Chamber and committees

The original core criteria for bids to the innovation fund stated that projects that require planning consent should have detailed planning consent in place, or be able to achieve this by 31 March 2012. In relation to site start it was stated that “housing should be capable of starting on site by 31 March 2012”

It was later recognised that this date may not be achievable for a number of projects and the site start target was extended by two months to May 2012.

Furthermore flexibility has been offered on this revised date where necessary on an individual basis.

The following table shows the number of social housing approvals in (a) 2009-10, (b) 2010-11 and (c) 2011-12:

Due to the size of the Energy Assistance Package (EAP) contract, Scottish Gas was required to procure subcontractors to carry out the heating and insulation work via the Official Journal of European Union tender process, giving businesses across Scotland an equal opportunity to compete. With regard to businesses in Dumfries and Galloway:

Note - Under the tender process, William Wilson Limited (based in Scotland) won sole contract to supply all EAP materials across Scotland.

Scottish Gas opened a Greenskills Academy in November 2010 in Dumfries to assist with the requirement to deliver community benefits under the EAP contract. This has been used to provide training and skills to local people and vulnerable groups. The academy has also supported local schools with raising awareness and career days in relation to renewable technology.

The Home Energy Assistance Scheme (Scotland) Regulations 2009 (as in force) provide that individuals meeting certain criteria may apply for works to be done to improve the energy efficiency of their home covered by a grant of £4000 or £6500. Broadly speaking, the higher level of grant applies where it would cost more to reach the required energy efficiency rating. The actual costs of the works may be different in each case, depending on a variety of factors from the location of the dwelling, the fuel type of the heating system, the size of the dwelling and the contractor selected by Scottish Gas to do the works. Oil systems and rural locations are generally more expensive to install, whereas gas and electric system installations are generally cheaper.

Prior to the change in the way that customer contributions were calculated, the customer contribution would be calculated using a complex process taking account of the actual cost of the installation, the available grant and whether or not a cheaper system could have been installed. As a result of the different factors influencing the actual installation cost, customers were being asked for unpredictable and different contributions for the same type of work, which was unfair and caused a lot of confusion.

The reasons for making adjustments were set out in the answer to PQ S4W-10950: namely, to ensure that customer contributions were simple, fair and transparent. The levels of customer contributions broadly reflect the relative costs of installing each fuel type; charges are required for new oil or solid fuel central heating systems or air source heat pumps as these are the most expensive to install. These systems required a customer contribution under the previous process but now every customer can be told exactly how much it will cost at survey and every customer is treated in the same way. It is now also clear that within-home installations of gas, electric dry or Liquid Petroleum Gas systems do not require a customer contribution. Households may face costs if they require significant changes to their electricity supply or a new connection to the gas grid. The intention of this change is to ensure that all households, including those in rural areas, have clarity over which systems are free and which will require a customer contribution and what that will be.

On 28 November 2012, I announced that Bear Scotland Ltd had been awarded the trunk road maintenance contract for the north west unit. The commencement of service is 1 April 2013

It is our ambition that a high speed rail link between Edinburgh and Glasgow eventually forms part of a UK high speed rail network. The early construction of an Edinburgh to Glasgow link will bring early benefits to the Scottish network while also forming the first phase of a new line to England. Over the coming two years the Scottish Government will also work with the UK Government and the High Speed Two Company to consider detailed plans for linking Scotland to the proposed High Speed two network.

Estimates of financial benefit will take that connection into account, together with the financial benefits arising from released rail capacity across the central Scotland’s rail network.

As noted in my answer to S4W-11209, on 23 November 2012, the Scottish Partnership Group for High Speed Rail delivered a pre-appraisal planning report to me in January 2012.

That report presented a number of planning criteria for the development of new high speed lines in Scotland. Amongst these were the technical criteria that any new line and infrastructure should be built with capacity for European Loading Gauge, offer enhanced line resilience, and be designed with the capability of accommodating 400 metre trains, and for speeds up to 400 kilometres per hour. This is necessary to ensure full technical interoperability with the HS2 line being developed in England, and to future-proof new lines.

However, it proposed that initial HS2 services to Scotland will be operated using UK gauge ‘classic compatible’ rolling stock, capable of operation on both newly built high speed lines, and onwards using the existing network. We consider that existing UK gauge rolling stock, similar to that used for commuter services between Kent and London, would be appropriate for use on a new Edinburgh to Glasgow line. The consequence of this is that there will be no requirement to consider the extensive modification of existing stations to accommodate high speed services as part of the proposed initial planning process.

All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

The proposed high speed rail line between Edinburgh and Glasgow is intended to complement the interim completion of the Edinburgh to Glasgow Improvement Programme, and address future passenger demand.

That will be determined as part of the project development process. We will continue to draw on the advice of the Scottish Future Trust (SFT). SFT is one of our development partners in the Scottish Partnership Group for High Speed Rail which delivered “Fast Track Scotland - Making the Case for High Speed Rail Connections with Scotland” in December 2011.

The estimate of the cost of construction will be determined by route appraisal and final design decisions.

However, I have made clear that we must challenge the per kilometre cost assumptions of delivery of high speed rail elsewhere in the UK. A first stage development of high speed rail in Scotland will only be required to accommodate standard UK gauge trains and this will avoid the need for expensive station redevelopment and build planned for elsewhere in Britain.