Chamber and committees

As part of our commitment for the decarbonisation of the Scottish Government vehicle fleet, our replacement policy since 2015 has been to consider the overall environmental impact of the fleet and actively reduce the emissions produced by replacing end of life petrol and diesel vehicles with zero or ultra-low emission alternatives where possible.

The total cost of gas and electric for Core Scottish Government buildings broken down by building type is:-

Number of hospital admissions of pedestrians injured is shown in the following table. The source is SMR01, Public Health Scotland, extract: January 2025.

The Scottish Government's use of official cars aligns with its environmental and sustainability targets through a focus on reducing emissions and promoting low-carbon transportation solutions. This includes key initiatives including the transition to low-emission and zero emission vehicles.

All our professional memberships are held by and apply to individuals so the Scottish Government as a body does not hold professional memberships.

The Scottish Government estate is always under review to allow us to plan for accessible, modern and secure, energy efficient buildings to meet our changing needs and net zero ambitions, as well as to ensure best value for taxpayers’ money.

Estate decisions are informed by key estate data, for example the condition, usage, carbon emissions, accessibility and capacity. We prioritise funding towards ensuring our buildings are fit-for-purpose, inclusive and accessible for all staff and stakeholders and contribute to our net zero ambitions.

The Scottish Government has adopted a professions model. All our jobs are now aligned to profession and related job family and job type. We are starting to apply related expectations into how we design jobs and recruit people for jobs. For some professions and job types this will include professional membership and accreditation requirements that either need to be achieved on entry or once in the job - e.g. Finance, Procurement. For a few professions, professional memberships are mandatory to be able to practice - e.g. Law. Our Heads of Profession oversee these expectations and standards.

I can confirm that I have written to the Chief Constable to draw the attention of her and her colleagues to the recent range of questions lodged on the use of e-bikes and e-scooters.

The Scottish Government works with local authorities in several ways to improve access to active travel, primarily through our ‘Active Travel Infrastructure Fund’ (ATIF) that supports infrastructure building, and our ‘People and Place Programme’ that supports behaviour change services tackling barriers to using that infrastructure. Through these programmes Aberdeenshire’s councils received over £4.2m of support in 2024-25.

In terms of infrastructure, in 2024-25 Aberdeenshire Council received £1,232,393 for their ATIF Tier 1 allocation, and Aberdeen City Council received £1,557,324. These funds are used to design, develop and deliver active travel infrastructure according to local needs and priorities. Both councils have used their funding across a number of current projects as well as designing future works, creating a construction pipeline

In terms of behaviour change, in 2024-25 Aberdeenshire Council received a direct grant of £210,141 through the Local Authority Direct Award (LADA) , and Aberdeen City Council received £178, 622. In addition, Nestrans, the Regional Transport Partnership for Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire, received £1,113,240 through the People and Place Programme. These funds are used to support active and sustainable travel behaviour change interventions that improve the uptake of walking, wheeling, and cycling for short everyday journeys.

The evidence of the relationship between increased uptake of active travel and positive health outcomes, including maintaining a healthy weight, is proven beyond doubt. This is why active travel is a key Strategic Delivery Outcome in the Physical Activity for Health Framework published on 4 October 2024. This framework applies a systems-based approach with all parts of government, including transport and health, joining the call to action behind the collective aim and ambition of promoting the crucial role of physical activity in improving the health of people in Scotland.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-32584 on 14 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.