- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 24 February 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 10 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) applicants, (b) places and (c) successful course completions there were for all gamekeeping courses in Scotland in each year between 2007 and 2021.
Answer
Scottish Government doesn’t have information on the number of applicants to game keeping courses, and we cannot provide a full picture for each year between 2007 and 2021.
Information on enrolments and qualifiers at Scottish University is collected by the Higher Education Statistics Agency (HESA).
Enrolments and Qualifiers on Game Keeper Management courses at Scottish Universities, by JACS classification:
| | 2010-11 | 2011-12 | 2012-13 | 2013-14 | 2014-15 | 2015-16 | 2016-17 | 2017-18 | 2018-19 |
Enrolments | 15 | 15 | 15 | 20 | 25 | 15 | 10 | 10 | 5 |
Qualifiers | 10 | 15 | 10 | 15 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 10 | 5 |
Source: HESA Student Data
Where JACS code is D442 = Game Keeper Management
Enrolments and Qualifiers on Game Keeper Management courses at Scottish Universities, by HECOS classification
| | 2019-20 | 2020-21 |
Enrolments | 15 | 15 |
Qualifiers | 5 | 0 |
Source: HESA Student Data
Where HECOS code is 100979 = Game Keeper Management
Data relating to colleges is collected by the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) and enrolments to game keeping courses are as follows
Enrolments at Scottish Colleges on Game Keeping Courses, by level of study
| | 2014-15 | 2015-16 | 2016-17 | 2017-18 | 2018-19 | 2019-20 | 2020-21 |
Further Education | 45 | 50 | 40 | 60 | 55 | 40 | 40 |
Higher Education | 10 | 10 | 0 | 5 | 10 | 0 | 0 |
Source: SFC FES data
All figures above are based on the full person equivalent, and have been rounded to the nearest 5.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 24 February 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi McAllan on 10 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what animal welfare assessment it has undertaken regarding any stalking of pregnant hinds by Forestry and Land Scotland contractors.
Answer
Forestry and Land Scotland continually carries out various assessments in regards to all of its deer culling activities. Any issues noted in regards to any deer’s health or welfare are recorded in their Wildlife Management System. Culling of pregnant hinds carried out professionally and following industry best practice, as operated by Forestry and Land Scotland, has no welfare issues associated with it.
The vast majority of deer on Scotland's national forests and land are in excellent condition and are managed sustainably in line with their land management objectives
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 24 February 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi McAllan on 10 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to create an emergency fund to support farmers and landowners in the wake of Storms Arwen, Barra and others to help with fallen forestry and damage to farm buildings.
Answer
Scottish Government, and its forestry agency, Scottish Forestry (SF) has no plans to create an additional emergency fund to support farmers and landowners in the wake of storms, Arwen, Barra and others. SF already provides grants to manage existing woodlands and prepare forest plans. In addition it is supporting effective clear up operations through the fast tracking of felling permissions, new bespoke guidance on clearing and marketing windblown trees, and the establishment of National Windblow Action Group to help shape and guide a collaborative response for the benefit of farmers and landowners.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 March 2022
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 16 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the most recent Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service court backlog figures.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 16 March 2022
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 24 February 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi McAllan on 9 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to tackle the reported decline in wader populations, and how many it estimates have been lost in each year since 2007.
Answer
The Scottish Government’s Agri-Environment Climate Scheme fund includes options to help support waders and has so far committed £38.8m that will directly benefit waders since the scheme opened in 2015.
Working for Waders is a partnership project involving a wide range of land management and conservation organisations and groups across Scotland. The project provides financial support through small grants directly to farmers and other land managers for activities which support waders. NatureScot have provided £392,000 to the project in direct support of wader work in Scotland over the last four years, with contributions in kind from project partners including expertise and support to deliver outcomes.
It is not possible to provide year-on-year declines in the numbers of waders in Scotland as data on breeding birds in not gathered in a way that can provide this information. However the table below provides trend figures taken from the latest Breeding Bird Survey, published by the British Trust for Ornithology, for the main 5 species of wader that breed on Scottish farmland over five and ten years. Further details on that data, and the full Breeding Bird Survey, is available at:
% changes | Scotland |
| | Trends for five years 2013 – 2018 | Trends for ten years 2008 - 2018 |
Oystercatcher | -10 | -19 |
Lapwing | 10 | -39 |
Curlew | -7 | -20 |
Snipe | 6 | -21 |
Redshank | No Scottish trend |
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 24 February 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi McAllan on 8 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has plans to revise and update the Scottish Outdoor Access Code, in light of a reported increase in livestock worrying incidents.
Answer
There are no plans to review the Access Code. The Land Reform (Scotland) Act 2003 is clear that conduct excluded from access rights includes being on or crossing land while responsible for a dog which is not under proper control. The Access Code sets a balance between the rights of those taking access and those of land managers. It states that when in a field of farm animals, people should keep their dog on a short lead or under close control and keep as far as possible from the animals. Dogs should not be taken into fields where there are lambs, calves or other young animals.
The Scottish Government considers that this advice accords with the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) (Amendment) (Scotland) Act 2021 which strengthened the law around livestock worrying by increasing the maximum penalties for offences. The small minority who do not treat livestock with respect and care must be held accountable and consequences must appropriately reflect the severity of their crime.
The Scottish Government, in November 2021, issued a joint protocol for the examination of dogs suspected of livestock worrying and seized by Police Scotland under the 2021 Act. That offers guidance to veterinarians who may be asked to examine such dogs.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 24 February 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi McAllan on 8 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to encourage (a) farmers and (b) landowners to plant more mixed woodland through government-funded schemes.
Answer
Scottish Government, and its agency Scottish Forestry (SF), has established a Trees on Farms sub group in support of its Customer Representatives Group, with the aim of working collaboratively across the farming / landowner and forestry sector to develop improved understanding and awareness of the benefits of planting more woodlands on farms and to promote opportunities for more mixed woodland through enhanced grant rates.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 24 February 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 8 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how many gamekeeping courses there currently are at colleges in Scotland, and how many there have been in each year since 2007.
Answer
The Scottish Government does not hold this information.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 24 February 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 8 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to provide support to increase the number of small mobile abattoirs in Scotland, in order to increase capacity for processing game and venison.
Answer
Scottish Government considers there to be sufficient abattoir capacity in Scotland for farmed venison and flexibility to increase that capacity if required. For wild venison, £80,000 has been made available through the Covid Recovery Opportunities Fund to create new local chill and processing units. These will be demonstration projects and will support delivery of the Scottish Venison Strategy action to invest in area-based facilities to maintain wild carcass quality and build supply of local product. Contracts have recently been offered and details of the projects will be announced in due course.
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 24 February 2022
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi McAllan on 8 March 2022
To ask the Scottish Government how much Forestry and Land Scotland has spent on deer stalking contractors for the management of deer populations on its land in each of the last five years.
Answer
Over each of the last five years FLS has spent the following on deer culling contracts on Scotland's national forests and land:
Financial Year | Expenditure on Deer Culling Contracts (£) |
FY 16-17 | £1.7M |
FY 17-18 | £2.1M |
FY 18-19 | £2.0M |
FY 19-20 | £1.9M |
FY 20-21 | £1.9M |
