Chamber and committees

Developing evidence-based and effective fisheries management measures, and robustly undertaking statutory requirements, for more than 160 sites and areas within the inshore region is a complicated and challenging process. It is on a scale not previously undertaken therefore it is not possible to give a definitive timeline for how long it will take following the consultation as this will be impacted by a number of factors including: the length of the consultation, number of responses and the output of the statutory assessments. We are continuing to work at pace to ensure progress is made as quickly as possible.

It is estimated that the Single Scottish Estate (SSE) Programme generated savings of £9.274m over the 2024-25 financial year. A total of £41m of savings and benefits has been secured by the SSE Programme overall.

An efficient waste management service is defined by the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging and Packaging Waste) Regulations 2024 as a waste management service where disposal costs are as low as reasonable possible, taking into account the waste management service provided by a local authority, and any other factors specific to that authority, or to the area in relation to which it exercises its waste management functions, which in the opinion of PackUK (the EPR scheme administrator) are likely to affect its disposal costs.

Effectiveness assessments of local authorities waste management services are carried out by PackUK. The assessment of whether a local authority is running an effective waste management service for household packaging waste will include the amounts of household packaging waste managed, and the proportions recycled, recovered or disposed of. It will also account for local authority specific factors including population density, accessibility, deprivation, and government policies in each nation, as well as other relevant factors. Metrics will be agreed between PackUK and local authorities.

If PackUK determines that a local authority is not providing an effective waste management service, they will give notice to the local authority and work with them to determine how the services could be improved. Only if a local authority is not doing everything they can be reasonably expected to do to improve its waste management service and has no mitigating circumstances, could they then be subject to a deduction of their payment up to 20%.

Effectiveness assessments can be brought in from 2026 if sufficient data is available to make assessments, but must be brought in by 2028.

The Scottish Government has regular discussions with NHS and public bodies on these matters as they are key stakeholders and governance members of the Single Scottish Estate (SSE), which supports a more efficient approach to public sector property management. This includes through co-location and sharing of on-site services.

Our ongoing and extensive engagement with these bodies, includes current SSE Location Based Reviews in Edinburgh, Glasgow, Perth, Aberdeen and Inverness. There have been discussions at the SSE governance meetings and Public Sector Property Forum, which all of these bodies are invited to attend.

NHS national bodies and other public bodies in Scotland are covered by the Scottish Public Finance Manual (SPFM) so are required to engage with, and submit business cases to, Scottish Government Property Controls for Ministerial decisions on their estate. There is usually early discussion with the Scottish Government on each proposal.

The Scottish Government attends the Scottish Property Advisory Group, which is led by the NHS, to consider their property matters. Recent NHS engagement has included with NHS National Services for Scotland and NHS Education on their Edinburgh office requirements. The Scottish Government also attends a number of public body groups as appropriate, such as recent attendance at the Delivery Bodies Group to discuss the SSE work.

Under the Verity House Agreement, local government funding in Scotland will not be ring-fenced or directed, unless there is a clear joint understanding to do so. However, the extended producer responsibility for packaging funding purpose - to pay for the cost of managing household packaging waste - is clearly set out in legislation.

Scottish Ministers have statutory processes they must adhere to in developing and implementing fisheries management measures. As outlined previously in PQ S6W-29794, developing evidence-based and effective fisheries management measures for more than 160 sites and areas within the inshore region is a complicated and challenging process.

Extended producer responsibility for packaging ensures that producers take full responsibility for the environmental impacts of the packaging they place on the market. Existing costs for the management of packaging waste are transferred from taxpayers to producers.

The Scottish Government has considered the impact on businesses through the publication of a Full Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment (BRIA)

Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging is a four nations policy. The Scottish Government has worked closely with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the other UK nations to jointly develop and implement the extended producer responsibility for packaging scheme.

Once established Scottish Ministers and Government senior officials will hold seats on governance boards which will make up the governance for PackUK (the scheme administrator). This includes a Four Nation Ministerial Steering Board and an Executive Committee.

The Scottish Public Finance Manual (SPFM) requires that all land or property declared as surplus should be disposed of as quickly as possible and sets out a number of ways disposals can achieve best value for money and wider public benefit.

In the last 3 years, Scottish Government has made one sale of a strip of land at Woodhouselee, Midlothian to Scotland’s Rural College (SRUC). This generated £15,000 of revenue.

Revenue generated from land or property sales is collected centrally by Scottish Government Finance then redistributed across Government depending on business need.

Extended producer responsibility for packaging (pEPR) fees are intended to incentivise producers to use less packaging and ensure packaging they do use is environmentally sustainable. It also ensures that producers take full responsibility for the environmental impacts of the packaging they place on the market, transferring these costs away from taxpayers.

Producers with an annual turnover less than £2m and 50 tonnes of packaging supplied are exempt from pEPR payments, but are required to report packaging data. This exempts approximately 70% of the UK's smaller producers from paying scheme fees.

Packaging within the scope of Scotland’s Deposit Return Scheme (cans and PET plastic) is exempt from packaging EPR. The use of reusable/refillable packaging such as beer kegs or reusable bottles is also encouraged under pEPR, as producers are only required to report and pay disposal cost fees for household packaging the first time it is placed on the market, and can then offset these fees when they recycle this packaging at the end of its life, thereby avoiding the vast majority of pEPR fees.