Chamber and committees

Details of all called in applications are available on the Scottish Government Website. The following table outlines those cases where economic benefit or natural environment were identified in the grounds for call in.

Scottish Planning Policy sets out that Planning Authorities should identify and afford the appropriate level of protection to international, national and locally designated areas in development plans, and those plans should set out the factors that will be taken into account in determining a planning application.

Further to this, it is Scottish Government policy to apply the same level of protection for Ramsar sites as is applied for Special Protection Areas classified under the EU Birds Directive. This policy commitment to Ramsar sites is set out on the Scottish Government’s web site at www.gov.scot/Topics/Environment/Wildlife-Habitats/protectedareas/ramsar .

It is Scottish Government policy to apply the same level of protection for Ramsar sites as is applied for Special Protection Areas classified under the EU Birds Directive. This policy commitment to Ramsar sites is set out on the Scottish Government’s web site at www.gov.scot/Topics/Environment/Wildlife-Habitats/protectedareas/ramsar .

CalMac Ferries Ltd have provided the undernoted table detailing harbour dues paid in respect of Scrabster and Stromness between 2006 and 2012.

The Scottish Government has made no investments at St Margaret’s Hope or Gills Bay in each year since 2006.

The northbound Caledonian Sleeper service to Inverness currently conveys up to six bicycles. Southbound, however, it can convey only three bicycles, to make room for boxes of local seafood. The brand new Caledonian Sleeper trains - to be introduced on the Inverness route during spring 2019 - will convey up to ten bicycles in each direction.

Transport Scotland officials have had a number of meetings with representatives of both Western Ferries and Pentland Ferries since 2011. These have been both formal and informal and covered a variety of different issues.

Gordon Ross, Managing Director of Western Ferries, is also a member of the Scottish Government's Expert Ferry Group, which has met ten times since 2013.

We have had no recent discussions with the UK Government on this matter, following its publication of relevant guidance in June 2017.

Scottish Ministers have written to the Home Secretary following publication of our further powers paper, Scotland’s Population Needs and Migration Policy, seeking a meeting to discuss how the migration system could meet Scotland’s distinct needs.

We remain very concerned of the importance of a cap on migration, which does not reflect Scotland's needs, as we are aware the Tier 2 cap is causing great difficulties to employers in meeting emerging skill gaps that cannot be through local recruitment.

In November 2017, Crown Estate Scotland (Interim Management) announced their intention to run a further leasing round for commercial scale offshore wind energy. In accordance with Scotland’s National Marine Plan, the spatial locations for such a round will be identified through a Sectoral Marine Planning process. Marine Scotland, as Planning Authority for Scotland’s seas, is currently undertaking this process. It will be informed by strategic environmental, social and economic assessments and will build on previous assessments which included opportunities for marine sectors of interest to provide information on possible impacts. The social and economic assessment, including scenario mapping, will consider the potential impacts and opportunities on stakeholders and sectors currently operating in Scotland’s seas.

The offshore wind plan development process will take some time to complete and will involve consultation and engagement with a wide range of stakeholders and the public. A draft sectoral marine plan, and associated assessments, are expected to be published for statutory consultation in the first half of 2019. We intend to produce the Final Plan in late 2019, although this timescale is subject to the responses received during the statutory consultation and any subsequent process for revising the draft plan.

Discussions between Marine Scotland officials and Crown Estate Scotland (Interim Management) have taken place and are ongoing on the timescales envisaged for the forthcoming leasing round for commercial scale offshore wind and the sectoral marine planning process.

The Minister for Business, Innovation and Energy has met with the Industry co-chair of the Offshore Wind Industry Council on a number of occasions to discuss the content of the Offshore Wind Sector Deal and ensure Scottish interests are represented. As a result of these conversations, the Scottish Government will be part of the UK Government’s working group to evaluate the sector deal in due course.

Marine Scotland officials have presented on the sectoral marine planning process at two Crown Estate Scotland (Interim Management) workshops on the 24 and 29 of June in London and Edinburgh respectively.