Chamber and committees

Officials at Transport Scotland directed Scottish Rail Holdings to ensure that ScotRail Trains, in light of this particular incident in Lanarkshire, reviewed the arrangements for passengers requiring travel assistance. ScotRail has provided assurance that it has learnt the lessons from this incident and appropriate actions and processes are in place to avoid further incidents of this nature.

Transport Scotland liaises closely with Caledonian Maritime Assets Limited (CMAL) and other partners regarding future vessel projects. These discussions include appropriate consideration of design and operating options, including alternative fuels. As part of our work on the Islands Connectivity Plan, we will consult on pathways to zero/low-emission ferry transport, learning from experience in other countries.

The Scottish Government has supported the various phases of the HySeas project which is developing a concept design for a hydrogen fuelled vessel that could operate in Scotland. Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd (CMAL) has been a partner in the HySeas III consortium and. both Transport Scotland and CMAL continue to monitor developments and opportunities in this field.

Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) emits approximately 20% less carbon than Marine Gas Oil (MGO - the conventional fuel used for ferries), so provides an opportunity for emission reductions in the medium term.

The Scottish Government is aware of the study published by the University college London on LNG capable ships and of its main conclusions. There is considerable research being carried out into the viability of various future marine fuels and vessel technologies and the Scottish Government, as a global leader on wider climate change policy and actions and as an owner and operator of vessels, is maintaining a close view on developments.

We are aiming for the Government-owned ferry fleet to make the strongest possible contribution towards achieving our target of a net-zero greenhouse gas emissions economy by 2045.

The Scottish Government recognised in 2021 that partial implementation of the pharmacotherapy and community treatment and care services, on a national level, meant that general practice was facing a difficult winter without all of the support Scottish Government and the BMA had agreed it should have in 2018. £1,765,382 and £823,388 were allocated to GP Practices in Lanarkshire and Forth Valley GP Practices as sustainability payments in 2021-22.

This year, GP practices in Lanarkshire and Forth Valley will receive £1,172,236 and £549,074 in Sustainability Payments this year in addition to their regular funding (Global Sum and Income & Expenses Guarantees) of £81,651,926 and £38,245,691 respectively, to which an uplift will be applied backdated to April 2022.

We also now have more than 3,220 healthcare professionals recruited to support general practice and are committed to investing at least £170 million a year on growing primary care multi-disciplinary teams.

Addressing Rail accessibility remains a matter reserved to the UK Government, and the removal of the station ramps was driven by changes made by the industry safety regulator, the Office of Rail and Road (ORR).

To ensure compliance with the regulations, ScotRail is implementing a priority project to rollout the new ramps now required. This is due to the implementation of a new ORR specified standard and is being implemented widely across the UK.

ScotRail advise that when the train is longer than the platform, for safety reasons, the rear doors which are not accommodated on the platform do not open.

The Scottish Government specifies the provision of staff to assist passengers on all ScotRail trains. This includes providing guidance to passengers requiring assistance about the right location to join a train if they intend to get off at a station with short platform.

I will be addressing the Scottish Agritourism Conference on the 6 December, where I will be giving an update on the progress of the Strategy.