Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that investment through the Just Transition Fund delivers value for public money and supports environmental and economic outcomes across the North East and Moray. To that end, an independent evaluation of the first two years of JTF delivery (2022–2024) was commissioned, with the final report published in July 2025.

The evaluation found that the Fund has supported a wide range of projects contributing positively to environmental sustainability and community wellbeing across several domains:

(a) Air quality, (b) Water quality, and (c) Soil quality

Projects funded through the JTF have advanced nature-based solutions, environmental restoration, and community-led ecological management. For example, the Findhorn Watershed Initiative undertook large-scale riparian woodland restoration, carbon sequestration activity, and community environmental education. These efforts contribute to long-term improvements in ecosystem health, including enhanced water quality and more resilient soils, and support Scotland’s broader adaptation objectives.

(d) Public transport

The evaluation highlighted improved access to essential services, including public transport. In addition, transport-focused feasibility studies, such as the Buchan Sustainable Transport Study, were among the showcase examples featured in the evaluation. These projects aim to address rural connectivity challenges, inform low-carbon transport solutions, and improve mobility for communities across the region.

(e) Active travel

While active travel is not the primary focus of the JTF portfolio, several projects supported community engagement, place-based improvements, and environmental enhancement that complement active travel objectives. Wider participatory budgeting activities funded through the JTF also supported local improvements to community spaces and infrastructure, enabling healthier, low-carbon choices.

Overall, the independent evaluation concluded that the Just Transition Fund is supporting environmental sustainability, community empowerment, and improved access to essential services, while laying the groundwork for longer-term environmental and economic benefits across the North East and Moray.

Scottish Government officials meet frequently with their counterparts in the UK Government’s Department for Energy Security and Net Zero to discuss all areas of marine energy policy.

The Scottish Government, along with the UK Government and Great British Energy (GBE), are members of the industry-led UK Marine Energy Taskforce, which is due to present its recommendations for support and further development of the marine energy sector this Summer.

On 28 August I wrote to Michael Shanks MP the Minister for Energy confirming my agreement to GBE’s Statement of Strategic Priorities, welcoming GBE’s focus on supporting the commercialisation of nascent clean technologies and highlighting the importance of GBE support for innovation programmes. On 25 February, I wrote to the Chief Executive of GBE to request a meeting to specifically discuss how the organisation can support the development of wave and tidal stream energy in Scotland.

The Scottish Government does not intend to establish a national forum comprising a broad range of stakeholders to provide advice on the management of feral pigs or wild boar.

The Scottish Government currently chairs the Feral Pig Co-ordination Group, which considers issues relating to feral pigs. The Group includes officials from the Scottish Government, Forestry and Land Scotland, Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture, NatureScot and other external organisations as and when required.

This structure allows relevant expertise to be brought together as needed to support effective management of feral pigs in Scotland.

The Strategic Wildlife and Species Land Managers Forum brings together relevant Government departments and non-governmental organisations and meets regularly to discuss issues relating to wildlife management. The management of feral pigs could be considered by the Forum if appropriate.

The Scottish Government has allocated up to £10 million for commercial and public sector projects as well as £4 million for community and social enterprise projects, comprising of:

• our annual £1 million commitment to Just Transition Participatory Budgeting so communities can have a direct say on where money is spent
• £2.5 million is available to projects that tackle child poverty, fuel poverty, or support adaptation, biodiversity, or environmental goals.
• Up to £300,000 in resource funding is available for community and social enterprise resource grants.

Local authority-owned, worker-owned, and cooperatively owned projects are encouraged to apply. Applicants must pay the real Living Wage and provide effective worker voice channels. Applicants that are working toward additional Fair Work First criteria will be viewed favourably.

The Contracts for Difference (CfD) scheme is a reserved to, and operated by, the UK Government. As such, the Scottish Government does not undertake its own independent modelling of the scheme’s projected costs.

We continue to support the CfD mechanism as the UK’s primary route to market for low carbon electricity generation. The scheme has played a central role in enabling the deployment of renewable energy projects in Scotland, helping to reduce costs for consumers, and providing long-term revenue certainty for developers.

We will continue to engage constructively with the UK Government to ensure that the CfD framework remains effective, delivers value for money, and supports Scotland’s renewable energy potential.

The Scottish Government has not held any direct meetings with Borders Buses regarding the future funding of bus services operating across (a) local authority boundaries in South Scotland or (b) the Scotland–England border, as these would be local matters.

Local authorities have a duty under the Transport Act 1985 to identify where there is a social need for particular bus services and can subsidise these at their discretion. Through legislation, we have given local authorities powers on partnership working, franchising and to run their own bus services. Our approach enables local transport authorities to determine what is best to address any transport challenges in their local areas.

The Scottish Government continues to engage with Creative Scotland, as owner of the CCA building, on next steps and shares its aim of securing a new operator so the centre can reopen as soon as possible.

Creative Scotland is in contact with partners in Glasgow as part of its wider work on next steps for the building and the organisation’s future.

The purpose of any pilot, is to gather evidence and through the bus fare cap pilot we are testing the feasibility of a fare cap model. We will be monitoring the impact on bus patronage and services in the pilot areas to help inform future national fares policy.

The information you have requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government.

Up to £10 million capital funding is available for projects that create jobs, build skills, and boost economic opportunities in the North East and Moray. The Scottish Government will have clear expectations of how many (a) full-time equivalent jobs, (b) total jobs, (c) training positions and (d) apprenticeships this round of the Fund will create when successful applicants are selected.