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I slanders who are eligible for a Young Scot National Entitlement Card currently receive two free return journeys to the mainland each year.

The introduction of the Road Equivalent Tariff on CalMac ferry services delivered an estimated average 34% reduction in passenger fares and 40% for cars and it continues to save passengers around £25m a year.

The young persons’ free bus travel scheme applies to all young people across the country, including those who live on Scotland’s islands. However, it is important that Government reflects on policy implementation in rural areas and in our island communities. To that end, ferry fares policy and specifically the issue of young people’s access to public transport, will be considered as part of the Fair Fares review.

The Sectoral Marine plan for Offshore Wind Energy was subject to a Sustainability Appraisal that included a plan-level Social and Economic Impact Assessment (SEIA). This SEIA assessed and estimated the levels of positive and negative impact of Plan Options and the plan, as a whole. The SMP-OWE did not specify the number of projects that could progress in each Plan Option and as such, the SEIA assessed the Plan Option under various development scenarios. The SEIA was published for consultation alongside the draft plan and can be found at the following link.https://www.gov.scot/publications/draft-sectoral-marine-plan-social-econimic-impact-assessment/

Community benefits from renewable energy developments can help generate lasting social and economic benefit for communities across Scotland.

Our longstanding Good Practice Principles for Community Benefit from Onshore Renewable Energy Developments (2019) set national standards, which we encourage all renewable energy developers and communities to utilise, regardless of technology type.

We are keen to see the number of solar installations offering community benefit increase and, as we work with the solar sector towards solutions for its future in our forthcoming draft Energy Strategy and Just Transition Strategy, will continue to encourage the sector to consider what packages of community benefit it can offer.

Spawning and nursery grounds were a key consideration in the planning exercise for the Sectoral Marine Plan for Offshore Wind energy. Existing spatial information on the likely locations of spawning and nursery grounds were incorporated into the opportunity and constraint analysis that provided the basis for the initial identification of areas of search for the planning process. Later, when areas of search were narrowed down, the Strategic Environmental Assessment, part of the wider Sustainability Appraisal, assessed the potential for the plan to negatively impact these spawning areas and outlined suitable mitigation measures, where required. The plan highlights where this may be necessary and where further assessment maybe required at a project-level.

The three projects now offered Option Agreements from Crown Estate Scotland under the ScotWind clearing round are located entirely within the SMP-OWE Plan Option NE1. Adoption of the SMP-OWE and the seabed leasing round followed the delivery of a Sustainability Appraisal, which included a Social and Economic Impact Assessment (SEIA). This SEIA estimated the negative impact of the Plan Option NE1 and the SMP-OWE as a whole, based on a series of development scenarios. Through that process and direct engagement with the fishing sector, the Plan Option was reduced further to avoid overlap with fishing activity. The SMP-OWE planning process considered fisheries data through an assessment of spatial and economic data, alongside consultation and steering group information. Although the planning process attempted to minimise impact on a wide range of receptors, there remains some overlap with receptors and we would expect engagement with the fishing sector as project applications are developed to be critical to determining the ultimate footprint of any development.

The expansion of funded early learning and childcare (ELC) for deferrals is a legislative commitment. From 1 August 2023, if a parent or carer of a child that is still 4 years old on the date they are eligible to start school defers their entry to school for a year, they can automatically access an additional year of funded early learning and childcare. Details are available on the Scottish Government website: Deferred school entry and eligibility from 1 August 2023 - Early learning and childcare: statutory guidance - July 2021 - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) .

From 24 October 2022, the requirement to book seats in the Historical Search Room has been removed. No further requests are being taken for bookings and all currently active requests will be allocated a booking prior to‎ 24 October 2022. The maximum current waiting time for active requests is around 6 weeks.

The Scottish Government has had no direct involvement in any scheme to extend the National Cycle Network (NCN) route 73 between Stranraer and Cairnryan. The NCN in Scotland is managed by Sustrans who, as custodians of the NCN, gave intentions to explore improvements to NCN 73 in the south west which are included within Sustrans’ 30 year National Cycle Network Plan. However, the Scottish Government is currently investigating the feasibility of a shared use path south of Cairnryan to the A751 junction from the new Trunk Road active travel budget.

The Scottish Government has funded Sustrans with £10.6 million in 2022-23 (increased from the £4 million award in 2021-22) to undertake National Cycle Network Plan work.

Programme for Government in 2016 and 2017 addressed potential transport issues in South West Scotland and extensive stakeholder engagement was undertaken to inform the South West Scotland Transport Study; the initial appraisal report was published in January 2020, and included 23 recommendations for consideration in Strategic Transport Projects Review (STPR2), including one to develop the Strategic Active Travel Network in the South West of Scotland and better connect communities to key destinations with cycle paths parallel to trunk roads and improvements to the NCN. This intervention is currently subject to detailed appraisal as part of Phase 2 of STPR2.

Information about the change is available in the Joint Implementation Plan . Letters have been sent to local authorities and sector representative bodies to remind them of the upcoming change and encourage them to review local processes and communications. An evaluation of the pilot areas is ongoing and will inform discussions and advice in Spring 2023.

The earliest date for implementation of this bill, as with all other bills, is wholly dependent on the agreed bill process and how quickly that can be completed, and meet Parliament’s as well as the Scottish Government’s requirements for appropriate bill scrutiny and consideration. Once the local visitor levy bill is introduced to Parliament, the bill timetable will be agreed and the earliest implementation date will become clearer.