Seòmar agus comataidhean

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-41553 on 6 November 2025. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

The Scottish Government is aware of the medical research indicating that children born from first-cousin relationships may have a statistically higher risk of certain genetic conditions and congenital defects. The Scottish Government has no specific public health guidance or policy restricting or regulating such relationships.

The Scottish Government does not have any plans to ban first-cousin marriages in Scotland.

The Scottish Government encourages local authorities to carefully consider the impact of council tax increases on local residents and their household finances.

Engaging with council taxpayers on the levels of tax proposed is a matter for local authorities. The Scottish Government is aware that local authorities often do so with residents in their areas, including formal consultation as part of annual budget-setting processes.

The Scottish Government’s means-tested Council Tax Reduction scheme continues to provide vital support to eligible households, helping to mitigate the impact of council tax increases on household budgets.

The Scottish Government recognises how vital the retail sector is to Scotland’s economy. It is committed to supporting the industry and will continue to engage directly with the sector, monitor the evolving impacts of the ongoing cost crisis and work with the UK Government to support Scottish businesses.

The Scottish Government offers a competitive non-domestic rates regime delivering the lowest property rate in the UK for the seventh year in a row and ensuring that over 95% of non-domestic properties continue to be liable for a lower property tax rate than anywhere else in the UK. As part of our package of reliefs to support businesses and communities worth a forecast £733 million in 2025-26, the Small Business Bonus Scheme remains the most generous scheme of its kind in the UK. The retail sector remains the largest beneficiary of that scheme.

Waste collection and recycling services are a matter for individual local authorities and which strategy they adopt is entirely up to them. Local authorities are independent corporate bodies with their own powers and responsibilities, separate from the Scottish Government. As long as they act lawfully, it is up to each local authority how it manages its day-to-day business and decision making processes including on how to collect and process waste.

The Scottish Government liaises regularly with SEPA and local government representatives regarding waste contingency challenges. As part of ongoing liaison, Scottish Government was informed about the reported shutdown and reopening of the NESS incinerator in Aberdeen and actions taken by councils to mitigate any disruption of waste management services. Based on available information, Scottish Government’s understanding is that waste collections remained unaffected.

Energy from waste emissions were expected to rise in the short-term as a result of preparations for the upcoming ban on landfilling biodegradable municipal waste. As part of these preparations, a portion of currently landfilled waste is diverted to incineration, resulting in an increase in incineration emissions.

This is expected to be accompanied by a larger longer-term decrease in emissions from the waste sector as a whole due to lower landfill emissions, driven by the ban on biodegradable municipal waste going to landfill in Scotland.

The independent review found that incineration's current place within the waste hierarchy is correct, meaning that overall, it is preferable to other forms of residual waste treatment, such as landfill but made clear recommendations around limiting future capacity and decarbonisation of energy from waste.

The NHS Scotland Support and Intervention Framework (formerly known as the Performance Escalation Framework) has existed in its current form with five separate stages since 2016. A description of the Framework and the current position on territorial NHS Boards who are receiving formal support and scrutiny within the Framework is provided at:

www.gov.scot/publications/nhs-scotland-support-and-intervention-framework/

Please see the following table that covers on how many occasions territorial NHS Boards have been receiving formal support and scrutiny (that is, at Stage 3 or above on the Framework) since 2016. There were alternative arrangements in place from 1999 to 2016 to manage key risks to delivery in territorial NHS Boards and ensure enhanced support, scrutiny, oversight and intervention, where appropriate.

The Scottish Government is responsible for setting the overall policy direction for neurodevelopmental services, and for working with and funding NHS Health Boards and local authorities to ensure they plan and deliver appropriate local services. It is for local NHS Boards and local authorities to decide how they implement these policies to ensure that their local population have the highest quality of care, support and treatment at the right time and in the right place. This includes carrying out the required impact assessments.

Individual health boards are responsible for the management of their waiting lists. Boards are expected to ensure that their approaches to service delivery are consistent with national guidance, including the National Neurodevelopmental Specification for Children and Young People. The Specification complements and sits within the Getting It Right for Every Child approach, and reflects the principles of UNCRC.

The ‘Community Energy Generation Growth Fund’, administered through our Community and Renewable Energy Scheme (CARES), was first launched in 2024 and supports community groups to develop their own renewable energy projects, including wind and solar PV projects.

Since inception, no funding awarded through the ‘Community Energy Generation Growth Fund’ has been paid back. This is because CARES does not issue grant funding as an upfront lump sum. Instead, funds are only released upon receipt of a valid claim, backed by appropriate evidence. As a result, the scenario of having to recover funds from recipients has not arisen.