- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 04 March 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 15 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how much funding (a) it allocated to and (b) was distributed to successful grant applicants from the Crofting Agricultural Grant Scheme in each year from 2016 to 2022.
Answer
Financial Year | Budget Allocation | Funding Distributed (£) |
2016-2017 | £2 m | 1,314,024.63 |
2017-2018 | £2 m | 2,735,856.73 |
2018-2019 | £2 m | 2,930,743.45 |
2019-2020 | £2 m | 3,487,571.21 |
2020-2021 | £2 m | 3,505,037.00 |
2021-2022 * | £3.6 m | 3,851,652.40 |
* As at 07-03-2022
Following the end of the SRDP, the CAGS budget for 2021-22 was reviewed to reflect the level of demand for the scheme.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 11 February 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Tom Arthur on 11 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) hectares of peatland and (b) tonnes of peat have been extracted in Scotland in each year since 2007.
Answer
The Scottish Government does not hold the information requested. Data on mineral extraction in Great Britain for the period 2009 – 2014 is available online at Minerals surveys - GOV.UK ( www.gov.uk ) and from 1999 to 2008 can be found on the Office for National Statistics website. Further data on UK and export sales of peat sourced from Scotland since 2011 is gathered for the UK Growing Media Monitor ( https://hta.org.uk/associations-committees-groups/growing-media-association/gma-research ) and provides insight into the volumes of peat extracted for horticulture in Scotland, the main end use of extracted peat.
The Scottish Government are committed to banning the sale of peat related gardening products, as part of our wider commitment to phase out the use of peat in horticulture, and we are currently preparing to consult on this issue. Our draft National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) sets out that development proposals for new commercial peat extraction, including extensions to existing sites, should not be supported unless the extracted peat is supporting an industry of national importance to Scotland.
We will also give consideration, through our peatland restoration programme, to whether and what further data may be required to support future monitoring of progress against targets.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 03 March 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Christine Grahame (On Behalf of the SPCB) on 10 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body (SPCB) whether the business case for the new Scottish Parliament website was presented to, and signed off by, the SPCB in the previous parliamentary session.
Answer
The project to put in place the new Parliament website was a significant and complex change project.
The business case for the project was considered and agreed by officials on the Digital Strategy Board. This is the usual governance for digital projects undertaken in the Parliament.
The budget for the project was included in the SPCB’s budget process in each of the financial years that the project was running.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 24 February 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi McAllan on 10 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how it assesses public value for money of woodland and moorland schemes in terms of achieving (a) biodiversity, (b) climate change and (c) rural employment targets.
Answer
All Forestry Grant Scheme applications are assessed according to the criteria set out in the guidance available at Scoring criteria and clearing process (ruralpayments.org)
This includes value for money and compliance with the UK Forestry Standard, the governments’ approach to sustainable forestry, which recognises that forests have environmental, economic and social objectives and sets out how these can be achieved.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 24 February 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi McAllan on 10 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what animal welfare assessment it has undertaken regarding any stalking of pregnant hinds by Forestry and Land Scotland contractors.
Answer
Forestry and Land Scotland continually carries out various assessments in regards to all of its deer culling activities. Any issues noted in regards to any deer’s health or welfare are recorded in their Wildlife Management System. Culling of pregnant hinds carried out professionally and following industry best practice, as operated by Forestry and Land Scotland, has no welfare issues associated with it.
The vast majority of deer on Scotland's national forests and land are in excellent condition and are managed sustainably in line with their land management objectives
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 24 February 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi McAllan on 10 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to create an emergency fund to support farmers and landowners in the wake of Storms Arwen, Barra and others to help with fallen forestry and damage to farm buildings.
Answer
Scottish Government, and its forestry agency, Scottish Forestry (SF) has no plans to create an additional emergency fund to support farmers and landowners in the wake of storms, Arwen, Barra and others. SF already provides grants to manage existing woodlands and prepare forest plans. In addition it is supporting effective clear up operations through the fast tracking of felling permissions, new bespoke guidance on clearing and marketing windblown trees, and the establishment of National Windblow Action Group to help shape and guide a collaborative response for the benefit of farmers and landowners.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 24 February 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 10 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) applicants, (b) places and (c) successful course completions there were for all gamekeeping courses in Scotland in each year between 2007 and 2021.
Answer
Scottish Government doesn’t have information on the number of applicants to game keeping courses, and we cannot provide a full picture for each year between 2007 and 2021.
Information on enrolments and qualifiers at Scottish University is collected by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA).
Enrolments and Qualifiers on Game Keeper Management courses at Scottish Universities, by JACS classification:
| | 2010-11 | 2011-12 | 2012-13 | 2013-14 | 2014-15 | 2015-16 | 2016-17 | 2017-18 | 2018-19 |
Enrolments | 15 | 15 | 15 | 20 | 25 | 15 | 10 | 10 | 5 |
Qualifiers | 10 | 15 | 10 | 15 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 5 |
Source: HESA Student Data
Where JACS code is D442 = Game Keeper Management
Enrolments and Qualifiers on Game Keeper Management courses at Scottish Universities, by HECOS classification
| | 2019-20 | 2020-21 |
Enrolments | 15 | 15 |
Qualifiers | 5 | 0 |
Source: HESA Student Data
Where HECOS code is 100979 = Game Keeper Management
Data relating to colleges is collected by the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) and enrolments to game keeping courses are as follows
Enrolments at Scottish Colleges on Game Keeping Courses, by level of study
| | 2014-15 | 2015-16 | 2016-17 | 2017-18 | 2018-19 | 2019-20 | 2020-21 |
Further Education | 45 | 50 | 40 | 60 | 55 | 40 | 40 |
Higher Education | 10 | 10 | 0 | 5 | 10 | 0 | 0 |
Source: SFC FES data
All figures above are based on the full person equivalent, and have been rounded to the nearest 5.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 March 2022
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 16 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the most recent Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service court backlog figures.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 16 March 2022
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 24 February 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi McAllan on 9 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to tackle the reported decline in wader populations, and how many it estimates have been lost in each year since 2007.
Answer
The Scottish Government’s Agri-Environment Climate Scheme fund includes options to help support waders and has so far committed £38.8m that will directly benefit waders since the scheme opened in 2015.
Working for Waders is a partnership project involving a wide range of land management and conservation organisations and groups across Scotland. The project provides financial support through small grants directly to farmers and other land managers for activities which support waders. NatureScot have provided £392,000 to the project in direct support of wader work in Scotland over the last four years, with contributions in kind from project partners including expertise and support to deliver outcomes.
It is not possible to provide year-on-year declines in the numbers of waders in Scotland as data on breeding birds in not gathered in a way that can provide this information. However the table below provides trend figures taken from the latest Breeding Bird Survey, published by the British Trust for Ornithology, for the main 5 species of wader that breed on Scottish farmland over five and ten years. Further details on that data, and the full Breeding Bird Survey, is available at: https://www.bto.org/our-science/publications/birdtrends/2020
% changes | Scotland |
| | Trends for five years 2013 – 2018 | Trends for ten years 2008 - 2018 |
Oystercatcher | -10 | -19 |
Lapwing | 10 | -39 |
Curlew | -7 | -20 |
Snipe | 6 | -21 |
Redshank | No Scottish trend |
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 24 February 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Tom Arthur on 8 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government, under its plans for council tax rebates based on energy efficiency, whether farmers will be given separate consideration for ratings of private dwellings, such as farmhouses or cottages, which are included in the energy rating of the total farm business.
Answer
The Scottish Government currently has no plans to introduce new council tax rebates based on energy efficiency ratings for properties. Individual local authorities are required by section 80A of the Local Government Finance Act 1992 to establish their own energy efficiency council tax discount schemes. Advice and support on improving home energy efficiency is available through Home Energy Scotland, administered by Energy Saving Trust on behalf of the Scottish Government.
