Chamber and committees

Scotland was the first country in the UK to achieve 100% Unicef UK Baby Friendly Initiative accreditation in Maternity and Community and Neonatal services. Scottish Government has invested in the Baby Friendly Initiative (BFI) across NHS Scotland to provide support planning for sustainability. This initiative includes best practice standards for health professionals and services to support women to successfully establish and continue breastfeeding.

We have also provided more than £800k funding to our Third Sector partners over the past three years. This investment is being used to develop their breastfeeding peer support programmes as part of a tiered service of support, including face-to-face contacts.

It is for each NHS Board to plan services to meet the needs of its population including how best to utilise funding, facilities and staff to deliver these services.

The Scottish Government has today published its Draft Heat Networks Delivery Plan for consultation. The Consultation will run until 15 December and can be accessed at https://consult.gov.scot/energy-and-climate-change-directorate/heat-networks-delivery-plan

This consultation document fulfils the requirement of the Heat Networks (Scotland) Act 2021 to consult with relevant persons in preparing the heat networks delivery plan (Part 1). It outlines in draft how the provisions of the 2021 Act, and any other supporting policies, will contribute to increasing the use of heat networks in Scotland. It sets out the proposed approach that the Scottish Ministers intend to take to increase the use of heat networks in Scotland and how the statutory targets will be met. In addition, it outlines how progress will be measured and the expected contribution that heat networks will make toward meeting the emission reduction targets.

Over this parliamentary term we are investing at least £1.8 billion in heat and energy efficiency in buildings, including investing £400 million to support the development of large-scale heat infrastructure, such as heat networks.

The consultation document also seeks views on policy proposals relating to aspects of the emerging regulatory regime.

I have also written to the Conveners of the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee and Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee. The Government looks forward to engaging with interested parties on this issue.

The Scottish Government recognises the positive health benefits of breastfeeding for mothers and babies and expects breastfeeding support to be available to mothers whenever this is required, particularly in the early days and weeks of a baby’s life.

Information on local breastfeeding services is not held centrally. It is for each NHS Board to plan services to meet the needs of its population including how best to utilise funding, facilities and staff to deliver these services.

We provide £2.3m per year to support the 2011 Maternal and Infant Nutrition Framework Action Plan which includes breastfeeding support, and have provided more than £6m over the past four years to NHS Boards and third sector partners to improve the quality of breastfeeding support.

The Scottish Government will establish a Scottish public inquiry under the Inquiries Act 2005 by the end of this year, to scrutinise decisions taken in the course of this pandemic, and learn lessons for future pandemics.

Public discussion and engagement about a draft COVID-19 Inquiry Establishment Aims and Principles paper took place between 24th August and end of September. Analysis of the engagement is being used to help shape drafting of the terms of reference for the inquiry. A report covering public engagement on the inquiry will be published in due course.

Discussions are underway with the Lord President to identify a candidate to chair the inquiry, in line with our previous commitment to having it led by a judge.

A statement on the appointment of the chair and the terms of reference for the inquiry will be made to the Scottish Parliament in accordance with the requirements of the Inquiries Act 2005.

The Scottish Government is offering 150 bursaries of £20,000 for career changers to do teacher training in STEM subjects where the demand for teachers is at its greatest.

A new phase of our teacher recruitment campaign is underway. The recruitment campaign aims to encourage students and career changers to apply for a teacher education course, with a particular focus on STEM subjects.

In addition, since the start of the pandemic we have provided £240m of additional investment, over two financial years (2020-21 and 2021-22), specifically for the recruitment of more education staff.

The vast majority of properties (994) in Tarbolton already have access to superfast broadband speeds of 30 Megabits per second (Mbps) and above, thanks in large part to the £463 million Digital Scotland Superfast Broadband (DSSB) programme.

The remaining 169 properties in Tarbolton will be able to access superfast broadband, thanks to our Reaching 100% (R100) programme which will ensure that every home and business in Scotland can access superfast broadband by the end of 2021.

More information on what the R100 programme means for properties in Tarbolton can be found by visiting our online checker at https://www.scotlandsuperfast.com .

The Scottish Landfill Tax (Qualifying Material) Order 2016 sets out the material that qualifies at the lower rate of Scottish Landfill Tax and the qualifying conditions that have to be met.

The Order sets out specific circumstances in which incinerator bottom ash qualifies for the lower rate. As biostabilised waste is not listed in the Order, the standard rate of tax would apply.

Zero Waste Scotland has commissioned a study to better understand the potential for biostabilisation as a municipal residual waste treatment process in Scotland.

The Scottish Government has invested over £50 million in development of the ChargePlace Scotland network. Funding is provided to all of Scotland’s local authorities to provide communities across Scotland with a robust user-focused charging network ensuring that no area is left behind. The majority of this investment has been through the Local Authority Install Programme, meaning that local authorities are responsible for the procurement of charge points and the associated warranty and maintenance packages.

Recent offers of grant for the Local Authority Install Programme include a requirement to embed the Place Principle in delivery, supporting the National Performance Framework’s collective purpose for Scotland. This establishes an expectation to plan and work with local communities and recognise the benefits of planning, investment and implementing activity at the regional level of place, where that focus could drive faster rates of sustainable and inclusive economic growth.

Many local authorities carry out procurement using frameworks established by organisations such as Scotland Excel. These frameworks are also covered by the Sustainable Procurement Duty and therefore consider the wider social, economic and environmental aims of procurement in a consistent manner as required by the sustainable procurement duty under the Act.

Whilst Scottish Ministers fund the operation of the ChargePlace Scotland public EV charging network, installation and maintenance of the infrastructure is the sole responsibility of the respective charge point owners. Funding has been provided to local authorities to support maintenance up to 2022.

To support development of a resilient and reliable national network, that in turn supports Scotland’s economic, environmental and social well-being, all grants for electric vehicle charging infrastructure include conditions requiring the grantee (charge point owner) to have a warranty & maintenance contract in place to ensure infrastructure remains in good working order.

To ensure ChargePlace Scotland is an inclusive network, suitable for all EV drivers across all areas of Scotland and to complement our existing ‘Common Requirements and Good Practice Guide for the ChargePlace Scotland Network’ , we are developing guidance documents to aid the planning and installation of charge points in areas with varied geographic and demographic characteristics, including rural and island communities and areas at the top of the Scottish Index of Multiple Deprivation.

We are also involved in the development of Accessible Electric Vehicle Chargepoint standards that will be applicable across the United Kingdom. Through Scottish Enterprise’s Can Do Innovation Challenge framework we have already contributed £390,000 to Scottish SMEs, supporting the development of innovative ideas to make charge points more accessible. Engaging the disabled community and stakeholder organisations throughout the process.

We are also working with Scottish Futures Trust to consider the most appropriate structures and approach to expanding public charging networks across Scotland. Ensuring a Just Transition will be embedded as a core principle so that no parts of Scotland are left behind.

In addition to our work on charging infrastructure we are continuing our support for decarbonisation of the Scottish bus fleet and have committed £120 million over the coming 5 years. The Scottish Zero Emission Bus Challenge Fund (ScotZEB) is designed to encourage the market to bring forward new and innovative ways to finance the transition to zero-emission bus fleets and will support Scotland’s green recovery, providing immediate economic stimulus and supporting the Scottish Government’s bold ambitions to decarbonise the bus fleet.

The Heat in Buildings Strategy (7 October) sets out an ambitious policy package to deliver the transition to zero emissions heating, including at least £1.8 billion investment over the course of this parliament to kick-start market growth and support those least able to pay. This includes a minimum of £465 million to support those least able to pay, £200 million to support energy efficiency and zero emissions heat in the public estate, £200 million Social Housing Net Zero Heat Fund, and £400 million for large scale heat decarbonisation projects. This year we have increased the budget for our Home Energy Scotland Loan and Cashback Scheme to £21 million. We have also increased the budget for local authority energy efficiency and green heating schemes to £64 million, and for our Warmer Homes Scotland programme targeted at those in fuel poverty to £50 million.

Over the longer term, the Strategy sets out the steps we are taking to develop a market framework that will create demand for zero emissions heating, help consumers overcome investment costs, and help secure private investment. We are committed to phasing out the need for new fossil fuel boilers in off-gas areas from 2025 and on-gas from 2030. We will bring forward legislation during this Parliamentary term which, subject to devolved competence, will include regulatory proposals to require the installation of zero or very near zero emissions heating systems in existing buildings – in both the domestic and non-domestic sectors.

The Strategy identifies energy efficiency, heat pumps and heat networks as near-term strategic priorities. Efficient heat pumps supply renewable energy and heat networks can supply heat from a range of sources. The Scottish Government supports the use of renewable heat in heat networks through a number of mechanisms, including enhanced non-domestic rates relief for networks run from renewable sources. The longer term balance between renewable and other sources of zero emissions heat will be determined by a wider whole systems approach and will be reviewed as part of the Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan in 2022.

We support suppliers including Green Deal installers through our Sustainable Energy Supply Chain programme, administered by the Energy Saving Trust (EST). The programme has been running since 2013 and provides assistance and support for installers and other suppliers in Scotland to help them participate fully and effectively in the supply chain for energy efficiency and micro-generation measures and installations.

Over 100 events and training courses have taken place to date supporting over 4,000 individuals, many of whom work for small and micro-sized businesses. Support for Green Deal has included awareness raising events and targeted workshops to help suppliers become Green Deal approved.

The Sustainable Energy Supply Chain programme has also developed a procurement guide to help small and micro-sized businesses bid more effectively for public sector contracts. This was also supported by workshops and webinars across Scotland.

We are also working with industry to co-produce a new ‘Heat in Buildings Supply Chain Delivery Plan’ by Summer 2022 specifically focussed on strengthening the broad supply chains needed to deliver at the pace and scale we need.