Chamber and committees

A total of 494 people have benefited from an interim care placement procured using our additional funding offer. The total number of people in interim placements as of 3 April is 545.

This information is published at Interim care placement uptake - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) .

The Scottish Government does not hold the requested information regarding the number of the interim care beds acquired through the announced additional funding that are still being used as of 1 April.

The estimated number and percentage of domestic properties by Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) energy efficiency rating band are published in the ‘Scottish House Condition Survey (SHCS): Key Findings’ report.

The latest published data are available at: Scottish house condition survey: 2019 key findings , which show that around 1.4 million dwellings, representing 55% of the housing stock had an EPC rating lower than Band C (based on the latest SAP 2012 EPC methodology).

The latest estimates are for 2019. Due to Covid-19 restrictions, the fieldwork for the 2020 SHCS was suspended in March 2020 and did not resume. The 2021 SHCS was also impacted and was undertaken using a non-contact external plus approach. The results are not directly comparable to those from previous years and will be published as experimental statistics on 30 May 2023.

Scottish Ministers are on record as expecting public bodies to be considerate to the circumstances of people who are in debt and that those who genuinely can’t pay are provided with support and advice. In relation to council tax debt Ministers have actively encouraged local authorities to share good practice on debt assistance and collection, and to use the existing flexibilities available to them.

Scottish Government recognises the challenges being faced by households due to the cost of living crisis and have taken considerable action in support, including the tripling of the Fuel Insecurity Fund in 2023-24. We have taken decisive action in relation to debt including increasing the Minimum Protected Balance an individual can keep in their bank account when subject to debt recovery to £1000 and increasing the length of time people have to seek advice before action can be taken to pursue debt.

The Scottish Government's Council Tax Reduction (CTR) Scheme supports those that would not be expected to afford to meet their council tax liability, and aims to prevent households from falling into debt in the first place. Applications can be backdated by up to 6 months and over 450,000 households receive some level of CTR, and on average recipients save over £750 a year.

Anyone struggling with living costs should contact their local authority who will be able to provide advice and support.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-17263 on 4 May 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 .

The Scottish Government is committed to delivering a Net Zero, Wellbeing economy and a highly skilled workforce is critical to this ambition. Our National Strategy for Economic Transformation is clear that we must adapt our education and skills system to become more responsive and agile so that it can deliver on our key priorities.

Published in 2020, the Climate Emergency Skills Action Plan (CESAP) provides a framework for green skills planning and investment across priority sectors that will be critical to the transition to net zero: Energy, Construction, Transport, Manufacturing and Agriculture and land-use.

Skills Development Scotland and the Scottish Funding Council are progressing Pathfinder projects to identify the skills requirements necessary to support the priority sectors identified in CESAP including in heat decarbonisation. The Pathfinders are operating in Glasgow City and Shetland Islands and the findings will strengthen the green skills evidence base and inform further action to address green skills gaps.

Other examples of work in the energy sector include the development of an Energy Skills Passport, to support workers as we move towards the just transition. Additionally, the upcoming Onshore Wind Sector Deal, which will enable the delivery of 20GW of installed onshore wind by 2030, will have a specific theme on Skills, Supply Chain and Circular Economy.

The breakdown of CalMac scheduled sailings defined as (a) on time, (b) Level 1 Lateness and (c) Level 2 Lateness for each month since March 2022 are provided in the following table.

In response to the recommendations from ‘Impact of Scotland’s Developing Young Workforce Strategy on Employer Engagement’ we are working with partners, including the employer led DYW network, to develop a delivery plan. The plan will build on the progress that we are making in supporting a record number of school leavers into an initial positive destination. We will provide further information during summer 2023.

We plan to bring forward legislative proposals based on our New Deal for Tenants consultation as soon as possible after the Summer recess.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-17264 on 4 May 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 .

The Blue Flag beach award is an international programme administered by the Foundation for Environmental Education. The main themes are; water quality; safety and information provision; environmental education; and land based facilities. Keep Scotland Beautiful coordinated the Blue Flag awards in Scotland until 2016. The following table shows how many beaches were granted Blue Flag status in Scotland from 2007 until the final award in 2015.