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-02368

Asked by: Edward Mountain, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 August 2021
Current Status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 7 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what the average waiting time is for a child to receive a neuro-developmental assessment, and what its position is on what the target waiting time should be.

Question reference: S6W-02245

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 17 August 2021
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 7 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide details of its biodiversity targets.

The Scottish Government is committed to action to protect biodiversity and to the effective monitoring of progress towards this goal. We are working to meet the commitments set out within the Scottish Biodiversity Strategy, 2004 - 2020, and are aligned to the international Aichi biodiversity targets as set out in the Strategic Plan for biodiversity 2011-2020.

The final report against the Aichi targets published in 2021 showed that Scotland achieved 9 out of the 20 targets and another 11 are progressing. This compares favourably to the global picture, where the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) reports that good progress as being made on only 4 of the targets, and with the UK as a whole, which met only 5 targets. The CBD reports that there is no country in the world that has fully met the Aichi Biodiversity targets.

The 2020 Statement of Intent on Biodiversity included a commitment to protect 30% of our land for nature by 2030 And assess whether we could go further given that we have already achieved 37% protection of Scotland’s marine environment. We also recently added a new single high level indicator to the National Performance Framework which measures trends in marine and terrestrial biodiversity in Scotland.

Looking forward, we will publish a new biodiversity strategy in October 2022. This will set out how we will deliver our overall ambition of preventing any further extinctions of wildlife and halting declines by 2030, and making significant progress in restoring Scotland’s natural environment by 2045. This will lay the foundation for a new A Natural Environment Bill which will include legislation for new nature recovery targets.

Question reference: S6W-02280

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 16 August 2021
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 7 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on how many jet skis have been registered for use on Loch Lomond in each year since the Loch Lomond and The Trossachs National Park was established.

Question reference: S6W-02274

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 16 August 2021
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 7 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown of the costs of tackling littering in each local authority.

Question reference: S6W-02173

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 August 2021
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 7 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what the current energy from waste efficiency rating is of each incineration plant in Scotland, and how this compares with the efficiency rating stated at the planning/approval stage for each plant.

The following table shows reported efficiencies of each incineration plant for 2020. Installations are required to meet a 20% electrical efficiency from date of commissioning as set out in the Thermal Treatment of Waste Guidelines 2014 (TTWG 2014).

	Plant Information	Expected start-up efficiency at permitting	2020 Reported Performance
Millerhill Recycling & Energy Recovery Centre	Heat export potential but currently operating as electricity export only	22.6%	24.5%
Levenseat Energy from Waste Plant	Heat export potential but currently operating as electricity export only	22.9%	Commissioning late 2020 therefore data not yet due with SEPA.
Lerwick Energy Recovery Plant	Operate as heat export only	Not Available*	Latest available data is overall efficiency 64.9% 2010 (Missing data due to cyber-attack)
Baldovie Energy from Waste Centre	Heat export potential but currently operating as electricity export only	Not Available*	12.52%**
Dunbar Energy Recovery Facility	Heat export potential but currently operating as electricity export only	Not Available*	21.11%
Glasgow Recycling and Renewable Energy Centre	Heat export potential but currently operating as electricity export only	22.9%	20.6% (This includes the onsite AD plant)

* Planning and permitting took place prior to first publication of the Thermal Treatment of Waste Guidance in 2009.

** This plant was designed, commissioned and built, before the Thermal Treatment of Waste Guidance was first published in 2009.

Question reference: S6W-02134

Asked by: Richard Leonard, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 August 2021
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 7 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-01419 by Graeme Dey on 6 August 2021, by what date it expects to report to the Scottish Parliament on the outcome of its consideration of the UK Government’s draft legislation.

Question reference: S6W-02254

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 13 August 2021
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 7 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how many accessible homes have been built in each year since 1999, broken down by local authority area.

Our Housing to 2040 strategy includes a vision that everyone who can is enabled to live independently in a home of their choice. Local authorities are responsible for assessing the housing needs in their areas and setting out in their Local Housing Strategies how this will be met. Local Housing Strategy guidance published in September 2019 also requires local authorities to set targets for wheelchair accessible housing across all tenures, including reporting annually on progress.

Through the Affordable Housing Supply Programme (AHSP), we provide a range of housing including new build, off the shelf purchases and rehabilitation projects. For new build projects, wherever possible, all affordable homes are built to Housing for Varying Needs standards. This standard sets out good practice on the design of housing to achieve flexibility and suitability for people of all abilities. Our annual AHSP Outturn Reports publish the percentage of affordable new build home completions meeting Housing for Varying Needs standards.

The following table shows, of the information returned, the percentage of new build social rent, mid-market rent and low cost home ownership homes supported through the AHSP, which have met that standard since 2005.

In addition to supporting new accessible affordable homes, in the period between 2007-08 and 2019-21 a total of £175 million has been provided directly to housing associations to help them provide adaptations for older and disabled tenants.

	% of homes meeting Housing for Varying Needs
2005-06	91%
2006-07	96%
2007-08	96%
2008-09	98%
2009-10	98%
2010-11	99%
2011-12	Data was not reported
2012-13	96%
2013-14	94%
2014-15	96%
2016-17	94%
2017-18	99%
2018-19	96%
2019-20	95%

Figures relating to 2020-21 will be published later this year in the Scottish Government’s annual AHSP Outturn Report.

Question reference: S6W-02061

Asked by: Alex Rowley, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 August 2021
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 7 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what financial support (a) it and (b) Creative Scotland provides to the independent theatre sector, what its response is to concerns by representatives of independent theatres that there are severe inequalities in the sector and an uneven playing field when it comes to government support for theatres, and what action it is taking to ensure that a fair and diverse funding distribution model is in place to help widen access to culture across a broad range of venues and organisations.

Creative Scotland provide a wide variety of support, both regular and project funding, to theatres of all types.

In response to the Covid-19 pandemic the Scottish Government distributed emergency funds through two rounds of the Performing Arts Venues Relief Fund and the Cultural Organisations and Venues Recovery Fund. These funds were administered on behalf of the Scottish Government by Creative Scotland The details of all individual awards are published on Creative Scotland’s website ( Further £17million emergency funding reaches Culture Organisations and Performing Arts Venues | Creative Scotland )

Creative Scotland’s funding programmes adhere to criteria which are widely published and, subject to eligibility, are open to any organisation. Decisions are based on how well any applicant meets the criteria. The decision making process also ensures a spread of scale, purpose and location.

Public funding support for theatres covers commercial organisations as well as those with charitable or other not-for-profit status. The context for commercial organisations would always be that the funded activity was not profit generating and meets the public value purpose of Creative Scotland’s funding.

Creative Scotland are currently reviewing the way that they fund organisations and this will include how they fund theatres.

They will be finalising a refreshed funding framework for implementation from
‎ 2023-24 onwards.

Question reference: S6T-00139

Asked by: Sue Webber, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 06 September 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 7 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the use of face-to-face GP appointments.

Question reference: S6T-00127

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 06 September 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 7 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the ongoing industrial disputes with ScotRail.