Chamber and committees

The Scottish Government does not hold information on how many street lights could presently be retrofitted to include electric vehicles charging points broken down by local authority area. Whilst electric vehicle charging technologies exists for such an application, not all street lights will be suitable for a number of reasons including their proximity to the public road.

Supporting those without access to off-street charging will require a range of approaches. We have invested almost £60m to develop a public EV network and this year announced a new £60m EV Infrastructure Fund that aims to double the size of the public charging network in the next few years. We are also taking forward legislation to ensure developers provide electric vehicle charge points in the construction of new residential and non-residential buildings, to increase both the convenience and number of charging opportunities across Scotland.

We are committed to ensuring that all children and young people, get the support that they need to reach their full learning potential.

Under the Education (Additional Support for Learning) (Scotland) Act 2004 (the 2004 Act) education authorities have duties to identify, provide for and review the additional support needs of their pupils. Education authorities can ask other agencies (including health boards) for help in carrying out their duties.

The Scottish Government has published guidance on supporting children and young people with healthcare needs in schools . The guidance supports education authorities, health boards and schools in delivering their responsibilities to support pupils’ healthcare needs. Where children and young people require medication throughout their school day, a healthcare plan should be put in place which sets out the arrangements for ongoing medical care in school and emergency procedures should an emergency arise.

Local Authorities are responsible for street lighting on public roads and footways that are within their statutory list of public roads, Motorways and Trunk Lighting are maintained by Transport Scotland.

The Scottish Government does not hold information on how many street light electric vehicle charge points are currently in operation broken down by local authority area. However, the majority of public charge points installed to date in Scotland, including through the Scottish Government’s £50m investment in the ChargePlace Scotland Network, are unlikely to be connected or integrated to lampposts.

This information is not held by the Scottish Government. Pay for directly employed staff would depend on a number of variables like the Banding of the nurse, the length of the shift and whether the shift takes place at night or over the weekend when an unsocial hours premium would apply.

The Scottish Government public appointments team in line with the Ethical Standards Commissioner Code of Practice for Ministerial Appointments to Public Bodies in Scotland publishes information on those holding board member and Chair positions on the boards of regulated public bodies. This information is published on the Public Appointments website on the Scottish Government Website. [ Full list of public appointments by public body - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) ].

Currently there are 57 individuals who serve on two or more Boards of public bodies.

An extract is attached below highlighting those individuals who currently serve on the boards of two or more public bodies.

Board Members Holding Two or More Public Appointments

The number of deaths where malnutrition was the underlying cause in any death over the past 10 years is as follows (TABLE 1):

The allocation process is managed by the General Teaching Council of Scotland (GTCS). Probationer teachers are allocated to each of the 32 local authorities and to Jordanhill based on their preferences and need identified by the authorities.

As of 31 August 2022 the number and percentage of probationer teachers allocated to each local authority is indicated in the following table.

The 2021-22 season has seen the UK’s largest outbreak of highly pathogenic avian influenza (HPAI) to date, which has affected wild bird populations, including some internationally important seabird populations.

The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) carries out year-round highly pathogenic avian influenza surveillance of dead wild birds reported to Defra’s GB national helpline, which captures information on the general location and strains of avian influenza that are present in wild birds. To date, there have been no confirmed findings of avian influenza in European storm petrels in Scotland. More information on the programme and findings in wild birds is available at: https://www.gov.scot/publications/avian-influenza-outbreaks/#wildbirds .

In addition to the GB Dead Wild Bird Surveillance Scheme, NatureScot and other relevant parties have been carrying out monitoring at key seabird colonies across Scotland to collect data on bird numbers and any mortality events. This surveillance and monitoring has not recorded any mortality of European storm petrels.

While the full extent of the impact of the current avian influenza outbreak on seabirds, is unknown, some colonies have clearly been affected. A Scottish Avian Influenza in Wild Birds Task Force has been established to co-ordinate activity to monitor and minimise the impact of avian influenza on wild bird populations in Scotland. This will involve identifying surveillance, monitoring and related research needs, which will allow a better understanding of the current and likely future impact of the disease on wild bird populations.

Furthermore, NatureScot will be collecting samples from European storm petrel nesting boxes in Mousa over the next few weeks, as part of the FluMap programme, to improve understanding of the transmission of avian influenza in wild birds. Colony surveys will also be undertaken during the 2023 breeding season to assess the status of seabird colonies potentially impacted by the current HPAI outbreak.

The Robert Gordon University report – Making the Switch, funded through the North-East Economic Recovery and Skills Fund (NEERSF), estimates between 70,000 and 80,000 people are directly and indirectly employed in the offshore energy sector in Scotland, with around 65% working or based in the North East.

This report highlights over 90% of the workforce has medium to high skills transferability between adjacent energy sectors, such as offshore wind, the use of hydrogen and carbon capture and storage. This indicates the North East is well placed to capitalise on the opportunities associated with the energy transition and could become either a UK or Global Energy Hub, with the expected result of the energy workforce remaining broadly stable or increasing by 2030.

The Scottish Government is supporting this transition from the oil and gas sector to renewables and low carbon through a number of programmes, including, but not limited to, the £75 million Energy Transition Fund and our £500 million Just Transition Fund for the North East and Moray.

The Climate Emergency Skills Action Plan is key to ensuring everyone can benefit from the opportunities a Just Transition can create, whether the requirement is to improve on existing skills or retrain to a new or emerging green job.

The application window for the first year of the Just Transition Fund closed on 15 July 2022, with a total of 102 proposals received.

The Fund was advertised through the Scottish Government’s website and social media platforms, as well as through local partners, including: Aberdeenshire Council, Moray Council; Aberdeen City Council; Aberdeen and Grampian Chamber of Commerce; Moray Chamber of Commerce; and the Just Transition Partnership. The Fund was also advertised through the ‘Find Business Support’ portal.

Applicants were notified about the outcome of their proposals on 6 September 2022, but the full list of projects won’t be published until after the mourning period following the passing of Her Majesty The Queen.