Questions and answers

Question reference: S6W-17394

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 5 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how it will track the progress of commitments made in its publication, Equality, opportunity, community: New leadership - A fresh start.

The Scottish Government has promised a laser like focus on delivery, and we will ensure this happens, by directing energy and resources towards achieving the three missions and supporting the outcomes set out in Equality, opportunity, community: New leadership - A fresh start . Our ambition for an improving, consistent and transparent focus on performance and delivery is shared by Ministers and the Executive Team and work is in hand to strengthen the existing, evidence-based approach to delivery, performance and assurance that currently exists across the organisation.

Building on these existing arrangements, we are enhancing the regular delivery reporting that identifies, tracks, and benchmarks our performance and progress. This work includes the undertaking of rapid analysis to prioritise the resources and funding needed to drive significant progress towards the three missions between now and 2026.

Question reference: S6W-17307

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 5 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any competitive commercial advantage that the port facilities on the River Forth may now have, relative to those on the River Clyde, as a result of the establishment of the Forth Green Freeport.

As part of the Green Freeports bidding process, bidders were required to outline how their choice of tax site locations would minimise displacement of economic activity from wider areas, especially other economically disadvantaged areas. This was given close consideration within the assessment process. The successful bidders – Firth of Forth, and Inverness and Cromarty Firth – will now develop their initial proposals into detailed outline and full business cases.

Scottish Government officials provided feedback to the unsuccessful bidders and confirmed that the Scottish Government stood ready to work with the bidding coalitions to consider whether and how it might be possible to build on aspects of their plans, outside the Green Freeports programme, to deliver jobs and growth in their respective regions.

The two selected Green Freeports will build on specific areas of strength and opportunities in their particular locations, so we are optimistic that the immediate risk of displacement will in practice be limited. They will be required to monitor, mitigate and report on any potential displacement as they move forward to delivery.

Question reference: S6W-16821

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 5 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how many miles of hedgerow have been (a) reinstated and (b) planted through schemes such as the Agri-Environment Climate Scheme, in each year for which data is available.

The Scottish Government supports and funds the creation and restoration of hedgerows in Scotland through the Nature Restoration Fund (NRF) and the Agri Environment Climate Scheme (AECS).

A breakdown of the total miles of hedgerows reinstated and planted through NRF is not routinely collected and any information about hedgerows is gathered under a more general ‘habitat’ metric, therefore this data cannot be provided.

The total miles of hedgerow that have been reinstated and planted through AECS, in each year, is set out in the following table. There was no hedgerow creation in 2022 as the restricted round in 2021 did not include the hedgerow options.

	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020		2021		2023
Planted - Creation of hedgerows (miles)	41	43	57	64	99	3		79
Reinstated - Restoration of existing hedgerows (miles)	3	5	6	9	7	1		4

Please note, the figures above are what was committed to through AECS contracts. This capital item’s unit of measurement is linear metres, and the conversion rate used was 1 metre = 0.00062137 miles.

Question reference: S6W-16926

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 06 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 5 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether scheme articles under the proposed Deposit Return Scheme are deemed to create a new category of waste for the purposes of waste collection services and monitoring.

Question reference: S6W-16902

Asked by: Russell Findlay, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 06 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by George Adam on 5 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the change of First Minister, whether it will provide an update on how many Special Advisers it now employs, broken down by (a) job title, (b) who they work for and (c) pay scale.

Special Advisers are appointed in accordance with Part 1 of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010 by the First Minister as a Special Adviser for the purpose of providing assistance to the Scottish Ministers. All Special Advisers are appointed by, and remain under the responsibility of, the First Minister.

As at the date of your request, the following Special Advisers were in post:

Colin McAllister

Callum McCaig

Jeanette Campbell

Gavin Corbett

Ewan Crawford

Jennie Gollan

David Hutchison

Harry Huyton

Ross Ingebrigtsen

Emily Mackintosh

Jack Middleton

The Pay Bands and Pay Ranges for those Special Advisers are as follows:

Pay Band	Pay Range (£)	Number of SpAds in Band
1	£53,915 - £56,428	0
2	£58,946 - £72,441	4
3	£74,650 - £95,019	6
4	£101,088 - £107,149	1

Since the date of your request, further Special Adviser appointments have been made and a current list of Special Advisers and their responsibilities can be found on the Scottish Government website

Question reference: S6W-17051

Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Linlithgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 14 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 5 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government when it anticipates introducing its proposed bill to legislate to reform the regulation of legal services and whether it will include any provisions that would put into regulation any rules and guidance currently set out on a voluntary basis by the Law Society of Scotland.

The Regulation of Legal Services (Scotland) Bill was introduced to the Scottish Parliament on the 20 April 2023. Information about the Bill can be found on the Scottish Parliament website here .

The powers of the Law Society of Scotland are already well established in legislation, within the Solicitors (Scotland) Act 1980 and the provisions of the Bill are intended to improve and modernise their regulatory function.

The Bill will provide for a modern regulatory framework designed to promote competition and innovation while also improving the transparency and accountability of legal services regulation and the legal complaints system in Scotland.

The Bill introduces a modern set of regulatory objectives and professional principles, while incorporating key aspects of the Better Regulation, the Consumer Principles and the Human Rights (PANEL) Principles, that legal services regulators will require to adhere to. The Bill contains provisions setting out how the independent regulatory committee of the Law Society of Scotland should operate, intended to increase transparency and accountability of legal services regulation. The Bill also introduces provisions about how certain businesses that provide legal services should be regulated, introducing entity regulation and with it stronger protections for consumers, intended to complement existing regulation rather than introduce duplication.

The Bill is designed to take a proportionate approach that seeks to balance and deliver the key priorities of all stakeholders. The Scottish Government has committed to continue to work collaboratively with stakeholders in respect of this reform, and throughout the parliamentary passage of the Bill.

Question reference: S6W-17022

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 13 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 5 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to develop new Help to Buy schemes for first-time buyers.

The Scottish Government does not plan to reopen or develop new Help to Buy schemes for first-time buyers.

Key findings from the evaluation of the Scottish Government’s shared equity schemes showed that 80% of Help to Buy buyers would have been able to purchase a property which met their needs without financial assistance.

We continue to support home ownership through various interventions to help first time buyers. This includes our Low Cost Initiative for First-Time Buyers (LIFT) scheme which helps people on low to moderate incomes to buy their first home either through the open market (Open Market Shared Equity) or new build (New Supply Shared Equity). Support is also available through the Self Build Loan Fund.

Question reference: S6W-16909

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 06 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 5 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what engagement with local authorities it (a) has had and (b) plans to have in the next six months, in relation to the Deposit Return Scheme.

We are supporting local authorities to prepare for the introduction of the scheme. Our scheme will mean that local authorities will have less waste to handle, as well as reduce litter and associated clean-up costs, which is good for residents and council budgets. The Scottish Government is supporting Scottish councils to modernise recycling services, and align with our forthcoming deposit return scheme.

The Scottish Government has met regularly with representatives of local authority waste management via the DRS System-Wide Assurance Group that met 13 times since February 2022. Local authorities remain a key partner and will continue to be part of the programme management structures.

Question reference: S6W-16903

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 06 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 5 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what the main differences are between its Deposit Return Scheme and the equivalent scheme in (a) Finland, (b) Canada, (c) Germany, (d) Sweden, (e) Denmark and (f) Australia, and, in each case, what the reasons were for taking a different approach to implementation in Scotland.

The following table shows the main differences between Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) and the schemes operating in Finland, Canada, Germany, Sweden, Denmark, and Australia.

Comparison of the Scottish Scheme to selected schemes internationally
Region/ Country	Country/ Jurisdiction	Material scope
Europe	Scotland	Plastic (PET), metal (aluminium, steel), glass
Europe	Finland	Plastic (predominantly PET), metal (aluminium), glass
Europe	Germany	Plastic (predominantly PET), metal (aluminium), glass
Europe	Sweden	Plastic (PET), metal (aluminium, steel)
Europe	Denmark	Plastic (predominantly PET), metal (predominantly aluminium), glass
N. America/ Canada	Alberta	Plastic (PET, HDPE, other), metal (aluminium, bimetal), glass, gable top, aseptic, bag-in-box, pouches
N. America/ Canada	British Columbia	Plastic (including polystyrene cups), metal (aluminium, bimetal), glass, gable top, aseptic, pouches, bag-in-box
N. America/ Canada	Newfoundland and Labrador	Plastic, metal (aluminium, bimetal), glass, gable top, aseptic, pouches, bag-in-box
N. America/ Canada	New Brunswick	Plastic, metal (aluminium, other), glass, gable top, aseptic, bag-in-box, plastic cups with foil lids, pouches
N. America/ Canada	Northwest Territories	Plastic, metal (aluminium, bimetal), glass, aseptic, pouches, gable top, bag-in-box
N. America/ Canada	Nova Scotia	Plastic, metal (aluminium, bimetal), glass, gable top, aseptic, pouches
N. America/ Canada	Ontario	Plastic, metal (aluminium, bimetal), glass, gable top, aseptic, bag-in-box
N. America/ Canada	Prince Edward Island	Plastic, metal (aluminium, bimetal), glass, gable top, aseptic, bag-in-box, pouches
N. America/ Canada	Quebec	Plastic, metal (aluminium, bimetal), glass
N. America/ Canada	Saskatchewan	Plastic, metal (aluminium, bimetal, tin), glass, gable top, aseptic
N. America/ Canada	Yukon	Plastic, metal (aluminium, bimetal), glass, gable top, aseptic
Oceania/ Australia	Australian Capital Territory	Plastic (HDPE, PET), metal (aluminium, steel), glass, liquid
Oceania/ Australia	Australian Capital Territory	paperboard
Oceania/ Australia	New South Wales	Plastic (HDPE, PET), metal (aluminium, steel), glass, liquid
Oceania/ Australia	New South Wales	paperboard
Oceania/ Australia	Northern Territory	Plastic (HDPE, PET), aluminium, glass, liquid paperboard
Oceania/ Australia	South Australia	Plastic (HDPE, PET), aluminium, glass, liquid paperboard
Oceania/ Australia	Queensland	Plastic (PET, HDPE, other), metal (aluminium, steel), glass, liquid paperboard
Oceania/ Australia	Western Australia	Plastic, metal (steel, aluminium), glass, liquid paperboard
Oceania/ Australia	Tasmania	Plastic, glass, aluminium, liquid paperboard
Oceania/ Australia	Victoria	Plastic, metal (steel, aluminium), glass, liquid paperboard

In addition to examining other schemes, the Scottish Government consulted extensively with representatives of affected businesses and other stakeholders who would be involved in any Scottish scheme. It was designed to maximise the positive environmental impact while ensuring the scheme was achievable and affordable in order to fully realise the Scottish Government’s environmental ambitions along the journey to net zero.

Question reference: S6W-16910

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 06 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 5 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how many staff are currently working on the Deposit Return Scheme, broken down by pay scale, and how many staff it anticipates will be working on the scheme after it launches on 16 August 2023, broken down by pay scale, and what policy issues it anticipates these staff will be addressing.

Grade	FTE
SCS	2
C2	3
C1	7.8
B3	4.5
B2	2.2
B1	7.5

Chamber and committees