Successive Scottish budgets have demonstrated Scotland’s commitment to addressing the climate change crisis, using all resources at our disposal to accelerate the just transition to a net zero, climate-resilient and biodiverse Scotland. The 2024-25 Budget committed £4.7 billion for activities with a positive impact on our climate change goals.

Use of ScotWind revenue is an action we would rather not take but must carefully consider given the fiscal challenges faced, given the limited options available under existing fiscal framework arrangements. We will seek to minimise usage of ScotWind in 2024-25 – just as we did in 2023-24.

Deep sea mining refers to the exploration for - or extraction of - minerals from the seabed at depths greater than 200 metres. Most of Scotland’s waters of this depth or greater fall within existing Marine Protected Areas (MPAs). Current Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) conservation and management advice for the West of Scotland MPA, which covers the majority of Scotland’s deep waters and seamounts, advises against seabed mining in such waters.

In 2019 the Scottish Government finalised its policy position of ‘no support’ for Unconventional oil and gas development: our position - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) unconventional oil and gas (UOG) development in Scotland. This policy position relates to onshore unconventional oil and gas development. This means development connected to the onshore exploration, appraisal or production of coal bed methane or shale oil or shale gas using unconventional oil and gas extraction techniques, including hydraulic fracturing and dewatering for coal bed methane.

As yet, the Scottish Ministers have not received any marine licence applications for deep sea mining in Scotland’s inshore or offshore waters. All marine licence applications are considered on a case-by-case basis. Any licensing application relating to seabed mining within Scotland’s seas would be subject to the licensing requirements set out in the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010 for inshore waters (between 0 and 12 nautical miles), and the UK Marine and Coastal Access Act 2009 for offshore waters (beyond 12 nm). Statutory environmental assessment requirements and policies set out in Scotland’s existing National Marine Plan would have to be factored into any potential licensing request and considered on the best available evidence.

Scotland’s National Marine Plan 2015 states that decision makers should ensure all the necessary environmental issues are considered, and safeguards are in place when determining whether any proposed marine aggregate dredging is considered to be environmentally acceptable. Any licensing request relating to seabed mining in Scotland’s seas would be subject to this policy.

Final audited reserves data for 31 March 2024 is not currently held by the Scottish Government.

As far as possible, where audited reserves figures are available for 31 March 2024, these will be published in February 2025 as part of Scottish Local Government Finance Statistics 2023-24.

The following table shows the cash and real terms value of Local Authority General Fund reserves at 31 March 2014 (final audited) and 31 March 2024 (now updated with provisional outturn data from POBE 2024 dataset). Please note that the information requested on reserves is not held prior to 2007.

Due to small numbers in many of the VJBs and transport authorities, real-term percentage changes in reserves have only been calculated for Councils and Strathclyde Passenger Transport.

Adjustments for inflation have been made using the Gross Domestic Product (GDP) deflators for March 2024 (available at: GDP deflators at market prices, and money GDP - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)).

Further information on Local Government Finance Statistics can be found at: Local government finance statistics - gov.scot (www.gov.scot).

Transport Scotland is still engaged in positive dialogue with the housing developer to agree a way forward for access through Ferrymuir Gait. We are now at a position whereby the agreements are being signed by both parties, therefore it is hoped that this will be concluded as soon as reasonably practicable.

Alongside finalising the Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan (ESJTP), the Scottish Government continues to engage with the Beyond Oil and Gas Alliance as part of a wider programme of analysis and engagement with a range of organisations and stakeholders. The final ESJTP will also build from the substantial independent evidence base on domestic energy transition in the context of the global Paris Agreement goals that was developed and published in support of the draft version.

A full ScotRail fleet strategy is being developed and refined, taking into account the fiscal constraints as well as other relevant government policies.

Within an extremely challenging financial context, the Scottish Government has made difficult funding decisions. Local authorities have received all the funding they have requested for flood protection in 2024-25 and, as such, £26 million from the Flood Risk Management Programme is being repurposed this financial year to support local government pay and avoid impactful industrial action. We have sought assurances from local authorities through COSLA that redirection of this portion of the funding will not impact on councils progressing with their flood protection schemes as planned.

Young people aged 16-18 (or 19-25 for full time volunteers) who live on the Western Isles, Orkney, Shetland, plus islands in North Ayrshire, Argyll and Bute and Highland Council areas are entitled to receive ferry vouchers.

Transport Scotland has been undertaking a project to modernise ferry concessions by introducing digital vouchers which are stored on a National Entitlement Card. This was rolled out to cardholders in Orkney and Shetland in April 2024.

Whilst we intend for digital ferry concessions vouchers to be used on any Scottish ferry route in time, the initial focus has been introducing the digital vouchers in Shetland and Orkney as a pilot area. At present, all other eligible cardholders continue use paper vouchers.

Questions regarding day-to-day operational matters of Historic Environment Scotland, including information relating to any repair and maintenance works, are best answered directly by Historic Environment Scotland.

I have asked Historic Environment Scotland to respond directly to the member with a full reply to his question in writing.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-29704 on 17 September 2024. 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.