Chamber and committees

We are making progress on the policies and proposals put forward in the Land Use Strategy for Scotland 2016-2021, such as the publication of the Scoping an Upland Vision report from SNH on 31 July 2017 and the publication of the Scottish Land Rights and Responsibilities Statement on 28 September 2017. There has been a delay in publishing the reporting framework. In light of the EU referendum result, the Scottish Government is working on future strategic policy for the environment and for agriculture, and we will look to integrate this work with the further steps on the Land Use Strategy.

In terms of resources, it is not possible to identify a specific number of full-time equivalent staff contributing to the delivery of the Land Use Strategy for Scotland 2016-2020. The cross-portfolio nature of the objectives mean that a wide range of officials contribute to them, from various policy areas such as land reform, agriculture, climate change, planning and environment.

In Policy 7 of the Land Use Strategy for Scotland 2016-2021 we proposed establishing a limited life expert group to assist with developing guidance in relation to regional partnerships, in recognition of the fact that further work was required to clarify a range of issues relating to them before they were established. We are currently considering possible approaches to securing this expert advice.

We recognise the important protection the flu vaccine can offer.

Every year the Scottish Government invests in a national marketing campaign to promote the flu vaccine and to encourage uptake amongst those who are eligible. This year's campaign highlights the importance of the flu vaccine and challenges perceptions of the risks and consequences of flu amongst different eligible groups.

The national campaign this year is taking a multi-channel approach that includes television, radio and newspaper advertising, social media and digital activity, as well as the usual range of leaflets and posters.

We also have ongoing partnership activity providing information and materials to organisations such as health and age charities, supermarkets, community and childcare settings, and large workplaces.

It is important, however, to acknowledge that whilst we actively encourage those eligible to take up the offer of the free flu vaccine – vaccination is not mandatory, and it is a matter for each individual to decide whether or not they wish to receive the vaccine.

The Scottish Government is continuing to work with partners and the Youth Experience Fund will be launched in due course.

Scottish Government officials have engaged with a range of key stakeholders who are delivering cultural opportunities to primary school-aged children to identify and fully understand the range of ways schools engage with culture with a view to identifying how best to enhance existing provision.

Engagement on the development of a cultural youth experience fund has taken place with the National Performing Companies, National Collections, Creative Scotland, Education Scotland and Historic Environment Scotland. There are many innovative programmes engaging with children including the Heritage Education Travel Subsidy which has enabled enhanced educational access to heritage sites for over 200,000 students. The National Collections and National Performing Companies undertake significant education programmes which support cultural engagement in schools, this includes free entry for school groups to National Museums sites and free guided tours for school groups at the National Galleries of Scotland.

In addition, our long-standing investment of £109 million since 2007 in the YMI has made a huge impact helping young people across Scotland access music making opportunities and develop their wider skills and learning. In 2015-16 the YMI provided music-making opportunities for over 265,000 young people in and out of school and helped ensure all young people in primary schools were offered a year’s free music tuition by the time they leave primary school.

Skills development is a key strand of the new Ambition 2030 food and drink industry strategy with the sector forecast to create 27,000 new opportunities over the next 10 years.

A key theme within the industry's new Skills Investment Plan, which is led by Skills Development Scotland (SDS), is exploring how to raise the profile of the sector and attract new entrants. As part of this, a range of actions are in place to highlight the importance of the food and drink sector to Scotland, and also the diverse range of career opportunities. These include:

• The national schools programme A Future in Food, designed to create partnerships between schools and businesses and highlight careers in the sector.

• A Food & Drink Skills Ambassadors Network, who are inspirational role models who work in the industry and engage with pupils, parents, teachers and career influencers to highlight jobs in the sector.

• My World of Work bespoke Food and Drink industry web pages and video case studies of individuals working in the sector

• SDS sponsors the Lantra Learner of the Year Awards; this unique event celebrates the success of young people who are following non-traditional careers in the rural sector e.g. farming, agriculture and aquaculture

• SDS sponsored a Food & Drink Careers Expo in September 2017 organised by College Development Network. A range of stakeholders, partners and industry representatives took part to highlight careers in the sector.

There has also been a consistent uptake of our Modern Apprenticeship (MA) programme by the food and drink sector with over 1000 starts in each of the last 5 years. The Scottish Government has set an ambitious target to increase the number of new starts to 30,000 across all sectors by 2020 – many of which will be in the food and drink sector.

We are actively working with employers and industry partners to encourage greater participation on the MA programme, in recognition that bringing new entrants into the sector is vitally important. There are MA frameworks within the food and drink sector for:

• Agriculture

• Aquaculture

• Food and Drink Operations

• Game & Wildlife Management

In response to industry demand a new MA framework is also currently in development to support the Craft Brewing sector.

A new Foundation Apprenticeship in Food & Drink Operations has been developed and will be available to senior pupils in 2018 and discussions are also taking place with industry regarding the development of a new Graduate Level Apprenticeship in Food Science.

In addition, there are a number of Further and Higher Education courses at different institutions in Scotland than can lead to a career in the food and drink sector, with the most relevant being:

• Food & Consumer Sciences BSc, Abertay University

• Food Nutrition & Health BSc, Abertay University

• Brewing and Distilling BSc & MSc, Heriot Watt University

• Food Science & Technology HNC, Perth College/West Lothian College

• Nutrition and Food Science BSc & MSc, Queen Margaret University

Adherence to the standards outlined within the industry Code of Good Practice for Scottish Finfish Aquaculture is independently audited. The levels of 0.5 average adult female lice per fish from 1 February – 30 and 1.0 from 1 July – 31 January are suggested criteria for treatment levels and do not represent limits. The Aquaculture and Fisheries (Scotland) Act 2007 requires that fish farms have ‘satisfactory measures’ in place for the prevention, control and reduction of parasites. This legislation is enforced by Scottish Government’s fish health inspectorate. Information on the regulation of sea lice in Scotland can be found here; http://www.gov.scot/Resource/0052/00522428.pdf.

The Scottish Government's Infrastructure Investment Plan published 2015 sets out priorities for investment and a long term strategy for the development of public infrastructure in Scotland. This includes capital investment that will benefit tourism, for example, Scottish Government investment in transport links, the V&A in Dundee, and financial support for Historic Environment Scotland's properties.

Our current Programme for Government includes tourism infrastructure commitments within wider Scottish Government priorities, including the Great Tapestry project in Galashiels, and we are also supporting plans for marine and forestry tourism in your regional constituency. However we do not hold information specifically on tourism infrastructure projects that have either been completed or are planned.

We recently announced the creation of our Rural Tourism Infrastructure Fund, which will see £6 million invested over the next two years from 2018 to help ensure the services and facilities tourists and communities need are provided.

VisitScotland have also produced a National Tourism Development Framework which sets out actions and provides guidance to local authorities to help co-ordinate future development and growth in the visitor economy.

The Borders Railway which cost £353m has also been completed and has seen an increase in tourism visitor numbers, illustrated by a 16% rise in overall visitor spend, and I had the pleasure to meet the Borders Tourism Partnership to discuss their plans directly resulting from this investment.

The Scottish Government and our partners strongly supports the development of cycling across the whole of Scotland and of course in the Scottish Borders.

As the Scottish governing body (SGB) for the sport, Scottish Cycling is responsible for developing opportunities for people of all ages to participate. Active Schools aims to provide more and higher quality opportunities to take part in sport and physical activity before school, during lunchtime and after school, and to develop effective pathways between schools and sports clubs in the local community. The Active Schools programme delivered 2,881 participation sessions in the Borders, engaging with pupils from 24 local schools.

Through sportscotland’s Community Sport Hubs programme, five cycling clubs receive support from their local Hub in Earlston, Eyemouth, Tweedbank and two in Tweeddale.

For people who enjoy cycling as a sport as well as a hobby, we need top quality facilities and sportscotland, our national agency for sport, has been supporting Forestry Enterprise Scotland with the development of the 7 stanes mountain bike trail network which brings in around £11 million to the local economy from the 600,000 visitors.

Cycling Scotland and Sustrans Scotland have awarded Scottish Borders Council grant funding totalling £2,065,339 since 2014/15, to promote cycling through a number of initiatives. For example, since 2014/15, £67,480 was provided to increase the delivery rate of Bikeability Scotland on-road cycle training for school children. This funding is used to provide additional coordination resource, and to enable more teaching staff to train as instructors. In 2016/17, 31.1% of schools were delivering Bikeability Scotland on-road training.

Since 2014-15, Sustrans Scotland has awarded The Scottish Borders Council £634,788.00 in grant funding for Community Links projects for the creation of infrastructure that makes it easier for people to walk and cycle for everyday journeys. And from 2015/16, £345,365.00 was awarded for the creation and maintenance of the National Cycle Network, a series of traffic-free paths and quiet, on-road cycling and walking routes, that connect to every major town and city.

Additionally since 2014-15 the Scottish Borders Council has received £629,000 in Cycling, Walking, Safer Streets grants for undertaking a programme of works promoting cycling and walking for both short and long distance journeys. And since 2014/15, has received £354,783 through the Smarter Choices Smarter Places programme for a programme of works supporting smarter measures, including local mapping and signage of active travel options, personal travel planning and local branding.