Questions and answers

Question reference: S6W-26170

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 08 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 29 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has any plans to increase the £6 million that is currently available through the Self-Build Loan Fund.

Question reference: S6W-26769

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 29 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how much of the £500 million, which was originally allocated to the Bus Partnership Fund, has been spent.

We have awarded £26.9 million in funding for bus priority through the Bus Partnership Fund, with £20.5 million expected to be spent by 31 March 2024. However that figure will need to be confirmed following the processing of final claims from Partnerships - consisting of local authorities, bus operators and other key stakeholders – in the coming months.

The awards made through the Bus Partnership Fund to date were the first step towards delivering long term investment in bus priority infrastructure, beyond the course of the parliament.

Following the United Kingdom autumn statement delivering the worst-case scenario for Scotland and a nearly 9 per cent real-terms cut in our capital budget from the UK Government, the Scottish Government had to take difficult decisions to deliver a balanced and sustainable spending plan for 2024-25. As such, regrettably, the Bus Partnership Fund has been paused for 2024-25. However, future funding availability will be considered as part of our annual budget-setting process and prioritisation exercises.

Question reference: S6W-26171

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 08 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 29 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will consider expanding the Self-Build Loan Fund to all applicants in rural areas, other than just those who are unable to access standard bank lending, to help increase the number of homes that are available in non-urban settings.

The Self-Build Loan Fund (“the Fund”) offers short-term loan funding of up to £175,000 to self-builders who are unable to access standard bank lending, to assist with development costs to support build completion. The Fund is not intended to replace market lending and provides short-term loan funding to borrowers who have exhausted finding alternative market options. The focus is on supporting projects with the necessary consents in place to allow work to commence quickly, and already delivers genuinely additional new homes primarily but not exclusively in rural areas.

Question reference: S6W-26172

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 08 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 29 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many applications for the Self-Build Loan Fund have been (a) received and (b) successful in obtaining funding since the Fund was established, and how much money it has allocated from the £6 million available.

A total of 101 applications have been made to date, including 2 for the same project, 1 of which was subsequently withdrawn. From those applications 49 loan offers have been made and accepted, with a total value of £7,389,567. This sum is higher than the value of the Fund due to its recyclable nature, whereby repaid loans can be re-used to fund more self-build projects during the life of the Fund.

Question reference: S6O-03443

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 26 April 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 May 2024

TATSG health health health

Question reference: S6W-26768

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 25 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to introduce wheat intolerance as a criteria for access to gluten-free foods on prescription.

People who have had a clinical diagnosis of coeliac disease or dermatitis herpetiformis are eligible to access staple gluten-free food products on NHS prescription. There are no current plans to change the criteria.

Coeliac disease is an auto-immune disease whereas wheat intolerance alone does not meet the criteria for gluten-free food products on prescription. Patients with a wheat intolerance should be encouraged to be tested for coeliac disease. If coeliac disease has already been ruled out, they could request referral to the local Dietetic Service for dietary advice and support to help manage a wheat free diet.

Question reference: S6O-03324

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Kaukab Stewart on 24 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding its humanitarian aid funding, what engagement it has had with mines and explosives clearance charities in Scotland that operate internationally.

The Scottish Government recognises the devastating impact land mines have, killing and maiming thousands each year. Indiscriminate and unpredictable, their presence drives whole communities from their homes and land. That is why, in September 2022 following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, the Scottish Government provided £300,000 to the Halo Trust. Through this grant, teams on the ground were able to cover 206,663m2 enabling Ukrainian famers to safely farm their land again. This not only benefitted 14,000 people in Ukraine, but the clearance of agricultural land is playing a crucial role towards restoring global food security.

Question reference: S6W-26432

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 22 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 19 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how much funding has been allocated to preventative and early interventions in each year since 2016, also broken down by NHS board area.

The Scottish Government does not hold the detail of this funding. Local decisions on how to allocate funding is the responsibility of NHS Boards.

Public Health Scotland (PHS) collects data and provides analysis on NHS spending and the cost of running services across the 14 territorial health boards, the Golden Jubilee, and the State Hospital. This information is published annually in the Scottish Health Service Costs release (‘Costs Book’).

The data has a breakdown of Hospital, Community, Family Health Services, and subsequent breakdown into sub-categories, however it does not specifically provide funding in preventative and early interventions (also note the difference between expenditure per Cost Book and funding per the question).

Question reference: S6W-26393

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 19 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the planned minimum land size threshold required for farmers to receive agricultural payments under the Agriculture and Rural Communities (Scotland) Bill, including what assessment it undertook to arrive at the planned threshold of 3ha, and what evidence supports this decision.

The adaptive framework under the new Bill will enable tailored provisions and support to be implemented to support our food producers and we continue to co-develop effective policies to deliver the Vision for Agriculture. As a framework Bill it will not set thresholds which could restrict future flexibility.

How these powers will be used are set out in the Bills associated Policy Memorandum and Explanatory notes .

Future eligibility criteria will be co-developed with partners through the Ag Reform Programme.

Question reference: S6W-26431

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 22 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 16 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what support it is providing to NHS Borders to ensure that the 18-week child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) waiting time standard is met.

For all NHS Boards including NHS Borders, tailored support is provided giving access to professional specialist advice, making sure that they have robust plans place and are continually monitoring their implementation. Regular and structured engagement with NHS Borders at official level also takes place regularly.

In addition all Boards have been asked to submit trajectories setting out a timeline for clearing any long waits. These will be updated annually and used to inform further targeted improvement work to ensure all Boards meet CAMHS waiting times standards.

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