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The planned in-service dates provided by CMAL in the June 2024 update to the NZET Committee were end November 2024 for MV Isle of Islay and end March 2025 for MV Loch Indaal.

Transport Scotland, CMAL and CalMac will keep these dates under review as the vessel builds progress. The dates will be subject to successful completion of construction, now entering the complex systems commissioning phases, and further crew familiarisation and berthing trails upon arrival in Scottish waters.

Further updates will be provided to Parliament in due course.

Advance works to a cost of £22.6 million have been undertaken for the A9 Dualling: Tomatin to Moy project, to de-risk the main construction works contract.

This cost is broken down as follows:

The Scottish Government has been working with AssistFM and Improvement Service to map existing breakfast provision across Scotland, including a survey to all primary and special schools to understand the scale and uptake of provision.

During the development of the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019, which brought in the ban on pavement parking, Transport Scotland convened a Parking Standards Group to seek views on the policy. This group comprised of a wide range of key stakeholders, including the Federation of Small Businesses.

This group continued to meet during the evolution of the Act, along with the development of secondary legislation that was required to bring the ban into force. No concerns were raised by the Federation of Small Businesses during this process. A number of consultations were undertaken throughout this period and no concerns were highlighted regarding small businesses, either from the Federation of Small Businesses or any other parties.

Particular consideration was given to small businesses during the development of the Act which allows for a 20 minute exception for goods to be loaded or delivered, where 1.5 metres of clear pavement is left for the passing of pavement users.

Furthermore, statutory Business and Regulatory Impact Assessments were carried out for each piece of legislation and no impacts to small businesses were identified.

CMAL, as the procuring authority, has highlighted that Scottish public procurement regulations explicitly state that contracting authorities cannot artificially narrow competition by designing a procurement with the intention of unduly favouring, or disadvantaging, any particular economic operator. This means that CMAL cannot lawfully weight or design the contract requirements to favour Scottish shipyards or businesses. All candidates must be treated equally and fairly.

Publication of the 20% car use reduction route map is planned in autumn this year. It is being produced in partnership with CoSLA.

On 25 April 2024 planning guidance on local living and 20 minute neighbourhoods was published, setting out a framework and information on how the concepts of local living and 20 minute neighbourhood can be applied in a Scottish context, as set out in the fourth National Planning Framework.

The above-mentioned route map does not commit to delivering 20 minute neighbourhoods, although both policies mutually support each other.

Scotland’s national refugee integration strategy has been in place for over a decade. In March 2024 the third New Scots refugee integration strategy was published. It is a UK-leading integration approach built on a partnership led by the Scottish Government, COSLA and Scottish Refugee Council. It was informed by an engagement process involving over 2,000 refugees and people seeking asylum. The strategy is accompanied by a delivery plan setting out the actions that New Scots partners will undertake to deliver the strategy. We hope that other governments can learn from our work.

Scottish Ministers have held introductory calls with their new UK Government counterparts and we look forward to working closely with the UK Government to support delivery of a more effective and humane asylum system and resettlement schemes. We are not aware of any plans, however, to publish a UK integration strategy.

I refer the Member to the answer to question S6W-28627 on‎ 31 July 2024.

All answers to Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/questions-and-answers .

The decision to grant planning permission for an extension to an existing substation at Bearholm near Moffat was made by the relevant planning authority, Dumfries and Galloway Council.

Planning authorities are required to determine any valid application submitted to them in accordance with the relevant local development plan and National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) unless there are material considerations which justify a departure from the plan. The decision notice of the authority is required to include the reasons for the decision. In addition, as part of the decision-making process the authority is required to produce a report setting out their consideration of the application and the material considerations taken into account. The decision notice and report are published on the planning authority’s website.

Applications for consent for the Rivox Wind Energy Hub and Scoop Hill Community Wind Farm projects are currently with the Scottish Ministers for determination under section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989.

Careful consideration was given to the most efficient phasing of the Small Vessel Replacement Programme. This resulted in the current split with seven similar vessels procured in the first phase.

Phase two of the programme takes in other routes in the Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Service network where the service requirements differ from the seven vessels in phase one, including routes where specific requirements need to be addressed. CMAL will be commencing with studies and engagement on these vessels later this year.