Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Parliamentary questions can be asked by any MSP to the Scottish Government or the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body. The questions provide a means for MSPs to get factual and statistical information.

Written questions must be answered within 10 working days (20 working days during recess)
Other questions such as Topical, Portfolio, General and First Minister's Question Times are taken in the Chamber

Urgent Questions aren't included in the Question and Answers search. There is a SPICe fact sheet listing Urgent and emergency questions.

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Question reference: S6W-20573

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 August 2023
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 5 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any impact on future Edinburgh festivals of any reduction in short-term let accommodation.

The Edinburgh festivals are an essential part of Scotland’s yearly calendar and we are confident that the powers granted to the City of Edinburgh Council, and all of the local authorities, to deliver short term let schemes are appropriate to reflect local circumstances, whilst guaranteeing a level of good quality standards that will bring assurance to guests and visitors staying in Scotland. As the policy is set and delivered by the council, no central assessment has been made on impact to the festivals. To date, no short term let licence applications have been refused in Edinburgh. Those hosts that have been operating since before October 2022 are eligible for transitional arrangements and, as long as they make a licence application before the deadline of 1 October 2023, can continue to accept bookings and receive guests after October 2023 until their application is determined.

Local authorities have powers to set their own licensing fees on a cost recovery basis. The Scottish Government does not hold information on how much has been raised from short-term let application fees in each local authority area.

The following table provides a breakdown of the licence application fee structures set by each local authority area.

Local Authority	Guest Capacity	Home Sharing Fees	Secondary letting Fees
Aberdeenshire	1 to 2	£340	£450
	3 to 4	£450	£600
	5 to 9	£570	£760
	10 to 15	£680	£850
	16 or more	£850	£940

Aberdeen City	1 to 2	£420	£420
	3 to 4	£630	£630
	5 to 6	£840	£840
	7 to 8	£1120	£1120
	9 to 12	£1490	£1490
	13 or more	£2980	£2980

Angus	1 to 5	£349	£349
	6 to 20	£460	£460
	20 or more	£588	£588

Argyll & Bute	1 to 4	£239.55	£334.95
	5 to 8	£334.95	£479.10
	9 to 12	£526.80	£718.70
	13 to 20	£671	£958.25
	21 or more	£862.85	£1197.80

Clackmannanshire	1 to 4	£275	£450
	5 or more	£350	£550

Dumfries & Galloway	1 to 6	£275.28	£302.81
	7 to 12	£306.05	£336.75
	13 or more	£350.84	£385.85

Dundee	1 to 2	£310	£310
	3 to 4	£620	£620
	5 to 6	£930	£930
	7 to 8	£1240	£1240
	9 to 12	£1860	£1860
	13 or more	£3100	£3100

East Ayrshire	1 to 4	£125	£250
	5 or more	£250	£400

East Dunbartonshire	Up to 10	£540
	Every Additional 5 Persons	£50

Edinburgh	1 to 3	New (1 year) £120 per occupant	£653
	4 to 5	Renew (3 year) £360 per occupant	£1,089
	6 to 10		£2,481
	11 to 15		£3,872
	16 to 20		£5,264
	21 and over		£5,869

Fife	1 to 2	£264	£264
	3 to 4	£292	£292
	5 to 6	£320	£320
	7 to 8	£348	£348
	9 to 10	£377	£377
	11 to 12	£405	£405
	13 to 14	£433	£433
	15 to 16	£461	£461
	17 to 18	£490	£490
	19 to 20	£518	£518

Glasgow	1 to 4	£138	£275
	5 or more	£303	£440

Inverclyde	1 to 4	£225	£400
	5 or more	£300	£500

Moray	N/A	£495

Na h-Eileanan Siar	1 to 2	£133	£306
	3 to 4	£153	£357
	5 to 6	£204	£383
	7 or more	£306	£408

North Ayrshire	1 to 4	£125	£200

North Lanarkshire	1 to 4	£300	£300
	5 or more	£450	£450

Orkney	1 to 4	£240	£310
	5 to 9	£300	£380
	10 or more	£400	£510

Perth and Kinross	1 to 2	£175	£350
	3 to 6	£265	£530
	7 to 10	£450	£900
	11 or more	£800	£1600

Renfrewshire	1 room	£262	£840
	2 rooms	£368	£945
	3 rooms	£368	£1,050
	4 or more	£368	£1,155

Scottish Borders	1 to 3	£275	£300
	4 to 6	£305	£335
	7 or more	£350	£385

Shetland	1 to 3	£157	£189
	3 or more	£173	£208

South Ayrshire	1 to 4	£125	£250
	5 or more	£250	£400

South Lanarkshire	1 to 2	£250	£300
	3 to 6	£375	£450
	7 to 10	£450	£550
	11 or more	£625	£750

Stirling	1 to 4	£100	£250
	5 or more	£250	£400

West Dunbartonshire	N/A	£766	£766

West Lothian	1 Bedroom	£325	£450
	2 to 3 Bedrooms	£420	£550
	4 to 6 Bedrooms	£595	£720
	7 or more	£865	£1,000

"home sharing" means using all or part of your own home for short-term lets whilst you are there and "secondary letting" means a short-term let involving the letting of a property where you do not normally live, for example a second home.

Question reference: S6W-20556

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 August 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 5 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what data it provided to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development's (OECD) annual Education at a Glance publication during the most recent cycle.

Each year the Scottish Government provides the previous year’s teacher salary data to the OECD, as collected via the Staff FTE Pay Data Collection . This salary data covers main grade and head teachers, and consists of the minimum, maximum and average salary for each alongside some aspects of pay progression.

Supplementary information is also provided, such as the qualifications required to be a teacher, how salaries are negotiated and requirements for pay progression. Data is also provided on areas like statutory working time and teaching time per year, based on agreements made in teacher contracts.

Question reference: S6W-20542

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 August 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 5 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reported claims by the Educational Institute of Scotland (EIS) that it implied teachers were being "greedy" during pay talks.

Question reference: S6T-01497

Asked by: Martin Whitfield, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 04 September 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 5 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how many public buildings are currently at risk due to the exposure of reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete.

Question reference: S6T-01495

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 04 September 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 5 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what percentage of short-term let operators have applied to be licensed in advance of the deadline for applications under the licensing scheme of 1 October.

Question reference: S6F-02348

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 04 September 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 7 September 2023

To ask the First Minister how the Scottish Government plans to maximise the economic benefits, including the number of new jobs, that result from any growth in renewable energy sources, including onshore wind.

Question reference: S6F-02343

Asked by: Emma Harper, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 04 September 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 7 September 2023

To ask the First Minister whether he will provide an update on the steps that are being taken to reduce drug deaths in Scotland.

Question reference: S6F-02315

Asked by: Douglas Ross, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 04 September 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 7 September 2023

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6F-02323

Asked by: Michael Marra, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 04 September 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 7 September 2023

To ask the First Minister, following the publication of NHS Tayside’s Due Diligence Review of Documentation Held Relating to Professor Eljamel, whether the Scottish Government will immediately approve an independent public inquiry.

Question reference: S6F-02318

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 04 September 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 7 September 2023

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to data showing that the attainment gap has increased.