Questions and answers

Question reference: S5W-24904

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 23 August 2019
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 17 September 2019

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the repeal of the overlapping Windsock cod recovery area, how it will ensure that the West Shetland Shelf MPA meets its conservation objectives.

Question reference: S5W-24902

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 23 August 2019
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 12 September 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what action it has taken to ensure that the conservation objectives for the West Shetland Shelf MPA are not hindered.

Licensed activities within the West Shetland Shelf MPA are consented in accordance with the Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009. A public authority must not grant authorisation unless they are satisfied that there is no significant risk of hindering the achievement of the conservation objectives for the site. This process does not apply to fisheries.

The Scottish Government has prepared draft fisheries management measures for the West Shetland Shelf MPA in consultation with stakeholders, which were designed to be implemented in the event that the Windsock closure was lifted. Currently, fisheries management measures for MPAs in UK offshore waters are implemented under the EU’s Common Fisheries Policy. The measures will therefore be taken forwards once our future relationship with the European Union is resolved. A copy of the draft fisheries management proposal is available on the Scottish Government’s website at https://www2.gov.scot/Topics/marine/marine-environment/mpanetwork/SACmanagement/Offshore2017.

Following the lifting of the Windsock closure in August 2019, the Scottish Government facilitated discussions between representatives from the Scottish fishing industry to agree voluntary measures which restrict trawling over approximately 37 per cent of the West Shetland Shelf MPA. Marine Scotland has agreed to monitor the situation to ensure the agreement is adhered to.

Question reference: S5O-03561

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 September 2019
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 September 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the operators of the ethylene plant at Mossmorran regarding the climate emergency and the need for a just transition.

Question reference: S5W-24453

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 30 August 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made or is aware of of the ecological impact of the unregulated release of common pheasant and red-legged partridge, permitted by S.14(2A) of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, as amended in Scotland, and whether any assessment has been made of the effect of such releases on conservation objectives for sites classified as (a) Special Protection Areas under the EU Birds Directive and (b) Special Areas of Conservation under the EU Habitats Directive.

The majority of terrestrial Special Protection Areas (SPA) and Special Areas of Conservation (SAC) in Scotland are co-designated with and underpinned by Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSIs). Where the release of game birds on an SSSI is potentially damaging, it is listed by Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) as an operation requiring consent, in considering any application for such consent, SNH must fulfil the requirements of the Conservation (Natural Habitats, &c.) Regulations as regards the assessment of the implications of plans or projects for European sites.

SNH has advised that to date, two applications for consent to release game birds on an SPA or SAC have been received. The assessments concluded that there would be no adverse effect on the sites’ integrity .

There are offences of intentional or reckless damage to SSSIs, SPAs and SACs. Scottish Ministers can also make Nature Conservation Orders to prohibit the carrying out of operations on or near these sites for the purposes of conserving any natural feature for which such land is designated, or is otherwise considered by the Scottish Ministers to be of special interest.

Question reference: S5W-24452

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 30 August 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made or is aware of of the animal welfare impact of the unregulated release of common pheasant and red-legged partridge, permitted by S.14(2A) of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, as amended in Scotland, on (a) the released birds and (b) other wild species of birds and animals as a result of (i) the release itself and (ii) management measures to protect the released birds.

The welfare of any animal under the control of a person is regulated by the Animal Health & Welfare (Scotland) Act 2006. Breaches of the Act are a matter for the Police and the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service.

The husbandry and management of released birds is covered by industry codes of practice such as The Code of Good Shooting Practice. http://www.codeofgoodshootingpractice.org.uk/pdf/COGSP.pdf

A Journal published in 2018 “Consequences of game bird management for non-game species in Europe” looked at the impact of gamebird release on other species in a wider European context. This work was led by James Hutton Institute in Aberdeen and was part-funded by the Scottish Government’s Rural & Environment Science & Analytical Services Division

http://aura.abdn.ac.uk/bitstream/handle/2164/12034/
Mustin_et_al_2018_Journal_of_Applied_Ecology_1_.pdf;
jsessionid=DB579CA1B6E15BEC63A1986E7B710028?sequence=1

There is no statutory requirement for the Scottish Government to monitor activities under S.14(2A) of the Wildlife & Countryside Act and the Scottish Government has not so far carried out any assessment of such activities.

Question reference: S5W-24454

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 July 2019
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 30 August 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what action it has taken since the enactment of the Wildlife and Natural Environment (Scotland) Act 2011 to monitor activities under S.14(2A) of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, as amended in Scotland, and what assessment it has made of (a) how many birds have been (i) released and (ii) subsequently killed by shooting and (b) the (i) fate and (ii) ecological impact of released birds that are not subsequently killed.

The Scottish Government is aware of a paper published in 2018 “Why do many pheasants released in the UK die, and how can we best reduce their natural mortality? Madden JR, Hall A, Whiteside MA. (2018)” which examined the fate of released pheasants in the UK, the different causes of mortality and where management practices may influence this. A copy of the paper can be found at: https://ore.exeter.ac.uk/repository/bitstream/handle/10871/33794/
10.1007_s10344-018-1199-5.pdf?sequence=3&isAllowed=y

There is no statutory requirement for the Scottish Government to monitor activities under S.14(2A) of the Wildlife & Countryside Act and the Scottish Government has not so far carried out any assessment of such activities.

Question reference: S5W-24420

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 22 July 2019
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 27 August 2019

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the Scottish Natural Heritage consultation on general licences, which was published on 17 July 2019, what assessment it has made of the impact of adding ravens to General Licence 2 on (a) animal welfare and (b) conservation.

Consideration of animal welfare is fundamental to Scottish Natural Heritage’s (SNH) wildlife management work. The conditions imposed by their general licences seek to ensure that animal welfare is protected when wildlife management activities are undertaken.

SNH’s full positon on wildlife welfare is published on its website: https://www.nature.scot/sites/default/files/2017-06/A1545530%20-%20SNH%20Position%20Statement%20willdife%20welfare%20-
%202014.pdf

Information on the conservation status of ravens is included within SNH’s consultation. SNH will use the information gathered in their consultation to help assess any conservation impacts, prior to any decision to change the general license conditions, including whether to add ravens to the species covered.

Question reference: S5W-24421

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 22 July 2019
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 14 August 2019

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason the proposal to add ravens to General Licence 2 on (a) animal welfare and (b) conservation in the Scottish Natural Heritage consultation on general licences, which was published on 17 July 2019, was not accompanied by any public announcement or with any evidence relating to the conservation status of the species, and what its response is to concerns that this approach did not follow best practice.

Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) announced on its website on 21 May 2019 its decision to bring forward from 2020 a planned consultation on general licences. A further statement was made when the consultation formally opened on 17 July 2019. Both announcements were accompanied by media briefing and SNH also contacted its main stakeholders directly to alert them to the consultation.

The current consultation follows previous consultations on licensing, which also contained questions about specific species, including ravens. The consultation is part of SNH’s ongoing process of continuous improvement in delivery of its licencing functions (in-line with a commitment to Better Regulation principles) and follows best practice for public consultations.

Information about the conservation status of all of the species potentially covered by general licenses, including ravens, was included in the consultation document.

Question reference: S5W-24339

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 15 July 2019
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 2 August 2019

To ask the Scottish Government which organisations will be represented on the Animal Welfare Commission; when it will first meet, and what issues it will be considering in its first year.

Question reference: S5W-24212

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 July 2019
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 31 July 2019

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether DEFRA's draft proposals for an Office of Environmental Protection are an effective governance model for providing oversight, scrutiny and ensuring the implementation of environmental laws and standards in Scotland.

Chamber and committees