Questions and answers

Question reference: S6W-28377

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 June 2024
Current Status: Answered by Alasdair Allan on 15 July 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to support housing associations to retrofit their housing stocks, with the aim of reducing fuel poverty, lowering energy consumption and preventing the occurrence of mould, and how it plans to ensure that any measures are implemented effectively.

The Scottish Government is supporting housing associations to retrofit their housing stock through the Social Housing Net Zero Heat Fund. We are making available up to £200m this Parliamentary Session to support clean heat and energy efficiency projects in socially rented homes.

‎ Projects are eligible for up to 60% of the costs of clean heating systems and 50% of energy efficiency measures, including Mechanical Ventilation with Heat Recovery (MVHR) which also helps to prevent the occurrence of mould and condensation.

The Scottish Government monitors grant funded projects closely, requiring frequent updates to ensure they are implemented effectively and that benefits are realised.

The Scottish Housing Quality Standard requires social landlords to meet minimum energy efficiency standards and to have in place satisfactory ventilation, as well as ensure that there is no rising or penetrating damp. The Scottish Housing Regulator wrote to all Social Landlords in December 2022 on the importance of appropriate systems to identify cases of mould and damp.

Earlier this year the Scottish Government consulted on a new Social Housing Net Zero Standard. This included proposals to require landlords to devise a ventilation and monitoring strategy to accompany energy efficiency interventions where mechanical ventilation isn’t installed. We are now considering the consultation responses received before progressing.

Question reference: S6W-28533

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 11 July 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 8 August 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether its webpage, fairdeliveries.scot, which was planned to provide an online data hub and interactive parcel delivery map and be updated on a monthly basis, is available, and, if this is not the case, what the reasons are for it not being available.

Question reference: S6W-28534

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 July 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 7 August 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what progress has been made on the eight action points in its Fairer Deliveries For All: An Action Plan.

Question reference: S6W-28240

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 June 2024
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 4 July 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with (a) Royal Mail and (b) other delivery companies regarding the additional cost of parcel delivery in the Highlands and Islands region, and what measures are being implemented to ensure that residents in these areas are not disproportionately affected by (i) such costs and (ii) any proposed changes to the universal service obligation.

The Royal Mail and postal delivery services are reserved matters.

Postal delivery companies are commercial organisations, operating in an unregulated market. The Scottish Government has long called for an end to unfair delivery charges, but only the UK Government has the power to regulate them. Where there are opportunities to do so, the Scottish Government urges these companies to be fair and transparent in their pricing policies.

The Scottish Government supports the maintenance of the Universal Service Obligation (USO) and makes regular representations to the UK Government and Royal Mail on behalf of Scottish consumers.

I will meet with Royal Mail in September and will continue to seek assurances that any reform of the USO does not cause detriment, particularly to consumers in rural and island communities.

Question reference: S6W-28474

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 July 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 31 July 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a list of all licences issued by NatureScot for the use of more than two dogs for a hunt, as provided for under section 4 of the Hunting with Dogs (Scotland) Act 2023, broken down by the (a) geographical location of the area covered by each licence, (b) purpose of the maximum number of dogs permitted in each case, (c) minimum number of guns required in each case and (d) period of time for which each licence is valid.

Question reference: S6W-28473

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 July 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 31 July 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many licences issued by NatureScot for the use of more than two dogs for a hunt, as provided for under section 4 of the Hunting with Dogs (Scotland) Act 2023, have been in relation to a mounted hunt.

Question reference: S6W-28475

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 July 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 31 July 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many licences issued by NatureScot for the use of more than two dogs for a hunt, as provided for under section 4 of the Hunting with Dogs (Scotland) Act 2023, have been followed by a spot check to ensure compliance with the licence conditions, and, for any instances where a spot check has taken place, what (a) infringements or issues of concern were detected and (b) subsequent action was taken.

Question reference: S6W-28376

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 June 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 24 July 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what measures are being taken to ensure that local authorities provide adequate support to pupils and students with additional support needs in order to prevent the need for parents to appeal to the additional support needs tribunal, particularly in light of the provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (Incorporation) (Scotland) Act 2024 coming into force on 16 July 2024.

Question reference: S6W-28106

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 June 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 26 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding any impact on its climate change policies and targets, how ministers plan to take account of the advisory opinion delivered by the International Tribunal for the Law of the Sea on 21 May 2024 on the request submitted to the tribunal by the Commission of Small Island States on Climate Change and International Law.

The Scottish Government welcomes the advisory opinion and the clarity that it provides on the specific obligations of State Parties to the United Nations Convention on the Law of the Sea (UNCLOS) in relation to climate change and ocean acidification.

The relationship between climate change and ocean health is long-established in Scottish legislation and action to tackle the impacts of climate change is at the heart of decision making for the marine environment. Under the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010 Scottish Ministers and public authorities must act in the way best calculated to mitigate, and adapt to, climate change in exercising any function that affects the Scottish marine area. Further, the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009 requires that the climate change plan must set out the Scottish Ministers' proposals and policies regarding the consideration of the potential for the capture and long-term storage of carbon, known as blue carbon, when designating marine protected areas.

The Scottish Government’s commitment to ending Scotland’s contribution to global emissions by 2045 at the latest is unwavering. We are already around half-way there and continue to decarbonise faster than the UK average.

Question reference: S6O-03629

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 June 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 26 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding the potential impact on the Emergency Services Mobile Communications Programme of the roll-out of BT’s Digital Voice to rural and island areas in Scotland, in particular in relation to areas without adequate mobile phone provision.

Chamber and committees