The Scottish Government remains committed to the north and north east of Scotland. This includes taking forward an enhancements programme on the A96 corridor that improves connectivity between surrounding towns, tackles congestion and addresses safety and environmental issues.

The current plan is to fully dual the A96 route between Inverness and Aberdeen; however, we are conducting a transparent, evidence-based review of the programme which is well underway. The recent public consultation received an unprecedented level of engagement with nearly 4,600 responses, generating more than 11,000 suggestions and potential opportunities for the route. Rightly, it has taken more time than originally anticipated to consider and to appraise all of those options, however, the report on the Public Consultation and the Initial Appraisal: The Case for Change will be published by the end of the year. This is a sensible good governance for major investment of this kind.

As with all devolved matters, the Scottish Ministers make the final decision on investment in the transport network.

The following table details capital spend on digital connectivity infrastructure in each of the last five financial years. As our digital connectivity infrastructure programmes are national initiatives, we are unable to provide a breakdown of spend by local authority area.

The R100 programme comprises of three R100 contracts with BT plc, the R100 Scottish Broadband Voucher Scheme and commercial coverage. For those within future R100 contract build plans, there are a number of satellite and mobile service providers who can deliver a commercial service in the meantime. Ofcom’s broadband and mobile service checker, which can be found at https://www.ofcom.org.uk/phones-telecoms-and-internet/advice-for-consumers/advice/ofcom-checker , can provide more information on what is available in their area.

Our R100 Scottish Broadband Voucher Scheme remains available for those whose properties are not expected to benefit from either R100 contract build or commercial coverage.

National Park Authorities are committed to conserving and enhancing natural heritage within Scotland’s National Parks and their decision making has been guided by the National Park aims set out in the National Parks (Scotland) 2000 Act and the principle set out in section 9 (6) of the Act. As an example of success in conserving and enhancing the natural heritage in the Cairngorms, over 5000ha of new woodland has been established over the last 5 years of which 96% is native and over half by regeneration.

The Scottish Government launched a public consultation in May to look at what people value about National Parks in Scotland and what they should deliver in future – in particular how they can help to protect and restore nature, tackle climate change and promote sustainable land use. This has been followed by a second consultation – organised by NatureScot – on the approach to National Parks in Scotland and the selection criteria for new National Parks. This consultation seeks views on section 9(6) of the Act, how it is applied and whether it is fit for purpose.

This is a matter for CMAL or the University of Strathclyde. The information requested is not held centrally.

The Mobility and Access Committee for Scotland (MACS) wrote to Transport Scotland in March 2022 expressing their desire that no Ministerial Directions be given on which type of pavement can be considered by local authorities for an Exemption Order. We sought to allay their concerns during a meeting between MACS and the Minister for Transport on 15 June 2022 and a further meeting with the policy lead of MACS and Transport Scotland.

During these meetings we confirmed that exemptions had already been the subject of Parliamentary debate during the passage of the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019. We also confirmed that Ministerial Directions will not allow for blanket exemptions of streets from the National pavement parking prohibitions and will set out scenarios where local authorities may be able to consider an exemption. Exemptions will only be considered in exceptional circumstances and will not be the norm. Any such exemptions will require to be clearly marked by signs and lines on the ground so that a driver can be in no doubt where pavement parking is permitted.

Additionally, we are currently finalising the wording of the Ministerial Directions to take account of any issues raised in the public consultation.

The Scottish Government cannot comment or provide legal advice on hypothetical questions of liability. Whether a person is liable in a particular scenario will depend on the individual facts and circumstances.

The Scottish Government will address the issues raised in petition PE1979 in its response to the Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee. This response will be issued shortly.

The cost of the Air Traffic Management 2030 Strategy project was £9,963,937.