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The Scottish Government has led on rail freight growth, setting the first target of its kind in 2017 for the period 2019 -2024. This was consolidated further in 2023 with a more stretching rail freight growth target of 8.7% for the rail period 2024-2029 (through the Scottish Ministers’ High Level Output Specification) and a requirement for Network Rail to set out a longer-term strategy for growth by 2027. The Scottish Government welcomes the UK Government’s interest in promoting freight modal shift and notes that the target for England and Wales for 2024 -2029 is 7.5%.

Prospective applicants for marine licences for certain activities are required to carry out public pre-application consultation under the Marine Licensing (Pre-Application Consultation) (Scotland) Regulations 2013. The pre-application consultation process allows local communities, environmental groups and other interested parties to comment on proposed marine projects before a marine licence application is submitted. The construction of a seaweed farm, where the total area in which the farm is to be located exceeds 1000 square metres, is subject to the statutory pre-application consultation process.

The Scottish Government also encourages any prospective applicants to liaise with local stakeholders early in the project planning stages to make other marine users aware of the proposal.

Construction of a seaweed farm is not considered to be a schedule 2 project under the Marine Works (Environmental Impact Assessment) (Scotland) Regulations 2017 and as such no Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) or EIA screening is currently required.

There are currently no plans to revise the Marine Works (Environmental Impact Assessment) (Scotland) Regulations 2017 to include construction of seaweed farms as a schedule 2 project.

NatureScot advise on marine environmental impacts of proposed seaweed farms in relation to protected features and have best practice advice included in their responses. These responses are written on a case-by case basis.

The Scottish Government’s Vision for Sustainable Aquaculture , published in July 2023, sets out our long-term aspirations for the finfish, shellfish and seaweed farming sectors to ensure that development happens in the right places, underpinned by an effective and efficient regulatory framework informed by the best available evidence.

The Scottish Government published the Seaweed Cultivation Policy Statement in 2017 to help facilitate the growth of the sector by setting out policy on the suitability of seaweed cultivation in different scenarios. This provides those wanting to operate in this sector with a better understanding of the type of development that may be given approval.

I welcome the Just Transition Commission's annual report. It provides a robust assessment, whilst acknowledging the progress we have made on applying a just transition approach.

I appreciate the Commission's calls for urgency and reiterate our commitment to deliver a just transition as part of achieving a fairer, greener, Scotland.

This is particularly important for areas such as Grangemouth, which has a long industrial heritage. Regarding the recent announcement at the Petroineos refinery, I have outlined that the Scottish Government is looking at every possible opportunity and avenue that there might be for extending the life of the refinery which plays an important role in preserving Scotland's fuel security. This would provide time and space for the business to fully explore and bring forward new transition opportunities across Grangemouth, helping to ensure jobs are protected.

We continue to work closely with the operator, the UK Government and our Grangemouth Future Industry Board partners to ensure all options are fully explored.

Fairness is critical in achieving a net-zero transition in Scotland. We must work with industry, workers and communities to combine our economic, social and environmental objectives. That is why we have also committed to developing a specific Just Transition plan for the Grangemouth industrial cluster, with a first draft due to be published in Spring of this year.

In response to the recommendations of the independent review of aquaculture which were accepted in principle, I established and chair the Scottish Aquaculture Council (SAC) which was convened in June 2022 as a strategic forum to advise Scottish Ministers. It includes representation from the Scottish Seaweed Industry Association, alongside other key organisations with interests in the aquaculture sector and its environmental, economic and social impacts. The SAC has met on 4 occasions to date, most recently in November 2023.

The Scottish Aquaculture Council provided advice on the development of our Vision for Sustainable Aquaculture (July 2023), applicable to finfish, shellfish and seaweed sectors. The SAC expects to discuss the developing National Marine Plan at its next meeting.

Overall more trainee doctor posts have filled in 2023 than any other year on record, (data correct as at 25 July 2023). 95.45% is a very high fill rate for Obstetrics and Gynaecology ST1 in rounds 1 and 2 of 2023 recruitment. Within that context there will always be a small number of posts that will not fill. We continue to work closely with our partners in NHS Education for Scotland and Health Boards, to consider ways of improving fill rates across all specialities.

Our 2021 Heat in Buildings Strategy set out that several technologies – including heat networks – can play a part to 2030 and beyond in reducing and removing greenhouse gas emissions from our homes and non-domestic buildings. The Heat Networks (Scotland) Act, 2021 sets targets for the amount of heating and cooling to be supplied by heat networks, requiring that this reaches 2.6 Terawatt hours (TWh) by 2027, 6 TWh by 2030 and 7 TWh by 2035. These figures represent approximately 3%, 8% and 9% respectively, of current non-electrical heat consumption in Scotland. How big a role heat networks will have, beyond the heat networks targets in the Heat Networks (Scotland) Act, 2021, will depend on a number of factors including location and viability relative to other zero emission solutions.

Heat networks, specifically district heat networks (or multi-building heat networks), are generally anchored around large heat using buildings – often non-domestic buildings, which account for a significant portion of the heat supplied. As such it is anticipated that the number of homes connecting to achieve the 2027, 2030 and 2035 targets will vary depending on the proportion of connections to non-domestic buildings. Once heat networks are established, with time, the proportion of heat supplied to homes may increase as more homes are connected.

A number of indicative scenarios have been modelled to allow better visualisation of what the statutory targets could mean. These used the data produced in the first national assessment of potential heat network zones. These scenarios show a wide variety in the number of homes connected. The Heat Networks Delivery Plan also set out the number of average gas using homes that is equivalent to 2.6TWh and 6 TWh of heat supplied. The figures of average gas using homes are purely illustrative and are not an expectation of the number of homes that might connect to meet the targets. The modelling outputs for 2027 and 2030 can be viewed in Tables 1 and 2 of the Heat Networks Delivery Plan, published March 2022, available at https://www.gov.scot/publications/heat-networks-delivery-plan/ . The modelling outputs for 2035 can be viewed in Table 3 of Consultation on a 2035 heat network target, published in December 2022, available at https://www.gov.scot/publications/2035-heat-networks-target-government-response/ .

The Heat Networks (Supply Targets) (Scotland) Regulations 2023 came into force on 24 November 2023, setting a target for the combined supply of thermal energy by heat networks in Scotland to reach at least 7 terawatt hours of output by 2035.

As of 19 December 2023 three local authorities have published final Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategies (LHEES):

• Glasgow City Council
• Fife Council
• West Lothian Council

An additional ten local authorities have published draft LHEES for consultation:

• City of Edinburgh Council
• Clackmannanshire Council
• Comhairle Nan Eilean Siar
• East Lothian Council
• Falkirk Council
• Highland Council
• North Ayrshire Council
• North Lanarkshire Council
• Perth and Kinross Council
• Stirling Council

The Local Heat and Energy Efficiency Strategies (Scotland) Order 2022 places a duty on local authorities to publish their first LHEES Strategies and Delivery Plans on or before 31 December 2023. It is for the local authorities to determine how they will discharge this duty, and whilst we are aware that some local authorities may not publish LHEES by the end of 2023, all of them are working hard to put in place long term local strategies that will set out how each segment of the building stock needs to change to reach net zero.

To support local authorities to develop and publish their LHEES, the Scottish Government published guidance in October 2022, setting out what is required in the production and content of Strategies and Delivery Plans. This was accompanied by long term funding for each local authority of £75,000 per year, committed until 2027/28. The Scottish Government is working closely with local authorities, facilitating regular forums and learning events to share knowledge and address key challenges as they develop their first LHEES. In addition, Zero Waste Scotland are providing a series of capacity building workshops and one-to-one support sessions to upskill local authority officers.