Chamber and committees

The independent Scottish Environmental Protection Agency lead and coordinate strategic flood risk management planning, provide advice and guidance to planning authorities, and are the flood forecasting and warning authority for Scotland.

SEPA monitors water levels and rainfall in two of the headwaters above Hawick (Slitrig and Teviot) to provide the community with a Flood Warning Service.This information is available for everyone on SEPA’s website.

SEPA work closely with the local planning authority to provide advice on flood risk and respond to flood events at all stages prior to, during and after flooding.

SEPA Water Levels

Scottish Rainfall Data - provided by Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA)

Our guidance to local authorities on the administration of the cost of living award, available at Local government finance circulars - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) , sets out that councils have discretion to choose how this support is provided to eligible households in order to ensure delivery in April 2022.

All local authorities have now confirmed that most payments are included as a credit in Council Tax Bills for 2022-23.

Circularity Scotland has identified preferred bidders to deliver IT, operations and logistics work and is in intensive discussions with them to finalise the contracts. We expect this to conclude shortly.

I have accepted the Griggs recommendations in principle and I am pleased to announce that I have formed a Ministerial Aquaculture Strategy Forum to progress the recommendations of the review and to advise on the development of the Vision for sustainable aquaculture.

Work to produce the Vision by the end of the year will consider how to ensure the whole aquaculture sector is sustainable environmentally, economically and socially, including how best to protect the marine environment and benefit communities.

I will personally lead the Strategic Forum to deliver this Government’s aspirations for the sector and ensure that Scotland’s aquaculture sector is supported, innovative, achieves its full potential, and operates within environmental limits and with social licence, ensuring there is a thriving marine ecosystem for future generations.

The aquaculture sector in Scotland supports over 11,700 jobs and generated £885 million Gross Value Added in 2018. I have observed first-hand the important role it plays in some of our most rural and coastal communities, in addition to the many, varied and skilled roles it supports across its wider supply chain.

To support the work of the forum, I have asked my officials to form a small consenting task group to make immediate progress on streamlining the consenting system to ensure processes are more efficient while maintaining high environmental standards. This work will start with an immediate change to the marine licence validity period for shellfish and finfish farms from 6 to 25 years, bringing it in line with the sea bed lease renewal cycle.

Today I have asked the Scottish Science Advisory Council to give consideration to the science recommendations. As Scotland’s highest level and independent science advisory body, the Council will help to ensure that the changes we progress ensure the long term success of Scotland’s aquaculture sector, helping understand and tackle environmental challenges, and to maintain its spot as the UK’s number one food export and its reputation as a healthy, low-carbon and quality food source.

The Scottish Government has contacted all Scottish hosts to check that people are happy to undergo statutory safeguarding checks and to gather more information about their offer. This information will then be passed onto local authorities so they can undertake the relevant checks.

It is vital that the supply chain for the installation and maintenance of zero emission heating systems is equipped with the necessary skills and qualifications to provide a high quality and responsive service to consumers. We estimate that the supply of skills is largely balanced at existing levels of heat pump demand, but will need to grow substantially to match the pace and scale of the heat transition.

We have partnered with Skills Development Scotland to undertake a ‘Heat in Buildings Workforce Assessment Project’ which will help us better understand the timing of workforce growth and how best to support people transitioning into key sectors, including low carbon heating. This work is at an advanced stage and we will publish the findings in due course.

We have committed to publishing our Heat in Buildings Supply Chain Delivery Plan later this year which will detail actions and public support to aid workforce growth through a combination of reskilling, upskilling and youth employment.

The independent Barclay Review of Non-Domestic Rates acknowledged that exemption - where types of property are exempt from rating – is not the best way to affect non-domestic rates liabilities. The review highlighted that where properties are not valued and do not appear on the valuation roll the financial benefit to those concerned is unknown, which decreases transparency and has the potential to create unfairness for other ratepayers. Furthermore, exemptions are based on the property characteristics of lands and heritages, rather than occupiers. As such, any exemption for the property types that ALEOs operate would require to apply across the tax base, to all similar lands and heritages.

The independent Barclay Review recommended that charity relief be ended for ALEOs and the existing relief for ALEOs removed. The Scottish Government only accepted this recommendation in part, and on 28 November 2017 it was announced that properties being run by council ALEOs in receipt of relief, charitable or sports club, on that date would be able to retain that relief in full. However, to address the concerns of the continuing expansion of the ALEO approach, the cost of further relief to ALEOs would be offset to councils to mitigate against future ALEO expansion.

ALEOs are still able to claim relief, and Local Authorities may award the relief included within their baseline amount as they see fit. However, if the total amount awarded by the Council exceeds the established baseline, its Local Government settlement is adjusted by an offsetting amount.

People of all ages in Scotland living with Cystic Fibrosis have access to Specialist Cystic Fibrosis Centres. These include a Clinical Psychologist who forms part of the multidisciplinary team supporting the patient and their family.

Patient referrals will be made to the psychologist for in-patients, out-patients and those whom the multi-disciplinary team have specific concerns about. National Services Scotland- who commission adult CF Services- receive data about the work carried out by clinical psychologists within the annual reports for each Adult Cystic Fibrosis Centre. This data, however, does not specifically state how many patients were seen by the psychologist at their annual review and instead relates to referrals and care episodes.

Paediatric Cystic Fibrosis Services are commissioned and delivered by Local Health Boards, therefore information is not held centrally on the percentage of children who have seen a psychosocial professional at their 12 month review.

All boiler and heating systems, including Air Source Heat Pumps installed under Warmer Homes Scotland are guaranteed for a 2 year period. Warmworks, the Managing Agent for the scheme provide a one year maintenance warranty with the installer and this runs from the date of the installation for 12 months. Once this 12 month period is up, there is a further 12 month warranty with the boiler/heating system manufacturer. This means the boiler/heating system is covered for a full 2 years from the date of installation.

At the end of this 2 year warranty period all Warmer Homes Scotland customers become responsible for the maintenance of their boilers and heating systems together with any associated costs.

The Scottish Government has published proposals on the collection of additional rent data on pages 76 to 78 of the Draft Rented Sector Strategy Consultation paper titled ‘ A New Deal for Tenants ’.

The scope of the feasibility will cover all the aspects raised on pages 76 to 78 and will also take into consideration any additional issues raised through Consultation responses and during discussions with key delivery partners.