Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government is absolutely committed to supporting active farming and sustainable food production through direct payments, regardless of choices made elsewhere. The 2026 payments strategy aims to maintain the recent years payment timings for Direct Payments and Scottish Rural Development Plan (SRDP) funding.

Scottish Ministers have committed in the Rural Support Plan to providing certainty, investment, and preparation through to 2030, delivering direct support to provide the industry with reassurance and boost confidence in long-term investment. Stability does not mean no change – we are committed to our ongoing programme of reform designed and delivered in partnership with our rural communities and valued stakeholders.

I can confirm that the Scottish Government has recently amended the Minimum Requirements for the Location of a Border Control Post through The Official Controls (Location of Border Control Posts) (Scotland) Regulations 2026.

This amendment came into force on 21 March 2026. This amendment allows goods to arrive at a point of entry and then transit to an appropriately designated Border Control Post (BCP), provided that both the point of entry and the BCP are located within the same Scottish Green Freeport zone or within the outer boundary of that Freeport.

The Guidance to Accompany the Statutory Nuisance Provisions of the Public Health etc (Scotland) Act 2008 is available on the Scottish Government website. This guidance was published to support local authorities investigate and manage issues relating to noise complaints. Should the noise complaint involve antisocial behaviours the Antisocial Behaviour etc. (Scotland) Act 2004: noise nuisance guidance is also available.

Scottish Ministers determine applications made under Section 37 of the Electricity Act 1989 for major electricity transmission infrastructure. The Energy Consents Unit administer these applications on their behalf and there are currently 14 officials directly undertaking this work.

The Scottish Government committed to implement 20mph speed limits on those roads where it is appropriate to do so across Scotland. Assessment criteria were prepared in conjunction with the Society of Chief Officers of Transportation in Scotland (SCOTS), Police Scotland, Transport Scotland and various local authorities to identify which roads can be considered as ‘appropriate’

A total of 104 locations were assessed by Transport Scotland for introduction of 20mph speed limits in line with the assessment criteria. Of the 104 locations, 75 were identified as being suitable for a 20mph speed limit. It has been agreed that implementation of one of the two sections of 20mph speed limit on the A78 in Greenock will be delayed until completion of major roadworks in the area.

Of the remaining 74 locations, all are currently operating with a 20mph speed limit in place.

The Scottish Government has pursued two approaches to assess Scottish bracken area since the HSE decision not to authorise the emergency use of Asulox in 2023. The first was to commission the creation of a Scottish bracken map to provide a baseline from which future changes in coverage can be assessed. The second was to conduct a survey of upland hill farmers, gathering information on current bracken coverage and impact, change over time and treatment. Both outputs are due to be published in summer 2026.

The last update was provided to the Rural Affairs and Islands Committee in late February 2026. An external contractor, funded by the Scottish Government, has completed the creation and validation of the Scottish Bracken Map and the project is now in the final stages of reporting, knowledge, and data transfer to Scottish Government geospatial analysts. The mapping layer is expected to be available for general use during summer 2026.

The Scottish Bracken Working Group will next meet on the 22 June 2026. The frequency of the meetings varies; it is dependent on the actions being pursued and the need for input from the group as well as availability of members.

Minutes from the Scottish Bracken Working Group meetings are available at the following link: Bracken: Scottish Working Group - gov.scot (www.gov.scot).

We welcome the fact that in Scotland we have tough legislation in place to deal with livestock worrying. The Scottish Government supported Emma Harper’s member’s bill when it was introduced, to provide Police Scotland and the courts with greater powers to deal with those who allow their dogs to worry, attack, or kill livestock in Scotland’s countryside. Under this law owners of dogs that attack or worry livestock can be fined up to £40,000 or face a prison sentence of up to 12 months.

Please find the following tables with information about the highest fine (table 1) and custodial sentence imposed (table 2) in each of the last two years under the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) (Scotland) Act 1953 or the amendment, and how many people received these. This information has been extracted from the management information data used to prepare the Scottish Government Justice Analytical Services Criminal Disposals Dashboard

Table 1: The highest fine imposed each year and number of accused who received it.

I have asked Linda Pollock, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

SPS understand the risk that drones present to security and stability of our prisons and that is why we have implemented security measures such as window grilles and targeted interventions to lessen their impact.

Drone recoveries include, but are not limited to, mobile phones, SIM cards, weapons, various drugs and miscellaneous articles such as USB memory sticks and tweezers.

SPS recognise the continued threat presented by drones and are actively engaging with Police Scotland and both UK and European Prison Services, to share best practice and explore common solutions.

SPS record confirmed data on drone sightings and recoveries. The latest full year figures are presented in the following table: