Chamber and committees

The act of ‘spiking’ women is absolutely abhorrent and the Scottish Government remains absolutely committed to working with partners to tackle this unacceptable behaviour.

I chaired an urgent roundtable with partners and representatives from across the sector on Thursday 4 November, including from police and industry, to discuss how we can achieve the right balance of targeted and universal intervention to ensure the safety of the public.

Our Equally Safe Strategy sets out Scotland’s ambition to tackle and eradicate all forms of violence against women and we will continue to implement this with a clear and decisive focus on primary prevention of violence. We are dedicating resources to tackling attitudes and inequality within every space for women and girls.

The Scottish Government commissioned a review to synthesise evidence on the operation of heat pumps with relevance to Scotland. The report is available at https://www.climatexchange.org.uk/research/projects/heat-pump-use-in-scotland-an-evidence-review/

As the report sets out, the temperature output from a heat pump or boiler is different from the temperature rooms are heated to: heat emitters, such as radiators, transfer heat into rooms by being heated to a higher temperature than the air in the room. While the output temperature of a heat pump is often lower than temperatures boilers commonly produce, when appropriately configured with building fabric and radiators or underfloor heating they efficiently bring indoor temperatures up to adequate levels. In addition, the report sets out evidence on less common high temperature heat pumps.

The microgeneration certification scheme (MCS) certifies heat pump installers to ensure that systems are appropriately designed to provide sufficient heat.

Alongside the development of the Heat in Buildings Strategy, the Scottish Government worked with stakeholders to undertake a series of impact assessments including a Fairer Scotland Duty (FSD) assessment and an Islands Communities Impact Assessment (ICIA) both of which consider remote and rural communities. We will publish these shortly and will take the findings into account as we deliver on the full range of actions set out in the Strategy.

Glasgow Prestwick Airport’s Schedule of Charges is set out clearly on its website. Parking charges are only one aspect of charges applied to visiting aircraft. Glasgow Prestwick Airport is operated on a commercial basis and at arm’s length from the Scottish Government, in compliance with our obligations under the Trade and Co-operation Agreement between the UK and the EU.

This is a commercial matter for the airport and Ministers do not intervene in commercial decisions at the airport. It is for the airport’s management team to consider all potential business opportunities to maximise the use of the assets of the airport.

The Scottish Government is considering a number of options as solutions to replacing gas boilers and recognise that that, for a small number of buildings, bioenergy and in particular bio heating oil, bioLPG and biomass may prove to be the only practicable option for heat decarbonisation. However, it is likely that these properties will be in off gas grid areas.

Heat pumps and Heat Networks are widely used in other European countries and have been identified as near term priorities for replacing gas boilers in Scotland as set out in our recently published Heat in Buildings Strategy.

Regarding support for heat pumps, I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-02397 on 9 September 2021. 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

Heat networks are also a key strategic zero emissions heat technology. The Competition and Markets Authority found that up to 90% of heat network customers enjoy similar, or lower, bills than those with standard gas boilers and heat networks can cut both emissions and bills.

Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil (HVO) fuel, like other bio fuels, is dependent on there being a sustainable supply of feedstock, and there remain concerns about lifecycle emissions. Further research is therefore required before Scottish Government could commit to any particular bio fuel. Scottish Government’s aim is to see bioenergy used where it has the greatest value in reducing emissions. However this decision is also dependent on lifecycle emissions and which sectors will make the best use of the bioenergy feedstocks. Emerging technologies and the push to decarbonise across the economy may also create new demands on these finite resources.

We intend to publish a Bioenergy Action Plan in 2023 which will set out a strategic framework for how the available biomass resources and technologies can be used to best effect.

The draft section 8N in the Bill as published for consultation provides that, where a person has obtained ‘overseas gender recognition’ (as defined), the person is to be treated as if the person had been issued with a full gender recognition certificate by the Registrar General for Scotland. But this rule doesn’t apply if it would be manifestly contrary to public policy (for example, in a case where gender recognition was obtained overseas at a very young age).

Whether or not a public policy exception applies will depend on the facts and circumstances, and may in a disputed case be determined by the courts under new section 8P, which provides that a court may make an order determining the question, if the question arises in the course of civil proceedings before the court or on an application to the court by a person having an interest in it. This is set out in the draft explanatory notes to the Bill, which were published as part of the consultation on the draft Bill.

Section 195 of the Equality Act 2010 sets out exceptions from the requirements of that Act in relation to sport. The 2010 Act is generally reserved to the UK Parliament, including section 195, so the exceptions in the section would continue unaffected by the proposed provisions in the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill. The Scottish Government continues to support the rights and protections that women currently have under the Equality Act 2010, and the proposed reforms in the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill do not affect this.

There is an explanatory note for section 195 that can be found here Equality Act 2010 - Explanatory Notes (legislation.gov.uk)

The Scottish Government is committed to working to improve the family justice system in Scotland, as set out in the 2019 Family Justice Modernisation Strategy. However, since this Strategy was published, a number of areas of work across the Scottish Government were paused to enable an effective response to the COVID-19 pandemic, whilst also ensuring core services remained operational. As we move towards recovery from the pandemic, the Scottish Government will prepare an update on the Strategy and look at how best to take forward actions in the Strategy which remain outstanding, including whether amendments are required to the Child Abduction Act 1984.

The Scottish Government estimates the cost of building-level measures to reach our emissions targets over the 24 year period to 2045 will be in the region of £33 billion. We have committed to investing at least £1.8 billion over the five year period of this parliament. This funding will help kick-start market growth while supporting those least able to pay.

As set out in the Heat in Buildings Strategy, we are working to develop an appropriate market framework to help consumers overcome the upfront investment costs and to attract and secure further private investment and finance to help meet the costs of the transition. We will establish a Green Heat Finance Taskforce by the end of 2021 to recommend ways the Scottish Government and private sector can collaborate to scale up investment. In addition we will explore other options, including the use of local tax powers, linking the mortgage market to energy performance and emissions, and options for new market mechanisms including potential obligations on market actors. Where action is needed in reserved areas we will work with the UK Government.

Heat in Buildings Strategy – https://www.gov.scot/publications/heat-buildings-strategy-achieving-net-zero-emissions-scotlands-buildings/

The Heat Networks (Scotland) Act 2021 has set out ambitious targets for heat network deployment, requiring 2.6 terawatt hours of output by 2027 and 6 terawatt hours by 2030.

To help meet these targets, the Scottish Government will invest £400 million over the next five years in large-scale heat decarbonisation infrastructure through the successor scheme to the Low Carbon Infrastructure Transition Programme (LCITP). However, we cannot rely on public investment alone to fund the development of low carbon heat networks in Scotland and government support must be used to leverage private investment into heat networks if the targets are to be met. The LCITP provided grants for up to 50% of project capital costs with the remainder being match funded and the successor programme is likely to take a similar approach. Financial mechanisms such as the Green Growth Accelerator will also be key in stimulating investment.

The regulatory system laid out within the Heat Networks (Scotland) Act will play an important role in boosting confidence in the sector and providing greater certainty for investors. For example, the Act provides for the award of Heat Network Permits which will provide investors greater assurance over the potential customer base available, helping lower investment cost.

Detail on how we will meet the ambitious heat network targets will be provided in the Heat Networks Delivery Plan, which we will publish for consultation in due course.