Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S6W-27284

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 May 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 28 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has undertaken of the economic impact of wildfires.

Wildfires are costly to fight and can cause significant damage to woodland as well as water catchments and other ecosystem services. We know that wildfires can not only result in substantial carbon loss but also cause damage to our wildlife and require costly restoration in the aftermath.

Where a wildfire has occurred on land managed by Forestry and Land Scotland, FLS monitors the area damaged by fire, it’s cause if known, and an estimate of the SFRS resource used. Last year the burnt area of the FLS estate increased from over 250 hectares in 2022 to over 340 hectares in 2023. The scale of the impact of a wildfire will depend on the severity and in some cases that recovery will be quicker than others, but research has shown that even relatively small peat carbon losses from combustion take 10 to 30 years to reaccumulate post-fire.

In March of this year we published a Fire Danger Assessment of Scottish Habitat Types Deliverable-D2_3b-Fire-Danger-Fuels-Final-6-3-23.pdf (hutton.ac.uk) as part of our Strategic Research Programme for Climate Change Impacts on Natural Capital. That report, carried out by the James Hutton Institute, includes consideration of wildfires in Scotland. However we have not undertaken any research into the economic impact of wildfires more specifically.

Question reference: S6W-27283

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 May 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 28 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to raise public awareness of wildfire prevention.

The Scottish Government’s public agencies are running promotional campaigns to support responsible enjoyment of the countryside, as part of the wider national visitor management strategy co-ordinated by VisitScotland. This includes messaging which relates to responsible lighting of fires, strongly emphasising for example the use of camping stoves. It also highlights the need to follow any relevant local guidance and promotes sensible behaviours. The campaigns are being taken forward through both traditional and social media, including work with online influencers to help reach audiences that are otherwise difficult to engage.

Figures show there has been widespread public engagement with these campaigns over previous summer periods. For example, in 2023 NatureScot's social media influencer videos on responsible camping and fires had over 82,000 plays, and media campaigns by Forestry and Land Scotland and Cairngorms National Park Authority had a combined readership of over 3.1 million. It seems likely that the presence of rangers at key hotspots is important in allowing regular face to face interaction with visitors.

In addition, land managers have been advised to use time limited local signage or other communication methods to inform people when there are high risk conditions, working with local authorities and National Park Authorities. The fires messaging framework has recently been refreshed.

Question reference: S6W-27292

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 May 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 28 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to promote inter-agency co-operation and partnerships with national and local stakeholders to address the underlying factors contributing to wildfires in Scotland.

Scotland’s natural environment, the conditions of vegetation and the weather in Scotland at certain times of year lend themselves to fires starting and spreading quickly.

Addressing those risks is a key priority for both the Scottish Government and the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service. Through the Scottish Wildfire Forum, chaired by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, and VisitScotland’s Visitor Management: Scotland's Plan & Objectives | VisitScotland.org our agencies and partners come together to plan for and collaborate on issues such as wildfire education.

The Scottish Government is responding to the full range of climate risks identified for Scotland through our 2019 Adaptation Plan, which sets out more than 170 policies and proposals to build resilience to the impacts of global climate change as part of our Just Transition to net zero emissions by 2045. In Autumn 2024 we will publish a third Adaptation Plan, recognising the increased nature of climate risk and planning for a climate resilient Scotland.

Since 2020, SG has invested £66m to restore 18,500 ha of degraded peatlands across approximately 230 projects/sites spread all across Scotland [1] . The Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Act 2024 strictly regulates the use of muirburn, with exceptions to allow fuel load management. It also requires those carrying out muirburn to have completed an approved training course.

As we work to combat the effects of the climate crisis, we will continue to consider how our agencies and partners work together to address the risks of wildfire.

[1] Figures from 2020 to 2023.

Question reference: S6W-27290

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 May 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 14 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will detail its investment in state-of-the-art technology and aerial surveillance for early detection and response to wildfires.

Question reference: S6W-27288

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 May 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 14 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to use digital and social media platforms to effectively disseminate wildfire prevention information to the public.

Efficient and effective dissemination of wildfire prevention information to the public is key to preventing wildfires. Before igniting any flames in a rural or outdoor setting, the SFRS encourage everyone to check which area of Scotland may be at threat of wildfires. If a threat is in place, the key prevention advice from the SFRS is that people should refrain from igniting any flames. People can check the current threat levels in their area by visiting the following SFRS website:

https://www.firescotland.gov.uk/outdoors/wildfires/wildfire-danger-assessments/

When Scotland is at a high threat of wildfires, the SFRS work in partnership with the Scottish Wildfire Forum (SWF), to alert the public and partners to the threat of wildfires by issuing “Wildfire Danger Assessments”. SFRS issue alerts through their social media channels, their website and local media outlets, and request assistance from Local Authorities across Scotland to share safety messaging to seek engagement with as many members of public as possible. These warnings detail which areas across Scotland are most likely to be affected. The SFRS also alert the Scottish Government who pro-actively re-issue these warnings across digital and social media platforms.

Question reference: S6W-27286

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 May 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 14 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what additional resources it is making available to the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service to deal with wildfires.

Question reference: S6W-27287

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 May 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 14 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how much it has allocated to fighting wildfires in Scotland in each of the last 10 years.

Since 2017-18 there have been substantial year on year increases in funding to support SFRS to create a modern and effective fire and rescue service. The 2024-25 budget for SFRS, at £393.3 million, is over £78m higher that the 2017-18 equivalent figure. All firefighters carry out a variety of prevention and response related roles and the Scottish Government does not allocate funding to SFRS for specific types of incidents. Decisions on the allocation of resources are a matter for the SFRS Board and Chief Officer.

Question reference: S6O-03326

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 April 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 24 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how data from the most recent Scottish census is being used.

Question reference: S6O-03275

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 March 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 27 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has undertaken of the impact of its 2024-25 Budget on the Highlands and Islands region.

Question reference: S6O-03189

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 March 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 13 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what steps it is taking to support the fishing industry.