Minutes: 01 November 2022

1. Decision on taking business in private:

The Committee agreed to take items 9 and 10 in private.

2. Subordinate legislation:

The Committee took evidence on the Pavement Parking Prohibition (Exemption Orders Procedure) (Scotland) Regulations 2022 [draft] from—

Jenny Gilruth, Minister for Transport and Elise McIntyre, Principal Legal Officer, Scottish Government;

Donald Morrison, Head of Asset Management and Procurement, Transport Scotland.

3. Subordinate legislation:

Jenny Gilruth (Minister for Transport) moved—S6M-06081—that the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee recommends that the Pavement Parking Prohibition (Exemption Orders Procedure) (Scotland) Regulations 2022 [draft] be approved.

The motion was agreed to.

4. Subordinate legislation:

The Committee took evidence on the Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading Scheme (Amendment) (No. 3) Order 2022 [draft] from—

Michael Matheson, Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero, Energy and Transport, Scottish Government.

5. Subordinate legislation:

Michael Matheson (Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero, Energy and Transport) moved—S6M-06005—that the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee recommends that the Greenhouse Gas Emissions Trading Scheme (Amendment) (No. 3) Order 2022 [draft] be approved.

The motion was agreed to.

6. A modern and sustainable ferry service for Scotland:

The Committee took evidence from—

Helen Inkster, Managing Director, Pentland Ferries;

Gordon Ross, Managing Director, Western Ferries.

Monica Lennon indicated that she is a member of the RMT Scottish Parliamentary Group.

7. Subordinate legislation:

The Committee considered the following negative instrument—

Financial Assistance for Environmental Purposes (Scotland) (No. 2) Order 2022 (SSI 2022/278)

The Committee agreed to make no recommendations in relation to the instrument.

8. Public petitions:

The Committee considered the following petition—

PE1866: Introduce legislation to improve bus travel for wheelchair users

The Committee agreed to keep the petition open, and to—

• write to COSLA to seek information about how local authorities intend to use new powers conferred by the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019, regarding bus service improvement partnerships and local services franchises, to deliver improvements for wheelchair users on public buses; and
• write to the UK Government to seek clarification on the safety implications of wheelchair positioning in buses and highlight concerns raised in the petition to inform the Department for Transport’s 2023 review of the Public Sector Vehicles Accessibility Regulations.

Monica Lennon indicated that she is a Patron of Disability Equality Scotland.

9. A modern and sustainable ferry service for Scotland (in private):

The Committee considered the evidence it heard earlier under agenda item 6.

Edward Mountain declared an interest as a partner in Delfur Farms Farming Partnership, of Moray, in relation to evidence heard earlier on freight-only services.

10. Pre-budget scrutiny 2023-24 (in private):

The Committee considered a draft letter to the Scottish Government in advance of publication of the Scottish Government’s 2023-24 budget.

The Committee agreed to delegate to the Convener authority to finalise the draft letter for publication.