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Energy from waste emissions were expected to rise in the short-term as a result of preparations for the ban on landfilling biodegradable municipal waste in Scotland which comes into force on 31 December 2025. As part of these preparations, a portion of currently landfilled waste is diverted to incineration, resulting in an increase in incineration emissions.

However, 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.

The independent review on the role of incineration in Scotland’s waste hierarchy (published 2022) 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 Scottish Government provided funding of £412.2 million the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) for 2025-26. Decisions on how this funding is spent is a matter for the SFRS Board and Chief Officer.

Prevention activities are carried out by personnel at a range of levels and across Scotland and are not restricted to the Community Safety Advocate role.

Staffing and recruitment are operational matters for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service. The Scottish Government understands that the roles being referred to were fixed term temporary positions that have come to the end of their contract.

If a party to a case believes that another party has not obeyed a contact order, they can go back to court and either ask the court to change the order or to hold the party who wilfully did not obey the order in contempt of court.

The Children (Scotland) Act 2020 (the 2020 Act) reforms the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 (the 1995 Act, key legislation in relation to contact, residence and Parental Responsibilities and Rights) and makes a number of changes to family law. A key aim is to ensure that the child’s best interests are at the centre of any contact or residence case.

Section 22 of the 2020 Act places a duty on the court to investigate the reasons behind a failure to obey a contact order (or another order relating to parental responsibilities or parental rights made by the court under section 11 of the 1995 Act). As part of this investigation the court must – taking account of the child’s age and maturity – have regard to any views the child wishes to express. This may involve appointing a Child Welfare Reporter. Contempt of court remains the final sanction for wilful non-compliance with an order. This reflects the serious nature of the issue and the effect that non-compliance can have on a child. Section 22 is yet to be brought into force.

The veterans budget for this year will cover:

• The Scottish Veterans Fund, covering 12 projects which support the Armed Forces and Veterans community.
• The Unforgotten Forces Consortium, to support their work connecting older veterans to services, help and advice.
• Veterans Scotland for their role in coordinating support for veterans across Scotland.
• The National Education and Transitions Officer, which is a role jointly funded with the Scottish Government’s Additional Support for Learning team which aims to improve policy and practice affecting service children and veterans children in Scotland.
• Legion Scotland’s national commemorative event in Scotland to mark the 80th anniversary of VE Day.
• Miscellaneous spend throughout the financial year, including wreaths, medal replacements and various publications of Scottish Government documents.

It is worth noting that while this budget represents the dedicated spend of the Scottish Government's Veterans Unit, there is other funding to support veterans across different areas, such as the Veterans Mental Health and Wellbeing Pathway.

The Circular Economy(Scotland) Act 2024 enables the setting of statutory local recycling and preparation for reuse targets for local authorities from 2030 to help drive further performance improvements in local household waste services.

Measuring and monitoring food waste across Scotland is a complex and challenging task. Zero Waste Scotland undertakes a range of work to monitor food waste and trends across households and businesses. Details of monitoring methods and latest available data is provided in the 2021 Scottish Food Waste Estimate, published in January 2024 and available at: mf-cdtg7vnr-1696942041d. Other recent monitoring reports include Zero Waste Scotland’s Household Waste Composition Analysis in October 2023 (available on Zero Waste Scotland’s website at: mf-ejmegftx-1696500166d. and an updated estimate by Zero Waste Scotland on Household Food Waste in Scotland 2021-22 (published in September 2025 and available on Zero Waste Scotland’s website at: mf-thcf7oxw-1758714008d

We know that improving how we measure food waste and identifying where and why it occurs across businesses and households is a critical step: better understanding of the volume and make-up of waste will allow for more effective action and allow for resources to be targeted to make a real impact. Actions are in train to improve food waste data, including the development of digital waste tracking. We have also committed to engage with stakeholders to develop effective options to implement mandatory reporting of food waste and surplus by businesses to further improve our understanding to aid targeted action.

Trading Standards Scotland is a team operated by COSLA and has no role in the disruption of the illegal tobacco supply. The Enhanced Tobacco Sales Enforcement Programme (ETSEP) is delivered by local authorities coordinated by Society of Chief Officers of Trading Standards in Scotland (SCOTSS).

Scottish Government does not hold information relating to the value of illicit cigarettes seized by Trading Standards. Value could relate to the average retail cost of cigarettes and tobacco, or the “street value” of illicit products.

However, SCOTSS have provided figures in relation to the amount of illicit cigarettes and tobacco seized since 2021, and this has been answered in question S6W-41139 on 4 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 received legal advice in the preparation of A Fresh Start with Independence.

Trading Standards Scotland is a team operated by COSLA and has no role in the disruption of the illegal tobacco supply. The Enhanced Tobacco Sales Enforcement Programme (ETSEP) is delivered by local authorities coordinated by Society of Chief Officers of Trading Standards in Scotland (SCOTSS).

SCOTSS have provided the following figures in relation to the amount of illicit cigarettes and tobacco seized since 2021: