We recognise the strain the UK cost crisis is placing on social enterprises. S-Mart have already made contact with Community Enterprise who co-ordinate a crisis recovery service for social enterprises, designed to help organisations get the right support quickly.

The Scottish Government understands the important role that Social Enterprises have to play in delivering our ambition for a Wellbeing Economy, helping to build a greener, fairer and more equal society.

To support the growth of the social enterprise ecosystem in Scotland we launched our Social Enterprise Strategy in 2016. This sets out a wide-ranging, ambitious and long-term programme to develop the potential of Scotland's social enterprise sector.

Section 3 of the Good Food Nation (Scotland) Act 2022 (“the Act”) sets out the requirement to lay the proposed national Good Food Nation Plan before the Scottish Parliament. Section 3(2) stipulates that the Plan must be laid in front of Parliament not later than 12 months after the date that section 3 comes in to force. The Good Food Nation (Scotland) Act 2022 (Commencement No. 1) Regulations 2023 set this date as 31 December 2023, meaning that there would be a legal requirement to lay the Plan before Parliament no later than 31 December 2024.

As the consultation process for the draft Plan will not be launched until early 2024, it is likely that it would not be possible to complete the consultation, analysis period, and necessary re-drafting in time to meet this deadline. The Good Food Nation (Scotland) Act 2022 (Commencement No. 1) Amendment Regulations 2023 amend this date to 30 June 2024. This means that the draft Plan must be laid before Parliament no later than 30 June 2025, providing some extra flexibility in the timetable. It will be possible to lay the Plan before this date.

Sections 7 and 8 of the Act relate to reporting and review requirements for the national Good Food Nation Plan. These have been grouped together with Section 3 in a single instrument for administrative convenience and to minimise the amount of secondary legislation required.

The Scottish Government has published a public consultation on a Learning Disabilities, Autism and Neurodivergence Bill today, 21 December 2023. It will be open until 21 April 2024. The consultation seeks views on proposals to better protect, respect and champion the rights of people with learning disabilities, autistic people and neurodivergent people.

Publishing this consultation delivers on our commitment to consult on the Bill by the end of 2023. I would encourage everyone with a view to respond. The consultation is available at: Learning Disabilities, Autism and Neurodivergence Bill: consultation - Scottish Government consultations - Citizen Space

The Scottish Government takes the issue of declining wild Atlantic salmon populations very seriously and is committed to working with our partners, both domestic and international, to safeguard this iconic species.

The Scottish wild salmon strategy was established in January 2022 in response to the long term downward trend in the number of Atlantic salmon returning to Scottish waters. In February 2023 we published the wild salmon strategy implementation plan, which sets out over sixty actions to tackle the wide range of pressures affecting the species throughout their life cycle.

We are carefully considering the responses to the consultation and using the feedback to finalise the proposals. An analysis of the consultation responses will be published when the statutory instrument giving effect to the final Phase 3 package is laid in Parliament, which we anticipate doing in March.

We are supportive of the strategic approaches for the co-ordination, design and delivery of electricity transmission infrastructure recommended in the Electricity Network Commissioner’s Report and are currently engaging with the UK Government on plans for their implementation. We will update local authorities and Heads of Planning Scotland at the appropriate stage so that, where relevant, outputs can be taken into account in preparing future plans and strategies, including Local Development Plans and Regional Spatial Strategies, as well as supporting the preparation of Local Place Plans by communities.

Clean heating system maintenance costs will vary depending on factors including the type of system and usage. We are proposing a technology-neutral approach to decarbonising homes across Scotland, with homeowners able to choose the technology which is right for them. We do not expect the cost to households of maintaining a clean heating system to be significantly different from what they would pay for a polluting heating system. The estimated maintenance costs in existing homes in 2020 used by the Climate Change Committee Sixth Carbon Budget, and developed with latest available evidence and input from a range of industry stakeholders, are the same (£100 per year) for both air source heat pumps and gas boilers. Of course many low income households rent their properties through private or social landlords, and while these maintenance costs will be comparable to those living in owner occupied homes, they will typically sit with the landlord.

No economic modelling has been undertaken. As we continue to engage with the sector, if a need for economic modelling emerges then we will consider it. A key ask of the supply chain has been clarity about scope and timing of regulation which is central to their planning for investment in capacity and skills needed for manufacture, installation and maintenance. This is why we set out our draft proposals on regulation on 28 November.

As uptake of clean heating systems increases, the number of people employed in the sector is expected to increase. The rate of increase required will be driven by consumer demand, which in turn will be driven by a range of different factors including any regulations that are introduced. As we continue to develop our regulatory proposals and wider package of support we will undertake further analysis as required to understand needed growth rates.

As referred to in the answer to question S6W-22629, we are planning an awareness raising campaign in the new year for those considering installing a heat pump. Options to maximise the reach and impact of the campaign are still being considered but include PR, digital advertising and press activity.