Chamber and committees

There are currently 27 empty homes officers working across 25 local authority areas. We can advise that the following local authorities do not have an empty homes officer post:

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-01075 on 22 July 2021. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at Written questions and answers | Scottish Parliament Website

The answer as provided in S6W-01075 sets out the available information published on the number of long term empty homes through Scottish Government annual statistics on long term empty properties and unoccupied exemptions, most recently published at Housing statistics quarterly update: December 2020 - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) .

Detailed Excel tables are also available at Housing statistics: Empty properties and second homes - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) , which provide local authority level figures on the number of long term empty properties from 2005 to 2020, and on the number of unoccupied exemptions from 1996 to 2020.

The figures are sourced from the Council Tax Base data return, and are based on an annual snapshot of properties on the Council Tax Valuation List as at the first Monday in September each year. Data on long term empty properties have been separately identified in the Council Tax Base data return from 2005 onwards, and so no information is held centrally for the earlier years 1999 to 2004.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-02280 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

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-02280 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

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-02280 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

There are no specific delays recorded affecting the updating of online vaccination status on or after 22 July 2021.

Currently there is an interim solution to provide access to vaccination status for those who need it for international travel. It is only designed to be in place for a short period of time and we are focussing all our efforts on developing a digital Covid Status Certificates App ready for the end of September this year. This long-term solution will have accessible options for those who need them.

We have made vaccination records available to Scottish citizens who have been vaccinated in Scotland should they be required for entry into another country. It is possible for an individual vaccinated in England and Scotland to obtain a letter from each.

We currently advise people to check the requirements of entry into another country, which can be found on the Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office (FCDO) website: Foreign travel advice - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk) . If individuals are in any doubt as to what will be accepted, we recommend checking with the country they are travelling to.

For further details, anyone can call the National Helpline on 0800 030 8013.

The planned consultation on the range of commitments identified in the Food Waste Reduction Action Plan has been delayed by a number of factors, including the recent Covid-19 crisis.

We are developing a Routemap to deliver our ambitious 2025 waste and recycling targets which will inform the development of the new Circular Economy Bill and there will also be further engagement and consultation to shape the Bill’s contents. A review of the rural exemption for food waste will be considered as part of this.

The Scottish Household Survey 2017 shows that there has been a steady increase in the number of people using food waste recycling caddies, rather than throwing food out with general waste. Less than half (48%) of households now dispose of food waste with their general rubbish. The proportion of households making use of local authority-provided food caddies was 55 % in 2017

In response to (b), the duty to segregate food waste in the Waste (Scotland) Regulations 2012 covers approximately 80% of Scotland’s population. The latest figures are from September 2015 and can be found in Zero Waste Scotland’s report: How Much Food Waste Is There in Scotland? , published in 2016, showing that over 1.5 million Scottish households had access to food waste collection.

The upcoming review of the Food Waste Reduction Action Plan in addition to the development of a Routemap to deliver our ambitious 2025 waste and recycling targets will consider improvements to the data collection and monitoring relating to food waste.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-02457 on14 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

The Scottish Government have previously been made aware of this issue and earlier this year investigated the it further. Our investigation established that this was a historical, localised issue in the Aberdeenshire area where they had not been applying the guidance fully. Two years ago they revised their internal processes to ensure assessments were carried out on applications made by organisations seeking a Blue Badge in compliance with Scottish Governments Blue Badge guidance.

We are currently undertaking a review of the guidance we provide to Local Authorities to improve the process for organisations applying for a Blue Badge and to make it clear and consistent across the country. We are also seeking to ensure that the online application form is more robust and provides organisations and Local Authorities with all the necessary information to elicit a more efficient process.