Chamber and committees

Two pilot incentive schemes led by NatureScot were launched in early autumn to provide financial incentives to deer managers to increase deer culls in specific parts of Scotland.

The schemes are operating well with 22 deer controllers signed up across 19 properties in Central Scotland and 25 deer controllers signed up across 12 properties in South Loch Ness. Some of the cull thresholds, which are the triggers for incentive payments to be made, have now been met in both pilot areas with payments issued in November 2024.

The Scottish Government has provided £80,000 through the Covid Recovery Plan Opportunities Fund to create new local chill and processing units for wild venison in Argyll, Moray and Dumfries and Galloway.

Separately, NatureScot is beginning a partnership project with the Scottish Agricultural Organisation Society to look at the venison chain supply issues, barriers, and opportunities for investment into processing infrastructure and community larders.

In addition to this, Forestry and Land Scotland are considering providing a limited number of people from a small number of local communities with the opportunity to help them deliver sustainable deer management this would include allowing access to cull on FLS land and having access to their larders.

My answer here is the same as that set out in S5W-23733 on 21 June 2019.

The rules for how the Scottish Government is funded are set out in the Statement of Funding Policy. Changes in Scottish Government funding are determined by applying the Barnett formula to changes in UK government departmental spending, rather than allocating a proportion of revenues raised through the UK Soft Drinks Industry Levy. There is therefore no direct link between the revenue raised by the UK Government through the Soft Drinks Industry Levy and any element of the funding allocated to Scotland. The Scottish Government spends its money in accordance with the published budget as agreed by the Scottish Parliament.

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

In our consultation document: Allocation of Scottish Additional Quota from 2024, the Scottish Government set out a wish to explore whether a vessel’s history of compliance with regulatory requirements relating to fishing could be utilised as a criterion for allocating Additional Quota.

As noted in our subsequent outcome of consultation document, there were split views on this proposal. The Scottish Government sees merit in exploring withholding Additional Quota on the basis of non-compliance with regulatory requirements. As we set out in the outcome report, this will be taken forward as part of a review of the penalties system. No date is set for when this work will commence, but it will be delivered in line with our Fisheries Management Strategy (2020-2030).

The Scottish Government recognises that the work of the Scottish Powerchair Football Association and Scottish Para-Football is extremely valuable in providing opportunities for people with a range of conditions to participate in football and to promote inclusivity in the game.

An ongoing priority is for the Scottish Government is to support participation across all groups and tackle inequalities in participation. We recognise the power of sport and the positive impact which sport can have on a person's physical and mental health and that those with disabilities are less likely to feel connected to their local community.

Through sportscotland we invest in the Scottish Football Association (SFA) to support the development of football. In financial year 2024/25 our investment is almost £1.35 million. This investment supports the national partnership agreement with the SFA which includes "empowering community football clubs to become sustainable, adaptive and inclusive", but the agreement does not dictate the detail of the expenditure.

I recently met with Scottish Para-Football to discuss current issues and priorities. I will continue to work with Scottish Para-Football to help promote, and support access to all elements of para-football, including powerchair football.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-32273 on 6 January 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

Every ‘scheduled’ award review carried out by Social Security Scotland is a light-touch review.

This means that Social Security Scotland do not require clients by default to provide information again that they already provided, that is not relevant to the changes they have reported, or that we can gather through other means.

Instead, Social Security Scotland will consider information they already hold about the client, where still relevant, and make use of appropriate decision-making tools, where needed, to reduce the need for further questions. They only ask for new supporting information in specific scenarios and take their usual supportive approach to gathering this information.

Our approach differs when a client’s circumstances or changes are more complex, or their reported level of need is unexpected. This is not light touch and Social Security Scotland will decide on a case-by-case basis what additional steps are required and appropriate to better understand the client’s needs, and to ensure they have the information needed to make a robust determination on the client’s entitlement.

NHS Boards across Scotland are expected to provide maternity services that are delivered as close to home as practicable; however, this must be balanced with ensuring the safety of all mothers and babies. All decisions about care throughout pregnancy, including around place of birth, should be made by women in discussion with their midwife and obstetrician. These decisions will take account of their individual needs and circumstances.

In support of this, and recognising the importance of the relationship between women and their midwives during the pregnancy, birth and postnatal journey, we continue to implement continuity of carer within maternity services, a key recommendation of The Best Start. The Scottish Government’s Programme for Government 2024-25 reaffirms our commitment to ensuring that more women receive care and support from the same midwife from pregnancy through birth, prioritising those most likely to benefit, including women with additional social needs.

More broadly, our ambition is for a Scotland where health outcomes are equitable across the population so that all women enjoy the best possible health – throughout their lives. This remains the ambition of the Scottish Government, and will continue to be our guiding principle as we consider the next phase of the Women’s Health Plan.

The total size of the Scottish Industrial Energy Transformation Fund is £34 million. The UK government budget committed funding from which Barnett consequentials will be received, however, these are accrued to the Scottish Government as a whole and it is for Scottish Ministers to decide how they should be allocated based on their priorities.

A total of 28 projects have been funded through the Scottish Industrial Energy Transformation Fund (SIETF). Refer to the Scottish Government website which includes a list of projects that have received SIETF grant offers from 2021 to 2024, along with case studies.