Questions and answers

Question reference: S6W-26136

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 14 March 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 28 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many gigawatts worth of battery storage developments have secured planning permission to date.

Question reference: S6O-03242

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 March 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 21 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the Audit Scotland report, Decarbonising heat in homes, and the recent report by the Regulatory Review Group regarding the forthcoming Heat in Buildings Bill, what action it is taking to further assess and develop the supply chain for decarbonising buildings.

Question reference: S6W-25903

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 13 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to conduct a review into the effectiveness of Regional Land Use Partnerships in relation to their ability to address the climate and biodiversity crises.

Regional Land Use Partnerships (RLUPs) pilots have been asked to adopt a natural capital approach to their work. This allows the pilot regions to explore how regional opportunities and priorities for land use can enhance, protect, mitigate and adapt to areas of national importance such as biodiversity and climate change.

The Scottish Government is currently working with the RLUP pilot regions as we seek to understand and evaluate the progress of the pilot programme as a whole.

Question reference: S6W-25904

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 13 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether more effective utilisation of Regional Land Use Partnerships could achieve any of the policy outcomes it aims to achieve in its proposed Land Reform Bill.

The Scottish Government recognises land is one of our most valuable assets. That is why the Scottish Land Rights and Responsibilities Statement articulates the Scottish Government’s vision for the ownership, use and management of land, setting out how we see the balance between the rights of landowners, managers, local communities and society at large.

Moving forwards the legislative requirements, such as those set out in the proposals for the upcoming Land Reform Bill and other voluntary based measure such as the Scottish Land Commission’s Good Practice programme, will all play an important role in meeting our objectives for land reform. Whilst the Regional Land Use Partnership (RLUPs) pilots were established to test and explore locally appropriate approaches to land use, the scope of the pilots was not to consider or challenge matters of land ownership or rights and responsibilities.

Question reference: S6W-25905

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 13 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what role Regional Land Use Partnerships will play in its proposed Land Reform Bill.

The Scottish Government recognises land is one of our most valuable assets. That is why the Scottish Land Rights and Responsibilities Statement articulates the Scottish Government’s vision for the ownership, use and management of land, setting out how we see the balance between the rights of landowners, managers, local communities and society at large.

Moving forwards the legislative requirements, such as those set out in the proposals for the upcoming Land Reform Bill and other voluntary based measure such as the Scottish Land Commission’s Good Practice programme, will all play an important role in meeting our objectives for land reform. Whilst the Regional Land Use Partnership (RLUPs) pilots were established to test and explore locally appropriate approaches to land use, the scope of the pilots was not to consider or challenge matters of land ownership or rights and responsibilities.

Question reference: S6W-26134

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South 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 assessment it has made of any impact on land value in rural areas of its reported decision to consider battery storage developments as generating stations in relation to planning consents under section 36 of the Electricity Act 1989.

Question reference: S6W-26132

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South 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 considers non-domestic battery energy storage to be a "small scale renewable" under the fourth National Planning Framework (NPF4).

Question reference: S6W-26131

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South 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 how many applications for battery storage sites were granted by the Energy Consents Unit between 2013 and 2023.

Question reference: S6W-26128

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South 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 consideration it has given to the development of a national strategy for energy storage developments in the context of planning.

Question reference: S6W-26127

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South 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 list the spatial principles in the fourth National Planning Framework (NPF4) in order of priority.

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