Chamber and committees

(a) Squid are not regulated under the EU Total Allowable Catch (TAC) system and there are no quota limits set for this species.

(b) Net sizes are specified in EC Regulation 850/98, known as the Technical Conservation measures, net (or mesh) sizes for the squid fishery range upwards from 32mm depending on the minimum percentage of target species for the individual vessel. The majority of vessels targeting squid will likely be using
32-54mm mesh.

The requirements for monitoring and sanctions for infringements are laid down in the EU Control Regulation (EC) No 1224/2009. Monitoring activities on fisheries that take demersal species include the use of vessel monitoring systems (VMS) on board vessels over 12 m overall length; direct observation by patrol vessels and aerial patrols; inspection of vessels, gear, catches at sea and on shore, and verification of EU logbook data (electronic and paper) against sales documents. All related surveillance activity and physical inspections are carried out on risk based analysis.

There are legal limits for fusarium mycotoxins deoxynivalenol (DON) in wheat intended for human consumption and guidance limits for grain used for animal feed. The owner (farmer, merchant or processor) is legally obliged to ensure the grain is safe for human consumption. The Agriculture and Horticulture Development Board make available a number of tools and information to allow owners to assess mycotoxin risk and obtain composite and representative samples for testing for DON.

In addition, Scotland's Farm Advisory Service (FAS) is designed to provide farmers and crofters with easy access to up-to-date relevant knowledge and information. In recent weeks FAS has produced two articles featuring the risk of mycotoxins and at relevant meetings it is being brought to the attention of farmers and crofters including possible use of mycotoxin binders to overcome the problem. We are continuing to liaise with contractors delivering the FAS with the prospect of launching further website and social media awareness and alerting farmers and crofters to contact the FAS National Advice Facility to find out more.

The information requested is not held centrally. The Scottish Government receives information supplied by Police Scotland for the production of the annual National Statistics on Recorded Crime. This includes a count of the number of crimes of theft recorded within each local authority, but does not include where the crime specifically relates to the theft of fuel.

Information on cases of sheep worrying is not held centrally in the format requested. Information is available on the number of offences recorded by Police Scotland under the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) Act 1953 – which relates to dogs worrying livestock on agricultural land (table below). However as this legislation applies to all forms of livestock, these figures are not available for specific types of animal.

Source: Recorded Crime in Scotland, 2016-17

The number of enrolments on veterinary science courses at Scottish HEIs since 2007-08 are as follows (figures for 2016-17 are as yet unavailable):

Enrolments on Veterinary Science Courses at Scottish HEIs

Source: HESA Data (SG Analysis)

Notes:

1. Numbers have been rounded to the nearest 5. Totals calculated on unrounded figures.

2. Numbers relate to all domiciled students and not just Scottish-domiciled.

3. Full person equivalent totals have been used for subject split. Subject split using JACS code ‘4’ – Veterinary Science.

Under the 2016 National Basic Payment Scheme loans valued at £262 million have been paid to 13,273 farmers and crofters. 166 farmers and crofters were overpaid at a total value of £746,000.00, with the average overpayment being £4,403.27. We took prompt action to alert businesses and avoid the possibility of the overpayments being inadvertently spent. By 5 December, 159 of the 166 affected cases had been spoken to directly by RPID staff and informed that an invoice would be issued to recover the overpayments. To date we have recovered £687,438.81 from 134 farmers and crofters with £55,631.94 outstanding. The average amount outstanding is £1,738.50.

As the overpayment was caused by RPID no interest is charged to farmers and crofters for the overpaid amounts.

Appropriate steps have been taken to prevent this happening again. A fully automated database has been developed to calculate loan amounts and process payments based on the land claimed and entitlements held. The database applies the exchange rate to pay businesses in sterling and ensures a business receives the correct payment in their chosen currency.

Skills Development Scotland has responsibility for contracting for Modern Apprenticeship places. The information on the number of applications is not held centrally.

The number of starts on the closest frameworks to information requested is laid out in the following Table 1, and the number of completions is in Table 2. There is no direct link between the information in both tables given the variation of frameworks combined and on offer. Skills Development Scotland was formed on 1 April 2008, figures before then are not available.

Table 1

Table 2

Routine post-import tests successfully identified fragments of Bluetongue virus in some animals from a group of cattle imported from France in October. Swift action was taken by Scottish Government and the Animal and Plant Health Agency by culling the 3 cows in Scotland that posed a risk of infection. The affected premises remains under restriction while surveillance is carried out to rule out any potential disease transmission.

Please see the total number of Modern Apprenticeships in gamekeeping in each of the last 10 years in the following table:

Please see the total number of Modern Apprenticeships in Forestry in each of the last 10 years in the following table:

Please note that the information provided cannot go as far back as requested as Skills Development Scotland (SDS) was formed on 1 April 2008. Skills Development Scotland routinely collects and publishes data on the number of Modern Apprentices in Scotland.

Please see the total number of forestry apprenticeships as part of Forest Enterprise Scotland’s own internal apprenticeship scheme in each of the last 10 years in the following table:

The last enrolment of apprentices was in 2014 as apprenticeships were for two years’, however Forest Enterprise Scotland continued to support the apprentices through their apprenticeship until their completion in 2016.

A person interfering with a legally set snare or trap may be committing one of a number of offences. Any gamekeeper experiencing interference with or damage to a snare or trap should report the matter to Police Scotland.