Chamber and committees

We are fully committed to delivering the ban on landfilling biodegradable municipal waste on 31 December 2025. As part of preparations for the ban, we are continuing to support and work with those local authorities without a solution for their residual waste when the ban comes into force, to ensure they can comply with the ban.

I met with Argyll and Bute Council on 26 July 2023 to discuss possible options to overcome challenges in complying with the forthcoming ban on landfilling biodegradable municipal waste associated with their public private partnership contract for waste services.

Discussions between Scottish Government, SEPA, and Argyll and Bute Council are ongoing and we will continue to work with the council in relation to these challenges.

The Scottish Government welcomes the hard work of the National Tartan Day New York Committee in organising Tartan Week each year. They come together to honour their heritage and celebrate the impact of Scots in the US. Our office in Washington DC works closely with members of the Brand Scotland partnership, including Scottish Development International and Visit Scotland, to create a programme of engagement that harnesses the increased focus on Scotland during this time.

I am pleased to see Tartan Day also celebrated in Canada (where it originated) and the celebration of Scotland in other parts of the world throughout the year, including various Highland Games, Burns Suppers, Tartan Balls and Festivals. Our Scottish Connections Framework outlines our approach to supporting diaspora engagement with Scotland and people in other countries.

Screen Scotland’s Economic Value of the Screen Sector in Scotland in 2021 report, published this August, shows the continued exceptional growth of Scotland’s screen industry, which contributed £627bn total GVA to the economy in 2021, and generated 10,940 FTEs of employment.

While Glasgow and Edinburgh account for the largest shares of economic impact, nearly £264m of that total GVA was generated elsewhere across Scotland, with nearly £175m GVA, and 2,980 total FTEs, in the fours areas named in the question.

The report clearly demonstrates the direct and indirect value of the screen sector to other key parts of Scotland’s economy, including hospitality and tourism, which is driven by titles like Outlander , set across Scotland’s uniquely beautiful landscapes.

To ensure the benefits of the sector’s success continue to be felt nationally, Screen Scotland are undertaking a range of strategic work, including: developing the network of Local Film Offices and liaisons across Scotland, who provide local, expert advice to incoming productions; through their Screen Commission, providing advice on locations and facilities across Scotland to domestic and international productions, to ensure that areas outside the central belt are considered and made accessible; supporting a range of skills and training programmes outside the Central Belt, including Stornoway, Aberdeenshire, and West Dunbartonshire, as well as through the Professional Development Fund, which is open to support travel and accommodation for anyone in Scotland to attend training to develop their career.

The Scottish Government is committed to supporting the continued growth of our screen sector nationally, including by incentivising productions to come to Scotland; encouraging the development of new studio space and infrastructure; increasing skills provision, and; pressing public service broadcasters to increase production from Scotland, so that the sector can continue to grow sustainably as part of the wider creative economy.

The Scottish Government is engaging with Screen Scotland to explore all avenues for supporting the future of Screen Machine. I am also meeting with Regional Screen Scotland, who operate the Machine, on 5 October, so I can hear directly about the Machine and the support it needs to continue.

We recognise the value of cinema to communities as an important cultural asset, and we particularly understand the role Screen Machine plays in bringing cinema to communities for whom such access is limited.

We welcome the funding provided by Screen Scotland earlier this year, which allowed Screen Machine to lease a temporary replacement cinema until April 2024.

A current list of Special Advisers and their responsibilities can be found on the Scottish Government website .

The current financial year ends on 31 March 2024. As such it is not possible to provide the total cost of Special Advisers in the current financial year. Information on the total cost for 2023-24 will be published when it is available, in line with the provisions of the Scottish Ministerial Code.

The information requested on the number of bike pump tracks is not held centrally by the Scottish Government.

We understand the significance of sports and leisure facilities in helping to achieve our vision of a more active Scotland.

The Cycling Facilities Fund was launched in October 2020 with £8million of funding made available to drive a legacy from the UCI Cycling World Championships 2023 held in Scotland. Over half of the fund has now been invested by sport scotland in 36 cycling projects across Scotland to meet the real demand for community facilities of this kind; 25 of the 36 projects awarded funding are for bike pump tracks.

Local groups can apply for capital funding via sport scotland’s application-based funding programme, the Sport Facilities Fund. The Sport Facilities Fund provides investment in capital projects that create new or improved places for clubs and communities to participate in sport and physical activity, including cycling facilities such as pump tracks.

By using a risk-based approach and focusing resources on maintaining critical assets, Scottish Water aims to minimise the risk of failure and ensure that infrastructure is functioning properly. The approach combines proactive and responsive measures, underpinned by regular inspections and data analysis. This helps Scottish Water provide a reliable and high-quality service to customers while also being cost-effective and efficient. Additionally, Scottish Water completes around 3,600 sewer repairs every year to ensure the sewer network operates effectively whilst providing an opportunity to survey adjacent pipes for any defects which could allow groundwater to enter the system.

The 14 Combined Sewer Overflows identified by Scottish Water catchment studies since 2015 as being at risk of spilling during dry weather are a high priority under Scottish Water’s Improving Urban Waters Route Map. Any reports of dry weather spills are also investigated for potential operational reasons, such as blockages, and Scottish Water follows established reporting requirements for pollution incidents and provides this information in their annual reports: Annual Reports - Scottish Water . New technology is being trialled with a view to identifying and solving problems before customers and the environment are affected.

Scottish Water’s list of high priority assets identified for investment under Improving Urban Waters commitments can be found at High Priority UIDs.pdf (scottishwater.co.uk) . There are currently 163 High Priority Unsatisfactory Intermittent Discharge (UID) needs across Scotland, 155 Medium priority UID and 259 Low priority UID needs. Whilst this list is not updated annually, classification and prioritisation of unsatisfactory combined sewer overflows is ongoing in response to instances of pollution and water quality monitoring. More information about how these assets have been prioritised is available at: Prioritisation of Sewer Overflows in Scotland - Scottish Water

The Scottish Government delivers support for energy efficiency measures in owner occupied household through a number of schemes.

Information about the number of measures installed by councils as part of our Area Based Schemes is not reported on a monthly basis. Annual returns based upon the information provided by councils are published on the Scottish Government website:

https://www.gov.scot/publications/area-based-schemes/

Information about the number of measures installed by the scheme managing agent, Warmworks, as part of our Warmer Homes Scotland scheme is not reported on a monthly basis. Annual reports are published on the Warmworks website:

https://www.warmworks.co.uk/our-work/warmer-homes-scotland/

The number of households supported with energy efficiency measures through the HES Grant and Loan, including payment for funding offers issued under the predecessor HES Loan and Cashback Scheme are set out in the following table.