Chamber and committees

We are committed to help deliver drug checking facilities across Scotland and are making progress to establish this service in three pilot areas (Dundee, Aberdeen and Glasgow), alongside a national hub which will be able to provide additional analysis of samples.

We have highlighted our desire to introduce these facilities to the Home Office as any activity which involves the possession of controlled drugs would require a Home Office licence. As a result, the Home Office have provided a set of criteria to assist in the completion of these licence applications and which they would expect any prospective drug checking facility to adhere to. That information has been shared with those pilot areas and we continue to provide them with support.

However, these criteria make clear that such a license would only be granted for a facility attached to an existing drug treatment service, and that it be specifically targeted at those with problem substance use. Furthermore, UK Ministers have been clear in their opposition to ‘front of house’ drug checking, as might be found in festivals and other venues, and so would not grant a license for such a service.

We welcome interest from further cities or organisations who would wish to implement this harm reduction measure in alternative venues, including music festivals. We would be willing to work with them, and partners such as Police Scotland, to explore what might be possible in Scotland.

We have no current plans to regulate for the provision of swift nest bricks in planning applications for new buildings.

All planning applications must be determined in accordance with the development plan unless material considerations indicate otherwise. Following the publication and adoption of our Fourth National Planning Framework (NPF4) in February 2023, this forms part of the development plan and so influences planning decisions across Scotland. Improving biodiversity is a cross-cutting theme which runs throughout NPF4 and our strategy and policies support development that helps to secure positive effects for biodiversity. It will be a matter for the relevant planning authority to determine what conditions, if relevant, to apply to individual planning application based on the circumstances of the individual case.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W–24036 on‎ 16 January 2024. 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

Home Energy Scotland (HES) energy efficiency support is not restricted by property size. The HES advice service is available to all householders in Scotland and the HES Grant and Loan scheme is open to all owner-occupiers. Neither has any limitation or eligibility criteria relating to the size of property.

It would not be appropriate to comment on a live application. A decision will be taken by Ministers in due course, following consideration of the application information, consultation responses and representations made by members of the public.

I am pleased to confirm that refreshed Scottish Government guidance on marches, parades and static demonstrations has been published on the Scottish Government website today and can be found at https://www.gov.scot/isbn/9781836010425.

I hope that this guidance will be a useful source of information to all key parties involved in marches, parades and static demonstrations. I am extremely grateful to the members of the working group, chaired by Dr Michael Rosie, for their contribution to the refreshed guidance. Their time, expertise and diligence has helped to shape what I hope will be useful and widely used guidance.

Today the Scottish Government published its International Culture Strategy. The Strategy sets out a series of ambitions and actions to support the culture and creative sector in pursuing international opportunities and ensure that such activity plays a central role in the sector’s long term development. It builds on existing activity, but explores additional opportunities and sets out a policy rationale for why the Scottish Government considers international cultural activity to be important. The International Culture Strategy is available here https://www.gov.scot/isbn/9781836010876 .

The Single Building Assessment (SBA) is a risk-based approach to assess and culminate in a report on the risk to human life (directly or indirectly) created or exacerbated by the External Wall System (EWS) in multi-residential domestic buildings which may include a commercial premises, constructed or refurbished between 1 June 1992 and 1 June 2022, 11 metres and over in height and incorporating a form of external wall cladding system. The SBA includes a FRAEW (Fire Risk Appraisal of External Walls) which requires that a building is assessed holistically, and for that reason, the SBA will also include a Fire Risk Assessment of the common parts of the building to the level of detail deemed required by the Fire Engineer / Assessor. The level of risk acceptance for any building in scope is tolerable risk. The recommendations identified by the Fire Engineer or Assessor within the SBA report which are deemed necessary to eliminate or mitigate risk to human life (directly or indirectly) created or exacerbated by the EWS will form the remediation scope.

The transportation of defence nuclear material in Scotland is a reserved matter for the Ministry of Defence (MOD). The Scottish Government expects any such transportation to be carried out safely and securely and has made this expectation clear to the UK Government.

Our emergency services have plans in place for responding to the consequences of any major incident regardless of the cause. There are well established resilience structures in Scotland to manage the consequences of any emergency, and we regularly engage with key stakeholders in Scotland and where appropriate with relevant authorities across the UK.

The Scottish Housing Regulator (SHR) undertook a data collection exercise in December 2023 on the presence of RAAC in social housing. Findings of this have been published by SHR giving a breakdown of the number of homes identified as containing RAAC and how many were still under investigation. At that time, 953 homes were identified with RAAC present across 9 social landlords and 27,318 homes were still under investigation. This was further broken down by landlord and analysed by local authority area. The findings are available on the SHR website FOI requested copy of RAAC dataset | Scottish Housing Regulator .

SHR also sought additional information on homes where social landlords have maintenance obligations, provide factoring services, or have previously sold. The intelligence gathered suggests RAAC has been primarily used in public sector house building.

SHR are currently undertaking further data collection and have requested updates from landlords where investigations are still ongoing and will release their findings in due course. SHR will continue to engage with landlords who have identified RAAC and the Scottish Government will be engaging directly with the affected landlords through the RAAC Cross Sector Working Group.