The Scottish Parliament

Question reference: S6W-34412

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 27 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how it monitors the long-term efficacy of projects funded through the Freight Facilities Grant (FFG).

Traffic monitoring is undertaken after a facility funded under the grant scheme becomes operational.

Transport Scotland requires applicants to provide a return of traffic passing through the grant-aided facility. Transport Scotland will require verified tonnages reports from the applicant, in cases where the applicant is required to provide evidence to corroborate the traffic the documentation required will be agreed prior to the award of grant.

Monitoring will cover an agreed period of time to allow the required environmental benefits from the grant to be accrued by the applicant.

Question reference: S6W-34427

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 27 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to introduce specific outreach programmes to increase awareness and the uptake of the Freight Facilities Grant (FFG) among under-represented sectors, such as the agriculture or food production industries.

Question reference: S6W-34423

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 27 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how the Freight Facilities Grant (FFG) helps businesses meet their environmental and sustainability targets, and what specific metrics or outcomes are used to evaluate this.

Taking freight off congested roads and moving it by rail or water can have environmental and wider social benefits but it can be more expensive. Freight Facilities Grant (FFG) is therefore available to assist with the extra costs generally associated with moving freight by rail or water by offsetting the capital costs of providing the required freight handling facilities. It is also available to help companies reinvest in existing rail or water freight facilities where the traffic may revert to road transport.

The value of environmental and social benefits is based on calculating the benefits of removing one lorry mile of freight from road and transferring it to rail or water.

Monitoring is undertaken after a facility funded under the grant scheme becomes operational.

Transport Scotland requires applicants to provide a return of traffic passing through the grant-aided facility. Transport Scotland will require verified tonnages reports from the applicant, in cases where the applicant is required to provide evidence to corroborate the traffic the documentation required will be agreed prior to the award of grant.

Monitoring will cover an agreed period of time to allow the required environmental benefits from the grant to be accrued by the applicant.

Question reference: S6O-04386

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 February 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 5 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how it monitors the ways in which local authorities engage with stakeholders regarding the implementation of the Visitor Levy (Scotland) Act 2024.

Question reference: S6W-34413

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 26 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how the Freight Facilities Grant (FFG) scheme has supported the growth of Scotland’s ports and logistics infrastructure, and what improvements have been made to port facilities as a result of this funding.

Question reference: S6W-34504

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 25 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish its review into homecare medicines services, which was commissioned in June 2023 by the Chief Pharmaceutical Officer, and by what date it will outline its next steps in relation to that review.

In April 2023, the Chief Pharmaceutical Officer (CPO) announced an Independent Medicines Homecare Review in response to reports of failings in the standards of care provided across Scotland and the increasing demand for medicines homecare provision.

The CPO will be publishing the Homecare Medicines Review before the end of March. In terms of next steps, the CPO has met with NHS National Procurement to discuss what actions can be taken forward within their remit and what actions require further consideration through a task and finish group. The group will be established shortly and will be chaired by a Director of Pharmacy and a Director of Nursing. The Group will help to outline the next steps and timescales to delivery.

Question reference: S6W-34399

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 25 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what the highest (a) fine and (b) custodial sentence imposed has been each year under the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) (Amendment) (Scotland) Act 2021; how many people received this, and how this compared with the maximum sentence that was available.

The worrying of livestock by dogs is completely unacceptable and is something the Scottish Government takes very seriously and any dog attack is one too many.

We welcome the fact that in Scotland we have tough legislation in place to deal with livestock worrying. The Scottish Government supported Emma Harper’s member’s bill when it was introduced, to provide Police Scotland and the courts with greater powers to deal with those who allow their dogs to worry, attack or kill livestock in Scotland’s countryside. Under this law owners of dogs that attack or worry livestock can be fined up to £40,000 or face a prison sentence of up to 12 months.

Please find below the number of accused convicted based on the financial year of conviction in relation to the fines and custodial sentences handed down. Please note that The Dogs (Protection of Livestock) (Amendment) (Scotland) Act 2021 came into force on 5 November 2021. The 2021 Act amends the offence under the 1953 Act so all proceedings are still under the 1953 Act (as amended).

Table 1: Number of accused convicted with at least one protection of livestock from dogs crime, given a fine or imprisonment

Financial Year of Conviction	Disposals	Number of case-accused
5 Nov 2021- March 2022	Fine	3
2022-2023	Fine	5
2023-2024	Fine	8
April 2024-June 2024	Fine	0
	Imprisonment	1

Source: Scottish Government Justice Analytical Services

Table 2: The highest fine imposed each year and number of accused who received it:

Financial Year of Conviction	Highest Fine	Number of case-accused
5 Nov 2021 - March 2022	£200	2
2022-2023	£360	1
2023-2024	£400	1
April 2024-Jun 2024	NA	0

Source: Scottish Government Justice Analytical Services

Table 3: The highest custodial sentence imposed each year and number of accused who received it:

Financial Year of Conviction	Custodial sentence length	Number of case-accused
5 Nov 2021- March 2022	NA	0
2022-2023	NA	0
2023-2024	NA	0
April 2024-Jun 2024	5 months	1

Source: Scottish Government Justice Analytical Services

Question reference: S6W-34408

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 25 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many jobs have been created or supported by projects funded through the Freight Facilities Grant (FFG), and what sectors have seen the most job growth as a result.

Question reference: S6W-34406

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 25 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what the most common types of transport projects funded through the Freight Facilities Grant (FFG) have been since 2016, and how these projects align with its transport and sustainability goals.

The most common type of schemes funded under Freight Facilities Grant since 2016 has been for the creation and expansion of rail terminals.

Heavy goods vehicles are a major contributor to emissions within the Scottish economy. Emissions from rail are considerably lower. Scottish Government policy to encourage the shift of freight from road to rail and other, more sustainable forms of transport aligns with the priority to “take climate action” in the National Transport Strategy 2 and supports the legislative target for Scotland to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045.

The Scottish Government has set regulatory targets for rail freight growth. The target for the period 2024 to 2029 is 8.7% and, if achieved, is forecast to result in an additional 2,200 annual trains by 2029.

Question reference: S6W-34409

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 25 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what criteria is used to assess applications for the Freight Facilities Grant (FFG), and how often these criteria have been updated or revised.

Any company which wants to move freight by rail or water rather than by road and which is proposing to invest in new freight handling facilities in Scotland or re-invest in existing facilities in Scotland may apply for Freight Facilities Grant (FFG).

The amount of FFG that will be offered depends on the value of the environmental benefits of the project and the additional costs of moving freight by rail or water, determined by a financial appraisal of the project comparing the cost of the rail or water operation with the road alternative. Grants are limited to a maximum of 50% of the capital expenditure.

The key requirement for payment of grant is that Scottish Ministers must be satisfied that if the proposed facility is not provided, the freight, which would have used it, will in fact be carried by road. This means that there must be soundly based projections of the type and quantity of goods that would use the proposed facility and evidence that these goods are currently transported by road.

FFG is paid in the clear expectation that the freight facility will secure the removal of lorries from specific routes for a specific number of years. In return for FFG support, grant recipients must give a commitment to use the facility for a certain period and move a specified amount of freight through the facility.

Most facilities needed to handle or carry freight on rail or water are eligible under the criteria for FFG for example piers, rail sidings and handling equipment. Funding is limited to capital expenditure. Design and project management costs associated exclusively with the freight facility are also likely to be eligible.

Since the GB wide scheme was introduced in 1997, it has been reviewed on several occasions. These exercises were led by the Department for Transport on behalf of the UK Government with input from both the Scottish and Welsh Governments as well as stakeholders across the logistics sector. The last review was undertaken in 2018. The application criteria for the scheme remains unchanged since the scheme began.

Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Filter your results Hide all filters

Question reference: S6W-34412

Answer

Question reference: S6W-34427

Answer

Question reference: S6W-34423

Answer

Question reference: S6O-04386

Answer

Question reference: S6W-34413

Answer

Question reference: S6W-34504

Answer

Question reference: S6W-34399

Answer

Question reference: S6W-34408

Answer

Question reference: S6W-34406

Answer

Question reference: S6W-34409

Answer