Chamber and committees

Earlier this year I asked the Committee on Climate Change to provide independent, expert advice on the best way forward to support our net-zero targets and to ensure a green recovery for Scotland following the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Committee on Climate Change set out six recommendations, including a shift toward long-term behaviours and tackling the wider ‘resilience deficit’ on climate change.

We are considering the Committee’s recommendations and we will also have the benefit of recommendations by the Economic Recovery Advisory Group which has been examining the opportunities of a green recovery as part of its work.

The potential for effective deer management as part of a green recovery will be considered as part of our consideration of the recommendations by the independent Deer Working Group.

The Scottish Government has been collecting daily information from local authorities in relation to the provision of support for children and young people through hubs since March 2020. The Vulnerable Children Report, published on 15 May, contained some of the information gathered through these returns from the 27th of March until 14 May. The report is available from https://www.gov.scot/binaries/content/documents/govscot/publications/research-and-analysis/2020/05/vulnerable-children-report-15-may-2020-scottish-government-and-solace/documents/vulnerable-children-report/vulnerable-children-report/govscot%3Adocument/vulnerable-children-report.pdf .

It is intended that beginning next week, further information from these returns in relation to the provision of support through hubs will be published on a weekly basis.

Scottish Natural Heritage issued 40 licences for the lethal control of beavers in 2019. One of the lethal control licences was revoked before any action was undertaken because mitigation was subsequently installed at that site which removed the need for any other action. Licence returns have been received for all the licences issued in 2019 (as is a requirement of the licence).

Of the 39 active licences for lethal control, beavers were shot under 16 of these licenses. The returns detail that a total of 87 beavers were killed in 2019. Of the licences issued which permitted lethal control, 60% were not used for that purpose.

We know that COVID-19 and our response to the pandemic is, in some aspects, disproportionately impacting on women. This is particularly so in relation to the labour market and the provision of unpaid care, with women disproportionately absorbing additional childcare as a result of school and nursery closures, impacting on their ability to undertake paid work. Women are also more likely to be in precarious work which is less resilient to economic disruption, more likely to be on zero hours contracts and in lower paid or part time work.

The Scottish Government recognises that implications for women's equality as a result of COVID-19 are potentially significant, though not immutable. Embedding a gendered analysis and equality considerations into our decisions and actions will be critical to ensure that we mitigate impacts on women, including in relation to longer-term economic recovery.

Scottish Natural Heritage has held discussions with the Scottish SPCA on the examination of animals shot under licence and understands that the Scottish SPCA is willing to assist in post-mortem examination of beavers killed under licence. Scottish Natural Heritage is in discussions on a protocol for this process.

Scottish Natural Heritage is not aware of any beavers that have been killed without a licence.

Police Scotland investigations are ongoing to ascertain if there have been breaches of the conditions of two licences that permit lethal control.

Together with Scottish Natural Heritage, the Scottish Government will consider opportunities for conservation translocations of beavers from high to low conflict areas within existing catchments to improve the resilience of existing populations. We will also consider alternative measures as part of a wider beaver national strategy.

Scottish Natural Heritage has issued 42 licences authorising the killing of beavers under the Beaver Management Framework since 1 January 2019.

Details of beaver licences issued by Scottish Natural Heritage in 2019 are provided in the Scottish Natural Heritage Beaver Licensing Summary report which was published on 28 May 2020 and is available on their website at https://www.nature.scot/snh-beaver-licensing-summary-1st-may-31st-december-2019 .

87 beavers were killed under licensed lethal control measures in 2019.

a) All the records of beaver control have a date.

b) The controller return data obtained does not currently allow a comprehensive answer to be provided on the size of family groups and the numbers of beavers killed in each group. Scottish Natural Heritage has cross-referenced the licence returns with the territories established in the 2017-18 survey. This indicates that lethal control or live-trapping has taken place within around 13% of territories. In addition , lethal control was carried out in two territories not previously recorded in this survey.

c) 56 of 87 records have a classification as adult, sub-adult or kit. The sex of the animal was not included on the template due to the difficulty of determining this in the field. The carcases of two beavers shot under licence have been provided by licence-holders and subjected to a post-mortem examination.

15 beavers were trapped and translocated under licence (between 1st May and 31st December 2019). Scottish Natural Heritage plans to work with licence holders to see what more can be done to make this option practicable as an alternative to lethal control.

Further details of the beaver translocations carried out in 2019 are provided in the Scottish Natural Heritage Beaver Licensing Summary report which was published on 28 May 2020 and is available on their website at https://www.nature.scot/snh-beaver-licensing-summary-1st-may-31st-december-2019 .