Chamber and committees

The Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) licences and regulates 345 sewer networks operated by Scottish Water, carrying out compliance inspections on a rolling basis and monitors Scotland’s water environment.

Through its Improving Urban Waters Routemap, Scottish Water is taking action to increase overflow monitoring of the highest priority waters and tackle debris and spills by committing up to £500m to improve water quality.

SEPA’s most recent assessment of Scotland’s entire water environment is that 87% has a ‘high’ or ‘good’ classification for water quality, up from 82% in 2014. However, we are not complacent and seek ongoing improvement and continue to work closely with SEPA and Scottish Water to monitor and improve water quality.

The Scottish Government is determined to limit the amount of rainwater entering sewers to reduce overflows, and in 2024 we published an analysis of the responses to a public consultation which asked the public for their views on how we achieve this, available at https://www.gov.scot/publications/water-wastewater-drainage-consultation-analysis-report/.

There are twenty-five operational windfarms on Scotland’s national forests and land, managed by Forestry and Land Scotland. None of the windfarms are community owned in whole or part.

Scotland has made significant progress in reducing waste, increasing recycling and decarbonising the waste sector, but there is further work to be done. The Circular Economy (Scotland) Act 2024 and Circular Economy & Waste Route Map set out Scottish Government plans to introduce a statutory Code of Practice for household waste services to accelerate improvements to both the quality and quantity of recycling.

The Scottish Government continues to make progress in delivering its legislative programme in this parliamentary session with 38 Government Bills already passed since 2021. I have set out below the 14 Government Bills which parliament is currently scrutinising and we will set out the Bills which will be included in our Year 5 programme as part of the next Programme for Government. There are two Scottish Government Bills from the Year 4 programme which will be introduced before summer recess which are the Building Safety Levy Bill and the Crofting and Scottish Land Court Bill.

In addition, the Government remains committed to taking action in a number of policy areas but will not be in a position to bring forward three Bills in this parliamentary session. The reasons for that are set out below.

The Scottish Government consulted between July and October 2024 on proposed changes to the Adults with Incapacity (Scotland) Act 2000, with more than 160 responses received. During that engagement, risks relating to European Convention on Human Rights non-compliance in relation to deprivation of liberty cases emerged. As a result, there is the need for a more detailed approach to be developed to ensure we can bring forward a solution consistent with ECHR legislation.

We will therefore establish an Adults with Incapacity Expert Working Group to work with government on the additional policy and operational development required. The Minister for Social Care, Mental Wellbeing and Sport will also chair an Adults with Incapacity Ministerial Oversight Group to ensure that pace and progress is maintained, with a view to bringing forward a future Bill early in the next parliamentary term. I expect invites for both groups to be issued in June 2025, with initial meetings to take place in September 2025.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring people are protected from misogynistic abuse and we had previously committed to the introduction of a Misogyny Bill. This is a complex area of policy and law, and it would be necessary that any Bill which brought misogyny into criminal law contained clear and unambiguous provisions in regard to the circumstances in which they apply. This would include the implications of the recent Supreme Court Judgment. Given the short time left in this parliamentary session, there is insufficient time for a Bill to be finalised and introduced in this session, therefore the Scottish Government has decided not to proceed with this Bill in this parliamentary session.

To ensure there are protections for women and girls in law, we will therefore lay an SSI by September to add the protected characteristic of sex to the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021 so that they have the same protections as other groups protected by that Act. This SSI is subject to super affirmative process and will therefore be subject to consultation.

We recognise the gendered nature of the harm caused to women and girls and will also take forward further work and engagement on the harms caused by misogyny including what more could be done to tackle the underlying attitudes that lead to misogyny and gender based abuse.

The Scottish Government is committed to ending conversion practices. We will continue to develop our draft legislation and policy towards ending these harmful practices in Scotland. Engagement will continue with the UK government for a Bill covering England, Wales and Scotland. However, if this approach cannot be agreed, then we commit to publishing our own Bill in Year 1 of the next Parliamentary session.

Scottish Government Bills currently in Parliament

• Care Reform
• Children (Withdrawal from Religious Education and Amendment of UNCRC Compatibility Duty)
• Community Wealth Building
• Criminal Justice Modernisation and Abusive Domestic Behaviour Reviews
• Education
• Housing
• Land Reform
• Leases (Automatic Continuation etc.)
• Natural Environment
• Regulation of Legal Services
• Scottish Languages
• Tertiary Education and Training (Funding and Governance)
• UEFA European Championship
• Victims, Witnesses, and Justice Reform

Scottish Government Bills passed this session

• Aggregates Tax and Devolved Taxes Administration
• Agricultural and Rural Communities
• Bail and Release from Custody
• Bankruptcy and Diligence
• Budget
• Budget (No.2)
• Budget (No.3)
• Budget (No.4)
• Carer’s Allowance Supplement
• Charities (Regulation and Administration)
• Children (Care and Justice)
• Circular Economy
• Climate Change (Emissions Reduction Targets)
• Coronavirus (Discretionary Compensation for Self-isolation)
• Coronavirus (Extension and Expiry)
• Coronavirus (Recovery and Reform)
• Cost of Living (Tenant Protection)
• Fireworks and Pyrotechnic Articles
• Gender Recognition Reform
• Gender Representation on Public Boards (Amendment)
• Good Food Nation
• Housing (Cladding Remediation)
• Hunting with Dogs
• Judicial Factors
• Miners' Strike (Pardons)
• Moveable Transactions
• Non-Domestic Rates (Coronavirus)
• Patient Safety Commissioner for Scotland
• Police (Ethics, Conduct and Scrutiny)
• Post Office (Horizon System) Offences
• Prisoners (Early Release)
• Scottish Elections (Representation and Reform)
• Scottish Local Government Elections (Candidacy Rights of Foreign Nationals)
• Social Security (Amendment)
• Transvaginal Mesh Removal Cost Reimbursement
• Trusts and Succession
• Visitor Levy
• Wildlife Management and Muirburn

As is referenced in the answer to S6W-36157 on 2 May 2025, instruction and direction may be issued in relation to specific matters in the context of ongoing liaison between the police and Procurators Fiscal who can instruct the police during the course of investigations and when further investigation is required in a case. Instruction of the police is a continuous process in the discharge of the Lord Advocate’s duties as regards the investigation and prosecution of criminal offences in Scotland.

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 would refer to the answer provided in respect of S6W-36157 on 2 May 2025 as regards my role as head of the system of prosecutions in Scotland and direction of the police.

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

SEPA is presently awaiting the incident report following the fire at the Blairlinn industrial estate in Cumbernauld.

Therefore, at this time, it would not be appropriate to commit to a review of fire safety procedures at waste management facilities.

As Scotland’s independent environmental regulator, SEPA determine the permitting of facilities and what waste streams they are allowed to accept – although individual facilities will make decisions on inputs based on commercial and operational considerations. So, while a facility may be able to accept a particular waste type, there may not be the capacity or the appetite to do so.

Offshore oil and gas licensing, consenting and the associated fiscal regime are all matters that are currently reserved to the UK Government.

The Scottish Government is taking the appropriate time to carefully consider the UK Government’s consultation on Building the North Sea’s Energy Future and its potential outcomes.

Alongside this consideration, Scottish Government Ministers and officials continue to engage with UK Government counterparts as well as trade unions, industry bodies and other stakeholders on a range of issues relevant to the energy transition.

We are clear in our own support for a just transition for Scotland’s oil and gas sector, that recognises the maturity of the North Sea basin and is in line with our climate change commitments. At the heart of our approach is ensuring a just transition for Scotland’s valued and highly skilled oil and gas workforces to a net-zero future.

During the build phase of MV Glen Sannox, certain specifications required amendment to ensure compliance with updated regulatory standards issued by the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA). This is standard practice within the shipbuilding industry, where ongoing engagement with the MCA is essential to ensure that vessels meet all necessary safety and operational requirements.