Chamber and committees

The majority of legislative duties pertaining to the delivery of allotment services are for local authorities including provision of sites, management of waiting lists and annual reporting of site numbers.

Section 112(4) of the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015 states a local authority must have regard to the desirability of making available allotments that are “reasonably close” to the residence of a person on the waiting list for an allotment.

While there is no statutory definition of “reasonably close”, the Scottish Government has issued guidance to local authorities on Part 9 of the Act which states that as a guide, allotments within a 3 mile radius, or within a 20 minute journey on public transport from where people on the waiting list reside should be considered “reasonably close”.

Local authorities may however opt to apply different travel-time or distance criteria, where appropriate, based upon local geography, particularly in remote and rural areas (where there is, for example, limited public transport provision in that area).

Ultimately, it is for locally elected representatives to make local decisions on how best to deliver and fund services, including allotments, based on local needs and priorities.

The purpose of these new powers is to enable social landlords to apply to the court for an order on the new ground to enable certain victim/survivors of domestic abuse to remain in the family home where it is their wish, and where it is safe and appropriate for them to do so. The new powers also encourage social landlords to take a more proactive role in supporting and protecting victim/survivors of domestic abuse.

While there is no specific requirement for social landlords to notify existing tenants individually of the change to the law around their tenancy arising from the commencement of section 22 of the 2021 Act, the guidance on the use of the new measures published in June encourages social landlords to publicise these new provisions to their tenants and reinforce zero tolerance of domestic abuse. This could be done in a range of ways such as on their website, in tenants’ handbooks and via newsletters.

We will continue to work with social housing providers and other stakeholders who provide support to those experiencing domestic abuse to assess how the new measures are operating in practice.

Local authorities have the autonomy to determine how best to fulfil their duties under the Community Empowerment (Scotland) Act 2015. In exercising this autonomy, the Scottish Government expects local authorities to act lawfully and is committed to supporting local authorities in this.

Although legal proceedings could, in theory, be pursued where statutory duties are not met, the Scottish Government’s strong preference is to work collaboratively with local authorities and the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) to achieve constructive progress.

Maintaining open dialogue with local authority partners remains a key priority, particularly in supporting them to meet their statutory duties relating to allotments. As part of this approach, the Scottish Government has worked with APSE Scotland (Association for Public Service Excellence) to establish a national partnership forum. This forum aims to facilitate the sharing of expertise and good practice in community growing. APSE Scotland is now engaging directly with local authority members to advance this work.

The Scottish Government recognises that the collection of robust data on private rent levels using the powers in Section 14 of the Housing (Scotland) Act is essential to support decisions on rent control areas, while ensuring that any data collection is proportionate and minimises burdens on landlords and costs to the public sector.

To support the first iteration of local authority assessments, we are building on existing data sources. Rent Service Scotland currently collects an annual sample of around 40,000 to 45,000 advertised rents. This is being enhanced to provide estimates at local authority level, with data expected from November 2026 and year-on-year comparisons from November 2027.

To support future cycles of local authority assessments, we are continuing to consider how to develop systems which support use of powers in the Act to collect information directly from landlords. This includes exploring the use of the existing landlord registration digital platform to collect rent data, subject to further development and engagement with local authorities.

My responsibilities include energy policy and strategy, industrial decarbonisation and offshore renewable energy.

Energy policy and strategy is focused on delivering a just transition to a net zero energy system and reducing our dependence on fossil fuel generation. This includes maximising the economic opportunities from Scotland’s renewables pipeline and working with the UK Government and the National Energy System Operator (NESO) on whole system energy planning.

Industrial decarbonisation involves supporting our energy-intensive industrial sectors to progress along emissions reduction pathways by deploying the means to increase energy efficiency, switching to low carbon fuels, or carbon capture and storage.

Offshore renewable energy systems covers wave and tidal stream energy, fixed and floating offshore wind, as well as infrastructure and supply chain opportunities.

The Whole Family Support Third Sector Delivery Fund is a £20 million investment aimed at strengthening the capacity of third sector organisations to deliver tailored, community-based support to families living in, or at risk of, poverty across Scotland, contributing directly to the Government’s goal of ending child poverty.

The application window closed on 7 May and attracted strong interest, with 88 applications from a diverse range of organisations. A panel of policy and analytical experts, alongside external partners, is currently assessing proposals, with funding awards expected to be confirmed over the summer.

Eligibility is based on when a child is first old enough to start primary school and is not affected by deferred P1 entry. The current application window is for children born between 1 March 2021 and 28 February 2022, with the application dates for children born before March 2021 having now passed. We automatically award the School Age Payment to eligible families in receipt of Scottish Child Payment, without the need to apply, reducing the risk of missing out even if a child’s school start is deferred. In the 2024-25 financial year 91% of School Age Payments were made automatically and the take-up rate was 97%.

The Scottish Empty Homes Partnership publishes data on their key performance indicators in their annual report. The data on the National Matchmaker Scheme will be included in the annual report for 2025-26 which is due to be published in the autumn.

The Scottish Government recognises the challenges faced by seasonal workers and their employers are complex, and further work is required to develop bespoke national standards. Local authorities are expected to use existing powers to introduce byelaws suited to their geographical area, and in response to the specific circumstances relating to seasonal workers. Officials recently met with key stakeholders to further discuss key aspects of this issue. Officials have been in discussion with local authorities regarding their responsibility to introduce byelaws that maintain accommodation standards for seasonal workers. This work with local authorities will continue as they take up that responsibility.

Escaped farmed fish are in no one’s interest.

This new agreement, developed by Fisheries Management Scotland and Salmon Scotland, builds on the ambitions of the Salmon Interactions Working Group to introduce a proportionate scheme with the ultimate aim of redistributing funds to support conservation and research projects.

Stakeholders considered how to scale payments linked to the size of escapes, in line with Scottish marine legislation, to deliver a practical way for farmers to support conservation work where escapes occur, while also establishing additional contributions in subsequent years where evidence shows a clear impact on wild fish populations.

The scheme will be embedded in the sector’s Code of Good Practice, which is independently audited and treated as a requirement by salmon farming companies and retailers. The efficacy of the scheme and the need for more formal measures will be kept under review.

The Scottish Government fully supports cooperative working between the aquaculture sector and wild salmon conservation interests to deliver positive change.

The scheme is in addition to, not in place of, Scotland’s existing regulatory framework which works to reduce the risk of fish farm escapes. The Fish Health Inspectorate (FHI) has powers to inspect fish farms to consider the measures in place to contain farmed fish, prevent escapes and recapture farmed fish if they do escape. Where the FHI concludes that ‘satisfactory measures’ are not in place for the containment, prevention of escapes and the recovery of escaped fish, they may serve an enforcement notice to the fish farm operator under the Aquaculture and Fisheries (Scotland) Act 2007 requiring specific action to be taken. It is an offence to fail to comply with an enforcement notice; failure to comply with the requirements of the enforcement notice may result in a fine not exceeding level 4 on the standard scale (£2,500).

We’re committed to working with the fish farming sector to reduce the risk of escapes further through the delivery of an updated Technical Standard for Scottish Finfish Aquaculture containment in 2027-28.