Craig Hoy

2 Apr 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-32778 by Ivan McKee on 7 January 2025, what the cost would have been in each year since 2016-17 of bringing the Higher Property Rate into line with that in England, broken down by industry sector.

Answer · Ivan McKee: Table 1 presents the estimated gross cost of setting the Higher Property Rate equal to the Standard Multiplier in England, from 2016-2017 until 2020-2021.The Higher Property Rate in Scotland was 1.3p higher than the Standard Multiplier in England from 2016-20…

1 Apr 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether beer sold in the on-trade is defined as household waste by local authorities.

Answer · Gillian Martin: Classification of packaging waste as household or non household waste under extended producer responsibility for packaging is set out by the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging and Packaging Waste) Regulations 2024. Classification is based on sever…

1 Apr 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the extended producer responsibility scheme, how it will support brewers in Scotland who are unable to invest in different packaging materials and could face closure as a result.

Answer · Gillian Martin: Extended producer responsibility for packaging (pEPR) fees are intended to incentivise producers to use less packaging and ensure packaging they do use is environmentally sustainable. It also ensures that producers take full responsibility for the environment…

1 Apr 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to prevent double counting of extended producer responsibility fees on products sold to the on-trade, in light of reports that packaging is unlikely to end up in household waste streams.

Answer · Gillian Martin: Packaging EPR policy is intended to transfer the cost of managing household packaging, once it becomes waste, from local authorities to the producers supplying that packaging. However, some packaging can be discarded by both consumers and businesses and is ca…

1 Apr 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what measures it will take to ensure transparency in how extended producer responsibility scheme funding is allocated to local authorities.

Answer · Gillian Martin: PackUK is the scheme administrator for extended producer responsibility for packaging (pEPR), operating on behalf of the four nations. PackUK is responsible for calculating and distributing local authority payments.The requirements that PackUK must consider w…

1 Apr 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it will evaluate the impact of the extended producer responsibility scheme on investment in Scotland, particularly within sectors impacted by packaging-related fees, such as food and drink production.

Answer · Gillian Martin: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-36508 on 23 April 2025. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees…

1 Apr 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the Defra Extended Producer Responsibility Impact Assessment, what its position is on whether the cost of implementing extended producer responsibility for brewers and producers should be passed onto consumers.

Answer · Gillian Martin: Extended producer responsibility for packaging ensures that producers take full responsibility for the environmental impacts of the packaging they place on the market. Existing costs for the management of packaging waste are transferred from taxpayers to prod…

1 Apr 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs regarding the implementation of the extended producer responsibility scheme in Scotland.

Answer · Gillian Martin: Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging is a four nations policy. The Scottish Government has worked closely with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs and the other UK nations to jointly develop and implement the extended producer res…

1 Apr 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what measures it will take to ensure that extended producer responsibility scheme funding is allocated to recycling by local authorities.

Answer · Gillian Martin: Under the Verity House Agreement, local government funding in Scotland will not be ring-fenced or directed, unless there is a clear joint understanding to do so. However, the extended producer responsibility for packaging funding purpose - to pay for the cost…

1 Apr 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding the extended producer responsibility scheme, how it plans to measure the efficiency and effectiveness of local authorities' recycling services, and what penalties will be imposed if councils do not meet the required standards for recycling performance.

Answer · Gillian Martin: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-36501 on 23 April 2025. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees…

1 Apr 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether local authorities will be required to ringfence extended producer responsibility payments that they receive, for the purpose of improving collection and recycling rates of packaging materials, or for any other purpose.

Answer · Gillian Martin: Under the Verity House Agreement, local government funding in Scotland is not ring-fenced or directed, unless there is a clear joint understanding to do so.

1 Apr 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what support it will provide to producers in sectors such as brewing, who may not be able to absorb extended producer responsibility costs, in light of it not being categorised as a tax.

Answer · Gillian Martin: Extended producer responsibility for packaging (pEPR) has exemptions to avoid unnecessarily burden on small producers. Producers with an annual turnover less than £2m and 50 tonnes of packaging supplied are exempt from pEPR payments, but are required to…

1 Apr 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to evaluate the economic impact of the extended producer responsibility scheme on brewers and pubs in Scotland, including whether packaging costs have affected prices.

Answer · Gillian Martin: The Scottish Government has considered the impact on businesses through the publication of a Full Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment (BRIA). We will be evaluating the impacts of extended producer responsibility for packaging in future years through a f…

1 Apr 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what criteria will be used to assess the recycling efficiency of local authorities under the extended producer responsibility scheme, and what the penalties will be for councils that fail to meet these standards.

Answer · Gillian Martin: An efficient waste management service is defined by the Producer Responsibility Obligations (Packaging and Packaging Waste) Regulations 2024 as a waste management service where disposal costs are as low as reasonable possible, taking into account the waste ma…

25 Mar 2025 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much it projects to spend on social security by 2029-30, including how much of this it estimates will arise from Barnett consequential funding.

20 Mar 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it will update the non-domestic rates relief webpage, mygov.scot, to include information on hospitality business rates relief.

Answer · Ivan McKee: The information available at Non-domestic rates relief - mygov.scot is regularly reviewed and updated and following successful passage of the legislation through the Parliament, it was updated on 1 April 2025 with information about all the reliefs, including …

20 Mar 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that eligible businesses in the hospitality sector are aware of and can secure the 40% business rates relief in 2025-26.

Answer · Ivan McKee: The Scottish Government has a range of measures to communicate information and raise awareness about the Non-Domestic Rates (NDR) reliefs which are available in 2025-26, including specific relief for the hospitality sector. This includes:information on the Sc…

20 Mar 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that local authority areas are informing eligible business of the 40% business rates relief in 2025-26 to properties in the hospitality sector, including grassroots music venues with a capacity of up to 1,500.

Answer · Ivan McKee: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-36149 on 8 April 2025. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/…

20 Mar 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the final date is for eligible businesses in the hospitality sector to apply for 40% business rates relief in 2025-26.

Answer · Ivan McKee: There is no statutory deadline to apply for the 40% relief that is available in 2025-26 for hospitality premises liable for the Basic Property Rate in mainland Scotland (excluding specified remote areas), capped at £110,000 per business.

17 Mar 2025 · Portfolio Question

To ask the Scottish Government when it last met with representatives from Lothian Buses. 

12 Mar 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to amending the regulations governing the location of battery energy storage systems to account for any community safety concerns where developments are close to housing and other public amenities and services, such as schools and parks.

Answer · Alasdair Allan: We have no current plans for legislative change regarding battery energy storage systems. Our Fourth National Planning Framework (NPF4) guides spatial development, sets out national planning policies, designates national developments and highlights regional s…

12 Mar 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service should become a statutory consultee in the consent process for battery energy storage systems.

Answer · Siobhian Brown: Designation as a statutory consultee places certain statutory obligations on the relevant body to provide comments on any application notified to them within a set time period. These obligations have to be met and funded by the organisation in question. The S…

12 Mar 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has consulted with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service over any fire safety risks posed by battery energy storage systems.

Answer · Siobhian Brown: The Scottish Government regularly discusses a wide range of fire safety topics with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) including battery energy storage systems (BESS). A dedicated working group within SFRS continues to monitor the number of BESS appl…

11 Mar 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-34608 by Shona Robison on 11 March 2025, whether it is aware of any policy decisions having an impact on the fiscal burden on local authorities as a result of (a) non-teaching staff in educational services increasing individual staff costs and (b) a…

Answer · Shona Robison: More frequent and meaningful engagement with COSLA and Councils, in the spirit of the Fiscal Framework with Local Government, was fundamental to the decisions that led to record funding of over £15 billion for Local Authorities in the 2025-26 Scottish B…

5 Mar 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-34366 by Shona Robison on 28 February 2025, what value was provided by employing 989 contingent workers in the 2021-22 financial year.

Answer · Shona Robison: A Contingent Worker is defined as non directly employed workers that are engaged in any capacity for the Scottish Government. Contingent worker statistics published include consultants, contractors, interim managers, inward secondments/ Service Level Agreemen…

5 Mar 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-34603 by Shona Robison on 26 February 2025, whether all of its assessments of the long-term impacts of behavioural responses to its income tax policies pertain to measurements of past and present impacts, and not to future, projected impacts.

Answer · Shona Robison: Scottish Fiscal Commission forecasts for income tax include judgements for behavioural responses which are based on evidence from academic literature on how taxpayers have responded to previous changes to income tax policy in Scotland, the UK, and internation…

5 Mar 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-34366 by Shona Robison on 28 February 2025, for what reason more contingent workers are consistently recorded under the Director General for Communities than any other Director General, and what the cause was of the decrease in the number of conting…

Answer · Shona Robison: The programme to devolve social security powers sits within DG Communities and accounts for the majority of its contingent worker headcount. This programme employs both directly employed and contingent workers to ensure it has the right blend of skills and ex…

5 Mar 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-34348 by Maree Todd on 28 February 2025, what its position is on the extent to which it is responsible for the use of locum psychiatrists in NHS Scotland, in light of its authorities and powers regarding the relevant labour market and regulatory con…

Answer · Maree Todd: The deployment of medical agency staff, including locum psychiatrists, is a matter for individual NHS Scotland Health Boards. Health Boards should always be seeking to secure best value whenever they enter into arrangements regarding use of locums in order to…

5 Mar 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-35095 by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 5 March 2025, how many staff are in Social Security Scotland’s counter fraud branch; whether the full and undivided work attentions of all the staff in that branch are towards the work of countering fraud in…

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: Social Security Scotland carefully considers what information on counter fraud can be placed into the public domain to ensure it does not undermine the ability of Social Security Scotland to prevent and detect crime and protect the public purse. It does not d…

5 Mar 2025 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-34780 by Shona Robison on 26 February 2025, what its response is to reported concerns that its approach to aiming to help first time buyers does not work towards increasing the underlying supply of housing units, and whether it has done or commissio…

Answer · Shona Robison: As set out in the response to question S6W-34780, increasing the rate of the Additional Dwelling Supplement is intended to support increased opportunities for first-time buyers and home movers while raising vital additional revenue to support public services.…