Chamber and committees

The linkspan was repaired and returned to CalMac on afternoon of Thursday 22 August 2019 normal operations when resumed on the Gourock Dunoon Ferry Service.

The Gourock passenger steps were installed in 2015 at a cost of £2,300,000.

They were built as a "like for like" replacement of the Old Kilcreggan Steps. Due to their condition, repairs to the Old Kilcreggan Steps was not possible. The steps were designed to accommodate all passenger ferries operating to / from Gourock, whilst maintaining vessel and passenger access to all other berths at the port.

It is accepted that the steps are not compliant with the Equalities Act at all tidal levels. However, they are essentially a backup to the linkspan should this be unavailable. The linkspan is the main berth for the Gourock to Dunoon ferry services, and is Equalities Act compliant.

Whilst accessibility is not ideal when using the Gourock passenger steps at all states of tide, CalMac staff are available to assist passengers with reduced mobility, or passengers with large luggage or prams to access and egress the vessels via the steps.

CalMac also have a passenger assistance process. available via the CalMac Contact Centre, to enable passengers on the Gourock-Dunoon ferry service to request taxis if the option of CalMac staff assistance is not sufficient. That allows passengers to travel via Western Ferries.

The introduction of a deposit return scheme will significantly increase the quantity and quality of glass recyclate, creating an aggregated and high-quality feedstock for reprocessing. We are committed to working with industry to maximise the economic opportunities associated with this.

The Government expects all material collected through the proposed deposit return scheme to be recycled.

Packaging design choices are a matter for producers and there are a number of factors which influence their decisions. The costs associated with different materials already vary and the DRS producer fee will only be one element of total costs of using any given material. Producers using packaging which sits outside the scope of the deposit return scheme will incur costs under extended producer responsibility obligations, with these costs likely to increase significantly in the period ahead. Our understanding is that the choice of material is also often associated with branding and positioning in the market. Against this background, Ministers have taken an approach which seeks to avoid the preferred scheme design favouring any particular material.

Whilst recognising there is limited scope to draw direct comparisons, the Scottish Government has considered a broad range of evidence from established schemes which collect glass. It is clear that there are a wide range of factors which can impact packaging design choices and Ministers have been careful to avoid the preferred scheme design favouring any particular material.

Consumers will be reimbursed deposits in the form of a cash payment should they wish.

The Scottish Government’s deposit return scheme design, published on 8 May, was informed by extensive engagement with a wide range of partners. Scottish Ministers intend to bring forward the secondary legislation to establish that scheme in the near future, providing a further opportunity for stakeholders to share their views on the proposals. In the meantime, the Scottish Government, working in partnership with Zero Waste Scotland, is continuing to work closely with stakeholders on plans for implementation of the scheme.

Transport Scotland provides funding to our delivery partners Energy Saving Trust to deliver the Low Carbon Transport Loan which offers interest-free loans for domestic consumers up to the value of £35,000 as well as business loans for electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles up to the value of £120,000. This scheme has been in place since 2011.

Please see the table in which it breaks down how much of the Low Carbon Transport Loan Fund has been distributed, broken down by spend and by project type.

Transport Scotland delivers walking and cycling infrastructure and behaviour change projects together with national partners such as the Energy Saving Trust, Cycling Scotland, Cycling UK and Sustrans. These partners have developed programmes from 2018 that deliver on the 2018/19 Programme for Government action to “subsidise bike hire for jobseekers, modern apprentices, young people and students”. Subsidy is being offered in response to the specific local needs of communities and the most disadvantaged groups.