Seòmar agus comataidhean

I have decided to publish the written case in the matter of my Reference under paragraph 34 of schedule 6 to the Scotland Act 1998 in relation to whether the question for a referendum on Scottish independence contained in the proposed Bill relates to reserved matters. The written case is available at: https://www.gov.scot/publications/reference-to-the-supreme-court-publication-of-the-lord-advocates-written-case .

I will represent the Scottish Government’s interests at the hearing and will argue the case personally .

Officials met Unite the Union representatives on 13th July 2022 regarding the pay dispute with Marine Scotland seafarers and subsequently met Union representatives along with Nautilus International representatives on 19th July 2022 for pay negotiations.

Independent licensing (i.e. local) authorities already have powers under the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 to operate a variety of licensing schemes, including for example a late hours catering licence regime, if they so choose.

Draft National Planning Framework 4 (2021) proposed planning policy which would not support the clustering of some non-retail uses including hot food takeaways and permanently sited vans, where further provision would undermine the character and amenity of centres or the health and wellbeing of centres and their communities, particularly in disadvantaged areas.

The comments received through the Parliamentary scrutiny and public consultation processes for the Draft are being analysed, prior to laying a revised National Planning Framework 4 in the Scottish Parliament for approval in the autumn.

As we set out in our 2021 Programme for Government we will – ‘deliver the recommendations of the Grouse Moor Management Review Group as a matter of urgency, including the licensing of grouse moors. Licensing or further regulation will cover the key areas identified in the review, including muirburn, wildlife control, the use of medicated grit and wildlife crime. Licensing will be supported by clear penalties to encourage compliance, as well as additional effort to detect wildlife crime’.

The Scottish Government has been working with SEPA on how best to address the recommendations of the SEPA report Preliminary environmental assessment of Flubendazole use in Scotland for parasitic worm control in Moorland Grouse.

SEPA are currently preparing to test particulate release of flubendazole from medicated grit. We will provide an update on the findings in due course.

The recent independent review of the role of incineration found that while there may be a temporary under-capacity of residual waste treatment in Scotland in 2025, when the ban on landfilling biodegradable municipal waste comes into force, there is a risk of long-term overcapacity beginning from 2026 or 2027, if all or most of the incineration capacity in the pipeline is built.

We are working closely with local authorities to support those that do not currently have solutions to the forthcoming ban on landfilling biodegradable municipal waste in 2025. The support includes facilitating collaborative procurement and providing technical, procurement and legal support for local authorities.

Official statistics on Scottish greenhouse gas emissions are published annually and used to monitor progress towards Scotland’s statutory emissions reduction targets. These statistics are based on a disaggregation of the UK Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Inventory, which is overseen by the UK Government Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy (BEIS) and compiled in line with international scientific guidance.

Currently, the UK Inventory does not allow for the isolation of data for emissions from waste incineration plants as opposed to other energy sector emissions. Decisions around the UK Inventory are a matter for BEIS and are informed by the UK National Inventory Steering Committee, which includes representation from Scottish Government officials.

As we outlined in our response to the independent review, we accept this recommendation and so we will work with BEIS and the UK National Inventory Steering Committee to explore the potential to break down our GHG inventory reporting to provide a separate Energy from Waste source within our future publications.

The Nature Restoration Fund is subdivided into two main strands, each of which is further sub-divided, as follows:

1. The competitive strand, which is subdivided into:

• Projects less than £250k lasting 1-2 years;
• Projects greater than £250k lasting 2-4 years.

2. The Edinburgh Process strand:

• Direct allocations to Local Authorities and the National Parks;
• A competitive top-up fund open to Local Authorities only.

Due to the voluminous nature of the data, a spreadsheet containing the requested information has been placed in the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. Number: 63496). Applications for the second part of the Edinburgh Process strand are currently being assessed.

Tackling poverty and inequality is a key priority for this government. We know that holiday periods can present challenges for families, which is why we have provided local authorities with £21.75 million of funding for alternative holiday food provision for families eligible for free school meals. This support is available to those families on the basis of low income, regardless of the age of their children and is being provided directly to families in the form of vouchers or cash payments. In addition to this, we have invested a further £10 million into a targeted summer holiday programme for 2022, designed to reach those school age children and their families who can benefit most from access to free holiday childcare, activities and nutritious food.

Circularity Scotland Ltd as Scheme Administrator meets frequently with Zero Waste Scotland as part of their ongoing work to implement our Deposit Return Scheme (DRS), including through the DRS System-Wide Assurance Group which is responsible for assessing system-wide readiness, as well as the monitoring and addressing of risks to delivery for Scotland’s DRS.

Since July 2021 we have met representatives of small brewers on the following occasions: 5 August 2021, 7 September 2021, and 28 October 2021. This is in addition to small brewers’ representatives participating in wider Scottish Government engagement such as the DRS System-Wide Assurance Group.