Chamber and committees

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-32265 on 6 January 2025. 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

Data on the usage of the noted material could be obtained through a range of activity including population surveys, waste composition analysis, cross-border trade analysis and studies of the weight and carbon impact of typical products.

It should be noted that, as the Environmental Protection (Single-use Plastic Products) (Scotland) Regulations 2021 place restrictions on supplying the single-use plastic products in question in the course of a business, sales data in Scotland would therefore be of limited value in ascertaining usage.

The Environmental Protection (Single-use Plastic Products) (Scotland) Regulations 2021 do not include a power to seize single use plastic items. They do, however, allow the taking of samples of articles or substances found in any premises that the enforcement officer enters. These samples, which could include single use plastic items, can then be retained for the purposes of examination and testing and to be used in evidence in any proceedings for an offence under the Regulations. Information on any samples taken and retained may be available from the enforcement authorities.

The judgements and issues in the Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan are informed and influenced by recent developments in UK Government energy policy and by court decisions.

This is a rapidly changing landscape and we are taking time to reflect on those developments before drawing any conclusions and publishing a final strategy.

The Scottish Government continues to engage with a range of international organisations and stakeholders, including the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance as part of a wider programme of analysis and engagement on energy policy. The Cabinet Secretary is the European Co-Chair of the Under2 Coalition, and as such is already heavily involved.

The development of the National Marine Plan 2 (NMP2) is supported by an extensive programme of engagement as detailed in the Statement of Public Participation and Stakeholder Engagement Strategy.

Consultation on a Planning Position Statement (PPS) for NMP2 is currently open until 28 January 2025. The PPS was developed following 14 marine sector workshops held in 2024. Consultation on the PPS was supported through discussion at the National Marine Planning Forum, held 13 November 2024, with over 100 delegates from marine sectors, academia and government.

The NMP2 will be constructed using a robust and transparent evidence base informing the plan and its statutory Sustainability Appraisal, which encompasses environmental and socio-economic impact assessments. The primary evidence base for the strategic environmental assessment (SEA) is Scotland’s Marine Assessment 2020 (“SMA2020”).

The assessments are being supported by a steering group of relevant national organisations, who provide guidance and advice on additional relevant datasets. The assessments will form part of the public consultation on the draft NMP2, planned for Winter 2025.

The Force Majeure/Exceptional Circumstance (FM/EC) provision is one that has existed for a number of years and if a business has been unable to comply with the rules of a scheme because of FM/EC, they may retain the right to aid in respect of the claim. To qualify, a business must notify the Scottish Government Rural Payments and Inspections Division (SGRPID) in writing of the FM/EC event along with relevant evidence from the date they are in a position to do so.

The FM/EC provision applies on a case by case basis, and decisions are taken on the basis of relevant evidence provided. The way on which the Scottish Government continue to approach cases relies on the approach set out by legislation.

Examples of force majeure or exceptional circumstances are:

1.the death of the farmer

2.the long-term professional incapacity of the farmer

3.a severe natural disaster gravely affecting the holding's agricultural land

4.the accidental destruction of livestock buildings on the holding

5.an epizootic affecting part of or all of the farmer’s livestock (for example, Foot and Mouth Disease)

This is not an exhaustive list and animal health concerns, weather conditions, bull failure or transport issues may also qualify as FM/EC. These are only examples and they are not, by themselves, sufficient to qualify as FM/EC and the applicant would still need to provide evidence in support of these events that demonstrate that calving performance has been impacted by comparison to previous years.

In August 2024, the Scottish Government posted a Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ) Scottish Suckler Beef Support Scheme (Mainland and Islands) to support the industry with information on the new calving interval condition being introduced to the Scottish Suckler Beef Support Scheme (SSBSS) from 2025. The FAQ includes detail of the FM/EC provision in the context of the SSBSS calving interval condition, including the type of evidence that would be required to support a request for it to be applied.

The Scottish Government’s Drink and Drug-Driving campaign runs from the 2 December 2024 to 13 January 2025. It covers radio, digital, out of home billboards in urban areas where audience can be reached prior to drinking or taking drugs, tactical outdoor sites, including posters and beermats in pubs and clubs targeting the audience in environments where they may be considering driving home under the influence. Sub-targeting of drivers living in the most deprived areas has been factored into plans and will be achieved through digital media postcode targeting.

All campaign materials will signpost to the roadsafety.scot website, which will support behaviour change by including further information on drug and drink-driving penalties, legal alcohol limits and roadside drug testing. PR and partnership activity and a campaign toolkit is available for partners which outlines details of the campaign and key messaging alongside shareable assets.

The effectiveness of the campaign will be evaluated and this work is undertaken by independent research agencies and seeks to track shifts in the target audiences’ attitudes and behaviours as a result of campaign exposure.

The Scottish Government requires ScotRail and Network Rail in Scotland to co-operate in the management, monitoring and improvement of Scottish train performance. The Office for Rail and Road publishes performance data for Scotland on its website. Delays and cancellations to Scottish rail services can be caused by problems with infrastructure, rolling stock, availability of staff (including through industrial action) and delays introduced to the Scottish rail network by poor performance of cross-border rail services from England.

Project Neptune was commissioned in March 2021, culminating in the publication of its findings on 8 September 2022. This was followed up with community engagement, by Angus Campbell, resulting in the publication of the 'Communities Report on Future Management of Ferries' on 10 July 2023. Almost £244,000 has been spent on Project Neptune, excluding internal Transport Scotland resources.

Since publication of the reports, Scottish Ministers have been consistently clear on the need to improve delivery of the Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Services (CHFS), to ensure the requirements of ferry dependent communities are met. No immediate decisions are being made on the subject of reform of the ferries sector, though nothing is off the table. At present, the focus is on the preparation for bringing the six new major vessels into the CalMac fleet and the considerable work involved in putting arrangements in place for the direct award of the new CHFS contract next year.

There has been no change to the scope of the Aberdeen Central Belt Service Improvements Project.

As regards project timelines, in January 2024, Ms McAllan, then Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero and Just Transition informed the Net Zero, Energy and Transport committee, that the time over which the commitment to deliver journey time improvements and increase capacity, between Aberdeen and the Central Belt, was under review. This remains the position.