Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government, as part of the Marine Consultation on ‘Proposed Fisheries Management Measures in Scottish Inshore Marine Protected… has undertaken a Strategic Environment Assessment (SEA).

In accordance with the Environmental Assessment (Scotland) Act 2005, there is a requirement to consider reasonable alternatives that fulfil the objectives of the proposed fisheries management measures as part of a SEA.

For the purposes of this assessment the reasonable alternatives are considered to be the two alternative management options under consideration, referred to in the consultation documents as Option 1 and Option 2.

Option 1 proposes a zoned approach in sites where possible – either spatial, temporal or in 2 sites by engine power for Marine Protected Areas (MPA) and for proposed Priority Marine Feature (PMF) management areas, the proposed measures are across a smaller spatial area. Option 2 represents a scenario of greater restriction for fisheries management measures in MPAs or proposed (PMF) management areas.

The SEA assessed the likely environmental effects of both Option 1 and Option 2. While both options were assessed as contributing towards the environmental objectives of the proposals, Option 2 generally represents a greater level of restriction on fishing activity and therefore has the potential to deliver greater environmental benefits where additional restrictions are proposed.

It is concluded the proposed fisheries management measures under either Option 1 or Option 2 are likely to result in immediate and future benefits and achieve the SEA objectives.

The Updated Sectoral Marine Plan for Offshore Wind Energy (SMP-OWE) and associated impact assessments have been finalised and are in the latter stages of review ahead of Ministerial consideration. Subject to Ministerial approval, including consideration by UK Ministers due to the presence of cross-border impacts, the Plan will be adopted and all supporting documents will be published. The exact timing will depend on the completion of these approval processes.

The safety of firefighters, along with any safety-critical training, are matters for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service as the employer.

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service is well prepared to deal with the range of risks present in communities across Scotland. SFRS responds to every emergency incident with the appropriate level of resources.

The SFRS annual report and Accounts are audited by Audit Scotland on an annual basis and in line with the statutory responsibilities of the Scottish Government, these are laid before Parliament by the end of December each year. In addition, His Majesty’s Fire Service Inspectorate also conducts independent reviews into various aspects of SFRS activity and these are all laid before Parliament.

This is a matter for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service as an employer. The information requested is not held centrally. The member may wish to contact the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service directly.

This is a matter for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service. The information requested is not held centrally. The member may wish to contact the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service directly.

Recruitment and retention of staff is a matter for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service as an employer. Wholetime firefighter recruitment is heavily oversubscribed by applications and therefore there are no significant barriers in place. There are challenges in recruiting on-call firefighters in some remote and rural locations. SFRS is addressing these through its On-Call improvement programme.

The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service is well prepared to deal with the range of risks present on communities across Scotland including flooding. SFRS responds to every emergency incident with the appropriate level of resources.

Firefighter training is an operational matter for SFRS. The information requested is not held centrally. The member may wish to contact the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service directly.