Chamber and committees

The total cost of consultants working on the National Care Service to date is £2,014,000.00.

Our refreshed Tobacco Action plan will be published in autumn in this year, which renews our focus on meeting our ambitious target of a Tobacco-Free Scotland by 2034.

We are considering a range of evidence, including the latest international evidence, and are working closely with stakeholders, including Smoking Cessation Co-ordinators, ASH Scotland, the Poverty Alliance, Trading Standards and PHS to deliver actions that will further reduce the smoking rates.

Police Scotland updated the Scottish Police Authority Resources Committee on 9 May 2023, that the Fettes workshop has been closed, with business continuity arrangements put in place; and that staff have been relocated from the affected area in Baluniefield. No immediate action has been taken in Perth as the RAAC is limited to one small area and is graded low risk. Police Scotland has also provided assurance that there is no risk from RAAC to officers, staff or visitors across the police estate.

On 13 June the Cabinet met with Fraser McKinlay – Chief Executive Officer of The Promise Scotland and Fiona Duncan – Chair of The Promise Scotland and Independent Strategic Advisor for the Promise.

Through Scottish Government’s commitment of £36 Million over this parliamentary term, The Climate Justice Fund [CJF] continues to focus on supporting communities being impacted first and worst by the climate crisis.

£7 Million of this has been committed to be spent on Loss and Damage over this parliament (to March 31 2026). £1.7 Million has already been delivered through grants. For details of expenditure I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-13351 on 10 January 2023. In addition, once the selection process and delivery mechanism for the £5 Million funding for non-economic loss and damage is finalised, initiatives can begin to be funded through this programme on the otherwise underfunded and undervalued area of addressing non-economic and slow-onset loss and damage.

Scottish Government is expanding its Human Rights Defendership Fellowship programme to include two £50,000 Gender and Environment fellowships. The fellowship will allow human rights defenders from other countries to spend several months in Scotland to develop their work, skills and extend their networks in a safe place.

A further £24 Million will be awarded through the Climate Just Communities programme over three years. This will be split across Malawi, Rwanda and Zambia to build more inclusive communities that are resilient to the material and social effects of climate change.

Officials are developing options for Cabinet Secretary consideration for allocation of the as yet uncommitted funding.

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

As committed to in the Policy Prospectus ‘Equality, opportunity, community: New Leadership - A Fresh Start’, the Scottish Government will publish the Rural Delivery Plan within the lifetime of this parliament. It will set out how all parts of the Scottish Government are delivering for Scotland’s rural, island and remote coastal communities.

The data referred to was provided by Zero Waste Scotland, drawing on data made available by WRAP.

WRAP has advised Zero Waste Scotland that the data is drawn from a range of initial efficiency studies undertaken to support the UK wide consultation on packaging extended producer responsibility. Queries on the data and publication status, and any subsequent research, should be directed to WRAP.

There are currently three stakeholder groups that are chaired by the Scottish Government, these are; Deposit Return Scheme - Retailers Sector Group Meeting, Deposit Return Scheme - Hospitality Sector Group Meeting, and Deposit Return Scheme - Producer Sector Group Meeting. There are also plans for a separate Local Authority stakeholder group which have been delayed by recent developments.

These groups provide a platform for communication and discussion for stakeholders and maintain relationships to ensure transparent communication and that all stakeholders are inputting into the process.

Decisions remain with organisations that are best placed to make them e.g. if SEPA are responsible they will have their own decision-making process and this will be respected.

Since the introduction of the Forestry Grant Scheme in 2016, 7 woodland creation projects with a value of £1.9M have been agreed directly with Gresham House.

The Scottish Government is committed to an infrastructure solution to address landslip risks at the A83 Rest and Be Thankful and shares the urgency communities and businesses place on maintaining and improving connectivity of this vital route.

The identification of the preferred route option through the Glen Croe valley on 2 June 2023 is a very important milestone in finding a solution to this long-standing problem. The proposed new debris flow shelter will help protect the road and road users from future landslides.

In developing the route options to improve the resilience and operational safety of the A83 and identifying the permanent, long term solution, early consideration has been given to the transportation of abnormal loads. Work is now being taken forward at pace as we move to the next stage of the project where we will continue to develop the design of the preferred option, the detail of which will be informed by consultation with a wide array of stakeholders, including with respect to possible abnormal load transportation requirements.