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-22647

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 16 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how many students who have completed energy efficiency qualifications have remained in Scotland and are currently employed within the energy efficiency sector.

The Scottish Government does not hold or have access to information on how many students have completed specific energy efficiency qualifications or where they are currently working. As energy efficiency would typically form part of a wider course syllabus for a diverse range of qualifications including engineering, technology, science and construction, the Scottish Government is unable to identify which courses include an energy efficiency component and therefore does not have the information required to answer the question accurately.

Question reference: S6W-22645

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 16 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what key performance indicators it uses to measure the success of the Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan scheme, in terms of the improvements to energy efficiency delivered by funded works.

The Home Energy Scotland (HES) Grant and Loan Scheme offers homeowners in Scotland a grant, interest free loan or a combination of both to support the installation of energy efficiency measures and zero direct emission heating.

Energy efficiency measures funded through the scheme must be recommended on the property’s EPC, ensuring that funding is being utilised for measures which are suitable for a property and will result in a reduction in carbon emissions.

Question reference: S6W-22666

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 16 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the effectiveness of the current supply chain for heat pump maintenance, including (a) parts, (b) labour and (c) its ability to grow to meet any increasing demand.

The pace of the Heat in Buildings transition requires a substantial growth in supply chains, including heat pump installation and maintenance. Supporting Scotland’s current and future workforce to develop the skills needed for the net zero transition is a priority for this government. Our Heat in Buildings Supply Chains Delivery Plan sets out practical steps that we will take to support the growth of the green heat sector. We continue to work in partnership with the sector to ensure that the appropriate support and training provision are aligned at a local level with business needs and future local demands.

Question reference: S6W-22651

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 16 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-21208 by Patrick Harvie on 26 September 2023, how many households have received the rural uplift within the Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan scheme in each month since September 2022.

The following table sets out the total number of applications approved and paid for the rural uplift in each month from September 2022 to October 2023.

The rural uplift has only been included as part of the HES Grant and Loan Scheme since the launch of the Scheme in December 2022, meaning data only goes back to this date. Four applications from November 2022 received the rural uplift as these had not yet progressed to a formal offer when the rural uplift was introduced.

Payments are often made in the months following an approved application, which means that the number of applications approved in a month will not be equal to the number of applications paid in a month.

Month	Rural Uplift Applications Approved	Rural Uplift Applications Paid
Sep-22	-	-
Oct-22	-	-
Nov-22	4	-
Dec-22	35	-
Jan-23	146	-
Feb-23	100	15
Mar-23	144	22
Apr-23	237	52
May-23	238	81
Jun-23	222	113
Jul-23	208	136
Aug-23	166	182
Sep-23	177	253
Oct-23	105	218

Question reference: S6W-22674

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 16 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of its publication, Heat in Buildings: progress report 2023, how much funding was available for the Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan scheme, and what the total spend in the form of grants and loans was, in the 2022-23 financial year.

For the budget and spend relating to the Home Energy Scotland Grant and Loan scheme (formerly HES Loan and Cashback) in 2023-23, please see the following:

Budget allocation – I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-13676 on 19 January 2023.

Budget Spend – I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-19954 on 9 August 2023.

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-22657

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 16 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the potential impact of future demand for servicing of renewable heating solutions on market rates for (a) labour and (b) parts.

Question reference: S6W-22675

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 16 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that sufficient numbers of qualified insulation contractors are available to meet demand.

Our Heat in Buildings Supply Chains Delivery Plan sets out practical steps that we will take to support the growth of the green heat sector. We continue to work in partnership with the sector to ensure that the appropriate support and training provision are aligned at a local level with business needs and future local demands. The Scottish Government has funded Energy Saving Trust to develop an Insulation Toolkit to explain the importance of insulation and the likely future demand. It also gives guidance to help installers achieve PAS 2030 certification and become TrustMark registered. This will be launched shortly and will be promoted to stakeholders by Energy Saving Trust.

Question reference: S6W-22656

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 16 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to creating a funding scheme to assist with ongoing maintenance costs of renewable heating solutions installed under the current government capital support schemes for (a) housing associations, (b) private homeowners and (c) landlords.

The purpose of the current capital support schemes is to offer applicants funding to support the installation of energy efficiency measures and zero emissions heating.

We recognise that our supply chains will have to grow substantially to meet the future demand for both installation and maintenance. Our Heat in Buildings Supply Chains Delivery Plan sets out practical steps that we will take to support the growth of the green heat sector. We continue to work in partnership with the sector to ensure that the appropriate support and training provision are aligned at a local level with business needs and future local demands.

Question reference: S6O-02743

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 16 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any impact that preventable illnesses have on the Scottish economy.

The Scottish Government has drawn from a range of sources including the Labour Force Survey, the Fraser of Allander Institute and ONS’ Labour Market Statistics as part of its consideration of the impact of preventable illness and long term conditions on the Scottish economy. A range of actions are underway across government to mitigate this including the delivery of No-One Left Behind, reviewing the Health and Work Strategy and working with NHS and PHS to support the delivery of employer and employee work-related support services including Healthy Working Lives and Working Health Services Scotland.

Question reference: S6O-02771

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 November 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 23 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to support the development of hydrogen fuelling infrastructure for use by heavy goods vehicles and other roadgoing heavy machinery.