider in full and respond in due course.

Many remote and rural communities in Scotland are hugely impacted by wildfire incidents, which can also cause significant environmental and economic damage. This is something the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) is very aware of, and it works closely with key partners, including land managers and communities, to establish a common understanding of the risks, prevention measures and response procedures. SFRS has produced a wildfire strategy with partnership at its heart, that will ensure that personnel are equipped and trained to deal with these emergency risks and that the Service’s delivery model has sufficient resilience and flexibility to support wildfire incidents occurring over extended geographies and timescales – ensuring the right resources are in in the right place at the right time to fight wildfires. This not only provides a framework for wildfire response but also a strong platform for preventative work including a joined-up approach to land management including the use of Muirburn and prescribed burning, but also wildfire mitigation in planning stages for new forest plantations.

Climate change is identified as a strategic priority in the Scottish Government’s Fire and Rescue Framework for Scotland 2022. The Framework asks SFRS to continue to invest in the provision of specialist resources, technological advancements and forward thinking operational practices to enhance its response to wildfire incidents. It states that SFRS should continue to make use of local assets available to bolster its response during prolonged or widespread incidents such as wildfire.

We are already seeing warming here in Scotland, with more extreme weather events and rising sea levels. As a nation we must adapt to these changes and prepare for the impacts of global climate change which are already locked in. The Scottish Government is responding to the full range of climate risks identified for Scotland through its 2019 Adaptation Programme, which sets out more than 170 policies and proposals to build resilience to the impacts of global climate change as part of our Just Transition to net zero emissions by 2045. We are also preparing our next Programme, in response to the most recent UK Climate Change Risk Assessment, for publication in 2024.

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Interim Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

Our records indicate that there are currently less than five female individuals in our care who have identified themselves as having served in the armed forces.

The Scottish Government delivers support for the historic environment through sponsorship of Historic Environment Scotland. We rely on Historic Environment Scotland as the experts to conserve and protect our important heritage assets for current and future generations to enjoy and benefit from. I am pleased that Historic Environment Scotland provided £500,000 for the Union Chain Bridge project to fund repair work. As the site visit that was carried out at the Union Chain Bridge is an operational matter for Historic Environment Scotland, I have asked it to write to the member with a more detailed answer to his question.