- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 December 2021
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi McAllan on 10 January 2022
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of Storm Arwen, whether it plans to make any revisions to its targets for the (a) number and (b) species of trees to be planted, and what its position is on the suitability of particular land uses.
Answer
The Scottish Government has no plans to revise its ambitious woodland creation targets as a result of Storm Arwen. Neither is there any plans to review species of trees to be planted as the range of species already being planted adds to Scotland’s rich, abundant and thriving landscape.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 10 December 2021
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi McAllan on 7 January 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the cost of upgrading Scotland's agricultural slurry storage facilities.
Answer
Our assessment is that the costs of bringing stores up to the required standard may range from a minimal amount for small improvements to major investment to improve a store which is not fit for purpose. Due to the individuality and scale of any potential works required at each site, an assessment of every store in Scotland would be needed to identify accurate costs of bringing slurry stores up to the required regulatory standard. To take account of these differences in scale of potential works, we have built in reasonable timescales by which storage facilities must be brought up to standard.
Stores built since 1991 are already required to meet a set of regulatory standards and would be expected to continue to be maintained in compliance with these standards. Those farming in Nitrate Vulnerable Zones already have a regulatory obligation to meet both post 1991 build standards and a 22 week minimum quantity requirement. The onus is on the operator to maintain these essential business assets to the required standard.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 2021
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 23 December 2021
To ask the Scottish Government on what evidence it considers that the existing timescales for local authorities to establish a short-term let licensing scheme by 1 October 2022 is reasonable and achievable.
Answer
The Scottish Government announced in January 2020 that it intended to establish a licensing scheme for short-term lets using powers under the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 and we have been engaging with local authorities on implementation of a licensing scheme since then. Local authorities have experience in licensing other activities under the 1982 Act and we made changes to our proposals in response to their views.
In setting timescales for establishing a licensing scheme, and for existing operators to have made an application, the Scottish Government has been mindful of striking a balance between giving local authorities and operators sufficient time to prepare, whilst moving quickly enough to address what remains a pressing issue for many residents and communities.
We will be working closely with local authorities, and other stakeholders on the working group, to review and update guidance and prepare for implementation.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 2021
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 23 December 2021
To ask the Scottish Government on what basis local authorities are able to set short-term let licensing fees, in light of there being no baseline data on the (a) number of premises to be licensed, (b) number of staff required to resource the scheme, (c) set-up costs, (d) implementation fees, (e) cost of inspections and (f) cost of appeals.
Answer
The Scottish Government published an updated Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment (BRIA) on 23 November. The BRIA sets out the baseline data currently available and trends, including information from the non-domestic rates valuation roll and about Airbnb, which show a significant growth in the number of properties which are being used for short-term lets.
The BRIA sets out the costs to local authorities and recovery through fees, and provides indicative average fees for a low and high cost scenario. The assumptions behind the average indicative fees for a short-term lets licence have been informed by discussions with local authorities.
The Licensing Order allows local authorities to raise revenue from fees to cover the costs of establishing and running their licensing scheme. The actual fees to be charged will be determined by local authorities following Scottish Government guidance and are likely to include higher and lower tiers, reflecting the varying sizes of premises to be licensed.
The licensing scheme will help to build a comprehensive picture of short-term let activity across Scotland.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 2021
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 23 December 2021
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the publication of its Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment (BRIA) on short-term let licensing, on what evidence it considers that the tourism sector will have recovered adequately by 31 March 2023 to ensure that the licensing scheme does not add to any burden currently being experienced by the tourism sector.
Answer
The Scottish Government understands the impact that COVID-19 has had on the tourism sector which is why we have supported the tourism and hospitality sector through the pandemic, not least through an extension of 100% NDR relief for all retail leisure and hospitality premises for 2021-22.
Our proposals to licence short-term lets were developed in response to concerns raised by residents and communities across Scotland and members of all parties. It is right that we are taking action now to address these concerns. We do not consider our licensing scheme to be onerous.
We have committed to working with local authorities to review levels of short-term let activity in hotspot areas in summer 2023. This review will also seek to confirm that the wider sector is still healthy, making sure we have avoided unintended consequences.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 13 December 2021
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi McAllan on 23 December 2021
To ask the Scottish Government by what date it will carry out an assessment of the scale of tree damage caused by Storm Arwen.
Answer
Provisional results of the storm damage to forests caused by Storm Arwen were published on the 14 December 2021. Initial estimates are that around 4,000 hectares of woodland has been affected.
An online mapping tool has been developed to support forest owners assess the impacts and can be viewed here; Storm Arwen Windblow Mapping (arcgis.com) . The map will be updated by Forest Research on an on-going basis as more data becomes available. A version 2 update was made available on 17 December.
The satellite-based assessment will allow woodland owners, Forestry & Land Scotland and forestry agents managing large areas of forestry across the country to target their own local assessment using drones and site visits. The national data will also inform the strategic response of the forestry and timber sector facilitated by Scottish Forestry.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 December 2021
Submitting member has a registered interest.
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 13 January 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to support small rural businesses.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 13 January 2022
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 09 December 2021
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Current Status:
Answered by Kate Forbes on 22 December 2021
To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) full- and (b) part-time jobs have been created through tree planting as a result of the activity of the Scottish National Investment Bank.
Answer
This information is not collected nor held by the Scottish Government. This is a matter for the Scottish National Investment Bank who make independent decisions about which investments to make and what information to collect, monitor and publish about their investments.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 13 December 2021
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Current Status:
Answered by John Swinney on 22 December 2021
To ask the Scottish Government by what date a review into the response to Storm Arwen will commence.
Answer
Work to review the response to Storm Arwen is already well underway.
I requested that the Scottish Government’s Resilience Division begin work on the scope and terms of a review into the Storm Arwen response on 30 November 2021, and on 14 December 2021 I formally commissioned the Scottish Resilience Partnership to collate evidence from local resilience partnerships to inform the findings of the review.
The Scottish Government will also gather evidence from other relevant groups, for example the voluntary sector and utilities companies.
I aim to publish a review paper with recommendations as early as possible in 2022, although I now expect that to be later than originally planned due to the need to enable resilience partners to prioritise the pandemic response.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 December 2021
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 20 December 2021
To ask the Scottish Government what points in its Programme for Government are addressed by the Good Food Nation (Scotland) Bill.
Answer
The Scottish Government’s 2021-22 Programme for Government contained a commitment to introduce a Good Food Nation Bill. The purpose of this Bill, introduced on 7 October, is to provide a clear, legislative framework introducing a statutory requirement for the Scottish Ministers and specified public authorities to publish good food nation plans. Those plans must set out the main outcomes they want to achieve in relation to food-related issues; the policies needed to do this; and the indicators or other measures required to assess progress.
The Bill underpins the work we are carrying out as part of the Good Food Nation programme of measures, delivering outcomes which support our nation’s social and economic wellbeing, the environment, people’s health and economic development. The subsequent plans will link together all the areas of food policy work that are addressed within the Programme for Government. Examples of such policies include our commitment to update and develop the Local Food Strategy following the recent consultation; plans to legislate for restrictions on unhealthier food and drink promotions; and a commitment to bring forward a plan to end the need for food banks and support people experiencing food insecurity.
