Chamber and committees

As outlined in the answer to another question raised by the member regarding treatment lengths (S6W-29773 on 3 December 2024), the Scottish Government commissioned Public Health Scotland (PHS) to carry out an evaluation of the Residential Rehabilitation programme.

As outlined in a previous answer by Christina McKelvie on 31 July (S6W-28596), the Scottish Government commissioned Public Health Scotland (PHS)to carry out monitoring and evaluation of the residential rehabilitation programme throughout the course of the National Mission.

Climate finance is key to climate action – as it is essential to allow developing countries to decarbonise in a fair way which supports communities, builds resilience, and addresses loss and damage caused by climate change, in particular frequent devastating weather events.

Scotland was the first nation to commit funds specifically to climate justice, launching the Climate Justice Fund (CJF) in 2012, and committing to trebling it to £36 million over the course of this Parliamentary Term (2021-2026). The Fund is fully committed, with £10 million mobilised to address loss and damage, in line with our commitment to urgently meet the needs of vulnerable communities.

For a full breakdown of allocations, please go to: Climate Justice Fund 2024-2026: allocations - gov.scot.

The UK Withdrawal from the European Union (Continuity) (Scotland) Act 2021 is one means by which the Scottish Government implements its alignment policy. The section 1(1) power has been used once to introduce secondary legislation, in respect of The Public Water Supplies (Scotland) Amendment Regulations 2022.

This legislation, laid on 22 December 2022, aligns with the EU Drinking Water Directive 2020/2184 (Recast) on the quality of water for human consumption. This Directive is designed to protect water intended for human consumption (“drinking water”) from source to tap, put in place measures for access to water and drive-up resource efficiency by tackling pollutants at source. This instrument also ensures alignment of health-based standards, as recommended by the World Health Organisation, and enables better reporting of these standards in Scotland.

The Scottish Government will continue to use this power if it is the most appropriate means to deliver alignment and advance important regulatory standards. If this power is used, the Scottish Government will inform parliament through the agreed reporting process.

When considering any application for a proposed gas-fired power plant application, Scottish Ministers’ consideration of emissions would be considered within the accompanying environmental impact assessments (EIA), which would be carried out on a case-by-case basis in accordance with the relevant EIA regulations.

Our draft Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan (ESJTP) makes clear our opposition to the continued use of unabated fossil fuels to generate electricity.

The nature of the relationship between the Acorn Project and other members of the Scottish Cluster is a matter for the UK Government to determine as part of the cluster sequencing programme. This includes when, and which, emitter projects (which may include gas-fired power plants) are selected. We urgently need a firm commitment from the UK Government on the timeline and funding arrangements for the Acorn project and stand ready to work constructively with the UK Government to ensure the fastest possible deployment.

In February 2022, an application under section 36 of the Electricity Act seeking consent for construction and operation of the Peterhead Low Carbon Combined Cycle Gas Turbine Power Station was formally lodged with the Energy Consents Unit. This is currently before Ministers for determination and as such, it would be inappropriate for Ministers to make any comment.

The Scottish Government is aware of the report.

The Scottish Government already has in place service level agreements with the Animal and Plant Health Agency and local authorities to ensure farm animal welfare legislation is complied with. In addition, Scottish Government Inspectors from our Rural Payment and Inspections Directorate conduct a number of on farm inspections annually which include the consideration of any livestock present.

The Scottish Government also recognises the challenges faced by local authorities in the current fiscal climate and in line with the Verity House Agreement, we continue to engage with COSLA on resourcing matters.

There are three key parts to our national approach to achieving improvements in treatment options and recovery pathways for residential rehabilitation; Investing in a significant increase in the capacity of residential rehabilitation services; Improving pathways into, through and out of rehabilitation services, in particular for those with multiple complex needs; Developing a standardised approach to commissioning residential rehabilitation services.

Scottish Government asked Public Health Scotland (PHS) to investigate the apparent decline in alcohol treatment numbers and PHS will publish their findings on 3 December 2024.

We are continuing to work with partners and stakeholders to develop a national specification for alcohol and drug treatment in Scotland. The national specification will build on the forthcoming UK Clinical Guidelines for Alcohol Treatment which will support the improvement of alcohol treatment in Scotland, mirroring the use of the Orange Book Guidelines for drug treatment.

In 2024-25, £112.9 million is being made available to ADPs. This funding is used to ensure that local services meet the needs of people who experience alcohol and drugs harms.

In 2023-2024, the number of statutory-funded residential rehabilitation placements increased to 938, the majority of which included alcohol use or co-dependency. This shows that we are on track to meet our commitment to 1000 people accessing public funding for residential rehabilitation by 2026.