Environment

Priority actions to deepen and strengthen co-operation between the Scottish Government and business have been unveiled.

A new implementation plan details how recommendations from the New Deal for Business Group will be taken forward over the next 18 months to improve policy preparation and delivery and build a wellbeing economy.

The Scottish Government and NatureScot, working in partnership with the National Lottery Heritage Fund, with the support of the Green Finance Institute, have announced a second round of a grant scheme to support projects that shape and grow the use of private investment and market-based mechanisms to finance the restoration of Scotland’s nature.

Scottish farming and crofting families who have been severely hit by October’s extreme weather events are being encouraged to contact RSABI to apply for support via a Flooding Crisis Fund to support those who were most affected.

RSABI, the charity which provides practical, emotional and financial support to people in Scottish agriculture, is offering payments of up to £1000 per farming family business for those who experienced greatest loss as a result of the extreme rainfall and flooding.

Strategic investment to help create thousands of green jobs and deliver the full economic potential of offshore renewables projects is to be delivered over the next five years.

Up to £500 million will leverage private investment in ports, manufacturing and assembly work to support major supply chain opportunities to Scotland, the First Minister has announced.

Managed by NatureScot, the Helping Nature fund is an element of the Scottish Government’s flagship £65 million Nature Restoration Fund.

The fund supports practical nature restoration projects with grants of £25,000 to £250,000. In this latest round of awards, 27 projects have been offered grants totalling £4.1 million.

Projects offered Helping Nature funding include: