Seòmar agus comataidhean

The reduction of £1 million referred to in the letter from the Finance Secretary to the Scottish Parliament's Finance and Public Administration Committee dated 3 September relates to the nature restoration budget line, rather than the Nature Restoration Fund (NRF). The £1m reduction will result in reduced scope of some projects and delay in implementing other projects.

The Edinburgh Process strand of the NRF is provided directly to Local Authorities and the £5 million allocated to this strand for 2024-25 has been redirected to help meet the public sector pay deal. Scottish Ministers have made a commitment to replace this funding in 2025-26. We remain firmly committed to tackling the twin crises of climate change and biodiversity loss. However we are also taking on significant additional financial pressure, not least as a consequence of wider decisions around funding made by the current and previous UK Governments. The Finance Secretary has been clear that painful choices have had to be made as a result. The Scottish Government will work with local authorities to understand and mitigate any impacts on rural jobs, wherever that is feasible in these circumstances.

Scottish Ministers know the vital role local government employees play in delivering local services which are valued by the public. This pay offer demonstrates just how much we value these workers too. It will provide an above-inflation pay increase for all council employees and ensure the most support is focused on the lowest paid.

Whilst this difficult fiscal choice has had to be made, NatureScot is providing NRF funding to 14 partnership projects this year, to transform nature including through river and woodland restoration, rainforest regeneration, tackling invasive species and conserving iconic species such as the red squirrel.

The Scottish Government committed to investing £10 million in Changing Places Toilets over the lifetime of the Parliament. Ultimately, the number of Changing Places Toilets that will be introduced as a result of investment will be determined by the number and quality of funding bids received. The Changing Places Toilets Planning Guide published by the Scottish Government provides information on Changing Places Toilets and guidance to those considering installing one.

Following the UK Chancellor's July statement, the Scottish Government continues to face the most challenging financial situation since devolution.

Whilst any reduction is regrettable, we remain committed to taking forward our work across mental health, working closely with key partners. Our collective focus has to be on making as much difference as possible with our funding.

No elements of the Distress Brief Intervention (DBI) programme will be discontinued in 2024-25. Savings were realised through pre-agreed changes in funding to the original pilots, which from 2024-25 will be funded by local areas rather than centrally by the Scottish Government. There is no anticipated impact on the number of people able to access the DBI programme.

The cessation of funding in relation to student mental health was extensively discussed with the sector, including when transition funding was put in place for Academic Year 2023-24 at the conclusion of our previous four year Programme for Government commitment in relation to counsellor provision. Our five year investment of over £19 million sought to support student mental health and wellbeing and help institutions to transition to a more sustainable means of providing mental health support for students.

Our new Student Mental Health Action Plan, published on 13 September, seeks to move to a mainstreamed approach to student mental health. The Government will work with NHS Boards, CoSLA, Public Health Scotland and community based providers to join up support that is already available, embedding students’ mental health needs into the wider communities in which they live and study.

The Action Plan recognises the importance of each college and university having a Student Mental Health Agreement in place. To enable this we continue to support NUS Think Positive with £130,000 in 2024-25.

The Managing Deer for Climate and Nature: Consultation Analysis report was published on the Scottish Government website on 9 September 2024.

The Scottish Government has provided Scottish Agritourism with £60k funding in 2024-2025 to support with preparations for Scotland hosting the 2026 World Agritourism Conference.

Pilots of a new pre-application consenting process developed by the Consenting Task Group commenced in January 2024 in the Shetland and Highland local authority areas.

Our priorities for this year, developed by the Consenting Task Group and agreed by the Scottish Aquaculture Council, include delivering more pilots, completing and responding to evaluation activities to improve the process, exploring opportunities to better coordinate Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA) activities and working to align onward application processes.

We are also taking action to clarify the consenting process for aquaculture developments beyond 3 nautical miles.

As part of this work we have recently published a consultation on proposals for plans to address an existing gap in aquaculture planning regulations by extending Local Authority planning controls through marine planning zones further offshore out to 12 nautical miles.

The public consultation will run until 11 December and can be viewed at Extending marine planning zones: consultation - Scottish Government consultations - Citizen Space.

Following the award of the construction contract for HMP Highland in April this year, the construction is progressing to plan on site and is scheduled to complete in 2026.

Following the appointment of Lord Cameron of Lochiel as Parliamentary Under Secretary of State in the Scotland Office, I wrote to him on 17 April 2024 seeking an update on the proposed Order under section 104 of the Scotland Act 1998.

Alister Jack, the then Secretary of State for Scotland, wrote to me on 15 May 2024. In his letter, Mr Jack apologised for the delay. He said he was satisfied that a section 104 Order under the Scotland Act 1998 was the appropriate legislative vehicle, and he was content to provide his in-principle agreement to this Order. He indicated that his officials in the Scotland Office would shortly be setting up a working group of officials to consider the work plan for the Order, including timescales and Parliamentary requirements.

The UK General Election was then called on 23 May and took place on 4 July. Given the change in the UK Government, I wrote to the new Secretary of State, Ian Murray MP, on 12 August 2024 seeking his in-principle agreement to proceed with the section 104 Order. I have not yet received a reply.

Historic Environment Scotland will continue to consider all options available to sustain and enhance the sites across its estate as it develops its Properties in Care strategy. However, it is important that we recognise climate change effects have been accelerating, and the increased rainfall and variations in temperature have continuing impacts on both Scotland's natural and built heritage.

I have asked Historic Environment Scotland to write directly to the member to update him of the position.