- Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 21 April 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Humza Yousaf on 5 May 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how it ensures that the standards set out in NHS service specifications for rare and complex diseases, such as cystic fibrosis, are adhered to, and to what extent these service specifications represent a statutory expectation of the minimum level of care that patients should expect to receive.
Answer
The National Services Division (NSD) of NHS National Services Scotland commission a number of highly specialised services in Scotland for patients who require investigation, treatment and ongoing follow up care for rare and complex conditions such as Cystic Fibrosis. Each designated service is subject to strict governance and performance reviews to ensure they maintain the highest possible standards of person-centred care across Scotland.
More information about specialist services is available on the NSD website: About specialist services | National Services Scotland (nhs.scot)
Where a formal review has been undertaken, a report of the review findings and recommendations is presented to both the National Patient, Professional and Public Reference Group (NPPPRG) and National Specialist Services Committee (NSSC) for scrutiny.
We have set out the wider policy within which NHS Scotland is expected to deliver services, and expect all NHS Boards to provide high quality care that is safe, effective and person-centred. Where there are specific issues that prevent them from doing so, robust processes are in place for NSD to provide support as required.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 05 April 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi McAllan on 5 May 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what action SEPA and local authorities have taken on the next round of their shared strategies and plans, and how this action is informed by the recommendations of any joint Scottish Government/COSLA working groups on these issues.
Answer
SEPA’s flood risk management plans for Scotland were approved by Scottish Ministers in December 2021, and published on SEPA’s website. The plans, produced in partnership with responsible authorities, identified flood management actions for over 440 priority communities.
This work is split into six-year cycles and covers a range of actions including furthering the understanding of climate change impacts, increasing community resilience, and developing and implementing flood protection schemes. Coordination of the proposed actions will be developed in the local flood risk management plans, currently being prepared by the 14 lead local authorities, which are due for publication in December 2022.
A flooding working group is currently considering its recommendations to the joint Scottish Government / COSLA (officers) Settlement Distribution Group (SDG). These will be considered by the SDG in late-summer of 2022, and will inform subsequent discussions between Ministers and Council Leaders on the arrangements required for the effective delivery of flood risk management for the period to 2028.
Flood Risk Management Plans | SEPA .
- Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 05 April 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 5 May 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how many cases of so-called Anglophobia have been recorded by Police Scotland in each year since 1999.
Answer
Information on cases of Anglophobia is not held centrally. Data is published on the number of police recorded hate crimes that include an aggravation for race. The characteristic of race in the hate crime legislative framework includes race, colour, nationality (including citizenship) or ethnic or national origins. If an offence was motivated by prejudice based on Anglophobia (i.e. anti-English prejudice) it would therefore be recorded by the police as an offence aggravated by race.
The Scottish Government published a study on the characteristics of police recorded Hate Crime in February 2021. This included: (i) information on the number of racially aggravated hate crimes recorded by Police Scotland from 2014-15 to 2019-20 (shown in the following table), and (ii) a more detailed study of the characteristics of these cases in 2018-19 (based on a large scale review of crime records). Based on the findings of that more detailed study, Table 17 of the publication provides a breakdown of what prejudices were shown by the perpetrators. This suggested that 6% of racially aggravated hate crimes in 2018-19 included an anti-English prejudice. This would equate to an estimated 210 crimes. Please note, some of these crimes may include multiple racial (or other aggravation) prejudices.
A second study into the characteristics of police recorded hate crime is due to be published later this year. This will provide the same type of detailed disaggregated data and information on police recorded hate crimes for the year 2020-21.
Table: The number 1 of racially aggravated hate crimes recorded by police in Scotland, 2014-15 to 2019-20
Year | Number |
2014-15 | 5,195 |
2015-16 | 4,927 |
2016-17 | 4,687 |
2017-18 | 4,765 |
2018-19 | 4,270 |
2019-20 | 4,172 |
1. The number of hate crimes with a race aggravation is slightly higher than the figures provided in the aforementioned study. This is because the table also includes hate crimes that have multiple aggravations (one of which is race).
Source: Scottish Government, characteristics of police recorded Hate Crime
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 05 April 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi McAllan on 5 May 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide the priority list that was agreed by the National Prioritisation Advisory Group that it chaired on flood risk management schemes.
Answer
Schemes proposed in the flood risk management strategies (now referred to as plans) published by SEPA in December 2015 were prioritised according to their cost benefit ratio and taking into account a series of additional criteria, encompassing the environmental and social impacts of flooding.
This list was agreed by the National Prioritisation Advisory Group which was chaired by the Scottish Government. A list of the prioritised (Cycle 1) schemes can be found on the SEPA website.
Discussions are taking place with SEPA and the local authorities on the prioritisation arrangements for the Cycle 2 schemes that will cover the period 2022 to 2028.
42 Flood Protection Schemes (sepa.org.uk) .
- Asked by: Mercedes Villalba, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 April 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 5 May 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what the total volume, in kilograms, was of (a) cod, (b) haddock, (c) herring, (d) whiting, (e) sole, (f) plaice and (g) saithe that was discarded by Scottish boats in 2021, in ICES (International Council for the Exploration of the Sea) areas (i) 4 and (ii) 6a.
Answer
The total quantity of discards from Scottish vessels is not currently estimated. Marine Scotland estimates the total weight of unwanted catch (catch that was not considered suitable for commercial sales) for demersal trawlers and seine netters for each year, using data collected by scientific observers on-board fishing vessels. (Fishing trips by vessels using other gears are not surveyed.) The estimates for 2021 are given in the following table. These estimates are for fishing trips by UK vessels landing into Scotland and Scottish vessels landing abroad.
Estimates of the total weight of unwanted catch (kg) caught in 2021 in ICES subarea 4 and division 6a by UK vessels landing into Scotland and Scottish vessels landing abroad, fishing with demersal trawls or seines.
Species | ICES region |
(i) 4 | (ii) 6a |
(a) Cod | 2,161,000 | 532,000 |
(b) Haddock | 7,051,000 | 4,061,000 |
(c) Herring | 337,000 | 332,000 |
(d) Whiting | 1,703,000 | 216,000 |
(e) Sole | 0 | 2,500 |
(f) Plaice | 49,000 | 75,000 |
(g) Saithe | 721,000 | 56,000 |
- Asked by: Jeremy Balfour, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 14 April 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Patrick Harvie on 5 May 2022
To ask the Government whether it plans to increase investment in local advice services, including government-funded services and those provided by housing associations, to help provide people with advice and support amid the reported cost of living crisis, in line with the recommendation of the Zero Emissions Social Housing Taskforce.
Answer
Home Energy Scotland (HES), administered by Energy Saving Trust on behalf of the Scottish Government, provides free, bespoke, impartial advice and support on energy efficiency, renewable heating and fuel poverty support in Scotland.
This year, we have committed to expanding the Home Energy Scotland advice service by 20%. This will allow the service to support an extra 12,000 households a year in making their homes warmer and easier to heat.
HES also acts as the gateway to the Scottish Government’s domestic loans and grants programmes for energy efficiency improvements to homes in Scotland and a referral service to Scotland’s flagship fuel poverty scheme, Warmer Homes Scotland. We are increasing the budget for the Warmer Homes Scotland scheme to £55m for 2022-2023, up from £50m in 2021-2022.
The Scottish Government’s full response to the recommendations made by the Zero Emissions Social Housing Taskforce will be published after the local government elections.
- Asked by: Mercedes Villalba, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 April 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 5 May 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what the total volume, in kilograms, was of below Minimum Conservation Reference Size (a) cod, (b) haddock, (c) herring, (d) whiting, (e) sole, (f) plaice and (g) saithe that was discarded by Scottish boats in 2021, in ICES (International Council for the Exploration of the Sea) areas (i) 4 and (ii) 6a.
Answer
The total quantity of discards below Minimum Conservation Reference Size from Scottish vessels is not currently estimated. Marine Scotland estimates the total weight of unwanted catch (catch that was not considered suitable for commercial sales) below Minimum Conservation Reference Size for demersal trawlers and seine netters for each year, using data collected by scientific observers on-board fishing vessels. (Fishing trips by vessels using other gears are not surveyed.) The estimates for 2021 are given in the following table. These estimates are for fishing trips by UK vessels landing into Scotland and Scottish vessels landing abroad.
Estimates of the total weight of unwanted catch (kg) below Minimum Conservation Reference Size caught in 2021 in ICES subarea 4 and division 6a by UK vessels landing into Scotland and Scottish vessels landing abroad, fishing with demersal trawls or seines.
Species | ICES region |
(i) 4 | (ii) 6a |
(a) Cod | 338,000 | 1,000 |
(b) Haddock | 4,087,000 | 3,048,000 |
(c) Herring | 1,000 | 42,000 |
(d) Whiting | 271,000 | 84,000 |
(e) Sole | 0 | 2,500 |
(f) Plaice | 30,000 | 47,000 |
(g) Saithe | 4,000 | 0 |
- Asked by: Jeremy Balfour, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 14 April 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Patrick Harvie on 5 May 2022
To ask the Government whether it plans to introduce emergency redress funding for social tenants facing higher fuel bills as a result of work to decarbonise their energy supplies, in line with the recommendation of the Zero Emissions Social Housing Taskforce.
Answer
The Scottish Government is committed to a just transition to net zero and this includes supporting those who are least able to pay.
As part of a wider package of funding announcements made to tackle the cost of living crisis, we have committed a further £10 million to continue our Fuel Insecurity Fund, which has been helping households at risk of self-disconnection, or self-rationing their energy use, since late 2020.
This money is in addition to the £25m funding we have provided this winter to local authorities to tackle financial insecurity and the further £6m provided to trusted third sector partners to help low income families.
Anyone struggling with their energy bills can get in touch with our Home Energy Scotland service for advice and support to reduce their fuel costs.
The Scottish Government’s full response to the recommendations made by the Zero Emissions Social Housing Taskforce will be published after the local government elections.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 April 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 5 May 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the projected revenue that will be generated for each local authority as a result of its proposed short-term let licensing scheme, and whether it will provide projected figures broken down by local authority.
Answer
Licensing authorities must determine their own fees and fee structures to recover establishment and running costs specific to their area. Licensing authorities must review their fees from time to time to ensure that revenue from fees remains in line with the running costs of the licensing scheme.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 April 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 5 May 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the potential financial impact on local authorities of its proposed licencing scheme requirements for short-term lets, in light of any inflationary pressures as a result of the war in Ukraine.
Answer
Licensing authorities will recover the costs of establishing and running the licensing scheme in their area through licence fees.