Chamber and committees

We are wholly committed to becoming a net-zero economy by 2045 and, whilst oil and gas licensing is ultimately a reserved area, any Scottish Government support for oil and gas businesses operating in the North Sea is conditional upon them contributing to a sustainable and inclusive energy transition, and ensuring a secure energy supply.

The oil and gas sector has a positive role to play in our journey to net zero. Indeed, we are clear that the North Sea has a vibrant future in renewable energy, hydrogen, and Carbon Capture Utilisation and Storage. Meeting our climate obligations while ensuring a secure energy supply and supporting our highly skilled workforce to transition to the green jobs of the future must all go hand in hand. We will continue to work closely with industry, trade unions, communities and workers to ensure the right skills and training are in place to protect and create jobs as we become a net-zero economy.

The Scottish Government will provide funding to support the chartering the MV Arrow by CalMac Ferries Ltd to assist the resilience on the Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Services (CHFS) network. The cost of the current time charter negotiated between CalMac Ferries Ltd and the Isle of Man Steam Packet Company is £588,000 excluding fuel and harbour dues.

The Scottish Government has made no assessment of the additional cost to CalMac Ferries Ltd for chartering the MV arrow in line with collective bargaining agreements. The crew of the MV Arrow are employed by Seatruck Ltd, who own the vessel and terms and conditions are a matter for that company.

Transport Scotland does not hold the information requested, therefore, I would refer the member to the British Transport Police and/or Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service.

Youth related anti-social behaviour data, which will not result in court proceedings can be sourced via the Scottish Children’s Reporter.

Oil & gas, and wider energy policy is reserved to UK Government, including the licensing of exploration and extraction of offshore reserves. UK Government did not consult with Scottish Government prior to issuing the licence for Cambo. On the 12 August, the First Minister wrote to the UK Government, making our position clear that the UK Government to reassess oil and gas licences already issued but where field development has not yet commenced. This would include the proposed Cambo Field. There was a further call for a four nations summit to be convened in order to discuss how we can work together, both in the run up to COP26 and beyond, to ensure that we provide clear leadership to ensure a just transition to net zero that does not repeat the mistakes of the past.

The Scottish Government has offered to work with the UK Government on a revised licence process – to ensure that licences already issued but where field development has not yet commenced are now reassessed in light of the global climate emergency which all of us now face. As part of this process, we would expect to see robust analysis of the climate impacts of the developments.

The Short-Term lets control Areas legislation applies to changes of use from a dwellinghouse to a short-term let property. As such specifically designed and purpose built student accommodation will generally not be affected by the legislation, however the reference to student accommodation was included for the avoidance of doubt and to ensure future compatibility with proposed legislation relating to the licensing of short-term let properties.

As with any other change of use, it would be for the relevant planning authority to consider whether any change of use from student accommodation to short-term lets was a material change of use in planning terms and required planning consent. It would also be for the planning authority to consider enforcement action in any case where a change of use occurred without the appropriate planning consent.

The following table provides information on gross revenue expenditure in Scotland per primary school pupil.

Table 1: Gross revenue expenditure per primary school pupil across Scottish Local Authorities in 2019-20

We are aware that Scottish Enterprise, Scottish Development International, the Scottish National Investment Bank and Screen Scotland have each had some engagement with PSL Land and Scottish Government officials attended a small number of meetings. According to Companies House records, PSL Land Ltd (SC491629) was dissolved on 29 Dec 2020.

The Scottish Government welcomes private and public sector projects to develop film studio infrastructure in Scotland. With our enterprise and development agencies, we will continue to offer support with various aspects of business planning, including to secure financing, land and specialist advice, while respecting commercial confidentiality.

The primary responsibility for the prevention and investigation of theft lies with Police Scotland. The Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012 stipulates that the Chief Constable of Police Scotland is responsible for the policing of Scotland, and is accountable to the Scottish Police Authority for this, rather than to Scottish Ministers directly.

The Scottish Government assists Police Scotland by supporting in any legislative requirements they identify as necessary in their efforts to prevent and detect theft. The Microchipping of Dogs (Scotland) Regulations 2016 came into force on 29 January 2016, making it a statutory requirement for all dogs over the age of 8 weeks to be identifiable with an implanted microchip which is registered on a database from which Police and local authority officers can request information on owners.

The Scottish Government recognises the impact that periods of imprisonment, including time on remand, can have on families. That is why we are committed to reducing the use of short-term imprisonment, including remand and increasing the use of community-based interventions.

SPS are committed to ensuring that people in prison are able to maintain contact with their family during their time in custody. The SPS Family Strategy puts families and family contact at the heart of supporting prisoners during their time in custody. The Strategy doesn’t differentiate between convicted or remand prisoners and recognises the positive contribution that close family contact and involvement can make in supporting the reintegration of prisoners back into the community.

SPS support family contact during a person's time in custody - including on remand - in a number of ways. This includes in-cell telephony, letters and family contact through visits. Under the Prison Rules, those remanded have a greater visits entitlement than those convicted. Remand prisoners have the opportunity of access to daily family visits in prisons holding remand prisoners.

The Scottish Government has provided £3.9m in grant funding for Prison Visitors Centres since 2016/17. Visitors Centres provide a range of support for families and work in partnership with other organisations to make referrals to more specialist advice and support services for things including financial support, childcare, housing support and welfare counselling. This is in addition to £138k p.a. provided to Families Outside, an organisation which supports families affected by imprisonment so that they can readily access appropriate information and support at a time they need it.

We will continue to work with partners to develop approaches in this area, learning from those with lived experience.

In April 2020 we announced that a prioritisation of legislation was required owing to the Covid-19 pandemic. A decision was taken not to introduce the Good Food Nation Bill in the last Parliamentary session owing to the need to focus on critical legislation.

We look forward to introducing the Good Food Nation Bill as soon as is possible in this Parliamentary term.