Chamber and committees

We welcome the common sense decision to postpone COP26. Given the global health and economic implications of the COVID-19 pandemic, it is clear that hosting an international conference in November would be difficult if not impossible. The decision also means that much needed resources can be focussed on the immediate task of saving lives and protecting the economy.

It is critical that COP26 increases global ambition to tackle climate change. The Scottish Government hopes that a date can be agreed shortly that allows the world to focus on the immediate priority of Covid-19 ensuring an ambitious COP26 can be delivered.

Waste charges are the responsibility of individual local authorities and therefore any relief from charges for depositing waste at council facilities is a matter for local authorities to decide upon.

The Scottish Government remains committed to developing the circular economy in Scotland, including opportunities to promote reuse. We are continuing to pursue a number of key initiatives including the Circular Economy Investment Fund to stimulate business innovation; the ‘Revolve’ reuse quality standard for shops selling second-hand goods; and our Food Waste Reduction Action Plan.

The Scottish Government is committed to achieving safer road travel in Scotland for all. We note that traffic flows have greatly reduced since non-essential travel was prohibited during the COVID-19 outbreak and therefore the Scottish Government has not considered reducing speed limits at the current time. However, it is vitally important that motorists continue to take care while making any journeys that are absolutely necessary for essential reasons.

Preparations for COP26 are well underway, but significant adaptation to how we engage with partners and stakeholders has been made to reflect the public health emergency that we now find ourselves in the midst of. The situation is having serious implications both for the health of the nation and our economy. In this changed landscape, governments, globally are taking stringent measures to halt the spread of the virus. The current position remains that the summit is due to take place in Glasgow, November 2020.

We will continue to work with partners and will be guided by scientific advice in the run-up to the event but our immediate concern, as would be expected, is in dealing with immediate impact of the virus.

As autonomous institutions, universities do not have to follow the same pattern for exams. However, we know there is considerable engagement across the sector at this time, as institutions try to work together to deal with the range of issues arising from the impact of COVID-19.

The Scottish Funding Council is engaging with institutions on COVID-19 related issues on a daily basis and my officials are also speaking regularly with sector representatives at this time.

Our consultation on the Bill did not recommend inclusion of a right to food but proposed that Scottish Ministers should be obliged to have regard to international obligations, which are wider than just the right to food, when developing statements of policy on food.

The Scottish Government looks forward to welcoming the world to Glasgow for COP26 – a critical moment in the global fight against climate change. It is important that COP26 is inclusive and has representatives from the Global South, who play a key role in tackling the global climate emergency and meeting the sustainable development goals.

The Scottish Government will seek to develop a programme of opportunities where all voices can be heard in a respectful and collaborative way. We will also encourage the UK Government to provide assistance and ensure the process of securing visas is as easy as possible, and so that delegates from around the world are able to attend COP 26.

Following the end of the EU implementation period, any ongoing infringement cases will remain within the jurisdiction of the EU. Infringement proceedings can be brought against the UK with respect to actions before the end of the transition period, for up to 4 years, under the terms of the Withdrawal Agreement. The number of cases indicated by the Cabinet Secretary for Environment Climate Change and Land Reform are subject to change and can be searched for on the following database of EU infringements: https://ec.europa.eu/atwork/applying-eu-law/infringements-proceedings/infringement_decisions/ .

The figures recorded as involving thermal treatments in 2016, 2017, 2018 and 2019 are shown in the following table.