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The pay of Marine Scotland seafarers is determined by the Scottish Government’s Public Sector Pay Policy as these staff are civil servants with civil service terms and conditions. CalMac Ferries Ltd is a private company - their staff are not civil servants, so pay and other terms and conditions are determined outside of Public Sector Pay Policy. We consider the pay and benefits (including the civil service pension) for Marine Scotland seafarers are reasonable and competitive in the external job market which is reflected in the volume of applications received for recent job adverts. We will review the pay structure of Marine Scotland staff as part of the reform option in Pay Policy 2022-23.

Work to determine the most suitable procurement options for the remaining sections of the A9 dualling is ongoing. This is a complex exercise which looks at a number of factors including how the project can be delivered most efficiently by the industry, whilst minimising disruption to road users and helping to support economic recovery post-COVID. An update on the outcomes of this complex piece of work will be provided when the work is completed.

Since 2019, the number of Marine Scotland seafarers leaving the Scottish Government for alternative employment is less than 1.7% of our seafaring headcount. The key reason for leaving over this period was retirement. We therefore have no current concerns about recruitment and retention of Marine Scotland seafarers and we review this on a regular basis.

Transport Scotland is responsible for the management and Maintenance of the trunk road network; all other roads are the responsibility of the relevant local authority.

The protection of biodiversity and support for native wildlife are major considerations in the agency's work, whether in the planning and development of new infrastructure or the management of the existing network. Transport Scotland actively engages with stakeholders, its supply chain, statutory bodies and other public sector organisations to seek opportunities to reduce wildlife casualties across Scotland's road network, whilst increasing biodiversity and habitat connectivity. This includes the provision of suitable crossing facilities, such as culverts and bridges, to reduce the barrier-effect of roads. The design of these structures follows best practice guidance and is overseen by professional ecologists to ensure they are appropriate for the local environments concerned and the ecosystems they support.

All trunk road schemes are regularly inspected and assessed to ensure they are fit for purpose. Assessments undertaken through the Scottish Trunk Road Infrastructure Projects Evaluation (STRIPE) provide an early indication of performance and, where appropriate, identify any potential issues, including any crossing points which may not be functioning as required.

Operating Companies, who manage and maintain the trunk road network on behalf of Transport Scotland, are also required to report through an annual Landscape Management Report. This report includes collation of wildlife casualty data which may identify locations requiring more detailed analysis and intervention.

Scottish Ministers have to date provided £2.4m of funding to local authorities to allow them to undertake their required road assessments. Additionally, Transport Scotland have consulted with Local Authorities and the public on the proposed Ministerial Directions and secondary legislation, which will detail procedures Local Authorities must follow to exempt any areas of footway from the pavement parking prohibition.

Transport Scotland has also consulted with local authorities on the proposed Parking Standards Guidance, which will formally be issued to all local authorities once the exemption order procedures are in place.

It is currently envisaged that the exemption order procedure regulations will be laid in Parliament in the latter part of September and come into force in early December, if approved. Following this, local authorities will have an additional 12 months to complete their assessments and put any exemption orders in place.

ScotRail advise that between 6 January 2019 [the start of 2018-19: reporting period 11] and 25 June 2022 [the end of 2022-23: reporting period 3], there were 340 full cancellations and 95 part-cancellations on the North Berwick lines as a result of infrastructure issues. As the member will know, Rail Infrastructure is a reserved matter.

While full or part-cancellation as a result of track congestion are not reported separately, ScotRail also advise that there were a further 41 full cancellations and 35 part-cancellations to ScotRail services as a result of the actions of other train operating companies.

Officials held engagement sessions on the Islands Bond with a number of key island stakeholders in the latter part of 2021. These are detailed in the table below. In addition to these sessions, officials also engaged with the National Islands Plan Delivery Group , the group established to support implementation of the National Islands Plan. This engagement took place between 14 July 2021 and 13 August 2021.

Islands Stakeholder Engagement Sessions

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 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.

The Scottish Government’s Fire and Rescue Framework for Scotland 2022, launched in the spring this year, 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 events. 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.

The specifics of the Islands Bond are still being carefully considered in light of the strong feedback we have received from island residents, and within the new context of the current energy crisis and rising living costs which are being experienced by many islanders.

In response to this, details setting out the direction of travel for the policy will be announced later this summer.

Identifying the number of individuals monitored electronically in each year is not possible from the data held without significant further analysis to remove from the data, those individuals who may have received multiple orders and licences over the period.

However the number of installations onto electronic monitoring made each year (with the caveats below) is a reasonable proxy for monitored individuals.

Financial Year Apr-Mar

2016-17 3813

2017-18 4457

2018-19 4140

2019-20 4030

2020-21 2831

2021-22 3620

An installation is the action to fit a monitoring tag, irrespective of the licence or order monitored. While most electronically monitored individuals will be installed on an order or licence only once in a year, the same individual may have more than one installation in the course of a year, for example, if they have a subsequent new order or licence in that time period.

The impact of COVID-19 has been felt across all services within the justice system including within courts and prisons. During the financial year 2019-20 the number of installations of those electronically monitored (court orders and licences) was 4030, however the number then significantly dropped during the periods of COVID-19 disruption.

The numbers of those currently monitored are continuing to rise and we are now once again approaching some of the highest levels of monitoring we have seen.

The second part of the question asks for a breakdown by local authority area. This information is not currently held (although breakdown by issuing court area for example is possible). However a recent systems change from June 2022 means this breakdown by local authority area will be possible in future years.