- Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 07 April 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Gillian Martin on 2 May 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact of sewage spills on Scotland’s (a) rivers, (b) beaches and (c) tourism economy.
Answer
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency monitors the water quality of Scotland’s rivers and designated bathing beaches and publishes its classification results annually.
87% of Scotland’s entire water environment is assessed by SEPA as having a high or good classification for water quality, up from 82% in 2014, and for rivers the figure is 85%.
SEPA’s most recent Bathing Waters classification shows that 97% of Scotland’s bathing waters currently achieve the bathing water quality standards with 87% being rated good or excellent, up from 84% in 2023.
Scotland is renowned worldwide for the quality of our rivers, lochs and seas, supporting our tourism economy with our natural environment attracting millions of visitors every year with a total of 109 million tourism visits to Scotland in 2023.
- Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 07 April 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Gillian Martin on 2 May 2025
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will commit to publishing real-time data on sewage spills, in a similar way to other parts of the UK.
Answer
As this is an operational matter for Scottish Water I have asked them to respond. Their reply is as follows:
Scottish Water has already published this data at https://www.scottishwater.co.uk/Your-Home/Your-Waste-Water/Overflows/Live-Overflow-Map.
Currently, data from around 1,100 overflow monitor locations is included on the overflow map. As additional monitors are installed and data from these is checked, more monitor locations are added to the overflow map.
- Asked by: Paul O'Kane, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 April 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 2 May 2025
To ask the Scottish Government whether it anticipates that automatic split payments of universal credit in Scotland, as it committed to in 2017, will be delivered by the end of the current parliamentary session, and, if so, by what date.
Answer
The delivery of split payments to joint Universal Credit households is reliant on the ability of the DWP to adapt the UC system to facilitate the policy. The Scottish Government continues to work with the DWP to consider the steps required to deliver the policy.
- Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 07 April 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Graeme Dey on 2 May 2025
To ask the Scottish Government whether the Green Jobs Workforce Academy website is still updated and maintained, and when it was last updated.
Answer
This is an operational matter for Skills Development Scotland. I have asked the Chief Executive of SDS, Damien Yeates to write to you with details on whether the Green Jobs Workforce Academy website is still updated and maintained, and when it was last updated.
- Asked by: Russell Findlay, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 April 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Kate Forbes on 2 May 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what the price of MV Glen Sannox was upon transfer of responsibility for the vessel from the Scottish Government to CMAL.
Answer
The total costs of the vessel on its handover date on 20 November 2024 was £151.5m.
- Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Monday, 28 April 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 2 May 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that Social Security Scotland staff who assess disability benefit applications have appropriate knowledge and understanding of childhood and young adult cancers and their impact.
Answer
Social Security Scotland staff who assess applications receive comprehensive training developed in consultation with people with lived experience of health conditions and disabilities.
Due to the complexities and range of health conditions, decision makers are also supported by in-house Health and Social Care practitioners and equipped with the guidance necessary to properly assess the impact of young adult cancers and all other health conditions.
Training includes case studies which highlight a range of health conditions and disabilities, and Clinical Operations colleagues have delivered sessions on general cancer awareness.
As part of its commitment to providing a learning service, Social Security Scotland always welcomes feedback from clients. This helps the organisation understand clients’ views and improve their experience wherever possible.
- Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 April 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Gillian Martin on 2 May 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to prohibit water companies from discharging raw sewage into rivers, lakes and coastal areas in Scotland.
Answer
The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) licences and regulates 345 sewer networks operated by Scottish Water, carrying out compliance inspections on a rolling basis and monitors Scotland’s water environment.
Through its Improving Urban Waters Routemap, Scottish Water is taking action to increase overflow monitoring of the highest priority waters and tackle debris and spills by committing up to £500m to improve water quality.
SEPA’s most recent assessment of Scotland’s entire water environment is that 87% has a ‘high’ or ‘good’ classification for water quality, up from 82% in 2014. However, we are not complacent and seek ongoing improvement and continue to work closely with SEPA and Scottish Water to monitor and improve water quality.
The Scottish Government is determined to limit the amount of rainwater entering sewers to reduce overflows, and in 2024 we published an analysis of the responses to a public consultation which asked the public for their views on how we achieve this, available at https://www.gov.scot/publications/water-wastewater-drainage-consultation-analysis-report/.
- Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 April 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Gillian Martin on 2 May 2025
To ask the Scottish Government when it expects to be able to meet its (a) 2013 and (b) 2020 household recycling target.
Answer
Scotland has made significant progress in reducing waste, increasing recycling and decarbonising the waste sector, but there is further work to be done. The Circular Economy (Scotland) Act 2024 and Circular Economy & Waste Route Map set out Scottish Government plans to introduce a statutory Code of Practice for household waste services to accelerate improvements to both the quality and quantity of recycling.
The Circular Economy (Scotland) Act 2024 also includes our commitment to determine new circular economy targets for Scotland to support our work to reduce emissions to tackle the climate emergency.
The overall recycling rate in Scotland of 62.3% in 2022 is at its highest level since records began in 2011. In 2023 the household recycling rate was 43.5%.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 April 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Gillian Martin on 2 May 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how many wind farms are on land owned by it, broken down by megawatts of wind capacity generated, and what proportion of these farms are community owned.
Answer
There are twenty-five operational windfarms on Scotland’s national forests and land, managed by Forestry and Land Scotland. None of the windfarms are community owned in whole or part.
Windfarm | Number of MW on Scotland’s National Forests and Land (*several projects are located largely on neighbouring private land) |
Deucheran Hill | 16 |
Cruach Mhor | 26 |
Beinn An Tuirc 1 | 9* |
Black Law | 20 |
Rothes 2 (Cairn Uish Hill) | 7* |
Whitelee 1 | 163 |
An Suidhe | 19 |
Camster | 22 |
Arecleoch | 106 |
Myres Hill | 2* |
Mid Hill | 53 |
Stroupster | 16 |
Little Clyde | 25 |
Burn of Whilk | 23 |
Beinn An Tuirc 2 | 44 |
Whitelee 2 | 193 |
Harestanes | 136 |
Clashindarroch | 37 |
A' Chruach | 43 |
Kilgallioch | 73 |
Blackcraig | 5* |
Beinn An Tuirc 3 | 50 |
West Benhar | 30 |
Halsary | 28 |
South Kyle | 240 |
- Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 April 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Gillian Martin on 2 May 2025
To ask the Scottish Government whether it is aware of any recycling facilities that manage soft plastics, and, if so, where they are located.
Answer
Yes, the Scottish Government is aware of recycling facilities that manage soft plastics in Scotland.
We are aware of one sorting facility, Cireco, located in Fife, which collects and sorts soft plastics from households. This was enabled by the award of £470,000 from the Scottish Government’s Recycling Improvement Fund to Fife Council to purchase a ‘Tomra Optical Sorter’, which segregates flexible plastics and plastic film, ready for processing. The majority of this material is recycled within the UK, contributing to the circular economy and reducing reliance on overseas processing.
In addition to household soft plastics, there is currently one plant processing farm plastics in Scotland — Berry BPI Recycling located in Dumfries and Galloway. This facility plays a key role in handling agricultural plastics and supports the sector’s environmental commitments.
