Questions and answers

Question reference: S5W-35912

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 March 2021
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 19 March 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what monitoring of beaver control is in place, and how many beavers are known to have been killed in the calendar year 2020.

Question reference: S5W-35909

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 March 2021
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 19 March 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how many beaver lethal control licences were issued in the calendar year 2020 by NatureScot without a site visit being carried out by the agency or its agents in the six months prior to the issue to verify that each licence was required as a last resort.

COVID restrictions have limited NatureScot’s ability to carry out site-based activities in 2020.

NatureScot issued four licences that permitted the use of lethal control in 2020 without a site visit being undertaken. Of these one was subsequently revoked pending a site visit.

NatureScot uses a combination of information and photographic evidence provided by land managers, details of site topography and the knowledge of issues on neighbouring properties (which has been built up over time by staff and contractors), combined with the use of site visits, where appropriate, to inform the assessment of licence applications.

Question reference: S5W-35388

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 05 March 2021
Current Status: Answered by Ben Macpherson on 18 March 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will revise its model for determining whether cetaceans can be restored to, or maintained at, Favourable Conservation Status, in light of any evidence that measurements from field studies found a much greater area of disturbance than the model predicts.

Under Article 17 of the European Union (EU) Habitats Directive, the UK was required to assess and report on the conservation status of species listed in Annexes I, II, IV and V. The most recent report was submitted in 2019 and the UK assessments can be found on the Joint Nature Conservation Committee website. The assessments set out the criteria and data taken into account in determining whether or not a species is considered to be in Favourable Conservation Status.

See for details.

Regulation 3ZA of the Conservation (Natural Habitats) Regulations 1994 places a duty on Scottish Ministers to continue publishing assessments of conservation status every six years. There are no current plans to change the assessment methodology used.

Question reference: S5W-36036

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 11 March 2021
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 18 March 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will extend the Food for Life programme to support the delivery of free school meals.

We will be working with our local authority partners to expand provision of universal free school meals to all primary children. The amended Regulations governing the nutritional requirements for food and drink served in schools will come into force on 8 April 2021, and all meals served as a part of our universal expansion programme will be required to meet these standards.

We have supported the Soil Association’s Food For Life Programme since 2012. Our support has helped 16 local authorities to achieve accreditation for their school meals under the Food for Life Served Here award framework. We will continue to support the Food for Life programme and encourage local authorities to sign up to it.

Question reference: S5W-35306

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 18 February 2021
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 12 March 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether the outcome of the ScotWind offshore wind leasing round will be published before the COP26 conference in November 2021.

Question reference: S5W-35384

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 26 February 2021
Current Status: Answered by Ben Macpherson on 10 March 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-30448 by Mairi Gougeon on 15 July 2020, whether Cooke Aquaculture Scotland salmon farms use stronger, more rigid nets to enclose its stock than the Scottish Salmon Company farms and, if such nets are in use, what its position is on whether there are "satisfactory alternatives" to the use of acoustic deterrent devices.

Aquaculture companies use a range of non-lethal management measures to protect their stock including robust netting material and anti-predator nets. Information detailing the relative use of anti-predator or Seal-Pro nets by Cooke Aquaculture Scotland and the Scottish Salmon Company is provided in answer to S5W-35394 on 10 March 2021. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at .

A European Protected Species licence can only be granted provided that it meets three tests, including that there must be no satisfactory alternative. We will give due consideration to any European Protected Species licence applications that are submitted on the merits of each individual case and taking account of all relevant factors. It would be inappropriate to pre-determine any part of this process.

Question reference: S5W-35392

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 26 February 2021
Current Status: Answered by Ben Macpherson on 10 March 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether increased cost or inconvenience could be considered a valid reason to claim that an alternative to the use of acoustic deterrent devises is not a "satisfactory alternative"; whether the separation distance between the nets on a double skinned anti-predator net can be increased where there are concerns about seals stressing farmed fish, and whether nets are available in mesh size and type which pose no more risk to mammals and birds than traditional nets.

Marine Scotland has published an information note and FAQs for operators of fish farms on the use of acoustic deterrent devices and the requirement for an EPS licence. This makes clear that reasons such as an increase in cost or inconvenience are not satisfactory reasons for why an alternative measure s has not been considered.

As well as causing direct injury and mortality to farmed fish and damage to cages and nets, the presence of seals close to the cages may cause stress and distress to the fish which may be a welfare concern for fish farm operators. Technical questions regarding net separation and mesh size would need to be assessed on a case by case basis in relation to EPS license applications.

A partnership project between Marine Scotland and Crown Estate Scotland has investigated non-lethal measures to address the problem of seal predation at fish farms, including new netting materials and anti-predator nets. The report considers options available, those requiring further development, and their potential for impacts on non-target species. The report will be published before the end of March 2021.

Question reference: S5W-35391

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 26 February 2021
Current Status: Answered by Ben Macpherson on 10 March 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, in recognition of public concerns including the 30,000 signature petition against the use of acoustic deterrent devices, the lack of opportunity for public scrutiny of European Protected Species (EPS) licence applications and Marine Scotland’s scientific methodology, whether it believes that any farm could pass all three EPS licencing tests and whether it will agree to conduct an open and transparent consultation, overseen by a stakeholder committee including scientific, conservation and tourism interests before any EPS licences are granted.

We will give due consideration to any European Protected Species licence applications that are submitted on the merits of each individual case and taking account of all relevant factors. It would be inappropriate to pre-determine any part of this process.

There is no statutory requirement to undertake a public consultation process for individual EPS licence applications. However, in the spirit of openness and transparency, all EPS licences and applications will be placed in the public domain after a determination has been made alongside the reasons for our decisions.

Question reference: S5W-35393

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 26 February 2021
Current Status: Answered by Ben Macpherson on 10 March 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether double skinned anti-predator nets, as called for by the Scottish Parliament's Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform and Rural Economy and Connectivity committees, and/or single nets of stronger, more rigid materials than traditional single nets represent "satisfactory alternatives" to acoustic deterrent devices.

Question reference: S5W-35389

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 25 February 2021
Current Status: Answered by Ben Macpherson on 10 March 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will revise its model for determining whether cetaceans can be restored to, or maintained at, Favourable Conservation Status, in light of any evidence that porpoises are not evenly distributed and that the habitats predicted to be of most importance to porpoises are also the areas where acoustic deterrent devices are used.

Under Article 17 of the European Union (EU) Habitats Directive, the UK was required to assess and report on the conservation status of species listed in Annexes I, II, IV and V. The most recent report was submitted in 2019 and the UK assessments can be found on the Joint Nature Conservation Committee website. The assessments set out the criteria and data taken into account in determining whether or not a species is considered to be in Favourable Conservation Status. See for details

Regulation 3ZA of the Conservation (Natural Habitats) Regulations 1994 places a duty on Scottish Ministers to continue publishing assessments of conservation status every six years. There are no current plans to change the assessment methodology used.

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