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: S7W-04644

Asked by: Sanne Dijkstra-Downie, MSP for Edinburgh Northern, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 30 October 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 13 November 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how many whole-time equivalent respiratory consultants were employed by each NHS board in each year since 2016.

Question reference: S7W-04237

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh North Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 12 October 2026
Current Status: Answered by Alison Thewliss on 30 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that the Edinburgh Dental Institute's clinical infrastructure remains available for future undergraduate and postgraduate training.

Question reference: S7W-04236

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh North Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 12 October 2026
Current Status: Answered by Alison Thewliss on 30 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the University of Edinburgh regarding its withdrawal from teaching programmes at the Edinburgh Dental Institute.

University of Edinburgh made the unilateral decision to withdraw their BSc Oral Health Sciences course and failed to effectively engage with Ministers on this decision at the time.

While I am extremely disappointed with the University’s decision, Scottish Government has been working with the Scottish Funding Council, Public Services Delivery Scotland and the other dental therapy schools in Scotland with the aim of replacing the lost capacity and maintaining student numbers.

Question reference: S7W-03941

Asked by: Sanne Dijkstra-Downie, MSP for Edinburgh Northern, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 02 October 2026
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 30 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact that the closure of the incinerator at Polmadie will have on Scotland’s waste sector.

No specific assessment was made regarding the impact of the temporary closure of the Glasgow Recycling and Renewable Energy Centre (GRREC) by the Scottish Government as the management of municipal waste is the responsibility of the relevant local authority. It is for them to ensure that their waste material is appropriately processed in accordance with all applicable regulations.

However, the Scottish Government is aware of the pressures facing parts of the waste management sector, and recognises the importance of ensuring that there is sufficient capacity and resilience to manage Scotland’s waste safely and effectively.

Question reference: S7W-03943

Asked by: Sanne Dijkstra-Downie, MSP for Edinburgh Northern, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 02 October 2026
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 30 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that reductions in incineration capacity, including the closure of the Polmadie incinerator, do not result in waste accumulating in communities.

Question reference: S7W-03945

Asked by: Sanne Dijkstra-Downie, MSP for Edinburgh Northern, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 02 October 2026
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 30 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government when it first became aware of (a) the closure of the Polmadie incinerator and (b) the issues around landfill capacity, on which the BBC reported on 23 September 2026.

The Scottish Government was made aware of the closure of the Glasgow Recycling and Renewable Energy Centre’s (GRREC) incinerator in early April and has been receiving updates during regular meetings with SEPA since then.

During these regular meetings, Scotland’s landfill capacity is also discussed and, in addition, Zero Waste Scotland produced a landfill capacity assessment in October last year in order to assist the Scottish Government and other policy makers to make informed assessments into 2026 and beyond.

Finally, Scottish Government officials meet regularly with waste industry representatives to discuss among other matters the ongoing implementation of the biodegradable municipal waste (BMW) landfill ban. The matter of remaining landfill capacity is also discussed during these meetings.

Question reference: S7W-03940

Asked by: Sanne Dijkstra-Downie, MSP for Edinburgh Northern, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 02 October 2026
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 30 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how many notifications SEPA has received from producers or managers of biodegradable municipal waste (BMW) seeking to continue sending waste to landfill sites without this being considered a breach of permit conditions.

Since the introduction of the Temporary Regulatory Position Statement (tRPS) which came into effect on 1 January 2026, SEPA have issued a total of 315 confirmations of satisfactory receipt following notifications from operators wishing to continue to send biodegradable waste to landfill.

These figures reflect the full reporting period from 1 January 2026 to 5 October 2026. Confirmations are valid for a maximum of 6 months and further notification is required after the initial 6 month period should operators wish to continue landfilling and the above figures include 112 renotifications. This demonstrates that the tRPS is achieving its aim of giving waste businesses the time to put compliant solutions in place whilst additional incinerators are being built.

Question reference: S7W-04274

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 October 2026
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 30 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what contingency plans it has should a bond issue fail to raise the expected level of capital for planned investment projects.

Question reference: S7W-04197

Asked by: Jamie Langan, MSP for South Scotland, Reform UK
Date lodged: Monday, 12 October 2026
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 30 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of whether lower Air Departure Tax rates could encourage airlines to expand route networks and to allocate additional aircraft capacity to airports in Scotland.

The Scottish Government recognises the importance of international air connectivity to our nation's economy. We are committed to working with airlines and Scotland's airports to help grow our international connectivity, while not returning to previous levels of emissions. Our key aspiration is to help Scotland become at least as well connected as our peer nations and regions by growing demand for existing and new routes that are vital for inbound tourism, business connectivity and exports.

The Scottish Government has carried out extensive engagement with the aviation sector and other interested parties ahead of the implementation of Air Departure Tax (ADT) on 1 April 2027. This includes the Delivering Scotland’s Air Departure Tax consultation that ran from 29 January to 26 March 2026 and invited responses on future ADT policy considerations. The consultation analysis report was published on 15 July 2026.

The Scottish Government also held two Ministerial roundtables in February and March 2026 and has convened an Expert Advisory Group on ADT to further inform future ADT policy development.

As part of this engagement, a number of aviation stakeholders have suggested that lower ADT rates may play a role in encouraging airlines to expand route networks and allocate additional aircraft capacity to airports in Scotland. ADT is expected to be one of several factors influencing airlines’ decision making, alongside fuel costs, air navigation charges, crew costs and other airport charges such as ground handling.

ADT rates for 2027-28 will match those of the UK Government’s Air Passenger Duty to help ease the transition to ADT for passengers and the aviation sector. ADT rates for 2028-29 will be set out at the forthcoming Scottish Budget on 3 December 2026.

Question reference: S7W-04097

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 09 October 2026
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 30 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that its proposals for local government reform include people who are (a) from ethnic minority groups, (b) aged under 18, and (c) who live in social housing.

It is essential that a wide range of voices can participate in and inform the current dialogue on local governance reform. This is why our approach to engagement is designed to support a broad range of people to participate, including current plans for the use of digital engagement with the public and broadly representative panels. By bringing together a diverse range of experiences and perspectives, this engagement will help us build a shared understanding of how governance and service delivery can best support communities across Scotland.