SNP’s pledges for the year ahead

LATTE LEVY

NICOLA Sturgeon confirmed plans paving the way for a tax on single-use coffee cups.

The Circular Economy Bill, to be introduced by September next year, will allow charges on takeaway packaging. The aim is to encourage the reuse of products and reduce waste.

ANTI-OBESITY DELAY

MINISTERS have already consulted on proposals to restrict the promotion of food and drink which is high in fat, sugar or salt to help tackle the obesity crisis.

But Miss Sturgeon announced that the flagship plan will not be introduced until next September at the earliest – prompting ‘disappointment’ yesterday among charities, including Cancer Research UK.

SCHOOL BUILDINGS FUND

MISS Sturgeon unveiled a £1billion investment scheme, with a number of schools to be built.

An initial wave of fund recipients will be announced later this month, but the first school to benefit will be Woodmill High in Dunfermline, Fife, which was ravaged by fire last month.

DRUGS

AFTER nearly 1,200 drug-related deaths in Scotland last year, an extra £20million will go towards reducing the harm caused by illegal substances, to be invested over the next two years.

Miss Sturgeon used her speech to criticise the UK Government’s refusal to allow so-called heroin ‘shooting galleries’.

NEW NHS QUANGO

THIS will be established to oversee infrastructure projects, such as the building of hospitals.

It follows delays to the opening of the Royal Hospital for Children and Young People in Edinburgh, amid concerns over ventilation, which posed a threat to patient safety.

The new national body will be responsible for the ‘oversight of design, construction and maintenance’ of major NHS projects.