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This is a reserved policy area. Responsibility for security of supply sits with National Grid ESO (the GB electricity system operator), which works closely with generators and network operators across Scotland to ensure that there is always enough electricity to meet demand.

This includes preparing for the closure of individual generators several years in advance, to ensure that closures do not impact electricity supplies. National Grid ESO has worked closely with EDF, owners of Hunterston and Torness, and with Scotland’s electricity network owners, to ensure that the network is able to respond to and support the closure of these nuclear power stations in the coming years.

National Grid ESO is currently overseeing a “Stability Pathfinder”, the second phase of which is looking at network and commercial options to replace the various network stability requirements currently provided by existing generation. This is designed to ensure that the networks are ready for the greater share that Scotland’s renewable resources will constitute in the future.

The Homelessness Statistics team are in the process of collecting, processing and quality assuring data returns from local authorities for the Housing Options (PREVENT1) Statistics in Scotland: 2020-21 publication. As such, we are not yet in a position to confirm a publication date. The statistics will be released as soon as they are considered ready, under the guidance of the Chief Statistician. At this stage we anticipate this will be between October and November.

Once there is more certainty around a publication date this will be pre-announced no later than 4 weeks in advance, in line with the Statistics Code of Practice, on the Scottish Government website: Official statistics: forthcoming publications - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

Net costs, that is costs less revenue receipts, falling due to ScotRail are being met by the Scottish Ministers under the terms of the Emergency Measurements Agreement. We do not hold details of the attribution of costs to individual locations or routes.

There are currently 49 members of Scottish government staff in specific COP26 posts, with 11 further specific posts under recruitment. A wide range of other staff members across the Scottish Government contribute a percentage of their time to working on COP26.

The full Native Woodland Survey of Scotland (NWSS) data set has been available for free download from the Scottish Forestry open data web pages since January 2020.

Prior to that it has been available on the Forestry Commission Scotland web pages since 2014.

Work is ongoing to ensure the vaccine status of those who volunteered for clinical trials in Scotland is correctly presented on the vaccine database. A letter confirming their involvement in the trials is being issued to those who participated. Any participant who has not yet received a letter should contact their respective research team. The letter can be used for domestic purposes as proof of trial status. However, it’s important to note that we have no plans at present to make vaccine certification a requirement of access to services in Scotland.

The Scottish Government works with the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA), NatureScot, fisheries boards and trusts, and other stakeholders to protect the natural environment and wildlife from water shortages.

Our River Basin Management Plans identify areas in Scotland already impacted by abstractions and set out objectives to improve those watercourses. SEPA licences and regulates abstractions to ensure that water use does not exceed the available capacity. At times of water scarcity, SEPA has the powers to temporarily stop abstraction, to protect the environment.

The National Water Scarcity Plan sets out how SEPA and other key stakeholders will prepare and respond to water shortages. SEPA works closely with NatureScot and other environmental organisations to provide advice and information on water scarcity so they can act to protect wildlife.

The following data was collected via energy performance certificates (EPCs) submitted for all new build completions in Scotland since 2016. This indicative data is based on analysis of new build EPC records lodged on the EPC register between Q1 2016 and Q4 2020. A total of 92,900 EPC records were analysed.

Numbers in the tables have been rounded to the nearest ten. This is the best currently available data:

Details of the grants awarded by Scottish Government through the Forestry Grant Scheme is shown in the following table:

Government budgets contribute to alleviating the climate emergency through a range of investments, including spend that reduces greenhouse gas emissions towards net zero, spend that delivers emissions reductions through a fair and just transition, and spend focussed on adapting to the effects of climate change.

The 2021-22 Budget increased low carbon capital investment across government to over £1.9 billion, comprising 36% of overall capital spend. This proportion has risen from 29% in 2018-19, when reporting began. In March, following budget negotiations, the Cabinet Secretary for Finance committed to a further £40 million in capital investment for active travel and energy efficiency initiatives that align with our green recovery and net zero ambitions. These figures that we track on low carbon capital investment, as mentioned above, provide only a partial picture of the wide range of investments across all government spend that contributes towards alleviating the climate emergency.

Some of our key commitments on climate change in this budget include increasing our Heat in Buildings investment by £30 million to £213.4 million; increasing forestry investment by £26.9 million to £121.2 million; committing £40 million for our Agricultural Transformation Fund to assist the sector in reducing greenhouse gas emissions; and committing the first £165 million of our £2 billion Low Carbon Fund, including: £14 million for the Green Jobs Fund, £25 million for bus priority infrastructure and £15 million for zero emissions buses.