Chamber and committees

There are significantly fewer fresh water salmon production sites compared to marine sites, and associated available datasets on fresh water mortality are less extensive with higher variation within the data. Therefore, different analytical approaches are required for fresh water sites, and they could not be included in the original analysis of persistent elevated mortality on Scottish salmon farms. The Scottish Government prioritised marine sites for analysis as there are many more marine sites.

There are no immediate plans to extend this analytical work to include fresh water sites. The Fish Health Inspectorate (FHI) is made aware of all mortality events where mortality exceeds specified thresholds, as a result of a voluntary reporting mechanism which is in place. This includes fresh water sites; the FHI investigates mortality events as they occur.

Aquaculture Production Business(APBs)may notify the Fish Health Inspectorate(FHI)of any corrections to sea lice counts which can legitimately occur and information in the public domain states that the publicly available sea lice count record may be subject to change.

The Scottish Budget 2026-27 committed £61.5 million to the Tackling Child Poverty Fund, with Annex 1 of the Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan 2026-31 setting out further detail of how these funds have been allocated in 2026-27. This represents an increase of £49 million for the Tackling Child Poverty Fund relative to 2025-26.

The Scottish Government put eradicating child poverty at the heart of the Scottish Budget 2026-27, therefore if funding previously committed to the Two Child Limit Payment was not available, this additional funding would have been considered as a priority as part of the budget and spending review process.

We put eradicating child poverty at the heart of the Scottish Budget 2026-27 and Scottish Spending Review, which sets out the Scottish Government’s spending plans up to 2028-29.

If funding previously commitment to the planned Two Child Limit Payment was not available, then additional investment associated with the Scottish Child Payment and premium for children under the age of one would have been considered as a priority as part of the budget and spending review process.

Full details of how the Scottish Government undertakes these checks and risk assessments can be found on Scottish Forestry’s website. Forestry Grant Scheme guidance on financial eligibility is set out on the How to apply page. Information on the supporting evidence required to claim funds is set out on the Claims and payments page, and the Inspections page details Scottish Forestry’s approach to claim inspection monitoring.

The safety of staff and passengers across Scotland’s transport network is a clear priority for the Scottish Government. Transport Scotland officials are assessing the Rail Enforcement Powers Working Group’s recommendations and as part of this they will examine whether these could be extended to other transport modes.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-44387 on 20 March 2026. 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.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-44387 on 20 March 2026. 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.

Jahama Highland Estates own two large areas of land, the western estates of Mamore and Killiechonate at Fort William and Glenshero in the upper Spey.

The latest Forestry Grant Scheme award will support a landscape scale project near Fort William focused on deer management to enable the natural regeneration of over 3,000 hectares of native woodland. This will be delivered without the use of any deer fencing or planting. This is a large project restoring and expanding Caledonian pinewoods and Scotland’s rainforest by reducing herbivore browsing that is currently damaging woodland features of designated sites.

Other Forestry Grant Scheme awards since 2016 to SIMEC Lochaber Hydropower 2 Ltd. have been to; produce a forest plan for existing woodlands on the estates, to remove some areas of invasive non-native rhododendron, to support the management of the native woodland to allow expansion through natural regeneration and, in Glenshero estate, to plant new native and productive woodland.

The Scottish Government has spent approximately £80m on A96 Dualling. This figure comprises expenditure on the vast range of technical and specialist advisory services required to appropriately inform the design, development, assessment, preparation and promotion of major trunk road improvements to the A96.

£261.3m has been spent on consultancy fees on the A9 Dualling Programme out of an estimated total scheme cost for the Programme of £3.97 billion, at April 2025 prices. This figure is inclusive of VAT where applicable and includes spend for taking the various component projects through design and statutory process stages, acquisition of land, demolition and preparatory works, procurement of contractors to construct the works, as well as costs of administering construction works contracts and monitoring construction works activities undertaken to date.