- Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 June 2025
-
Current Status:
Answered by Jenni Minto on 19 June 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports that less than 10% of patients survive an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest in Scotland, what action Ministers are taking to improve CPR training and defibrillator familiarisation in schools, to improve citizen response to an out-of-hospital cardiac arrest.
Answer
The Scottish Government is a partner in the Save a Life for Scotland Partnership, which is working to ensure that all school aged children in Scotland will be given the opportunity to be equipped with CPR skills and increase defibrillator familiarisation across Scotland.
This has included delivery of Restart a Heart Day Live last year. This was a live stream CPR training event targeted at school-age children, which included information on defibrillation. The Scottish Government has committed to working with Save a Life for Scotland to support Restart a Heart Day Live again in 2025.
- Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Friday, 06 June 2025
-
Current Status:
Answered by Graeme Dey on 19 June 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what safeguards are in place to ensure that (a) academic quality and (b) student experience are maintained in any universities that are undertaking major financial restructuring.
Answer
In line with its statutory responsibilities, the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) has oversight of the Tertiary Quality Enhancement Framework, with responsibility for ensuring that all the component parts work effectively and coherently to provide assurance on academic standards and the quality of the student experience.
- Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
-
Date lodged: Friday, 06 June 2025
-
Current Status:
Answered by Ivan McKee on 19 June 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what action it has taken, since the publication of the International Court of Justice's 19 July 2024 advisory opinion, to ensure that public bodies are enacting the Scottish Government's 2014 public procurement policy note in relation to discouraging trade and investment from illegal settlements.
Answer
Regulations implementing international obligations in relation to public procurement permit bidders to be excluded from tender exercises in certain circumstances. This includes when the bidder can be shown to have engaged in grave professional misconduct. The Scottish Government's long-standing view is that the exploitation of assets in illegal settlements is likely to be regarded as constituting grave professional misconduct for this purpose. Any decision to exclude a bidder from a procurement process must, however, be taken on a case-by-case basis by the contracting authority awarding the contract, and must be grounded in evidence. To that end, the Minister for Business wrote to public bodies in October 2024 to inform them that the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights' (OHCHR) database of companies active in listed activity in the Occupied Palestinian Territory had been updated, and that this should be considered as part of due diligence processes.
As I confirmed in response to S6O-04782 on 11 June 2025, I have asked officials to advise on what further work can be done to strengthen our approach here.
All answers to Oral Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at All answers to Oral Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at Official Report: search what was said in Parliament | Scottish Parliament Website
- Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Friday, 06 June 2025
-
Current Status:
Answered by Graeme Dey on 19 June 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what role the Scottish Funding Council has played in scrutinising the University of Edinburgh’s financial strategy.
Answer
The Scottish Funding Council (SFC) has continued to monitor and assess the financial health (sustainability and viability) of universities, including Edinburgh, through regular engagement and analysis of financial returns, which universities are required to submit to SFC each academic year. SFC also considers universities’ individual circumstances and exposure to risk, capacity to respond to financial challenges and other relevant available information.
Financial sustainability of universities is a condition of grant set out in SFC’s Financial Memorandum with universities. As autonomous institutions, universities are responsible for their own strategic and operational decision making, and are required to notify SFC if they identify material risks to their financial viability or sustainability.
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 June 2025
-
Current Status:
Answered by Gillian Martin on 19 June 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what measures are in place to ensure that local authorities effectively enforce smoke control area regulations and address complaints, particularly regarding the use of unauthorised fuels in domestic wood-burning stoves.
Answer
Local authorities are responsible for enforcing Smoke Control Areas and investigating smoke nuisance complaints under the Environmental Protection Act 1990.
- Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 June 2025
-
Current Status:
Answered by Mairi McAllan on 19 June 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what recent capital budget commitments it has made to tackle the housing emergency.
Answer
To tackle the ongoing Housing Emergency, the Scottish Government is investing £768 million in the Affordable Housing Supply Programme (AHSP) for 2025-2026, a 38% increase compared to 2024-2025. Of this, £688 million is capital, which is a 44% increase compared with the previous year. This includes £40 million targeted towards acquisitions to support the local authorities with the most sustained temporary accommodation pressures.
In addition are also investing an additional £4 million in the Ending Homelessness Together budget for 2025-2026 to help local authorities, frontline services and relevant partners prepare for new prevention measures and to help them to respond to the housing emergency by preventing homelessness before it occurs.
We have also announced a long-term commitment of £100 million for Mid-Market Rent – and with institutional investment we will grow that fund to at least £500 million to support the construction of around 2,800 mid-market rent homes.
- Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Friday, 06 June 2025
-
Current Status:
Answered by Kate Forbes on 19 June 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to strengthen collaboration with UK counterparts to promote growth, jobs and productivity.
Answer
The Scottish Government regularly meets with UK Government counterparts at official and ministerial levels and on a bilateral and multilateral basis, to discuss shared priorities, including economic growth. The Scottish Government continues to build on this dialogue to deliver joint action and deeper collaboration in this space. For example, the Scottish Business Growth Group, a cross-government forum jointly chaired by the Minister for Business, and Secretary of State for Scotland brings together ministers from both governments alongside business representatives. I have also recently written to the Chancellor of the Exchequer and UK Secretaries of State on the importance of deepening cooperation including aligning devolved and reserved powers to accelerate delivery and maximise the impact of economic growth for Scotland and the UK
- Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 June 2025
-
Current Status:
Answered by Jenni Minto on 19 June 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how many defibrillators have been located in (a) nurseries, (b) primary schools and (c) secondary schools in each local authority area in each of the last five years.
Answer
The Scottish Government does not hold the information you have requested regarding defibrillators in nurseries and schools.
- Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
-
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 June 2025
-
Current Status:
Answered by Kate Forbes on 19 June 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether the reported decision not to fund the proposed submarine welding centre on the Clyde aligns with its commitment to supporting Scotland's shipbuilding industry and skilled workforce.
Answer
We recognise the importance of the shipbuilding sector for Scotland’s economy including its strategic importance in shaping Scotland’s future workforce. That is why we are already undertaking a major programme of reform to the skills system to ensure that it meets Scotland’s needs, including investing up to £2 million to develop engineering skills in the Glasgow City Region, designed by the Clyde Maritime Cluster in partnership with Skills Development Scotland. We are also actively engaging with the UK Government on the development of its forthcoming Industrial Strategy and its planned review of the National Shipbuilding Strategy, emphasising Scotland's strengths in shipbuilding and maritime technology. However, the Scottish Government’s long-standing policy position is that neither the Government nor its agencies use public money to support the manufacture of munitions.
- Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
-
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 June 2025
-
Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 26 June 2025
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the aim under action 20 of the Housing to 2040 strategy to streamline and accelerate the adaptations system.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 26 June 2025
