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The Scottish Government through the use of Management Agreements supports actions to manage protected areas, including the removal of plantation forest regeneration. In addition, grant funding, under the Scottish Rural Development Programme, is available for the removal of tree species from open ground habitats on Sites of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) or EU Natura sites.

Scottish Natural Heritage’s latest site condition monitoring data indicates that 85 SSSI and 21 EU Designated sites are affected by the spread of coniferous tree species, out of a total of 1870 sites.

Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) has provided financial support to the Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Trust (ARC) to produce “A guide to Agri-Environment-Climate Scheme options for natterjack toad’ to assist land managers carrying out work to benefit natterjack toads.

SNH also works with land managers and partners to maintain and create conditions suitable for natterjack toads. SNH do this through the assessment and approval of Agri-Environment-Climate Scheme applications or entering into management agreements, giving advice through the planning process and undertaking monitoring work either with its own staff or through funding others.

Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) is taking the following action to protect natterjack toad populations in light of the species’ “favourable declining” status as set out below.

East of the River Nith

There are seven management agreements with landowners in place to the east of the River Nith which will provide measures for management of natterjack toads. There are currently a further three holdings on Priestside, to the east of Carlaeverock Castle, where there have previously been agreements in place for habitat management for the benefit of natterjack toads but have now expired. SNH estimates that 80% of suitable natterjack toad habitat is currently in appropriate assured management on the east side of the Nith.

Considerable habitat management work at the Wildfowl and Wetlands Trust’s East Park Farm, Caerlaverock, has been carried out in recent years, including pond maintenance and grazing. This was funded, in part, by a grant from SNH.

SNH funds a management agreement with the owners of Royal Ordnance, Powfoot Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI), running from 2015 to 2020. Through this management agreement, there is funding for maintenance of pools and scrapes for breeding amphibians, maintenance of foraging areas, and maintenance of refugia and monitoring. This is funding habitat maintenance and restoration. This SSSI is notified for the amphibian assemblage as well as natterjack toads.

The Broom Sand Quarry, which is adjacent to the Royal Ordnance Powfoot SSSI, has populations of natterjack toads. Quarrying operations here are carried out under planning permissions with conditions that support natterjack toad interests. Natterjack toads at the quarry are subject to a long term Species Protection Plan.

Caerlaverock National Nature

Natterjack toads are one of the species specifically mentioned in the Caerlaverock National Nature Reserve Management Plan. An account of work undertaken in the past plan period is given in the Reserve Plan Review for Caerlaverock 2009-2015 available on the SNH web site at .

This includes the creation of small pools, maintenance of refugia, supporting an appropriate grazing regime and monitoring. These works will continue as set out in the new Caerlaverock Reserve Management Plan covering the period 2016-2026 which can be accessed at .

The Scottish Government is committed to maintaining protection of the environment and human health to robust international standards where we have devolved responsibility, including for radioactive substances, where some standards are currently set in Directives under the Euratom Treaty. We look to the UK Government to ensure the same for reserved matters. We shall continue to work, including in cooperation with the other three administrations in the UK, to assess the impacts of exiting from the Euratom Treaty, and to mitigate any negative effects on Scotland.

The natterjack toad population of the Upper Solway Flats and Marshes Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) is subject to a continuing monitoring programme carried out by the Amphibian and Reptile Conservation Trust (ARC) on behalf of Scottish Natural Heritage (SNH) under various agreements since 2011.

SNH publishes an assessment of the condition of features of SSSIs as part of its Site Condition Monitoring Programme. Generally, a feature is reported on once in a 6 year cycle. The monitoring and assessment document for 2016 remains in draft awaiting further information on some populations. Once the 2016 assessment is complete, SNH will be in a position to update their assessment of the natterjack toad feature condition on the Upper Solway Flats and Marshes SSSI and the Royal Ordnance Powfoot SSSI.

Correspondence received by the Scottish Government addressed to Ministers are added to and processed via the Ministerial and Corporate Correspondence System (MACCS). MACCS records the type of response required, i.e Ministerial Reply, Diary Request or Official Reply. MACCS has limited functionality as a management information tool, therefore we are unable to provide detailed information on subjects raised by members of the public to each SG Minister. However we can advise that since May 2016, in excess of 32,000 pieces of correspondence have been added to MACCS made up of 7,000 Ministerial replies, 6,500 diary requests and 18,500 official replies. There have been a number of topics the people of Scotland have written about in high volume to Ministers since May 2016, such as the EU Referendum result; Brexit and its impact; use of electric shock collars; protection of wild animals in travelling circuses; retention of ferry routes; the Named Person Scheme; and fox hunting legislation.

The Scottish Government has only recently been made aware of a review and quite astonishingly has not been invited to make any representations regarding a review of the Merchant Shipping (Ship-to-Ship Transfers) Regulations 2010, as amended. It is understood that the UK Department for Transport has undertaken a minor review to consider the cost, safety and impact on the environment of ship to ship oil transfers, and whether the regulations were meeting their proposed intention. The UK Department for Transport has now informed the Scottish Government they will publish their findings in March. In response Scottish Ministers have written to the Department of Transport requesting that the Scottish Government is consulted on the review before the findings are published. To do otherwise would be to deny the elected Government of Scotland, and Scotland’s Parliament, which is responsible for our marine environment, a say on an issue of importance to our environment and Scotland’s people.

I refer the member to the answer to question S5W-06053 on 26 January 2017. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at

The Scottish Government is not a formal consultation body for Ship to Ship Oil Transfer Licence applications under the Merchant Shipping (Ship-to-Ship Transfers) Regulations 2010, as amended. Scottish Ministers have written on a number of occasions to the Secretary of State for Transport requesting devolution of this reserved function, including two letters in 2016. In 2007, Scottish Ministers wrote four times to the UK Government's Secretary of State for Transport with regards to concerns over ship to ship oil transfer proposals in the Firth of Forth.

Assessment of potential impact of proposed ship-to-ship oil transfer licence applications, including compliance with the EU Habitats Directive is a matter for the competent authority. For ship-to-ship oil transfer licences that is currently the Secretary of State for Transport, although Scottish Minister's argue such powers should be devolved to the Scottish Government. Ship to ship transfers in offshore waters are not currently regulated. Again, this is an area that is reserved to Westminster. The Scottish Government is not aware of historical ship to ship transfer applications for other chemicals in Scottish territorial waters.

We are currently involved in detailed discussions with the UK Government, and the EU, about an appropriate response to the US Government’s initial request for information, including the need for clarification on a number of issues around domestic legislation on seal management.

The ruling has a 5 year exemption period that means it will not come into force until 1 January 2022.