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 11879 contributions
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Meeting of the Parliament
Bail and Release from Custody (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3
Meeting date: 21 June 2023
Alison Johnstone
The result of the division is: For 28, Against 85, Abstentions 0.
Amendment 2 disagreed to.
Section 5A—Report on bail and remand
Meeting of the Parliament
Bail and Release from Custody (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3
Meeting date: 21 June 2023
Alison Johnstone
I call Russell Findlay to speak to amendment 9 and the other amendments in the group.
Meeting of the Parliament
Bail and Release from Custody (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3
Meeting date: 21 June 2023
Alison Johnstone
Thank you. We will ensure that that is recorded.
Meeting of the Parliament
Bail and Release from Custody (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3
Meeting date: 21 June 2023
Alison Johnstone
The question is, that amendment 2 be agreed to. Are we agreed?
Members: No.
Meeting of the Parliament
Bail and Release from Custody (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3
Meeting date: 21 June 2023
Alison Johnstone
The result of the division is: For 90, Against 20, Abstentions 0.
Amendment 55 agreed to.
Amendments 56 and 57 moved—[Angela Constance]—and agreed to.
Amendment 58 moved—[Angela Constance].
Meeting of the Parliament
Bail and Release from Custody (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3
Meeting date: 21 June 2023
Alison Johnstone
The result of the division is: For 50, Against 63, Abstentions 0.
Amendment 75 disagreed to.
Meeting of the Parliament
Bail and Release from Custody (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3
Meeting date: 21 June 2023
Alison Johnstone
The question is, that amendment 24 be agreed to. Are we agreed?
Members: No.
Meeting of the Parliament
Bail and Release from Custody (Scotland) Bill: Stage 3
Meeting date: 21 June 2023
Alison Johnstone
Thank you, Mr Brown. As members are aware, the Presiding Officers do not normally give a reason for selection. The criteria that are carefully applied are set out in the guidance on public bills, which is published on the Scottish Parliament website. The key issue is that the interests of all parties and individual MSPs continue to be reflected at stage 3. All members must have the opportunity to input to and influence legislation and to fully scrutinise the laws that are passed by our national Parliament.
At this point in the proceedings, I am required under standing orders to decide whether, in my view, any provision of the bill relates to a protected subject matter—that is, whether it modifies the electoral system and franchise for Scottish parliamentary elections. In this case, no provision of the Bail and Release from Custody (Scotland) Bill relates to a protected subject matter, so the bill does not require a supermajority to be passed at stage 3.
Meeting of the Parliament
Business Motion
Meeting date: 21 June 2023
Alison Johnstone
The next item of business is consideration of business motion S6M-09622, in the name of George Adam, on behalf of the Parliamentary Bureau, setting out a business programme.
Motion moved,
That the Parliament agrees—
(a) the following programme of business—
Tuesday 27 June 2023
2.00 pm Time for Reflection
followed by Parliamentary Bureau Motions
followed by Topical Questions (if selected)
followed by Scottish Government Debate: Illegal Migration Bill - UK Legislation
followed by Ministerial Statement: Reconsideration of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child (Incorporation) (Scotland) Bill
followed by Scottish Government Debate: Building a New Scotland - The Constitution of an Independent Country
followed by Legislative Consent Motion: Electronic Trade Documents Bill - UK Legislation
followed by Committee Announcements
followed by Business Motions
followed by Parliamentary Bureau Motions
5.00 pm Decision Time
followed by Members’ Business
Wednesday 28 June 2023
2.00 pm Parliamentary Bureau Motions
2.00 pm Portfolio Questions:
Constitution, External Affairs and Culture;
Justice and Home Affairs;
Education and Skills
followed by Scottish Government Debate: Northern Ireland Troubles (Legacy and Reconciliation) Bill - UK Legislation
followed by Scottish Government Debate: Economic Crime and Corporate Transparency Bill - UK Legislation
followed by Stage 3 Proceedings: Charities (Regulation and Administration) (Scotland) Bill
followed by Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body Motion: Appointment of a New Scottish Information Commissioner
followed by Business Motions
followed by Parliamentary Bureau Motions
followed by Approval of SSIs (if required)
5.25 pm Decision Time
followed by Members’ Business
Thursday 29 June 2023
11.40 am Parliamentary Bureau Motions
11.40 am General Questions
12.00 pm First Minister's Questions
followed by Ministerial Statement: Highly Protected Marine Areas
followed by Ministerial Statement: Leading Scotland’s Journey to Becoming a Start-up Nation
1.45 pm Decision Time
followed by Members’ Business
Tuesday 5 September 2023
2.00 pm Time for Reflection
followed by Parliamentary Bureau Motions
followed by Topical Questions (if selected)
followed by Scottish Government Business
followed by Committee Announcements
followed by Business Motions
followed by Parliamentary Bureau Motions
5.00 pm Decision Time
followed by Members’ Business
Wednesday 6 September 2023
2.00 pm Parliamentary Bureau Motions
2.00 pm Portfolio Questions:
Wellbeing Economy, Fair Work and Energy;
Finance and Parliamentary Business
followed by Scottish Government Business
followed by Business Motions
followed by Parliamentary Bureau Motions
followed by Approval of SSIs (if required)
5.00 pm Decision Time
followed by Members’ Business
Thursday 7 September 2023
11.40 am Parliamentary Bureau Motions
11.40 am General Questions
12.00 pm First Minister's Questions
followed by Members’ Business
2.30 pm Parliamentary Bureau Motions
2.30 pm Portfolio Questions:
Net Zero and Just Transition
followed by Scottish Government Business
followed by Business Motions
followed by Parliamentary Bureau Motions
5.00 pm Decision Time
(b) that, for the purposes of Portfolio Questions in the week beginning 26 June 2023, in rule 13.7.3, after the word “except” the words “to the extent to which the Presiding Officer considers that the questions are on the same or similar subject matter or” are inserted.—[George Adam]
Meeting of the Parliament
Business Motion
Meeting date: 21 June 2023
Alison Johnstone
Colleagues, please.
