Questions and answers

Question reference: S6W-25934

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 01 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 15 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the potential impact of the planned Comsol Energy solar farm on the Isle of Cumbrae on the island's endangered bird species, of which there are reported to be at least 20 species, across seven priority habitats.

The reporter took full account of all the submissions made by parties, including the potential impact on the island's birds. This included the appellants Ecological Appraisal and comments from members of the local community.

The reporter concluded that the proposed development complied with development plan policies relating to biodiversity.

The reporter has included a condition to this permission setting out that prior to the commencement of the development a Construction Management Plan shall be submitted to the council for approval. This Plan will set out, unless otherwise agreed by the planning authority, that vegetation removal should be scheduled to occur outside of the nesting bird season.

Question reference: S6W-25929

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 01 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 15 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what considerations it made when deciding to overturn North Ayrshire Council’s decision not to grant permission for the development of the solar farm on the Isle of Cumbrae by Comsol Energy.

The independent reporter was required to make their decision on the planning merits of the case and in overall accordance with the development plan, unless material considerations indicated otherwise. The reporter concluded that the main issues in this case were the principle of the development and its potential benefits; the landscape and visual impact of the proposal; and its ecological impact. The reporter took full account of all submissions made by parties, including those from North Ayrshire Council and views expressed by members of the local community, consultees and other third parties with an interest in the proposal. A site inspection took place on 13 October 2023.

Question reference: S6W-25932

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 01 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 15 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to monitor and enforce the conditions set by its Reporter regarding the planned construction of Comsol Energy's solar farm on the Isle of Cumbrae.

Enforcement of planning control is a matter for the planning authority, in this case North Ayrshire Council. There are a wide range of enforcement powers in planning legislation and planning authorities have discretion to determine what power, or combination of powers, to use in any particular situation.

In this case the reporter accepted the proposed planning conditions suggested by the council with minor alterations.

Question reference: S6O-03249

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 14 March 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 21 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what steps it is considering to ensure the safety of the public, MSPs and staff entering or exiting the Scottish Parliament campus, in light of a number of recent events of concern.

Question reference: S6W-25902

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 14 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to increase the recruitment of staff in care homes.

Scottish Government are aware of the pressures faced by the social care providers at present and are taking a number of steps to support recruitment in the sector.

Scottish Government work with partners across the sector to support increased awareness of the careers available through our Adult Social Care marketing campaign which we have funded to run for the past four years. The campaign is supported by a stakeholder toolkit, which enables providers to use the materials to support their own local recruitment efforts. These assets have been refreshed for the 2023-24 campaign and can be found on our campaign website, www.caretocare.scot

Additionally, the Scottish Government have continued funding to enable all social care providers to advertise vacancies on the MyJobScotland recruitment website at no cost. Data figures show that between February 2021 and February 2024, 23,310 adult social care jobs have been posted on MyJobScotland under this contract, saving providers £2,068,480 (incl VAT).

Finally, recognising the value in workers who choose to live and work in Scotland from overseas and to support Scotland’s social care providers’ international recruitment efforts, we have collaborated with NHS Education Scotland (NES) and COSLA, and provided funding to create the NES Centre for Workforce Supply: Social Care. This pilot launched in summer 2023 for a 12 month period and seeks to test and develop an ethical and sustainable model of international recruitment for adult social care providers in Scotland.

Question reference: S6O-03226

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 March 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 20 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how many individuals have been charged and successfully prosecuted under any of the provisions in the Fireworks and Pyrotechnic Articles (Scotland) Act 2022.

Question reference: S6W-26092

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 March 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 26 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to EY’s UK Regional Economic Forecast, from February 2024, which predicts that the average employment growth rate in Scotland for 2024-27 will be the lowest regional rate at 0.8%.

Question reference: S6W-26095

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 March 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 26 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to improve mental health support in schools, in light of the Centre for Social Justice report, Drowning not Waving: Discussions with Scottish Small Charities, which states that all of the respondents to its poll "reported significant increases in mental health issues in school age children", and that the situation was described as "an epidemic".

Question reference: S6W-26094

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 March 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 26 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to increase the number of employers offering apprenticeships.

Question reference: S6W-26091

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 12 March 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 26 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on whether it remains committed to its target for all buildings in Scotland to have emissions-free heating systems by 2045.

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