Chamber and committees

On 11 September 2026, we launched a new funding strand under Scotland’s Heat Network Fund to provide support for optimisation studies to assess current heat network efficiency and identify potential improvements.

The Scottish Government has no current plans to introduce grant funding for private landlords to install clean heating systems.

Registered private landlords can access the Scottish Government funded Private Rented Sector Landlord Loan for eligible energy efficiency and clean heating improvements. The scheme offers funding of up to £38,500 per property. Landlords with five or fewer properties can borrow up to £100,000 at zero per cent interest, while landlords with more than five properties can borrow up to £250,000 at an interest rate of 3.5 per cent APR.

Officials are considering future support for the private rented sector following the conclusion of the consultation on proposals for minimum energy efficiency standards.

Matters relating to the environment are fully devolved in Scotland. Our approach to species recovery and related matters are set out in our Strategic Framework for Biodiversity.

Our Nature Restoration Fund has now committed over £90 million to support projects, including both ecosystem and species recovery, since 2021. Habitat and species restoration are one of the Fund’s priority themes. We extended the NRF for a new round of projects starting in 2026-27 in light of the success of the programme.

Consequentials accrue to the Scottish Government as a whole and Scottish Ministers will decide how best to allocate these based on their priorities.

The Scottish Emergency Heating Oil Scheme was launched within a matter of weeks in response to the spiralling prices caused by the Iran conflict and wider instability, such as Russia’s war in Ukraine, undermining energy security across Europe as well as other factors such as the increases to the cost of living due to the UK leaving the EU.

The scheme was put in place to ensure the most vulnerable households are supported during the cost of living crisis, which includes households on means-tested benefits but also those in financial hardship and at risk of self-rationing fuel who have unavoidable additional heating needs, with the first payment made within 24 hours of the scheme launching on 1 April 2026.

The scheme was originally scheduled to end on 30 September 2026 but will now be extended into winter, which was announced on 25 September 2026.

This extension will ensure that vulnerable households are supported through winter as prices remain volatile.

Alongside the extension of the scheme, I would encourage households that use heating oil or LPG to contact Home Energy Scotland for free and impartial advice on reducing energy bills, improving energy efficiency and exploring clean heating options. Advisers can help households identify the support available to them and navigate funding schemes for home energy improvements.

The UK Government has committed to regulating the heating oil sector in response to issues around price volatility and transparency and the Scottish Government expects them to make urgent tangible progress on this, alongside using their reserved powers of regulation over the energy sector to deliver enduring protections for consumers, and to deliver on their promise to reduce household energy bills by £300.

We are aware that Scotland has a large number of pre-1919 built houses in rural and island communities compared to urban areas. These properties are typically detached and are 32% to 38% larger by floor area than urban dwellings of the same age. These buildings can be more complex to decarbonise and insulate than modern buildings due to increased risk of mould or dampness if the “breathable” nature of the building is compromised.

As set out in the answer to S7W-03480 on 1 October 2026, matters relating to the environment are fully devolved in Scotland and consequentials which accrue as a result of UK Government funding for reserved matters, accrue to the Scottish Government as a whole. No such discussions have therefore been undertaken.

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.

Alcohol sales and deliveries are already subject to a range of controls under the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005. This includes requirements for age verification, restrictions on late-night deliveries between midnight and 6am, and obligations on those delivering alcohol to maintain appropriate records. For full details, I refer the member to the answer to question S7W-01927 on 4 August 2026. 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.

The Scottish Government is responsible for the overall legislative framework, while Licensing Boards have responsibility for local licensing decisions and can take account of local needs and circumstances.

We are taking decisive action to strengthen alcohol treatment, recovery and prevention services across Scotland. Backed by sustained investment of over £160 million in 2026-27 for alcohol and drug support, we are ensuring that people affected by alcohol harm can access the right support, at the right time, in the right place. We are aware of the growing use of online delivery platforms for the purchase of alcohol, and, as part of deliberations on our future Alcohol Harm Prevention framework will consider the potential risks to people who are dependent on alcohol.

The planning, commissioning and delivery of mental health services is the responsibility of local territorial Health Boards and Integration Joint Boards (IJBs), working through Health and Social Care Partnerships (HSCPs). We expect local partners to assess the needs of their communities and ensure that appropriate mental health services are available, including services that effectively engage and support men.

While the Scottish Government does not directly commission specific local mental health service models, we continue to invest in and support approaches that have been shown to engage men effectively. This includes funding peer support initiatives through Creating Hope Together, Scotland's suicide prevention strategy, and continued investment in programmes such as SAMH's The Changing Room: Extra Time, which uses football-based engagement to support men's mental health.

We have also invested £99 million in the Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund for Adults since 2021. Delivered through local Third Sector Interfaces, the Fund supports community-based mental health initiatives, including projects and groups that engage men, based on locally identified needs and priorities. One example of this is Dads Rock, which received £8,755 in Year 4 of the Fund to support the mental health and wellbeing of new fathers.

This is an operational matter for ScotRail. The member may wish to contact ScotRail directly for this information.

Decisions on capital expenditure on estates, fleet and equipment is an operational matter for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS). Information on individual items of SFRS equipment purchased over the last 10 years is not held by the Scottish Government. SFRS is investing £1.6 million as part of the roll out of its Wildfire Strategy.