The application for construction and operation of a new generating station at Peterhead is one made under section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989, directly to Scottish Ministers. This is due to its proposed generating capacity being in excess of 50 megawatts. Therefore, this is not the subject of call-in procedures, which may apply to planning applications made to planning authorities.

The objective of the Home Energy Scotland (HES) Grant and Loan Scheme is to support the installation of energy efficiency and clean heating measures amongst owner occupiers.

We use a number of metrics to monitor the scheme with particular focus on the number and value of grants and loans paid against the schemes allocated budget.

Our approach to monitoring our delivery schemes is set out in our recently published Heat in Buildings Monitoring and Evaluation Framework .

The Home Energy Scotland (HES) Grant and Loan scheme is open to all domestic owner-occupied households in Scotland.

The rural uplift to the HES Grant and Loan is available to all island households, as well as households with a rural classification of 7 or 8 within the Scottish Government 8-fold Urban Rural Classification. It is also available to households with a rural classification of 6 if their postcode is registered as off-gas on the Xoserve off-gas list.

The Scottish Government continues to work closely with Higher Education Institutions and other partners including Health Boards, Skills Development Scotland, and the Scottish Funding Council on skills development, employability and widening access to NHS Scotland careers, including the development of apprenticeship models to provide an ‘earn and learn’ pathway.

As noted in the response to question S6W-21440 on 3 October 2023, the Scottish Government is currently working with the local authority facilities management organisation, AssistFM, to develop a clear picture of the scale and uptake of breakfast provision across Scotland. This work is expected to be completed in Spring 2024. There are no plans to publish it separately, as this work is just one of the elements which will inform policy on school breakfasts, including timescales for developing a plan for breakfast provision, designed around the needs of children and families.

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

The Marine Directorate is responsible for the operation of the Scottish Government's Marine Protection Vessels. It operates 3 larger vessels and 2 inshore fast patrol vessels. No marine assets are dedicated to a particular area, instead, tasking is determined using a risk based procedure which, considers intelligence, likelihood, and impact of an activity on the marine environment and fishery resources.

It is critical that Scotland’s energy system is resilient and that security of supply is maintained. We acknowledge that the location of infrastructure is an important factor in determining its contribution to the future security and resilience of our energy supply.

Our fourth National Planning Framework (NPF4) signals the key priorities for ‘where’ and ‘what’ development should take place at a national level. NPF4 places climate and nature at the centre of our planning system and makes clear that development proposals should be sited and designed to adapt to current and future risks from climate change.

The Scottish Government is broadly supportive of the proposal by the Electricity Networks Commissioner, Nick Winser, for a Strategic Spatial Energy Plan (SSEP). We are continuing to engage with the UK Government to ensure that as the SSEP is developed it fully takes into account Scotland's energy ambitions and respects devolved policy.

I can confirm that no Cabinet Secretary or Minister has accrued charges due to the personal usage of their government issued mobile phone or other electronic devices.

Our technology-neutral approach to decarbonising homes across Scotland will enable home owners to choose the technology which is right for them, which may in many instances be a heat pump.

Although heat pumps are much more efficient than gas boilers, their running costs depend upon the price of electricity as well as the efficiency of the heat pump. This is why we continue to call for urgent action by the UK Government to use its reserved powers to rebalance energy prices and ensure that the running costs of clean heating systems are comparable to gas and other polluting systems.

We are proposing that homes across Scotland, where technically feasible and cost effective, will need to meet an energy efficiency standard by the end of 2033. Cost-effective energy efficiency measures will keep homes warmer and reduce the running costs of the home’s heating system.

We have a broad range of delivery programmes to provide advice and support for property owners. Through Home Energy Scotland, households can now claim grant funding of up to £18,000 (in rural homes) or £15,000 (in non-rural areas) to install clean heating and improve the energy efficiency of their homes.

Our fuel poverty programme, Warmer Homes Scotland, offers households clean heating systems where doing so would not increase running costs. Where clean heating systems are not appropriate, the assessor will recommend a suitable package of insulation and/or other heating options.

Our consultation on proposals for a Heat in Buildings Bill includes a commitment to ensure that the right protections are in place to enable a transition which is just, fair and effective.

We continue to make progress against the actions outlined within the Heat in Buildings Supply Chains Delivery Plan. In November 2022 we launched the Green Heat Innovation Support Programme and the Green Heat Installer Engagement Programme . More recently we fulfilled our commitment to launch a new Mobile Heat Pump Training centre .

Proposals have progressed for a Green Heat Manufacturing Hub following the call issued by Scottish Enterprise in December 2022. A full and final proposal is now in development and is expected in early 2024.

In addition, we continue to explore options for a supplier-led funding scheme, which has the potential to support supply chain growth. We are currently engaging with the clean heat sector to understand appetite for such a scheme and the associated potential barriers and opportunities.