Chamber and committees

Options for the Agricultural Transformation Programme are continuing to be worked through and may need to respond to the evolving impacts of Covid-19. On-going work includes the feasibility of uptake, value for money and effective delivery to meet the desired outcome for delivering transformational change. Details of the Programme, including the funding allocations, are expected to be announced later this year. Some aspects of the Programme will involve immediate actions but the key policy purpose of the Programme is to promote long term change for the future.

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-28278 on 29 April 2020. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx .

We are determined to help keep companies in business and we are delivering a package of support measures worth £2.3 billion to limit the impact of COVID-19 on the business community.

Local Authorities are responsible for the administration of the small business grant scheme, including applying our guidance on eligibility for the grants which is available at https://www.gov.scot/publications/local-government-finance-circular-5-2020-covid-19-grant-funding-schemes/ .

In addition, we have also extended the eligibility for the £10,000 Small Business Grant to additional ratepayers not covered by the original scheme, which includes Sports clubs eligible for the Small Business Bonus Scheme but in receipt of discretionary sports relief.

Shootings and deer forests will be able to benefit from the 1.6% universal non-domestic rates relief in 2020-21, which will apply automatically to their non-domestic rates bills. They may also benefit from up to 100 per cent rates relief through the Small Business Bonus Scheme, and may qualify for Empty Rates Relief in specific circumstances.

We are determined to help keep companies in business and our financial support now exceeds the £2.3 billion passed on from the UK Government and actively works to fill the gaps in the UK scheme. In designing the relief and grant system we had to balance helping as many businesses as possible against what was affordable. Where possible these decisions prioritised traditional businesses occupying small properties over more generic lands and heritages such as huts, sites and bare ground.

Shootings, deer forests, fishing huts and game larders will be able to benefit from the 1.6% universal non-domestic rates relief in 2020-21, which will apply automatically to their non-domestic rates bills.

As with any other rateable property, owners, tenants and occupiers of these lands and heritages may apply for different reliefs. Many of these premises may be in receipt of up to 100 per cent rates relief which is available through the Small Business Bonus Scheme, and may qualify for Empty Rates Relief in specific circumstances.

The Scottish Government is also offering other forms of support outside of the non-domestic rates system and has just announced a £100 million fund to help micro and SME businesses as well as the newly self-employed not eligible for other schemes and with immediate cash flow issues.

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-28278 on 29 April 2020. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx .

Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) and Scottish Forestry are keeping the impact on deer management targets of the Coronavirus (COVID-19) guidance under regular review. Where these targets form part of contractual leases, Scottish Rural Development Programme (SRDP) commitments, Management Arrangements or agreements under the Deer (Scotland) Act 1996, SNH and Scottish Forestry expect to show flexibility with any grant payments and will continue to provide advice and guidance in order to support land managers.

We are determined to help keep companies in business and our financial support now exceeds the £2.3 billion passed on from the UK Government and actively works to fill the gaps in the UK scheme.

Owners, tenants and occupiers of Deer Forests and Shooting Rights will be able to benefit from the 1.6% universal non-domestic rates relief in 2020-21, which will apply automatically to their non-domestic rates bills. As with any other rateable property, they may apply for different reliefs. The majority are eligible for 100 per cent rates relief through the Small Business Bonus Scheme, and unutilised shooting rights may qualify for Empty Rates Relief.

In addition, the Scottish Government has also announced a £100 million fund to help micro and SME businesses and the newly self-employed not eligible for other schemes experiencing immediate cash flow issues.

The UK Government has also announced the Self-Employment Income Support Scheme (SEISS) to support self-employed individuals whose income has been negatively impacted by the Coronavirus pandemic. This scheme will provide a grant to self-employed individuals or partnerships, worth 80% of their profits up to a cap of £2,500 per month.

The Scottish Government published the Pollinator Strategy for Scotland in 2017. Implementation of the strategy is led by SNH who work in partnership with others to encourage and support a range of initiatives to help all pollinating insects. These range from creating new habitat and enhancing existing habitats through to public engagement and monitoring. SNH produces an annual Pollinator Progress Report and this highlights the many projects being carried out across Scotland by a range of groups to make Scotland a more pollinator-friendly environment.

SNH also increasingly identifies cross cutting opportunities within its own work to deliver its ambitions for pollinators. Hence programmes such as Green Infrastructure and the Biodiversity Challenge Fund support projects that help pollinators. The SNH website outlines the various initiatives in place to help Scotland's pollinators.

Priorities for the Agricultural Transformation Programme funding were announced in the Programme for Government 2019-20 and are detailed on page 57. It will include, for example, developing pilot schemes to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from agriculture and encouraging more tree planting across Scotland including woodland integration and agro-forestry on Scottish farms.

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Interim Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

The SPS resource budget envelope, provided by the Scottish Government, includes funding for educational programmes.

Prior to 2017, education services in Scotland’s public sector prisons were provided through commercial arrangements by 2 further education colleges: New College Lanarkshire and Fife College. These contracts were agreed following rigorous procurement processes to ensure best value and the most economically advantageous service.

In 2017, our New Generation learning and skills contract was awarded to a single provider (Fife College) for the delivery of education services across all of Scotland’s public sector prisons. The decision to procure a single provider for education services across public service prisons was based on the need to ensure consistency of culture, staffing flexibility and benefits of economies of scale.

Details of contract costs are provided in the following table.

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Interim Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

SPS does not hold the information in the format requested for the period 2007-08 to 2013. We do however hold data from 2013 onwards and this is provided in the following table.

The table provides cumulative data on all qualifications achieved by prison based learners for the periods 2013-14 to 2017-18 inclusive and also includes details of qualifications achieved since 2018 broken down by Scottish Credit and Qualifications Framework (SCQF) which is not available for previous years.