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The Risk Management committee includes a mix of procurement, financial and energy personnel from the following organisations – Scottish Government, Scottish Prison Service, Police Scotland, University of Edinburgh, Advanced Procurement for Universities and Colleges, Glasgow Clyde College, Inverclyde Council, Aberdeenshire Council, Argyll and Bute Council, NHS National Services Scotland, NHS Ayrshire and Arran, NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde.

The generation mix of electricity for the Framework is not dictated by the Risk Management Committee, this would be something which is decided by the supplier with regards to their own generation mix, therefore no information or conclusions can be published about other supply mixes.

Ultimately, the generation mix for the electricity framework is sourced from the National Grid.

Any community energy used/used in future would be out-with the framework.

The Scottish Government has long recognised the need for our communities to benefit from our just energy transition to net zero. This is why we continue to engage with the UK Government to encourage them to explore mandating community benefits for all onshore energy developments, along with plans for transmission infrastructure.

Despite the powers to mandate community benefits being reserved to the UK Government, Scotland has made significant progress with a voluntary approach to community benefits. Supported by our Good Practice Principles, our Community Benefits Register shows that in the past year, over £26m of community benefits have been offered to Scottish communities.

Local authorities are able to build and generate their own electricity supply. Any local authority considering the option to build and generate their own electricity supply should advise Scottish Procurement and the Supplier once they have committed to the decision to build and generate electricity supplies, as they will be reducing the volumes that they require from the national framework.

If a local authority wanted to sell or sleeve their independent electricity supply to the wider marketplace, this would be their commercial decision, and any agreement would be out-with the national electricity framework.

(a)The National Electricity Supply Framework is not mandatory, so organisations can source another supply out-with the framework agreement. If they do leave the framework they need to comply with the terms and conditions which set out the notice period required to leave the electricity framework.

(b)With regards to public expenditure benefits, because the other source of electricity would be purchased by a local authority and be out-with the framework any benefit would be assessed and recorded by the local authority.

The Scottish Government has noted the launch by the British Chambers of Commerce of a new North Sea Transition Taskforce. Based on the information made available so far, we understand that the Taskforce will hold its first meetings before the end of the year and then intends to publish recommendations for both the UK and Scottish Governments next Spring.

The Scottish Government shares concerns about the rise in popularity of high puff-count vapes, their accessibility to young people and the associated health risks they pose. The Environmental Protection (Single-use Vapes) (Scotland) Regulations 2024 set out that in order for a vape to be considered reusable, it must be both refillable and rechargeable. By refillable, this means that the vape must contain a single-use container which is separately available for purchase by an individual user and can be replaced by the user in the normal course of use, or a container that can be refilled by the user in the normal course of use. By rechargeable, it means that the vape must have both a battery that can be recharged, and a coil which is separately available for purchase by an individual user and can be replaced by the user within the normal course of use.

We share concerns regarding the growing market share of high puff-count vapes, however the definition of single-use within the Regulations sets out that a vape must be refillable and rechargeable. In addition to a rechargeable battery, it must have a replaceable coil in order to be considered rechargeable and a refillable or replaceable container to be refillable. It is otherwise single-use and its sale and supply will be banned in Scotland when the ban comes into force next year. We have worked closely with Trading Standards to ensure that there are no loopholes in the definition of a single-use vape in the Regulations that manufacturers can exploit. We will continue to work with Trading Standards to monitor developments in vape design to ensure that the ban is fit for purpose and properly enforced.

The Scottish Government has no plans to undertake a national hedgehog census in Scotland.

Hedgehogs are protected in Scotland under the Wildlife and Countryside (Scotland) Act 1981. Alongside this legal protection, steps are being taken to halt the decline of hedgehogs in our towns and cities including the promotion of green space and green networks.

It is important to recognise that hedgehogs exist in some parts of Scotland where they are a non-native species. In those areas, such as South Uist, work is being done to manage the population through methods such as trapping and translocation.

I raised this issue with the Principal of City of Glasgow College on 29 October 2024, who assured me the College remains committed to providing trade union education.

Officials have met with education leads in the local authorities expecting to be most affected to understand their assessment of the potential move of pupils to the state sector. We have also sought assurance from local authorities that they have the capacity to support pupils in the event of an independent school closing. I have met with the Scottish Council for Independent Schools and officials will continue to engage with them directly, following this policy change from the UK Government.