Chamber and committees

A large proportion of Scottish Public Sector organisations benefit from buying their Gas, Electricity and Liquid Fuels through National Framework Agreements.

Scottish Procurement has a purchasing strategy that is overseen by a Risk Management Committee, with members from each of our main public sectors. This strategy enables gas and electricity to be purchased through our frameworks, up to 2½ years in advance of consumption. This purchasing strategy protects the public sector from the volatility of energy markets by purchasing energy over a long period to smooth out the highs and lows of pricing.

The wholesale cost of electricity has been fixed for 2022-2023, and public sector organisations will be paying 8.043 p/kWh, which is an increase from 4.9582 p/kWh in 2021-2022. As an illustration, if we were able to secure a fixed price for electricity today on the wholesale market for 2022-2023 it would be circa 33.9p/kWh, quadruple the price public sector organisations are paying under the Scottish Government agreement.

The wholesale cost of gas has been fixed for 2022-2023, and public sector organisations will be paying 5.2618 p/kWh, which is an increase from 1.5446 p/kWh in 2021-2022. As with electricity, if we were able to secure a fixed price for gas today on the wholesale market for 2022-2023 it would be circa 11 p/kWh, double the price public sector organisations are paying under the Scottish Government agreement.

Compared to 2021-22 framework rates, the projected increases for financial year 2022-2023 will be around 197% for Gas and 27.5% for Electricity (wholesale and pass though costs combined).

Whilst energy prices have increased, the financial impact on the public sector finances will depend on each organisation’s energy consumption.

For Liquid Fuels, while the delivery cost is fixed, the cost of the liquid fuels paid by the customer is based on the Platts Index, and is set on a weekly basis.

We have written to the UK Govt to urge them to tackle energy prices

NHS 24 has recently completed an initial review of the cancer specific information on NHS Inform, to ensure it is clinically safe and any out of date information has been removed. Meanwhile NHS 24 is in discussions with a third sector organisation on the potential for an API (Application Programming Interface) to facilitate the sharing of information through enabling information to be systematically gathered and displayed on NHS Inform.

The Scottish Government is committed to the creation and improvement of Nature Networks across Scotland.

Nature Networks will be developed and delivered through local partnerships, and will support ecological connectivity within and between National Parks, Protected Areas, and other biodiversity-rich areas through the creation of habitat corridors and ‘stepping stones’. To be effective, Nature Networks will require development and management over the long term. We are therefore working with NatureScot and other delivery partners to develop a co-design and delivery process.

Nature Networks will be a crucial mechanism to deliver the vision set out in our new Scottish Biodiversity Strategy and will form a key plank of the associated Delivery Plan. Our approach will take into account the wider policy framework at national, regional and local levels. Regional Land Use Partnerships are being piloted across five areas of Scotland to test inclusive approaches that facilitate collaboration at a regional level. They are looking to take a natural capital approach to maximising the contribution that our land makes in addressing the twin nature and climate crises. In developing our approach to nature networks we are considering how RLUPs can form a part of delivery. Nature networks have been embedded within the draft NPF4, to ensure that nature has the space to adapt to Scotland’s changing climate through linking areas which are important for biodiversity in urban, peri-urban and rural settings.

South of Scotland Enterprise (SOSE) advertised for four new Board members in Autumn 2021. Applicants were asked to demonstrate evidence of their skills, knowledge and experience in one of three areas: land based industries; governance/strategic management; or digital transformation. On 15 February 2022, the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and the Economy announced the appointments, with two of the successful candidates having extensive expertise in land based industries. In addition, two existing members of the Board have knowledge of agricultural matters.

We know that the recent increases in energy prices we have seen will be concerning to many consumers including those using mobility scooters. Whilst the Scottish Government does not have powers over the setting of energy prices, we have looked to provide assistance where we can.

As part of our wider £290m package of funding announcements made to tackle the cost of living crisis, we have committed a further £10m to continue our Fuel Insecurity Fund from April to help households at risk of self-disconnection, or self-rationing their energy use, due to unaffordable fuel costs.

We are also making financial support for disabled people and people with long term health conditions more straightforward to access. Through the introduction of Adult Disability Payment, we are providing a new, simplified, compassionate system that will treat people with dignity, fairness and respect. The application process has been designed with disabled people to make sure it is as clear as possible. People can apply in the way that’s best for them, either online, by post, over the phone or face-to-face.

The Scottish Government only holds this information from 2019/20 onwards.

In November 2021, we published a report which presented the findings of a survey of the 20 residential rehabilitation providers across Scotland which were identified in a previous mapping exercise. This report contained data on the numbers of people accessing residential rehabilitation for problem alcohol use in 2019/20 and 2020/21. For 2019/20, providers reported a total of 1,601 placements in residential rehabilitation across Scotland, of which 51% were primarily for alcohol. For 2020/21, providers reported a total of 1,164 placements, of which 52% were primarily for alcohol. This data refers to all placements from all funding sources.

We have tasked Public Health Scotland with producing a quarterly report on statutory funded placements. The first of these reports published in November 2021 found that between 1st April 2021 and 30th September 2021 there were a total of 96 (45%) placements for problem alcohol use.

The next report will be published on 26 April 2022 and will cover the period of October to December 2021.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-07862 on 25 April 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

An evaluation report was written in 2017 which reviewed the pilot Access to Elected Office Fund (Scotland) (AEOFS) programme and made recommendations for the future of such a scheme. Thereafter, operational funding was maintained for the Fund until October 2021, and further funding was provided through the Equality and Human Rights Fund to run the programme for a further 3 years.

Various changes were made to improve the programme in its second iteration, including opening the new fund for applications well in advance of the 2021 Scottish Parliament elections, leaving a longer lead in time to support those running for selection and as a candidate; and committing to funding AEOFS awards with no upper limit, ensuring that as many candidates as possible can apply for selection and be secure in the knowledge that funding will not be a barrier to their success. Further consideration was also given to addressing the particular barriers faced by BSL users, and the fund supported the first BSL user to be elected to a Scottish Local Authority in a by-election in 2019.

In addition, an ‘Access to Politics Charter’ was developed with disabled activists to support political parties to be more inclusive and promote disabled people as potential candidates. The Charter addressed a range of issues raised in the evaluation report. All of the five parliamentary political parties have signed up to the ‘Access to Politics Charter’ and each now has a disabled members’ group following charter principles.

In 2017, 44 disabled people were supported by the Fund. 39 became official candidates either as an independent or through their political party.

In 2021, 30 disabled people received Access to Elected Office Fund (Scotland) (AEOFS) awards to run for party selection and as candidates in the 2021 Scottish Parliament elections. 14 AEOFS recipients became regional list candidates or dual constituency/regional list candidates for the Scottish Parliament.

Between 2018-2021, two disabled people received AEOFS awards to run for party selection and as candidates in Scottish local council by-elections. One recipient became a candidate in a local council by-election and was elected as the first BSL-user councillor in Scotland.

In 2022, currently, there are 52 applications for support from the AEOFS.

Under the Business Ventilation Fund, the limit of any reimbursement claim was £2500 for each eligible premise. Where a business operates multiple premises, it was able to apply for a grant for each eligible premise. An upper limit of £50,000 in total was applied to any eligible business operating multiple premises.

Further information on the capped value of claims for each improvement item can be found here: What businesses can claim - Coronavirus (COVID-19): Business Ventilation Fund - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)