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-04614

Asked by: Maggie Chapman, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 October 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 12 November 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to improve the funding available for local authorities in the North East Scotland region, in light of the reported identification by the Accounts Commission of a gap of (a) £11 million for Aberdeen City, (b) £19.2 million for Aberdeenshire, (c) £5 million for Dundee City and (d) £13.9 million for Angus Council.

Question reference: S7W-04624

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 October 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 12 November 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how much carbon has been stored by Carbon Capture, Utilisation, and Storage (CCUS) operations in Scotland to date.

Question reference: S7W-04633

Asked by: Clare Haughey, MSP for Rutherglen and Cambuslang, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 October 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 12 November 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the progress of plans to consolidate wildlife and nature conservation legislation.

Question reference: S7W-04632

Asked by: Q Manivannan, MSP for Edinburgh and Lothians East, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 October 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 12 November 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding the development of a Scottish Artists Minimum Income pilot, whether it will provide an update on (a) its plans to develop the scheme in consultation with the culture sector workforce, including freelance and working-class artists, (b) the timeline for the implementation of the scheme and (c) the role that it expects the scheme to play in addressing existing inequities within the cultural sector.

Question reference: S7W-04617

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 October 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 12 November 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how many houses are currently in each council tax band.

Question reference: S7W-04262

Asked by: Martyn Day, MSP for Falkirk East and Linlithgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 October 2026
Current Status: Answered by Kirsten Oswald on 29 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will consider introducing legislation to ensure that children have a legal right of contact with their grandparents and extended family.

The Scottish Government recognises the important role that grandparents and family members other than parents may have in many families bringing up children, particularly following parental separation.

When the Children (Scotland) Bill (now the Children (Scotland) Act 2020 (the 2020 Act)) was introduced, the Scottish Government considered whether or not to include a presumption or right for grandchildren to have contact with their grandparents.

However, no such provision was included. A presumption in favour of a particular group of adults could cut across the driving principle of the legislation that the welfare of the child must be the paramount consideration in any contact case.

We have no plans to change the law in this area at the present time. It remains possible for any person with an interest in a child (including a grandparent, aunts and uncles, cousins, etc.) to apply to the court to seek an order under section 11 of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 (the 1995 Act), which is the key provision in relation to contact, residence and Parental Responsibilities and Rights.

Section 16 of the 2020 Act sets out additional factors that the court must consider when deciding whether or not to make an order under section 11 of the 1995 Act. It provides that the court must consider the effect the order might have on the child’s important relationships with other people. This could include the child’s grandparents and wider family members. Section 16 is not yet in force but the Scottish Government intends to consider it as one of the provisions of the 2020 Act that could be commenced over the next year.

The Scottish Government has produced the Charter for Grandchildren as part of the Your Parenting Plan. The Charter sets out that grandchildren can expect to maintain contact with their wider family except in very exceptional circumstances.

Question reference: S7W-04098

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 09 October 2026
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 29 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how it is maximising engagement with its proposals for local government reform to ensure that as many people as possible are able to influence the process.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that as many people as possible have the opportunity to influence the current dialogue on local governance reform. As such, an intensive programme of engagement involving local government, public bodies, trade unions, the third sector, community organisations and members of the public is underway. A mix of in-person and digital engagement activities, including regional summits in November, will help ensure people and partners from across Scotland can contribute directly to the discussion.

Question reference: S7W-04183

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 09 October 2026
Current Status: Answered by Kirsten Oswald on 29 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has held with (a) Police Scotland and (b) the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service regarding identifying and responding to legal threats planned to compel survivors into retracting allegations or withdrawing statements.

The Scottish Government has not had any discussions with COPFS or Police Scotland regarding SLAPPs.

Prosecution of criminal cases is in the public interest, which covers a range of factors, including the interests of victims/witnesses in the individual case. Where a victim/witness, wishes to retract a statement, this is taken into account in the wider public interest consideration which also depends on the crime/facts in the case. The COPFS take steps to help victims/witnesses engage in the justice process through, amongst others, signposting to support agencies, referral to its VIA service and explanation of special measures which can be used to support victims/witnesses when giving evidence.

Question reference: S7W-04184

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 09 October 2026
Current Status: Answered by Kirsten Oswald on 29 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what access to urgent legal advice and civil legal aid is available to people facing suspected strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs), including where proceedings have been threatened but not raised.

Strategic lawsuits against public participation (SLAPPs) are an attempt to abuse the court process and can take a number of different forms, which will determine the availability and type of legal aid required.

Anyone can apply for Scottish legal aid if the case is covered by the law in Scotland, and applications for legal aid are subject to statutory tests which assess both the merits of the case and the financial resources available to the applicant.

Advice & Assistance (a form of legal aid which covers advice from a solicitor) is not dependent on an action having been raised. Generally, solicitors can provide advice & assistance without prior approval from the Scottish Legal Aid Board to qualifying individuals up to an expenditure limit of £155 (or £205 in certain specified circumstances).

Whilst in general solicitors cannot get approval to carry out work in preparation of a case or acting in court until a grant of legal aid is in place, they can seek approval prior to a grant of legal aid in some circumstances if there is urgency to the work. The Scottish Legal Aid Board will decide if the work to be done is needed as a matter of special urgency to protect a client’s position.

Question reference: S7W-04592

Asked by: David Barratt, MSP for Cowdenbeath, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 October 2026
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Gillian Martin on 29 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on progress towards its preparation of the new Household Recycling Code of Practice under the Circular Economy (Scotland) Act 2024.

The Scottish Government is today publishing the consultation on Scotland's new Household Recycling Code of Practice.

This Household Waste Recycling Code of Practice sets out the standards expected of, and steps to be taken by, local authorities in carrying out their waste management functions in so far as they relate to the collection and recycling of household waste. Once consultation has taken place, the Code will be finalised and subsequently laid before the Scottish Parliament in accordance with provisions in the Circular Economy (Scotland) Act 2024.

The Code contains practical guidance to local authorities in how to adopt an effective approach to providing waste collection and recycling services. Improving the consistency and effectiveness of household recycling services will help Scotland reduce waste, increase recycling, support a more circular economy and reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

The Household Recycling Code of Practice has been developed through an extensive co-design process that brought together local government, industry, public bodies, citizens and third-sector organisations to shape the content of the Code.

The consultation seeks views on proposals covering the collection of recyclable materials, residual waste, food and garden waste services and other household waste recycling service design matters.

The consultation is open from Thursday 29 October 2026 to Thursday 21 January 2027 and can be accessed here: https://consult.gov.scot/environment-forestry/a-new-household-recycling-code-of-practice/