Chamber and committees

All information relating to determinations made by Scottish Ministers under the Electricity Act 1989, including any conditions, are publicly available on our Energy Consents website: https://www.energyconsents.scot/ApplicationSearch.aspx

NPF4 is a material consideration in the determination of applications, and it is read and applied as a whole. It is for the decision maker to determine what weight to attach to policies within NPF4 on a case-by-case basis. The weight to be applied to all material considerations and the need for conditions to be attached to any consent is a matter for the Minister taking the decision to consider on a case-by-case basis.

The capital costs associated with Carbon Contracts will be paid for from the Environment and Forestry Directorate’s budget. It will not impact upon the Peatland Action budget in this financial year.

As set out in the answer to question S6W-38860 on 1 July 2025, the Scottish Government recognises that widening access into nursing and midwifery programmes is important to grow the number of nurses and midwives in our health and social care workforce. That is why we value the important role colleges play in widening access for students into higher education and into health professions.

The Nursing and Midwifery Taskforce set out a number of recommended actions which are being progressed at pace to develop alternative entry routes and consider the barriers and enablers to attracting students to nursing and midwifery professions. This includes, work on improving the existing Higher National Certificate (HNC) in Healthcare Practice for Nursing and the development of a HNC for Maternity which will more consistently support entry into Year 1 of Nursing and Midwifery degree programmes, and direct articulation into Year 2 Nursing degree programmes. This will be progressed in collaboration with identified higher education institutions.

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.

Scotland has a strong record in attracting foreign direct investment and our Inward Investment Plan (IIP) plays a central role in supporting this by targeting key sectors such as high-value manufacturing and energy transition.

Responsibility for measuring Scotland’s inward investment performance, which includes planned jobs and supply chain impacts for involved projects, rests with Scottish Enterprise. The independent EY Attractiveness Survey and the DBT annual inward investment results provide an additional performance indicator for inward investment. Collectively the results, though based on different methodologies and published at different intervals during the year, help the Scottish Government build a broader understanding of Scotland’s inward investment performance.

Whilst the Scottish Government nor Scottish Enterprise holds specific data on manufacturing jobs created through inward investment at local authority level, information on how Scotland has performed in terms of attracting investment in key sectors is available via the EY attractiveness survey (the latest results can be found here: ey-uk-attractiveness-survey-scotland-06-2025.pdf and the Department for Business and Trade Inward Investment Results (the latest results can be found here: DBT inward investment results 2024 to 2025 - GOV.UK). Scottish Enterprise results will be published in the Autumn.

Guidance on the criteria for use in determining which projects will be awarded a Carbon Contract as part of the Carbon Contract pilot will be published on the NatureScot website in July.

Applications will be assessed by NatureScot and will align with processes for the 2026-2027 Peatland Action funding round.

External consultancy services will not be utilised for this process.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-38863 on 3 July 2025. 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.

Responsibility for managing and resolving the RTS switch-off is fully reserved to the UK Parliament and is regulated by Ofgem. However, given the disproportionate impact on the people of Scotland, the Scottish Government is in daily contact with the UK Government and Ofgem to press them to take the necessary steps to protect consumers.

Households and businesses who have not yet upgraded should not face any unexpected disruption to their heating or hot water from 30 June. The Scottish Government understands that energy suppliers will contact all affected customers in advance of any phase out activity in an area, allowing sufficient time to book and receive a meter upgrade. We expect suppliers to deliver on their commitment to increase the number of upgrades significantly and quickly in Scotland. We will continue to do everything possible to raise awareness and hold those responsible to account through formal and informal channels, including the RTS Taskforce.

While we welcome the decision to take a phased approach to the switch-off, the announcement has come too late and with insufficient detail to reassure consumers who have not yet managed to secure a meter upgrade. We remain concerned about the potential impact on vulnerable consumers, communities, local authorities, and emergency responders, and the First Minister has now escalated these concerns to the Prime Minister. The Scottish Government, local authorities, and other devolved services must be provided with full details of the phase-out timetable detailing which local authority areas will be impacted and when.

Any consumers experiencing difficulties with their supplier can contact Advice Direct Scotland (ADS). Funded by the Scottish Government, ADS runs the free national energy advice service and can be contacted on 0808 196 8660 or at Energy Advice | Energy Advice | energyadvice.scot.

We have already implemented a substantial element of what is being asked, for those aged under 22, and this was announced at the time with extensive media coverage and announced to Parliament. These measures have been developed after careful consideration from the Island Connectivity Plan and Fairs Fare Review consultation. There are no immediate plans to extend these very positive measures which will help young people and their families facing cost of living pressures.

Northern Isles:

Extension of free ferry vouchers for 19-21 implemented from 23 June 2025

CHFS - Western Isles:

Under 22 free inter island ferry fares implemented from 1 April 2025

Extension of free ferry vouchers for 19-21 implemented from 23 June 2025

Other CHFS routes:

Extension of free ferry vouchers for 19-21 implemented from 23 June 2025

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-38863 on 3 July 2025 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.

Both NorthLink Ferries and CalMac Ferries offer concessionary fares for disabled passengers who hold a National Entitlement Card or equivalent. Disabled passengers living in the Strathclyde Partnership for Transport region are eligible for discounted ferry travel if they live on an island or peninsula and hold a Strathclyde Concessionary Travel Ferry Card. Any local authority ferry services with fares for disabled passengers are set independently from Scottish Government concessionary fares.

Additionally, all eligible island residents living in Orkney, Shetland, North Ayrshire, Highland, Argyll and Bute and Eilean Siar council areas receive 4 free single ferry journeys per year to or from the mainland, as part of the Scottish Government’s ferries concessionary voucher scheme.

All concessionary fares for disabled passengers are listed on the corresponding local authority, CalMac or NorthLink websites. The Scottish Government concessionary fares are listed on the Transport Scotland website.