Chamber and committees

The Equalities Impact Assessment (EQIA) for the Fuel Poverty (Target, Definition and Strategy) (Scotland) Bill, estimated that in 2016 approximately 137,000 fewer older households and 55,000 fewer rural households, would have been categorised as fuel poor under the proposed new definition.

This is as a result of the inclusion of an income threshold in the new definition in line with the recommendations of the independent, academic Scottish Fuel Poverty Review Panel. This aligns fuel poverty more closely with low income households, as can be seen in the graphic (BIB No. 60298) available from the Scottish Parliament Information Centre. However the threshold applied in the new definition is considerably higher, for most household types, than the standard 60% of median income (after housing costs) used to define relative income poverty. This ensures households above the income poverty line, that are struggling with their fuel bills, will still be captured in the definition.

There have been no changes to the fuel poverty definition since it was introduced in 2002.

The definition set out in the Fuel Poverty (Target, Definition and Strategy) (Scotland) Bill is the first proposed change.

There have been no changes to the fuel poverty definition since it was introduced in 2002. The definition set out in the Fuel Poverty (Target, Definition and Strategy) (Scotland) Bill is the first proposed change.

Using the current definition the 2016 Scottish House Condition Survey put the proportion of households in fuel poverty at 26.5%. Under the new definition our initial analysis indicates the figure in 2016 would have been 23.8%.

In July 2017 to June 2018 it is estimated: 146,000 women are employed in the retail sector in Scotland, accounting for 59.5% of all employment in the sector.

Of the 146,000 women employed in retail :

12,000 women are employed as ‘Managers, directors and senior officials’, 5.0% of all employed in retail

10,000 were employed in ‘Associate professional and Technical’ occupations 4.0% of all employed in retail

6,000 women were employed in ‘Professional Occupations’, 2.4% of all employed in retail.

The following table shows number of women employed in the retail sector by occupation and as a percentage of the retail sector workforce.

9,000 women employed in retail were self employed, 3.8% of all employed in the retail sector.

Information on number of women who are female retail business owners are not held centrally.

Table: Number of women and percentage of total employment in the retail sector by occupation

Scotland is one of only a handful of European countries to define fuel poverty, let alone set a target relating to its eradication. Achieving the target set out in the Fuel Poverty (Target, Definition and Strategy) (Scotland) Bill will place Scotland amongst the very best in the world in terms of tackling fuel poverty and will entail a reduction in the proportion of fuel poor households of just over 80% compared to 2016. The 2040 target date follows the Energy Efficient Scotland Route Map and, as set out in our draft Fuel Poverty Strategy, published alongside the Bill, we will do all we can to tackle each of the four drivers of fuel poverty, with an aim to remove poor energy efficiency of homes as a driver altogether. Nonetheless, we recognise that due to two key drivers, namely household incomes and energy prices, being outwith the direct control of the Scottish Government, there will always be a small percentage of households moving in and out of fuel poverty as their earnings and/or fuel costs fluctuate.

I refer the member to the answer to S5W-20125 on 6 December 2018. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at http://www.parliament.scot/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx .

In line with the Rail Enhancements & Capital Investment Strategy, published in March 2018, the Scottish Government generally makes rail infrastructure investment decisions.

Such decisions take account of comprehensive advice from the Scottish rail industry, including Network Rail Scotland and ScotRail.

The ScotRail Alliance is a collaborative working relationship between Abellio ScotRail and Network Rail Scotland. The Alliance was included in Abellio’s bid for the ScotRail Franchise, which commenced on 1 April 2015.

The purpose of the Alliance is to improve the railway in Scotland, being more responsive to customer’s needs. While remaining separate companies, both organisations work collaboratively to achieve common aims and objectives, led by a single managing director, Alex Hynes.

The Scottish Government continues to press for further devolution of Network Rail’s central functions to better align with Scottish strategies and priorities. That includes de-centralising system operator functions, such as strategic timetabling and the delivery of major enhancement works, where key decisions taken at a local level improves the likelihood of stronger performance and resilience on the Scottish network.

The number of (a) female and (b) male retail apprenticeships over each of the last five years are detailed in the following table:

Over 1.6 million vaccines have been procured for this year’s seasonal flu programme – 200,000 additional flu vaccines more than last year. This is enough vaccine for 80% of all eligible age groups.