Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S6W-19781

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 21 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what urgent action it is taking to address any green skills shortages, in light of reported concerns that not doing so will undermine Scotland’s and the UK’s progress towards a green economy.

Nearly every sector of the economy, from finance to chemistry to engineering, has a vital role to play as we transition to a net zero economy. This is why green skills are central to the Scottish Government’s National Strategy for Economic Transformation.

In addition to supporting the growth of green skills through targeted initiatives such the Green Jobs Fund and funding colleges to roll-out training on green technologies such as electric vehicles, the Climate Emergency Skills Action Plan, published in 2020, is making sure that Scotland has the evidence-base needed to understand and respond to the scale and shape of the skills and labour needs of the emerging net zero economy. The Scottish Government intends to publish an updated plan by the end of this year.

Question reference: S6W-19792

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 21 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether an Assurance of Action Plan was commissioned following the fourth Deposit Return Scheme gateway review.

No. As a result of the UK Government’s actions and intervention at the 11th hour, we have been left with no other option than to reset the timescale of DRS and delay the launch until October 2025 at the earliest, when the UK Government aims to launch its own scheme. This means that the Action Plan that was developed and which was shared with the Net Zero Energy and Transport Committee on 28 June is now obsolete and therefore an Assurance of Action plan is unnecessary.

Question reference: S6W-19587

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 21 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government on how many occasions local authorities have made an additional powers request to the Scottish Ministers in each year since 1999.

Relevant Scottish local authorities have been able to request additional powers since the introduction of The Additional Powers Request (Scotland) Regulations 2019. Whilst no requests for additional powers have been submitted under the 2019 Regulations to date, Orkney Islands and Western Isles Councils submitted separate proposals for Single Island Authority models through the joint Local Governance Review process with COSLA.

Ministers look forward to working closely with all relevant local partners to develop models for alternative governance arrangements which can strengthen local decision-making and improve outcomes for local people.

Argyll and Bute Council has also expressed an interest in joining these discussions and willprovide the Scottish Government with further information on their aspirations and the local discussions which have taken place so far.

Question reference: S6W-19395

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 27 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 21 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-18498 by Lorna Slater on 16 June 2023, whether it will provide the information requested regarding whether notification was received in accordance with the request made in the cabinet secretary’s letter of 24 March 2021; if notification was not received, which provision in the Deposit and Return Scheme for Scotland Amendment Regulations 2022 applied in retroactively nullifying the request for notification and its potential status as a material change in circumstances, and, if no such provision exists, whether it will provide a copy of the ministerial action that was taken to nullify the request from the cabinet secretary.

The Scottish Government does not hold a record of a formal notification of a material change in circumstances in relation to this matter, however as mentioned previously in my response to S6W-18498, the letter and anticipated schedule to which the member refers was in the context of a scheme launch date of July 2022.

Following an independent Gateway Review in June 2021, the Scottish Government confirmed that it would conduct a review of that go live date, with input from Circularity Scotland, industry and independent advice. Issues relating to the design and delivery of the scheme were taken in to account during the review process.

As a result of that review, the Scottish Parliament voted to move the launch date of DRS from July 2022 to August 2023. This decision made the previous request for information irrelevant due to the change in the launch date for the scheme.

Question reference: S6W-19563

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 21 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government on what date it was first informed by Circularity Scotland that it had financial challenges.

Circularity Scotland informed the Scottish Government in March 2023 that a substantial delay to the scheme would pose significant financial challenges for them. This issue was highlighted to the UK Government via a letter to the Prime Minister which urged the UK Government to agree to an exclusion from the Internal Market Act for the deposit return scheme.

Copies of the correspondence between the Scottish Government and UK Government have been published as part of an EIR and can be found on the Scottish Government website .

Question reference: S6W-19621

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 21 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of how many businesses may be affected by Circularity Scotland going into administration.

As part of deposit return scheme governance, the Scottish Government meets regularly with businesses stakeholder across the producer, wholesaler, retailer and hospitality sectors. Many of these businesses have told us that, because of the 11th hour decision by the UK Government to impose vague and unworkable conditions which undermined our deposit return scheme and made progress impossible, their businesses have been impacted - both operationally and financially.

Question reference: S6W-19836

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 06 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 21 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has any plans to introduce (a) Whole Life Carbon Assessments and (b) Circular Economy Statements for large-scale developments.

National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4), adopted and published on 13 February 2023, sets out that development proposals will be sited and designed to minimise lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions as far as possible.

All national developments designated in NPF4 were subject to an assessment, undertaken by independent consultants, of the likely impact of each proposed national development’s lifecycle greenhouse gas emissions on achieving national greenhouse gas emissions reductions targets.

The Scottish Government has engaged with Zero Waste Scotland and leading experts on whole life emission reporting and the topic will be considered further in the development of Scotland’s next Climate Change Plan.

Where development proposals are likely to generate waste when operational, including residential, commercial, and industrial properties, NPF4 policy 12c) sets out that proposals will set out how much waste is expected to be generated and how it will be managed.

Question reference: S6W-19823

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 21 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-17171 by Neil Gray on 4 May 2023, whether the current contract between Ferguson Marine and BAE Systems, which was scheduled to end on 30 June 2023, did so, and what the current status is of the £25,000 working capital loan.

Question reference: S6W-19789

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 21 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it discussed establishing a shared common programme to identify workstream and stakeholder activity interactions prior to the fourth Deposit Return Scheme gateway review, and, if so, when any such discussions took place.

The deposit return scheme is designed to be industry led and managed. The Scottish Government convened and chaired a System Wide Assurance Group with industry representatives to assess system-wide readiness and to monitor and address risks to delivery. Members were responsible for progressing common issues. Following the March 2023 gateway review we established an expanded governance framework which includes representation from a wider group of stakeholders. This includes a Ministerial Strategic Assurance Group, which sits above the already established Executive Oversight Group and Sector Specific Working Groups.

Question reference: S6W-19623

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 03 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 21 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has met with any businesses that have been financially impacted as a result of Circularity Scotland going into administration.

As part of deposit return scheme governance, the Scottish Government meets with a range of stakeholders via the Ministerial Assurance Group, Executive Oversight Group and Producer, Retailer and Hospitality Sectoral Groups. Many of these businesses have told us that, because of the 11th hour decision of the UK Government to impose vague and unworkable conditions on Scotland’s scheme and make progress impossible, their businesses have been impacted - both operationally and financially.