Finlay Carson

9 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to install free water bottle refill points in Scotland’s (a) four major cities, (b) island communities and (c) busiest (i) tourist destinations, (ii) train stations and (iii) bus stations.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Scottish Water already has refill points in Edinburgh, Glasgow and Aberdeen and is in the process of installing a tap in Dundee. Scottish Water is also installing refill points in Lerwick and Stornoway and has submitted a planning application to install a ref…

9 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to encourage public bodies to provide free water bottle refill points.

9 Aug 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-24329 by Roseanna Cunningham on 2 August 2019, where the 70 free water bottle refill points will be located, and whether it has considered installing more refill points.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Scottish Water has committed to initially installing 1 tap in each local authority area. Beyond that, Scottish Water is open to discussions with councils and communities to identify the best places for further refill points.  

19 Jul 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much it has made available to (a) charities and (b) businesses to help defend against cyber-attacks since June 2018.

Answer · Kate Forbes: Since June 2018, The Scottish Government has made £500,000 available to charities and businesses, to help ensure critical controls are in place to defend against the most common internet-based threats to cyber security. This fund is delivered in partnership w…

19 Jul 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many sites have been targeted as part of the 4G Infill Programme.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The Scottish 4G Infill Programme is currently progressing 45 potential mast sites. A map of these is available at: https://www.gov.scot/publications/scottish-4g-infill-programme-map/ . The Programme is also exploring options to bring forward additional can…

19 Jul 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how much of the £25 million 4G Infill Programme has been spent.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: As of 31 July this year, the Scottish 4G Infill Programme has invested £1,126,101.  

15 Jul 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what measures it has taken to support the work of the Scottish Land Commission since September 2018.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Land Commission is key to the Scottish Government’s long-term programme of land reform. Scottish Government officials meet with Land Commission staff regularly on a range of policy issues and to provide sponsorship support. The Scottish Governme…

12 Jul 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it will ensure that South Scotland is included in discussions regarding climate change adaptation and mitigation.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Government is currently holding The Big Climate Conversation across Scotland. This is a nationwide discussion with the public, businesses and the public sector about what more can be done to tackle climate change. As part of our public engagemen…

12 Jul 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has regarding how many water bottle refill points there are in public spaces.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Scottish Water currently has 10 refill points across Scotland with plans to deliver up to 70. Further information on the rollout of refill points is available at https://www.yourwateryourlife.co.uk/ . Other refill points are available in public spaces, such…

12 Jul 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to consult on a new sectoral marine plan to identify locations for future large-scale offshore wind developments.

Answer · Paul Wheelhouse: The Scottish Government expects to consult on the draft Sectoral Marine Plan for offshore wind and associated Sustainability Appraisal later this year. The consultation will last for 12 weeks and will include a number of consultation events across Scotland. T…

12 Jul 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government by what date it will launch the Climate Change Adaptation Programme.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The current Scottish Climate Change Adaptation Programme was published in May 2014. Scottish Ministers have reported on progress in May each year and we commissioned independent assessments of the Programme from the Adaptation Committee of the Committee on Cl…

12 Jul 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to improve compliance by public bodies with their duty to enhance biodiversity.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Parliament’s Public Audit and Post-legislative Scrutiny Committee made several recommendations to the Scottish Government in their 2018 report on Biodiversity and Biodiversity Reporting Duties. The Scottish Government has committed to taking forw…

12 Jul 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making in meeting the Aichi 2020 biodiversity targets.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: On 22 May 2018, Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) published the report ‘Scotland’s Biodiversity - Progress to 2020 Aichi Targets’, which found that Scotland was on track to meet seven of the Aichi targets and had made progress towards 12 targets; we do not asse…

12 Jul 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what action it has taken to involve young people in the country's nature and outdoors since 2018.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: The Scottish Government recognise the benefits of being active outdoors for both physical and mental health. We fund and support a variety of partners to deliver the vision, set out in our Environment National Outcome, that all members of Scotland's communiti…

12 Jul 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with fishing sector and coastal communities to develop proposals to tackle the issue of fishing litter and lost gear.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Marine Scotland regularly engages with fishing industry representatives through the Marine Litter Strategy Steering Group which is currently working on a review of the Marine Litter Strategy. Reflecting the importance of the issue of fishing litter and lost …

12 Jul 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making with (a) addressing the report decline in seabird populations and (b) producing a seabird conservation strategy.

Answer · Mairi Gougeon: The Scottish Government is undertaking scientific research on seabird populations to help understand the pressures and threats they face including seabird colony surveys, tracking research, an analysis of climate change, and other impacts. This research will …

12 Jul 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making with establishing a national deep sea marine reserve.

Answer · Mairi Gougeon: The preparatory work required for the consultation on the Deep Sea Marine Reserve to the West of Scotland is nearing completion. I expect to launch a 12 week public consultation on the case for designation in due course.

12 Jul 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what progress is being made with its plan to introduce a ban on the manufacture and sale of plastic-stemmed cotton buds, and what information it has regarding the numbers and level of use of such buds, including whether these has been a decline.

Answer · Roseanna Cunningham: Scottish Government was the first in the UK to propose introducing legislation on single-use plastic-stemmed cotton buds in 2018. We are delighted that the UK Government has followed our lead and that the EU Single-Use Plastic Directive published this summer …

5 Jul 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has any plans to introduce a bursary to enable students to be funded to study radiography.

Answer · Jeane Freeman: There is no cost for tuition fees for Scottish or EU National Students. Students apply to the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS) for means tested funding. In addition they can apply to SAAS for placement expenses which is also means tested. There are …

4 Jul 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what (a) legislation and (b) best practice guidelines are in place in relation to managing open spaces in woodlands in respect of fire prevention.

Answer · Fergus Ewing: There is no legislation specifically relating to the management of open spaces within woodlands for fire prevention. However the UK Forestry Standard (UKFS) – the reference standard for sustainable forest management - requires that forest managers consider th…

25 Jun 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it promotes its Digital Directorate's support service to central government bodies to highlight what services are available.

Answer · Kate Forbes: The Digital Directorate both arranges and attends a number of public sector conferences to promote its transformation capability. Senior members of the directorate also sit on corporate and programme boards where they are able to identify where support is re…

25 Jun 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what funding it has provided for the use of cloud technologies (a) across the Scottish Government and (b) by public bodies.

Answer · Kate Forbes: The Scottish Government does not hold a central budget for the adoption and use of Cloud technologies. This expenditure will be managed by organisations and individual business areas. As part of our ‘Cloud First’ strategy, we encourage the adoption of Cloud …

25 Jun 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it has made on the development of central government digital services, systems and licenses.

Answer · Kate Forbes: The Scottish Government’s ‘back office’ functions such as HR, Finance and Procurement offer a range of digital services across the organisation and some to other public sector organisations as well. These services have on-going improvement programmes that are…

25 Jun 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how many projects the Digital Transformation Service is currently supporting.

Answer · Kate Forbes: The Scottish Government Digital Transformation Division is currently supporting 14 programmes of varying size across government.

25 Jun 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to promote the use of cloud technologies.

Answer · Kate Forbes: Our Digital Strategy for Scotland sets out our ‘Cloud First’ ambitions for public sector data hosting. We support the adoption of Cloud solutions and are working with public sector partners, such as Disclosure Scotland and the Scottish Social Security Agency,…

25 Jun 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it monitors any benefits within the public sector resulting from the actions in its digital strategy.

Answer · Kate Forbes: The strategy includes a measurement framework which sets out our high-level approach to monitoring benefits. Individual workstreams responsible for specific strategy actions have methodologies setting out our in-depth approach to monitoring benefits – these m…

25 Jun 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it monitors the progress of public sector bodies against all actions in its digital strategy.

Answer · Kate Forbes: I refer the member to the answer to S5W-24035 on 29 July 2019 for an explanation of how the Scottish Government monitors progress on delivering its digital strategy. Included in this monitoring process are actions pertaining to Scottish public sector bodies. …

25 Jun 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government how it monitors progress on delivering its digital strategy.

Answer · Kate Forbes: Following publication of the digital strategy priority actions were identified, monitored, and reported to Ministers annually. This information is also used for updates to the governance board responsible for progress of digital transformation across Scottish…

25 Jun 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what investment is required to deliver its digital strategy across the public sector.

Answer · Kate Forbes: I refer the member to the answer to S5W-24026 on 29 July 2019 for an explanation of budget allocation to date. Future investment is part of the challenging considerations we have in setting our 2019-20 Programme for Government and Spending Review plans. All …

25 Jun 2019 · Written Question

To ask the Scottish Government what support it provides to public sector bodies for software and web development.

Answer · Kate Forbes: The Scottish Government has a small team that provides software development services for other public sector bodies, including web development. The team can call on external partners for additional resources and support as necessary. They provide on-going cha…