Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S6W-24997

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 22 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government which plastic waste initiatives it has funded since 2013; how much each initiative cost, and what (a) plastic waste and (b) carbon impact reduction each initiative achieved.

The Scottish Government is committed to tackling plastic waste by focusing on a wide range of initiatives aimed at reducing its use, improving recycling and reducing plastic waste going to landfill. The Recycling Improvement Fund (RIF), while not specifically focused on plastics, is supporting a number of projects that include a plastic waste element and 23 such projects have received a total of £59,301,849 to date saving an estimated 9099 tCO2e per annum. A full breakdown of RIF projects available from the Scottish Parliament Information Centre (Bib. number 64895).

In addition, Zero Waste Scotland has supported a range of initiatives addressing the issues around plastics. For example, the Circular Economy Investment Fund has provided grant support to 13 SMEs that were involved in partially or fully in the collection, processing and management of a variety of waste polymers. The fund has invested £8,918,010, is supporting 21 FTE jobs, and has saved 36,939 tCO2eq.

Question reference: S6W-24984

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 22 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, at the time of it announcing its food waste reduction target in 2016, what estimate it had made of what the level of food waste would need to be in 2021 for it to be on track to meet its 2025 target.

No estimate of food waste targets was set in 2016. The intention was for the Food Waste Reduction Action Plan to be reviewed in 2021, to set out progress on tackling food waste. The Review was delayed due to COVID-19 and was published in January 2024 ( https://www.gov.scot/publications/review-2019-food-waste-reduction-action-plan/ ), alongside an updated Scottish Food Waste Estimate ( https://cdn.zerowastescotland.org.uk/managed-downloads/mf-cdtg7vnr-1696942041d ).

Question reference: S6W-24998

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 22 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government which food waste initiatives it has funded since 2013; how much each initiative cost, and what (a) food waste and (b) carbon impact reduction each initiative achieved.

Question reference: S6W-25444

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 09 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 22 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide the most recent list, broken down by local authority, of projects funded, or confirmed to be funded if not already begun, through the Recycling Improvement Fund.

To date, 37 projects from 25 local authorities have been approved for funding through the Recycling Improvement Fund (RIF) and the Fund’s Small Grant Scheme.

A list of local authorities and projects approved through the RIF is available on the Zero Waste Scotland website: www.zerowastescotland.org.uk/resources/recycling-improvement-fund .

A list of local authorities and projects who have been approved for funding through the RIF Small Grant Scheme is available on the Zero Waste Scotland website: www.zerowastescotland.org.uk/resources/recycling-improvement-fund-small-grant-scheme .

Zero Waste Scotland is in regular contact with local authorities to support new applications.

Question reference: S6W-24994

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 21 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how much funding it allocated to support food redistribution projects in (a) 2022-23 and (b) 2023-24.

Question reference: S6W-24991

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 21 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how much food has been redistributed through the Food Redistribution Matchmaking Service since 2020.

As set out in the Food Waste Reduction Action Plan (2019), the Food Redistribution Matchmaking Service was intended to support linking up redistributors, producers, retailers, and wholesalers to access food surpluses and redistribute.

The matchmaking service commenced in July 2020. However, the COVID-19 emergency response led to several similar informal networks and new collaborations, often supported by the local authority, to ensure food surplus was redistributed. For this reason, the matchmaking service provided by Zero Waste Scotland had low levels of engagement. Rather than developing an alternative service, Zero Waste Scotland directs organisations with a food surplus to the FareShare Surplus with Purpose scheme.

In 2021-22, Scottish Government’s direct funding of £200,000 to FareShare’s Surplus with Purpose supported 1,001 tonnes of surplus food from Scottish growers being redirected to communities across the UK. This made the equivalent of 2.3 million meals.

Question reference: S6W-24987

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 21 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what the status is of the food waste project being developed for secondary schools, as set out in the document, Review of the 2019 Food Waste Reduction Action Plan.

Zero Waste Scotland (ZWS) supported this project which was led by Developing Young Workforce (DYW) Dundee & Angus, in partnership with the Food and Drink Federation Scotland and the Food & Drink Team at Abertay University.Despite schools being provided with resources and financial incentives to take part, there was low uptake, resulting in the project not being taken forward.

For further details of the guidance that ZWS issued to schools, I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-24284 on 10 January 2024. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

Question reference: S6W-24995

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 21 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the 2021 estimate for food waste, whether it will provide an updated estimate of the cost to households of unnecessary food and drink purchases, as set out in the report, Household food and drink waste in Scotland 2014.

Question reference: S6W-24990

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 21 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what the status is of the schools food waste pilot that began in autumn 2021, and what progress has been made on establishing a baseline for school food waste.

Zero Waste Scotland supported Glasgow City Council Education Services to run a food waste pilot across five schools in 2021. However, due to the COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic and the cost of living crisis, operational priorities shifted towards cost of living support. As a result, the project was only partly delivered.

Zero Waste Scotland has undertaken analysis of data gathered and provided a food waste baseline and recommendations for reduction to these schools.

Question reference: S6W-24985

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 21 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what the (a) tonnage, (b) carbon impact and (c) increase from the baseline is of food waste attributable to the public sector in the data gathered in the 2021 Scottish Food Waste Estimate.