Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government is committed to the decarbonisation of the transport sector in a sustainable way to deliver a just transition. Our Climate Change Plan includes a commitment that by 2032, 30 per cent of Scottish Government owned ferries will be low emission. Many ports across Scotland have already published plans committing to decarbonising their operations, including the introduction of shore power.

The Scottish Government is working with Caledonian Maritime Assets Ltd to increase the availability and use of shore power on the ferry routes it directly supports.

As shipping policy is reserved, we are committed to working with the UK Government and other governments to support decarbonisation proposals both at a UK level and legislation to decarbonise the shipping sector globally through the International Maritime Organisation. It is vitally important that the UK Government, and all other governments, prioritise the decarbonisation of industries beyond current spending periods and in response to the Climate Emergency.

National Grid connection issues have been raised by port operators in Scotland as a significant barrier to installing shore power, so work to improve these connections is imperative. We note that the UK Government has committed to publishing an action plan later this year on accelerating new grid connections, including grid connections that may support shoreside electrical power at ports. We would intend to work closely with the UK Government on these matters to ensure that circumstances in Scotland, especially those prevalent at our more remote ports, are given proper consideration.

The Scottish Government fundamentally disagrees with the principle of the UK Government making decisions in devolved areas. Though the funding of Scottish projects is welcome, this ought to be channelled through the Barnett formula, allowing Scottish Ministers and Councils to make independent decisions about its use. By cutting across devolved policies, it results in unnecessary fragmentation and confusion for local authorities and partner agencies. Overlooking Scotland’s unique economic needs, and largely ignores rural, and sparsely populated regions.

The Scottish Government provides baseline funding to NHS Boards, and it is for individual Boards to determine how best to utilise this funding to meet the needs and priorities of their local populations, including stroke care. The 2023-24 Scottish Budget delivers record funding of £19 billion for Health and Social Care services.

On top of this baseline funding, the Scottish Government has provided specific funding to NHS Boards for the development of a thrombectomy service to treat ischaemic stroke: £833,000 in 2019-20, £2.4 million in 2020-21, £6.6 million in 2021-22 and £7.2 million in 2022-23.

In addition, funding to support the delivery of the Stroke Improvement Plan was £40,574 in 2018-19, £42,050 in 2019-20, £175,674 in 2020-21, £182,980 in 2021-22 and £174,489 in 2022-23. The 2023-24 budget has allocated £12.5 million in revenue spending for the further development of a national thrombectomy service and development of stroke policy.

The Scottish Governments SME Loan Scheme has been in operation since 2008. Loans are considered impaired when the loanee misses three consecutive payments. Since inception, the total level of SME Loan repayment default is £1,333,630 as of 1 April 2023. The SME Loan Scheme has paid out over £45 Million in loan funding since inception which means the percentage of default is just under 3%.

The Scottish Government actively supports health boards across Scotland to plan locally for service need and service delivery.

From September 2006 to March 2023 we have increased the Consultant Radiologist workforce from 223.5 whole time equivalent (WTE) posts to 358.9 WTE – a 60.6% increase.

In March 2022, we published the National Health and Social Care Workforce Strategy, which sets out a long-term vision for achieving a sustainable health and social care workforce. In that Strategy we committed to developing and publishing workforce projections to support long-term planning both for service delivery and service reform.

On behalf of the Scottish Government, Element Energy previously conducted analysis of the technical suitability of low-carbon heating technologies in Scottish domestic buildings. A copy of this report is available below.

Scottish Government (2020). Technical Feasibility of Low Carbon Heating in Domestic Buildings. URL: https://www.gov.scot/publications/technical-feasibility-low-carbon-heating-domestic-buildings-report-scottish-governments-directorate-energy-climate-change/

Low TemperatureAir Source Heat Pumps (ASHPs) are deemed to be technically suitable for around 55 – 76% of homes currently existing in Scotland. If homes were to adopt measures to achieve Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) C where technically feasible and cost-effective, then this share would increase to 75 – 77%.

The report also shows that electric storage heaters are found to be suitable for 82-100% of homes before energy efficiency measures are installed, and 95-100% after.

The HES Grant and Loan scheme also provides support for energy efficiency measures, which increases the number of homes able to install a zero direct emissions heating system. This includes grant funding of up to 75% of the combined costs of measures up to a maximum £7,500 is available, with an additional £7,500 of funding available as an interest free loan.

The requirements of individual homes will likely depend on a number of factors such as overall power demand for the home, the size of the home and its general energy efficiency. We are currently conducting research with CXC, which includes looking at the impact of heat pump and electric vehicle uptake on the electricity network. We expect this report to be published shortly. Decisions regarding grid upgrades are currently reserved.

There are no immediate plans to update our current educational resources into the Scots language. Our language policy is under review and once approved by the SPCB, it will determine what languages we offer resources in for the future.

Our current policy position is: “The SPCB publishes information in different languages to facilitate the engagement of people who live in Scotland with their Parliament. Languages selected for translation are reviewed on a regular basis and are updated to reflect population trends and perceived need.”

As part of our review, we have engaged with, and continue to engage with, stakeholders and monitor educational and linguistic trends. There are currently some resources in Scots and to date, these have met the level of demand we have from schools and MSPs.

I will update the Member as our review progresses and when it is approved. In the meantime, our Education Services team are happy to work with the Member and schools to see which resources that would be of use in Scots and to provide these within the school year that starts in August.

The Scottish Government does not hold information on fees charged by ports for cruise ship calls.

Port fees and charges vary by port and are commercial matters for the port concerned.

As at 29th June 2023, the number of premises in the Na h-Eileanan an Iar constituency scheduled for connection through the Reaching 100% (R100) North contract is 2,206. The contract build for these premises is scheduled to begin in 2025, with live connections planned to be available through 2026, 2027 and 2028. Connections are delivered in line with plans submitted by BT plc as the successful bidder for the R100 North contract. The build is structured in phases that have been designed to maximise efficiency in order to deliver the greatest possible outcome for our investment.

A further 1,975 premises in the Na h-Eileanan an Iar constituency are eligible for a connection through the R100 Scottish Broadband Voucher Scheme (R100 SBVS), offering up to £5,000 to secure a superfast broadband connection. This is a demand-led scheme and it is therefore a decision for residents and businesses whether or not they choose to secure a connection in this manner.

The R100 programme builds on the success of the Digital Scotland Superfast Broadband (DSSB) programme which made a significant contribution to broadband coverage in the Na h-Eileanan an Iar constituency, delivering five subsea cables and over 15,000 fibre broadband connections in the area. In April 2015, just before DSSB build began in the region, superfast coverage was just 1.3%. By the end of that year, it was already up to 25.4%, and now stands at 80.5% as a direct result of Scottish Government intervention.

The Scottish Government remains committed to improving the quality of life and wellbeing of people with chronic pain. Involving people with lived experience remains a priority to help inform the improvement work we have set out in our Framework for pain management service delivery - implementation plan .

Our plan was developed with extensive engagement with people with chronic pain. The Scottish Government conducted a public consultation where four-fifths of respondents were individuals living with chronic pain. All of their views have informed the actions set out in the plan.

In summer 2022, we commissioned the Lines Between to establish a Pain Management Panel. The panel included a diverse cross-section of people with chronic pain across Scotland. The findings from this report, published in July 2022 , have helped inform the implementation of the plan.

We are continuing to engage with a range of diverse voices of those living with chronic pain across Scotland as we develop and deliver the plan. Officials attended the most recent Cross Party Group for Chronic Pain to request feedback and further engagement sessions with the group are planned. We have also invited our stakeholders, including people with lived experience, to a series of drop in sessions to give their input as we update our Implementation Plan.