Question to the Scotland Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Scotland, how many meetings he has had with HM Treasury to discuss the potential effects in Scotland of a carbon price support exemption scheme in the last year.

I have had a number of meetings and discussions on the important issue of opencast restoration and in particular the proposal for a carbon price support exemption. These have included discussions with colleagues from HM Treasury, the Department of Energy and Climate Change, the Scottish Government and Local Authorities.