Official Report: search what was said in Parliament
The Official Report is a written record of public meetings of the Parliament and committees.
The Official Report search offers lots of different ways to find the information you’re looking for. The search is used as a professional tool by researchers and third-party organisations. It is also used by members of the public who may have less parliamentary awareness. This means it needs to provide the ability to run complex searches, and the ability to browse reports or perform a simple keyword search.
Searching by different views
The web version of the Official Report has three different views:
- Report: this is the whole Official Report for a particular meeting of a committee or Parliament
- Item of business: this is each individual agenda item in an Official Report. For example, Portfolio Questions would be the item of business in a Meeting of the Parliament report
- Contribution: this is each time someone has made a spoken contribution to a meeting.
Depending on the kind of search you want to do, one of these views will be the best option. The default view is to show the report for each meeting of Parliament or a committee. For a simple keyword search, the results will be shown by item of business.
Search by MSP
When you choose to search by a particular MSP, the results returned will show each spoken contribution in Parliament or a committee, ordered by date with the most recent contributions first. This will usually return a lot of results, but you can refine your search by keyword, date and/or by meeting (committee or Chamber business).
We’ve chosen to display the entirety of each MSP’s contribution in the search results. This is intended to reduce the number of times that users need to click into an actual report to get the information that they’re looking for, but in some cases it can lead to very short contributions (“Yes.”) or very long ones (Ministerial statements, for example.) We’ll keep this under review and get feedback from users on whether this approach best meets their needs.
Searching by keyword
There are two types of keyword search:
- A keyword search without quotation marks will look for every instance of each word used and rank the results by frequency and proximity. It will also include variants of the keywords using “porter stemming”. This is when the search looks for the “stem” of a word regardless of its ending. So, for example, a search for [salmon farm] will return each instance of “salmon” and each instance of “farm” as well as potentially including results for “farms”, “farmed” and “farming”.
- A keyword search with quotation marks will only return instances of that exact phrase used. So, for example, a search for “salmon farm” in quotation marks will only return instances of that exact phrase.
Combining search filters
If you select an MSP’s name from the dropdown menu, and add a phrase in quotation marks to the keyword field, then the search will return only examples of when the MSP said those exact words. You can further refine this search by adding a date range or selecting a particular committee or Meeting of the Parliament.
More complex keyword searches
It’s also possible to run basic Boolean searches. For example:
- a search for “salmon farm” AND “Loch Lomond” will return only results which include both exact phrases
- a search for “salmon farm” NOT “Loch Lomond” will return results for “salmon farm” but exclude results which also include “Loch Lomond”
- a search for “salmon farm” OR “Loch Lomond” will return all results for “salmon farm” and all results for “Loch Lomond” regardless of whether they appear together
Searching by date
There are two ways of searching by date.
You can either use the Start date and End date options to run a search across a particular date range. For example, you may know that a particular subject was discussed at some point in the last few weeks and choose a date range to reflect that.
Alternatively, you can use one of the pre-defined date ranges under “Select a time period”. These are:
- Current session (all Official Reports since the current sessions started)
- Last 6 months
- Last 12 months
- each of the previous sessions of Parliament. (Selecting the information icon above the “Select a time period” menu will give you the exact dates for each session.)
- All sessions
- You can also choose to select a custom date range, although adding a Start or End date will mean the search automatically defaults to this option.
If you search by an individual session, the list of MSPs and committees will automatically update to show only the MSPs and committees which were current during that session. For example, if you select Session 1 you will be show a list of MSPs and committees from Session 1.
If you add a custom date range which crosses more than one session of Parliament, the lists of MSPs and committees will update to show the information that was current at that time.
All Official Reports of meetings in the Debating Chamber of the Scottish Parliament.
All Official Reports of public meetings of committees.
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Displaying 1502 contributions
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Meeting of the Parliament
Portfolio Question Time
Meeting date: 30 May 2024
Kaukab Stewart
Rachael Hamilton will be aware that the Equality Act 2010 is largely reserved. The United Kingdom Government has recently issued a call for input, which extends to Scotland, seeking examples of guidance on single-sex spaces. There are no immediate plans to update any guidance in that area.
Meeting of the Parliament
Portfolio Question Time
Meeting date: 24 April 2024
Kaukab Stewart
As we would all expect, Historic Environment Scotland must continue to prioritise the health and safety of visitors, staff and contractors. It continues to work hard to reopen sites as soon as it is safe to do so. In fact, Historic Environment Scotland has now completed 90 per cent of the priority high-level masonry inspections and, across its estate, there is full or partial access to 90 per cent of its year-round properties.
For further information on any specific site or to learn about the issues from technical experts at first hand, I would be happy to ask Historic Environment Scotland to arrange a visit for the member. I thank him for his continued interest in the issue.
Meeting of the Parliament
Portfolio Question Time
Meeting date: 24 April 2024
Kaukab Stewart
I recognise the excellent work that the Whithorn Trust is undertaking with its trainees. I am pleased that Historic Environment Scotland is supporting the trust’s capacity to deliver accredited skills training.
As the member mentioned, a refreshed skills investment plan for the historic environment was launched recently at the Engine Shed in Stirling, and I was able to attend that launch. That plan was drafted collaboratively with the sector to reflect the changes that the sector has experienced since the plan was first published in 2019. Along with “Our Past, Our Future: The Strategy for Scotland’s Historic Environment”, that will help with the traditional skills that are needed for the sustainability of our heritage assets.
I highlight that the Minister for Higher and Further Education; and Minister for Veterans, in his response to Miles Briggs on 11 January 2024, recognised the need to ensure that stonemasonry and other traditional skills, including those in relation to stained glass windows, are prioritised in the apprenticeship and training offer.
Meeting of the Parliament
Portfolio Question Time
Meeting date: 24 April 2024
Kaukab Stewart
As the lead public body for heritage in Scotland, Historic Environment Scotland published “Our Past, Our Future: The Strategy for Scotland’s Historic Environment”. One of that strategy’s key priorities is delivering the transition to net zero. It sits alongside HES’s climate action plan, which spans until the end of 2025 and details how to tackle the causes and mitigate the impacts of climate change. Climate change does not only affect sites in Scotland, but Historic Environment Scotland is among the first to proactively tackle those issues.
Meeting of the Parliament
Portfolio Question Time
Meeting date: 24 April 2024
Kaukab Stewart
I understand the member’s disappointment that Kisimul castle is not open because of public safety measures. However, the safety of visitors and Historic Environment Scotland staff must continue to be prioritised. Management of the estate is an operational matter for Historic Environment Scotland. I understand that HES continues to engage regularly with Alasdair Allan. The head of the north region at Historic Environment Scotland is due to meet him shortly to discuss sustainable options for reopening Kisimul castle. I pay tribute to the member’s long-standing and on-going campaigning on that.
Meeting of the Parliament
General Question Time
Meeting date: 28 March 2024
Kaukab Stewart
The Scottish Government provides significant support to the museum sector and will continue to do so. For example, we have given cultural bodies, including National Museums Scotland, a funding uplift in 2024-25. We continue to support the national development body for Scotland’s museum sector—Museums Galleries Scotland—and we have committed to provide an uplift of £800,000 to the V&A Dundee, despite the Scottish Government’s challenging 2024-25 budget position. I am pleased that our investment continues to support our museums and world-class collections, ensuring that they are cared for and enjoyed by everybody across Scotland.
Meeting of the Parliament
General Question Time
Meeting date: 28 March 2024
Kaukab Stewart
I thank Murdo Fraser for raising the issue. I am very pleased that Perth museum will reopen on 30 March after a significant redevelopment project. Alongside the stone of destiny, the museum houses the Perth and Kinross collections, which are recognised as being of national significance, and is situated in one of Scotland’s heritage buildings.
As Murdo Fraser knows, Perth museum will be managed in partnership with Perth and Kinross Council and Culture Perth and Kinross. The project was supported by the Tay cities region deal, which received funding from the Scottish Government, alongside other partners, including the UK Government and regional partners.
As I mentioned, the Scottish Government continues to provide funding to the national development body for Scotland’s museums sector, MGS, which provides valuable strategic investment, advice, workforce development and advocacy.
Meeting of the Parliament
Portfolio Question Time
Meeting date: 20 March 2024
Kaukab Stewart
I agree with the member’s concerns. I will ask the cabinet secretary, whose portfolio that issue falls under, to come back with a fuller answer.
Meeting of the Parliament
Portfolio Question Time
Meeting date: 20 March 2024
Kaukab Stewart
I thank Sarah Boyack for her continued commitment on the issue. I am delighted to say that, as a result of the hard work and dedication of all involved, including Screen Scotland, which is providing support, the work to secure the future of the Filmhouse and cultural cinema in Edinburgh is progressing very positively.
The Scottish Government is absolutely clear on the value of cultural cinema, and officials are continuing to engage with Screen Scotland and others to ensure that cultural cinema is protected for Scotland’s audiences today and in the long term. I am grateful to all those involved for their on-going hard work and dedication.
Meeting of the Parliament
Portfolio Question Time
Meeting date: 20 March 2024
Kaukab Stewart
The Scottish Government has been engaging with the UK Government since the outset of the conflict to highlight our position. I agree with Kevin Stewart’s remarks. We will continue to engage through our connections with the UK Government. We have made it clear that it is incumbent on the UK Government to do everything that lies within its power to secure an immediate ceasefire by all sides to prevent further devastation in Gaza, including by using its influence in the international sphere and with the Government of Israel to achieve that.
In the light of Israel’s statement that its armed forces will attack Rafah, which is the final refuge of more than 1.5 million civilians in Gaza, the First Minister wrote to the Prime Minister, calling on him to introduce an immediate ban on licensed arms exports from the UK to Israel. The Cabinet Secretary for Constitution, External Affairs and Culture has also written to the UK Government, but we have had no response to date.
