Chamber and committees

The information requested is not held centrally. The data the Scottish Government receive from Police Scotland for the publication of Official Statistics on recorded crime is a simple count of the numbers of crimes and offences, for each local authority, which the police have recorded. This can be broken down by quarter or, since April 2019, by month. Given this, information is not held on crimes recorded for specific weekends. Additionally, as the Scottish Government do not receive further information on the circumstances of individual crimes, it is not possible to identify if an assault is directly related to bonfire night activities. It should also be noted that as Bonfire Night does not always occur on a weekend, reviewing weekend based-activities across years is unlikely to give a like-for-like comparison.

The Waste (Scotland) Regulations require all schools in Scotland to take all practicable steps to recycle as much of its waste as possible. Provision of recycling facilities within state schools is the responsibility of Scotland’s local authorities. The regulations require waste producers, including schools, to separate and present for collection the key dry recyclables (glass, metal, plastic, paper and card) and food at source.

To support schools, Zero Waste Scotland has produced a Resource Efficiency Guide for Schools , which includes advice on waste management and potential initiatives to reduce waste and improve recycling.

As part of the Curriculum for Excellence, under the theme of Learning for Sustainability, many schools are engaging with the Eco-Schools Scotland programme . This is a seven step curricular-relevant programme to support schools in considering and tackling environmental issues. Schools must evidence their work through a focus on litter and waste minimisation plus two other Eco-Schools topics. Those schools who successfully complete the programme are awarded a Green Flag.

On 17 November, I announced the first of our landmark investments from the £70m Recycling Improvement Fund. The Fund was launched to support local authorities improve recycling infrastructure and maximise the quality and quantity of recycling, including help with aligning recycling collections to Household Recycling Charter’s supporting Code of Practice, to help make it easier for householders to recycle the right things and encourage high levels of citizen participation in waste prevention, recycling and reuse.

The Scottish Government recognises the importance of transparency and is committed to sharing information on progress with the implementation of Dame Elish Angiolini’s recommendations in a way that is meaningful and accessible to a range of audiences.

In June this year, the Scottish Government published its first Thematic Progress Report which details progress under thematic headings to provide an overall picture of developments. This not only includes a narrative, context and additional information about key recommendations but, importantly, also includes a tracker within each theme showing which partner is responsible for each recommendation and what progress has been made.

The Ministerial Group which leads the governance and reporting framework established by Scottish Government, is jointly chaired by myself and the Lord Advocate and held its third meeting on 2 December 2021. The Group plays a vital role in overseeing progress being made towards implementation of recommendations across all partners. At that meeting, the Ministerial Group approved the sign off of several more recommendations as completed and also approved the publication later this month of the next thematic progress report which will show the significant work that has been taken forward.

I will be writing to the Convener of the Criminal Justice Committee and Justice spokespersons to share details once the next Thematic Progress Report is published on the Scottish Government’s website.

The recent Heat in Buildings Strategy confirmed our intention to consult upon and deliver regulations by 2025 setting minimum energy efficiency standards equivalent to EPC Band C across private housing, where this is technically feasible and cost effective. We have proposed backstop dates for meeting these standards of 2028 for Private Rented Sector housing and 2033 for Owner Occupied housing.

In relation to enforcement, we will be considering a number of options ahead of a detailed consultation on proposals for regulation during summer 2022, in line with the commitment in our Heat in Buildings Strategy.

On 30 November we launched a call for evidence for a National Public Energy Agency which may have a role on delivery of our proposed heat and energy efficiency standards. However, this is one of a number of alternatives, and subject to detailed investigation and consideration.

Next year’s consultation will also consider proposals for the ways in which any new energy efficiency standards may dovetail with the housing market and conveyancing processes. Our aim will be to work with the market, and to reduce disruption as much as possible.

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-34739 on 5 February 2021. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers .

We work closely with the childcare sector representative bodies and appreciate the challenges faced by settings in relation to recruitment and retention. We are already providing support to all parts of the childcare sector with regard to recruitment and retention challenges. For example, we have invited those whose registrations to work in childcare have lapsed in recent years to re-join the sector; we are providing work experience in the sector via the National Transitional Training Fund; and our national recruitment campaign provides resources to assist with local recruitment. We continue to support the childminding sector as set out in Our Commitment to Childminding Report, which can be found at: Our commitment to childminding: report - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

We will work in partnership with all parts of the childcare sector to develop delivery plans for school-aged childcare and funded early learning for one year olds and to ensure that the appropriate support is in place. We have also committed to developing a new, five-year Workforce Strategy for the childcare sector. The strategy will address recruitment and retention challenges to build on the support already available, taking into account our commitments to build a system of wraparound childcare and further extend early learning.

The Scottish Government recognise the negative impact that noise disturbances can have on building occupiers. In response to queries regarding such issues Building Standards Division has previously published 'Noise - Guidance on Home Improvements' which provides advice to those considering the installation of hard surface floor coverings (such as laminates, wood, or tiles) and the benefits of providing suitable underlay materials.

Further guidance on improving sound insulation within homes can be found within 'Housing and Sound Insulation: Improving existing attached dwellings and designing for conversions' (Edinburgh Napier University) which sets out good practice on how to upgrade separating walls and floors to improve sound insulation performance. Individuals seeking to make improvements to the sound insulation of their properties are encouraged to seek advice from an acoustics professional to ensure appropriate solutions to reducing noise levels from their neighbouring properties.

Where noise from neighbouring properties is deemed excessive, individuals are encouraged to liaise with their local authority to seek specific advice on such matters.

The Scottish Government consulted in 2019 on a number of areas associated with the legislative regime for occasional licences. This included the level of fees and whether or not there should be a limit on the number and duration of occasional licences for premises/personal licence holders. The views offered in response will help inform further consideration of issues in this area in due course.

Decisions about the granting of occasional licences are for independent licensing boards within the framework of the 2005 Act. Each licensing board is required to produce a licensing policy statement explaining how they will approach the operation of licensing within their area in line with the five licencing objectives. This can include details about policy on the granting of occasional licences.

The Tenant Hardship Loan Fund provides loans to tenants who are having difficulty paying rent because of the impacts of COVID-19. A loan may be paid to tenants or to landlords directly if authorised by the tenant but landlords are not eligible to apply for this loan directly.

The PRS Landlord (non-business) Covid-19 Loan is available to assist certain registered social landlords experiencing loss of income as a result of COVID 19 restrictions. Landlords may apply directly for this loan.

No. Tenant Hardship Loan Funds will not be converted to grants.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-02112 on 7 September 2021. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers