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The economic impact of beavers have been the subject of various reports to date with a focus on impacts on farmers in Tayside. This includes a collation of impacts on land use in the Tayside Beaver Study Group final report 2015 and a Commissioned Report 805: Tayside beaver socio-economic impact study carried out by SRUC (2015).

These reports point to most of the negative impacts occurring in intensively farmed lowland areas, with the costs being variable from a few hundred pounds to £10,000.

The Tayside beaver socio-economic impact study sought to establish a method for assessing the costs and benefits associated with beaver presence. Questionnaire responses from 111 land managers collated costs incurred to farmland and crops.

The study also collated modest figures for economic benefits largely around eco-tourism and found the non-use values may be considerable. They concluded ‘Taking these estimates in aggregate, the benefits of beaver tolerance are likely to outweigh the costs incurred, which can themselves be lowered by appropriate management and mitigation measures’.

Sentencing in any given case is a matter for the independent court within the overall legal framework.

In 2016, Scottish Government legislation came into force that increased the maximum sentence for weapons possession from four years to five years. The average length of custodial sentence for weapons possession in 2022-23 was 332 days; this compares with 218 days in 2007-08 and represents an increase of 52%.

The investment in discretionary housing payments (DHPs) announced as part of the Housing Emergency Action Plan on 2 September will be made available to local authorities experiencing the most sustained temporary accommodation pressures via a distribution methodology agreed with COSLA.

This further DHPs will target eligible households in temporary accommodation who are interested in a settled home in the private rented sector but who are concerned about affordability. Local authorities will use DHPs to cover any shortfall between the housing benefit people receive – determined by the UK local housing allowance (LHA) rates – and the actual cost of private rent.

While this additional £2 million investment will be targeted at households in temporary accommodation, local authorities retain discretion to support other households facing shortfalls between their rent and LHA rates. Many local authorities already use this flexibility to help people secure and sustain tenancies in the private rented sector, spending £3.1 million in 2024-25.

The Scottish Government’s Fiscal Sustainability Delivery Plan confirms that efficiency and improvement is a key focus for the Health and Social Care portfolio and reflects the commitment to ensure use of core resources is optimised and best value is delivered across NHS Scotland.

Spending decisions are an operational matter for individual NHS Boards to consider within the overarching financial framework of governance and accountability set out in the Scottish Public Finance Manual (SPFM).

The Chief Executive of each NHS Board is designated as the Accountable Officer, responsible in leading the Board to promote the efficient, economic and effective use of resources, whilst ensuring patient outcomes are protected. However, Scottish Government are consistently clear that NHS Board savings should be sensible, proportionate, and minimise the impact on frontline services.

NHS Boards continue to work towards to 3% recurring savings target in 2025-26, and Scottish Government officials continue to work with all NHS Boards to enable savings where appropriate. Whilst the 3% recurring savings target is expected to continue, the level of savings required will depend on the budget settlement in each year.

The Scottish Government’s Fiscal Sustainability Delivery Plan confirms that efficiency and improvement is a key focus for the Health and Social Care portfolio and reflects the commitment to ensure use of core resources is optimised and best value is delivered across NHS Scotland.

Spending decisions are an operational matter for individual NHS Boards to consider with the overarching financial framework of governance and accountability set out in the Scottish Public Finance Manual (SPFM).

The Chief Executive of each NHS Board is designated as the Accountable Officer (AO). They are responsible in leading the Board to promote the efficient, economic and effective use of resources, this includes decisions regarding areas in which to make savings, whilst ensuring patient outcomes are protected.

Listening to stakeholders is a priority for this government. That is why the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government met with the Scottish Retail Consortium earlier this week on 16 September to discuss the upcoming Budget, amongst other matters. The Scottish Government will be setting out the timetable for the draft budget for 2026-27 in the near future. That budget will set out our policies on taxation, reliefs, and public spending for 2026-27.

The Scottish Government’s Tax Strategy, published alongside the Budget last year, has already set out our intention not to increase the number of bands, or their rates, of Scottish Income Tax for the remainder of this parliament. We will also continue to deliver on our commitment to protect lower income households, ensuring more than half of taxpayers pay less than they would elsewhere in the UK.

The Scottish Government has already set out its plans to manage the projected gap between funding and spending over the next five years in its Medium Term Financial Strategy and Fiscal Sustainability Delivery Plan, with action focused across public spending, tax and economic growth. Under these plans, the Scottish Government will focus efforts on increasing value for public money and improving efficiencies and productivity across the public sector, underpinned by reform. This includes an action to reduce the public sector workforce by an average of 0.5% every year until 2030 while protecting frontline services. The Scottish Government’s Public Service Reform Strategy, published in June 2025, fully supports this setting out the detail on our vision and priorities for reform.

An extra 20% discount was applied to the cost of all Season Tickets for 12 months from 27 September 2024 when the peak fares pilot ended. With peak fares gone for good season ticket pricing was reviewed to ensure frequent travellers benefit from the simplicity and ease of use a season ticket offers. From 28 September 2025, season ticket customers will save at least 5% versus the cost of five daily return tickets each week.

The pricing of Flexipass tickets have also been adjusted from 1 September, to ensure they continue to offer significant savings for those who travel less regularly.

Flexipasses, offer six return tickets with a 5% discount

ScotRail has a fare comparison tool on its website, to help passengers find the best ticket option for their travel needs — whether they’re travelling by train daily, or a few times a week.

ScotRail will continue to develop fare initiatives to attract more passengers while providing savings and additional value to existing rail users.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-40219 on 19 September 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.

I am pleased to announce that we have today published a consultation on a comprehensive package of proposals to modernise compulsory purchase in Scotland, to make it simpler, more streamlined and fairer for all parties. The publication of this consultation, which was a Programme for Government commitment, marks an important step towards the wholesale reform that many stakeholders have been calling for.

Compulsory purchase orders are a powerful tool which can help to deliver a wide range of projects, from major infrastructure developments to bringing empty homes and vacant land back into use. However, the legislation is complex and out of date, which can discourage public bodies from using it. The reform programme aims to overhaul the system so that it can fulfil its potential to drive change, as well as being fairer and more transparent for those whose property is affected. Following commitments given to parliament earlier this year, the consultation also includes some questions on compulsory sale orders and compulsory lease orders.

The consultation is available on the Scottish Government website and is open until 19 December.