Chamber and committees

Due to Adult Disability Payment being in the early stages of delivery, we have not commenced publication of statistics relating to clients’ specific disabilities or conditions. This information will be included in future statistical publications.

As of July 2022, the number of people in receipt of Personal Independence Payment in Scotland for which COVID-19 or Long COVID is recorded as the client’s primary disability or condition was 307.

Matters relating to the procurement of new vessels for Orkney and Shetland’s internal ferry services are the responsibility of those councils. Therefore any discussions with the Clyde Catamaran Group on this topic would be for Orkney and Shetland Island Councils.

To date, there have not been any discussions between the Scottish Government and the Clyde Catamaran Group regarding it's Scottish ferry shipbuilding strategy. However, a meeting has been arranged with the Clyde Catamaran Group and I look forward to discussing their proposals on the matter.

My response to the UK Government consultation in March made clear that any credible and effective package of conditionality tests must include both domestic and international dimensions - extending to at least all of the six tests outlined in the consultation document.

The First Minister also called on the UK Government for a four nations’ discussions to agree on a final Climate Compatibility Checkpoint process which was ignored. The UKCCC said that any effective and credible climate compatibility checkpoint for offshore oil and gas licensing must extend beyond new licensing rounds to also cover fields that are already consented but not yet in production.

It is extremely disappointing that the Climate Compatibility Test proposed by the UK Government is limited to new exploration, and that the bar has been set so low in terms of the Test itself. It is particularly unfortunate that the Climate Compatibility Checkpoint fails to consider the impact of emissions associated with the use as well as the production of fossil fuels on the world’s climate commitments made in Paris and reaffirmed in the Glasgow Climate Pact.

It is a lightweight version of the Test consulted upon earlier this year.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-12547 on 5 December 2022. 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 Scottish Government is in regular contact with the UK Government’s Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy about the continuing discussions to renegotiate the Energy Charter Treaty, with a view to identifying and mitigating any particular impacts on Scotland.

The Scottish Government is aware of the concerns raised by The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change and others that International Investment Agreements, such as the Energy Charter Treaty, may lead to ‘regulatory chill’. That is why, in our Vision for Trade, we are clear that no part of a trade or investment agreement should limit the ability of the Scottish Parliament to regulate in devolved areas, or constrain much-needed action to achieve our net zero goal.

In response to how many ministerial regulated appointments that declared a political affiliation over the five years, a total of 37 individuals have noted political activity where a party was specified. The breakdown is as follows:

(a) Public Bodies a total of 19

To support the installation of solar panels on existing domestic and commercial premises, the Scottish Government has a number of funding schemes.

For domestic properties, Home Energy Scotland provides advice and funding for solar installations of up to £5,000 in interest-free loans. Warmer Homes Scotland, the Scottish Government’s national fuel poverty scheme, provides funding for solar projects for homeowners or private tenants with consenting landlords.

Local authorities can obtain Scottish Government funding for solar installations through our Area Based Scheme. The Social Housing Net Zero Heat Fund also considers funding applications for solar PV within the zero emission heat solutions category.

For communities, our Community and Renewable Energy Scheme (CARES) supports solar renewable projects through advice and loan and grant funding to community groups. Our SME Loan Scheme offers eligible businesses access to interest free loans of up to £100,000 towards the installation of solar PV, as well as free energy efficiency evaluation and advice on potential installations.

Scottish Child Payment offers financial support to families with children, and is paid as a top-up of certain qualifying reserved benefits, such as Universal Credit. Applicants must also demonstrate child responsibility to meet the qualifying criteria in full.

The regulations for Scottish Child Payment specifically define kinship care as a way of meeting child responsibility and so low-income families that are also kinship carers may be eligible for Scottish Child Payment if they meet all the eligibility criteria. We recently amended the definition of kinship care to ensure more low income kinship carers are eligible now we have rolled out Scottish Child Payment to children under 16. These regulations can be found at https://www.legislation.gov.uk/ssi/2022/336/contents/made ..

Low income families that are also foster carers are not eligible for Scottish Child Payment. This is because children in foster care are considered looked after by the local authority and, as such, foster carers do not satisfy the legal responsibilities or rights that entitle them to child responsibility benefits. Foster carers receive allowances from local authorities to cover the needs of children living with them.

Local councils are responsible for the recruitment and deployment of their staff. This includes providing a complement of teachers which best meets the needs of each of their schools and its pupils within the resources available.

During the pandemic, the Scottish Government provided an additional £240m to local authorities to support the recruitment of additional teachers and support staff. We have since committed further permanent funding of £145.5m a year to further support education staffing.