Sarah Boyack

18 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what processes there are to recognise the value of natural flood management measures, such as wetland habitats, that are providing flood attenuation.

Answer · Aileen McLeod: Under section 20 of the Flood Risk Management (Scotland) Act 2009, the Scottish Environment Protection Agency (SEPA) has produced, and mapped, a high level strategic analysis of areas where the implementation of natural flood management measures would be most…

18 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what financial resources it will provide to support the implementation actions identified in flood risk management plans in 2016.

Answer · Aileen McLeod: The Scottish Government provides funding of £42 million a year through the local government settlement until 2015-16, for local authorities to continue to invest in major new flood protection schemes. Local authorities were able to apply for this funding on t…

12 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has (a) policies and (b) interim targets in place to reach its target of creating 100,000 hectares of new woodland by 2022.

Answer · Aileen McLeod: The Scottish Government does not have interim targets in addition to the overall target of creating 100,000 hectares of new woodland over the period 2012-22. The woodland creation elements of the new Scottish Rural Development Programme include policies whic…

9 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what the (a) estimated and (b) actual carbon savings have been each for projects that have received support from the Climate Challenge Fund.

Answer · Aileen McLeod: The total estimated and reported actual carbon savings from projects in receipt of grant awards from the Climate Challenge Fund since 2008 are 1,080,411 tCO2e and 281,597 tCO2e respectively. These figures are not directly comparable. Of the 266 projects fun…

9 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to meet each of the milestones set out in Low Carbon Scotland - Meeting our Emissions Reduction Targets 2013-2027.

Answer · Aileen McLeod: The Scottish Government will continue to lead work to support the delivery of Low Carbon Scotland - Meeting the Emissions Reduction Targets 2013-2027. It is our intention that RPP2 (the second report on proposals and policies) will be delivered in full, and w…

9 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many residential properties have been retrofitted for energy efficiency each year, broken down by (a) scheme and (b) local authority.

Answer · Margaret Burgess: Information on the number of residential properties retrofitted each year by scheme and by local authority is available for the years 2009 to 2013 from the Energy Saving Trust website at the following link: http://www.energysavingtrust.org.uk/domestic/sites/…

9 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making toward its target to ensure that people are not living in fuel poverty by November 2016.

Answer · Margaret Burgess: This government remains committed to eradicating fuel poverty. Unfortunately, we only have the powers to influence one of the levers to tackle fuel poverty, the energy efficiency of the house. That is why we have allocated over half a billion pounds since 200…

9 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of how the (a) recent and (b) upcoming changes to the Energy Company Obligation have or will impact on the (i) Home Energy Efficiency Programmes for Scotland scheme and (ii) the 2016 fuel poverty target.

Answer · Margaret Burgess: At this stage there is uncertainty about the overall level of investment available due to UK Government changes to Energy Company Obligation (ECO). But we will continue to use our Home Energy Efficiency Programmes (HEEPS) funding to maximise leverage of priva…

9 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what progress is being made toward its target to establish 100,000 hectares of new woodland by 2022.

Answer · Aileen McLeod: The Scottish Government recognises that this is an ambitious target that will require efforts to address the barriers which are preventing new planting and to increase the demand for planting grants. The Scottish Rural Development Plan 2015-2020 includes new…

9 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many applications have been made each year to the National Forest Land Scheme and how many have been approved, broken down by (a) project category, (b) tenure type and (c) land area. 

Answer · Aileen McLeod: Since the National Forest Land Scheme opened in 2005, there have been 55 applications approved to date covering 12,976 hectares. A detailed breakdown of all the applications broken down by project category, tenure type and land area is shown in the following…

9 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what support it is providing to the Forestry Commission Scotland with the preparation of its new corporate plan.

Answer · Aileen McLeod: The Scottish Government provides £64.1 million to Forestry Commission Scotland to fund its activities. It does not provide any additional specific support to prepare its corporate plan.

9 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many applications to decroft by owner-occupier crofters have been made in each year since 2007, and how many were approved.

Answer · Aileen McLeod: That information is not held centrally. I have asked the Chief Executive of the Crofting Commission, which administers crofting on behalf of the Scottish Ministers, to provide this information to you and to the Scottish Parliament Information Centre, (SPICe).…

9 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact of the Crofting (Amendment) (Scotland) Act 2013.

Answer · Aileen McLeod: The Crofting (Amendment) (Scotland) Act 2013 simply made it possible for owner-occupier crofters to apply to the Crofting Commission to decroft the whole or part of their crofts, and for the Crofting Commission to give directions on such applications. The Cr…

9 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what impact not meeting air quality targets has on health expenditure.

Answer · Maureen Watt: The Scottish Government recognises that poor air quality can impact on health, and those with existing heart or lung conditions are more susceptible to the increased health risk associated with air pollution. However, due to the wide range of factors that can…

9 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it monitors the effectiveness of air quality management areas.

Answer · Aileen McLeod: As part of their local air quality management responsibilities under the Environment Act 1995 and associated regulations and guidance, all local authorities are required to submit an annual report to the Scottish Government summarising their work on air quali…

9 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish information on the enforcement action it takes in relation to breaches of the Air Quality Standards (Scotland) Regulations 2010.

Answer · Aileen McLeod: The Air Quality Standards (Scotland) Regulations 2010 transpose into domestic legislation the requirements of Directive 2008/50/EC on ambient air quality and clean air for Europe. Although local authority action has an important contribution to make, respons…

9 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what legal action can be taken if there is a breach of the Air Quality Standards (Scotland) Regulations 2010.

Answer · Aileen McLeod: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-24387 on 17 February 2015. The Air Quality Standards (Scotland) Regulations 2010 transpose into domestic legislation the requirements of Directive 2008/50/EC on ambient air quality and clean air for Europe. …

9 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the effectiveness of compulsory 20 mph zones in encouraging active travel.

Answer · Derek Mackay: The Scottish Government assisted with an evaluation of the City of Edinburgh’s 20 mph speed limit pilot scheme in South Central Edinburgh in August 2013. This demonstrated its success in reducing vehicle speeds and promoting positive attitudes to 20 mph limit…

9 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what guidance it provides to local authorities on the implementation of compulsory 20 mph zones.

Answer · Derek Mackay: On 8 January 2015 we published a good practice guide, written in conjunction with the Society of Chief Officers of Transportation in Scotland, to provide clarity on the options available to local authorities with regard to setting 20 mph speed restrictions th…

9 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the effectiveness of compulsory 20 mph zones in reducing road accidents and casualties.

Answer · Derek Mackay: Transport Scotland assisted the City of Edinburgh Council with the evaluation of their 20 mph speed limit pilot scheme in South Central Edinburgh which demonstrated that traffic speeds can be reduced without the need for additional traffic calming measures. T…

4 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government which key stakeholders it plans to meet in advance of the launch of its public consultation on unconventional gas production.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government plans to engage with a range of stakeholders that are representative of the different views and opinions on unconventional oil and gas.

4 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the statement by the Minister for Business, Energy and Tourism on 28 January 2015 (Official Report, c.17), how it will examine the climate consequences of unconventional gas production during the current moratorium.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: On 28 January 2015, the Scottish Government announced plans to commission further research on unconventional oil and gas during the moratorium. Further details will be announced in due course.

4 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-23976 by Fiona Hyslop on 22 January 2015, whether it will provide a breakdown of the capital allocations to the National Performing Companies by the (a) asset benefiting from the funding, (b) value of the funding and (c) year of expenditure.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: From the figures set out in the answer to S4W-23976, Scottish Ballet’s expenditure was all on the Tramway building, Scottish Opera’s expenditure was all in relation to the Theatre Royal project and the Royal Scottish National Opera expenditure was all on the …

4 Feb 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S4W-23976 by Fiona Hyslop on 22 January 2015, whether capital funding provided to the National Performing Companies is ringfenced to assets owned by those organisations, or whether it can be used for assets owned by third parties and, if so, to what ext…

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: All capital funding provided to the National Performing Companies was for expenditure on assets which they owned, or were purchasing, or for which they were or would become responsible for under a lease.

16 Jan 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what work it has done to assess the impact on (a) investment in flood prevention, (b) investment in national parks, (c) support for farming and food production and promotion, (d) natural heritage and biodiversity, (e) rural communities and (f) its ambition to meet its climate change targ…

Answer · John Swinney: I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-24030 on 30 January 2015. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at: http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentar…

12 Jan 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what capital funding it will allocate to each of the National Performing Companies in 2015-16.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: In 2015-16, £1.2 million in capital funding has been allocated to the National Theatre of Scotland towards the cost of its new headquarters. In addition the Draft Budget 2015-16 provides for £2 million in financial transactions (loans) for this project. No c…

12 Jan 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what funding it has provided to each of the National Performing Companies for the purpose of maintenance and refurbishment of property in each year since 1999-00.

Answer · Fiona Hyslop: Grant funding for the National Performing Companies is based on their delivering an agreed programme of artistic and educational activity and on meeting criteria for designation as National Performing Companies. The companies budget for routine maintenance an…

6 Jan 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that Scotland benefits from the £500 million announced by Ofgem in November 2014 for the undergrounding of old transmission lines in protected areas such as national parks and national scenic areas.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: The Scottish Government is taking necessary steps to ensure that Scotland benefits by engaging with the Scottish transmission owners, to encourage them to develop proposals for submission to the Office of Gas and Electricity Markets (Ofgem), to ensure that an…

6 Jan 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to assist NHS Lothian address its reported £70 million deficit.

Answer · Shona Robison: NHS Lothian along with all other boards have an agreed financial plan to deliver a balanced outturn in 2014-15 and the board have indicated they will achieve this position in 2014-15. The Scottish Government work with NHS boards to help them achieve financia…

4 Jan 2015 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many intermediate care beds will be funded for NHS Lothian, broken down by local authority area.

Answer · Jamie Hepburn: The Lothian Partnership has used additional funding to extend a range of intermediate care services, the majority of which are not bed based. An additional seven step-down beds are planned for Midlothian. In addition the Edinburgh Partnership has leased the o…