Questions and answers

Question reference: S3O-08747

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 December 2009
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 3 December 2009

To ask the Scottish Executive Scottish Executive what discussions it has had with COSLA regarding the implications for social care of the UK Government’s proposals to change attendance allowance.

Question reference: S3W-27742

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 25 September 2009
Current Status: Answered by Jim Mather on 29 October 2009

To ask the Scottish Executive what the increase in electricity generation capacity as a result of new commercial wind farms was in each of the last five years, broken down by local authority area.

Data on the consent dates of local authority wind farm planning applications is not collated by Scottish ministers. However, the data for Electricity Act Section 36 cases, which are consented by Scottish ministers, is detailed in the following table:

Local Authority	2005	2006	2007	2008	2009
Aberdeenshire Council	0	0	0	75	0
Argyll and Bute Council	0	0	0	60	0
Dumfries and Galloway Council	0	0	303	0	0
East Ayrshire Council	0	0	0	0	130
East Lothian Council	90¹	0	0	27	0
East Renfrewshire Council	0	322²	0	0	0
Highland Council	7	0	0	138.5	35
Moray Council	9	0	0	0	78.3
Perth and Kinross Council	0	0	0	204	0
South Ayrshire Council	0	0	0	264	0
South Lanarkshire Council	0	0	0	548	0

Notes:

1. The Crystal Rig Extension 2 wind farm straddles two local authorities - East Lothian and the Scottish Borders. The MW capacity of the Crystal Rig Extension 2 wind farm has been included in the East Lothian total as it has the largest number of turbines in its area.

2. The Whitelee wind farm straddles three local authorities - East Renfrewshire, East Ayrshire and South Lanarkshire. The MW capacity of the Whitelee wind farm has been included in the East Renfrewshire total as it has the largest number of turbines in its area.

Question reference: S3W-27741

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 25 September 2009
Current Status: Answered by Jim Mather on 29 October 2009

To ask the Scottish Executive what the electricity generation capacity is of commercial wind farms, broken down by local authority area.

The information requested is shown in the table below:

Local Authority	Capacity from Wind Farms Installed, Consented and Under Construction (in Megawatts)
Aberdeenshire Council	183.3
Angus Council	10.4
Argyll and Bute Council	296.2
Clackmannanshire Council	47
Dumfries and Galloway Council	479.8
Dundee City Council	4
East Ayrshire Council¹	143.2
East Lothian Council³	165
East Renfrewshire Council¹	327
Falkirk Council	2
Fife Council	27
Glasgow City Council	6
Highland Council	711.1
Inverclyde Council	0.01
Moray Council	242.51
North Ayrshire Council	42
North Lanarkshire Council²	4
Orkney Council	38.28
Perth and Kinross Council	283.5
Scottish Borders Council³	417.9
Shetland Council	4.45
South Ayrshire Council	394
South Lanarkshire Council^{1, 2}	760.7
Stirling Council	156.5
West Lothian Council ²	44
Western Isles Council	45.41
Total	4,835.26

All other local authorities have no wind farms under the Town and Country Planning Act or Section 36 of the Electricity Act, installed, consented or under construction.

Notes:

1. The Whitelee wind farm straddles three local authorities - East Renfrewshire, East Ayrshire and South Lanarkshire. The MW capacity of the Whitelee wind farm has been included in the East Renfrewshire total as it has the largest number of turbines in its area.

2. The Black Law wind farm straddles three local authorities - South Lanarkshire, North Lanarkshire and West Lothian. The MW capacity of the Black Law wind farm has been included in the South Lanarkshire total as it has the largest number of turbines in its area.

3. The Crystal Rig Extension 2 wind farm straddles two local authorities - East Lothian and the Scottish Borders. The MW capacity of the Crystal Rig Extension 2 wind farm has been included in the East Lothian total as it has the largest number of turbines in its area.

Question reference: S3W-27746

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 25 September 2009
Current Status: Answered by Stewart Stevenson on 8 October 2009

To ask the Scottish Executive how much money was invested in the trunk road network in each of the last five years, broken down by local authority area.

The information requested is not available broken down by local authority area, however it is held by region and this has been provided in the following table:

Major Projects Expenditure	2004-05	2005-06	2006-07	2007-08	2008-09
Major Projects Expenditure	£million	£million	£million	£million	£million
Highland	2	2	3	15	17
Aberdeenshire	7	9	8	13	37
Moray	0	0	0	1	3
Argyll and Bute	-	-	0	0	1
Perthshire and Kinross	1	2	19	15	3
Scottish Borders	1	3	9	20	10
Fife	8	5	51	49	45
Glasgow²	27	101	82	27	79
Angus	0	0	0	-	-
Dumfries and Galloway	3	1	5	15	12
Ayrshire	25	3	2	9	21
Lothian	9	1	0	1	3
Total	83	126	179	164	230
Operating/Maintenance Expenditure⁴	268	166	191	209	168
Total Spend	351	292	370	373	398

Notes:

1. The figures have not been converted to today''s prices.

2. Glasgow includes Lanarkshire and Renfrewshire.

3. Some projects straddle regional boundaries and the predominant region has been chosen.

4. Operating/maintenance expenditure is all expenditure not relating to schemes published on the Scottish Motorway and Trunk Road Programme. It includes:

Structural Repairs,

Routine and Winter Maintenance,

Network Strengthening,

DBFO payments,

Minor Improvements.

The nature of this type of expenditure does not enable it to be broken down by region.

Question reference: S3W-27743

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 25 September 2009
Current Status: Answered by Jim Mather on 8 October 2009

To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of electricity production came from (a) renewable energy, (b) nuclear energy and (c) hydrocarbons in each of the last five years.

The following table shows the percentage shares of electricity generation by fuel, in Scotland, for the last five years for which data are currently available.

Generation of Electricity By Fuel in Scotland, 2003-07

Year	Fuel
Year	Renewable Energy	Nuclear	Hydrocarbons¹	Other²
2003	7.5%	37.2%	53.8%	1.5%
2004	11.7%	36.1%	50.6%	1.6%
2005	13.2%	37.9%	47.5%	1.3%
2006	13.3%	27.1%	57.3%	2.3%
2007	17.1%	25.6%	54.8%	2.5%

Source: Energy Trends, Department for Business, Innovation and Skills.

Notes:

1. Hydrocarbons includes coal, oil and gas.

2. Other includes hydroelectric (pumped) and non-biodegradable wastes.

More information on electricity generation data can be found at:

http://www.berr.gov.uk/energy/statistics/publications/trends/index.html.

Question reference: S3W-27747

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 25 September 2009
Current Status: Answered by Jim Mather on 8 October 2009

To ask the Scottish Executive what steps have been taken to improve energy efficiency and promote the use of micro-renewable electricity generation.

As one of the Scottish Government''s 10 Energy Pledges, energy efficiency is a key element of both our economic recovery programme and our climate change response. The Scottish Government is taking action across all sectors, aimed at reducing energy demand, cutting carbon emissions and contributing to sustainable economic growth.

The Climate Change (Scotland) Act commits us to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 42% by 2020 and by 80% by 2050, and includes a mandatory provision to publish an Energy Efficiency Action Plan and report on its progress annually to parliament.

The Energy Efficiency Action Plan consultation paper will be released this month, with the plan being published following the consultation. The consultation paper will outline action that we have taken to date on energy efficiency and microgeneration, and seek feedback on what more we all could be doing.

We are also working with the energy companies to leverage more delivery of the Carbon Emissions Reduction Target (CERT), the main mechanism we have for improving domestic energy efficiency, and the insulation work that goes with this. CERT measures in Scotland are being delivered in a way that is complementary to our Energy Assistance Package. We continue to fund the Energy Saving Trust and Carbon Trust to provide energy efficiency advice to all sectors and have now introduced our area-based Home Insulation Scheme.

Question reference: S3W-27745

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 25 September 2009
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 8 October 2009

To ask the Scottish Executive what percentage of municipal waste was sent to energy from waste (EFW) plants in each of the last five years, broken down by (a) local authority area and (b) type of EFW facility.

The following table gives a break down of the percentage of municipal waste sent to energy from waste (EFW) plants in the last five years, broken down by local authority. Historically there have been two plants in Scotland; one in Dundee (Fluidised Bed incinerator) and the other on Shetland (Moving Grate incinerator). The Shetland incinerator handles waste from Shetland Islands and Orkney Islands Councils and the Dundee incinerator waste from Dundee, Angus and Perth and Kinross Councils.

In the last two years, Dumfries and Galloway Council has started to produce refuse derived fuel (RDF) from Mechanical Biological Treatment plant which they use to process their municipal waste. There are currently plans underway to send the RDF produced by the facility to be burned at the nearby Scotgen gasification facility.

Percentage Municipal Waste Incinerated (Inputs)

Local Authority	2004-05	2005-06	2006-07	2007-08	2008-09
Angus	24.3	31.9	12.0	23.3	20.7
Dundee	55.7	64.6	57.4	61.2	58.6
East Renfrewshire	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.2
Edinburgh	0.0	0.0	0.1	0.0	0.0
Highland	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.7	0.6
Orkney Islands	59.5	62.0	59.8	63.1	58.3
Perth and Kinross	1.7	2.0	0.9	0.8	1.0
Scottish Borders	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.0	0.2
Shetland Islands	64.1	69.8	73.3	72.9	71.5
West Lothian	0.0	0.0	0.1	0.1	0.0
Scottish Average	2.7	3.1	2.4	2.9	3.1

Source: SEPA''s Local Authority Waste Arisings Survey, 2004-05 to 2005-06; WasteDataFlow, 2006-07 to 2008-09.

Question reference: S3W-27749

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 25 September 2009
Current Status: Answered by Jim Mather on 6 October 2009

To ask the Scottish Executive what the average national grid transmission charge is in each local authority area.

The generation zones used by National Grid to calculate transmission charges do not precisely match local authority boundary areas. However, according to National Grid estimates taken from their Seven Year Statement* published in May 2009, National Grid estimate average transmission tariffs for generation in each local authority area in Scotland, England and Wales are as follows:

Local Authority	Average Generation Tariff (£/kW)
Scotland
Aberdeen City	21.5887
Aberdeenshire	19.5926
Angus	16.8710
Argyll and Bute	14.8222
Clackmannanshire	14.4797
Dumfries and Galloway	12.4227
Dundee City	16.8710
East Ayrshire	13.6017
East Dunbartonshire	16.8710
East Lothian	13.6017
East Renfrewshire	13.6017
Edinburgh, City of	13.6017
Eilean Siar	21.1042
Falkirk	14.4797
Fife	14.4797
Glasgow City	14.2367
Highland	19.8546
Inverclyde	13.7977
Midlothian	13.6017
Moray	21.5887
North Ayrshire	13.6017
North Lanarkshire	14.0407
Orkney Islands	21.5887**
Perth and Kinross	15.6754
Renfrewshire	13.7977
Scottish Borders	13.6017
Shetland Islands	21.5887**
South Ayrshire	12.4227
South Lanarkshire	14.0407
Stirling	15.1148
West Dunbartonshire	13.9937
West Lothian	14.0407

England and Wales
Bath and North East Somerset	-1.6032
Bedfordshire	2.1105
Blackburn with Darwen	6.1423
Blackpool	6.1423
Blaenau Gwent	-1.6032
Bournemouth	-3.2820
Bracknell Forest	-1.3867
Bridgend	-1.6032
Brighton and Hove	-1.3867
Bristol	-1.6032
Buckinghamshire	0.3619
Caerphilly	-1.6032
Cambridgeshire	3.1542
Cardiff	-1.6032
Carmarthenshire	0.2537
Ceredigion	2.1105
Cheshire	3.1542
Conwy	5.7534
Cornwall	-6.6838
Cumbria	6.1423
Darlington	9.8537
Denbighshire	4.1979
Derby	2.1105
Derbyshire	3.1542
Devon	-4.9829
Dorset	-3.2820
Durham	9.8537
East Riding of Yorkshire	6.1423
East Sussex	-1.3867
Essex	1.1825
Flintshire	4.1979
Gloucestershire	-0.2931
Greater London	-2.7034
Greater Manchester	5.1701
Gwynedd	5.1938
Halton	6.1423
Hampshire	-2.3343
Hartlepool	9.8537
Herefordshire	0.2537
Hertfordshire	0.3261
Isle of Anglesey	6.8725
Kent	0.2545
Kingston upon Hull	6.1423
Lancashire	6.1423
Leicester	2.1105
Leicestershire	3.1542
Lincolnshire	4.1979
Luton	2.1105
Medway	0.2545
Merseyside	5.1701
Merthyr Tydfil	-1.6032
Middlesbrough	9.8537
Milton Keynes	2.1105
Monmouthshire	-1.6032
Neath Port Talbot	-1.6032
Newport	-1.6032
Norfolk	3.1542
North East Lincolnshire	6.1423
North Lincolnshire	5.1701
North Somerset	-1.6032
North Yorkshire	7.9980
Northamptonshire	2.1105
Northumberland	11.7277
Nottingham	2.1105
Nottinghamshire	3.1542
Oxfordshire	0.3619
Pembrokeshire	-1.6032
Peterborough	3.1542
Plymouth	-6.6838
Poole	-3.2820
Portsmouth	-1.3867
Powys	0.2537
Reading	-1.3867
Redcar and Cleveland	9.8537
Rhondda, Cynon, Taff	-1.6032
Rutland	3.1542
Shropshire	2.1105
Slough	-1.3867
Somerset	-3.2820
South Gloucestershire	-1.6032
South Yorkshire	4.1979
Southampton	-3.2820
Southend-on-Sea	0.2545
Staffordshire	2.1105
Stockton-on-Tees	9.8537
Stoke-on-Trent	2.1105
Suffolk	2.1105
Surrey	-0.5661
Swansea	-1.6032
Swindon	-1.4949
Telford and Wrekin	2.1105
Thurrock	0.2545
Torbay	-3.2820
Torfaen	-1.6032
Tyne and Wear	9.8537
Vale of Glamorgan	-1.6032
Warrington	6.1423
Warwickshire	2.1105
West Berkshire	-1.3867
West Midlands	2.1105
West Sussex	-1.3867
West Yorkshire	6.1423
Wiltshire	-2.0906
Windsor and Maidenhead	-1.3867
Wokingham	-1.3867
Worcestershire	2.1105
Wrexham	2.1105
York	6.1423

Notes:

*Information to existing and prospective new users of the GB transmission system to help them assess opportunities for new or additional use of the grid system.

**Shetland and Orkney will have additional offshore tariffs once the offshore Transmission Operator tender process is complete, however these tariffs have not yet been determined.

Question reference: S3W-27748

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 25 September 2009
Current Status: Answered by Jim Mather on 6 October 2009

To ask the Scottish Executive what the average national transmission charges are for (a) wind farms, (b) nuclear power stations and (c) fossil fuel power stations.

According to National Grid''s Seven Year Statement* published in May 2009, the estimated average national transmission charges for generation types is as follows:

Fuel Type	Average TNUoS Tariff (£/kW)	Highest (£/kW)	Lowest (£/kW)
Nuclear	5.3694	13.6017	-3.2820
Fossil Fuel	3.6310	21.5887	-6.9780
Wind	16.9143	21.5887	0.2545

Notes:

Figures are for the whole of the UK.

*Information to existing and prospective new users of the GB transmission system to help them assess opportunities for new or additional use of the grid system.

Question reference: S3W-27739

Asked by: Maureen Watt, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 25 September 2009
Current Status: Answered by Jim Mather on 5 October 2009

To ask the Scottish Executive how many combined heat and power district heating systems there are, broken down by local authority area.

Chamber and committees