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-04251

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 12 October 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 28 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports that sexual offences cases account for around 70% of all High Court trials, what proportion of these cases involve alleged offences against children and young people, including those aged 16 and 17, and whether it routinely collects and publishes such information.

The Scottish Government’s Criminal Proceedings in Scotland statistics count people who were proceeded against in court, not cases, and do not include data on victims or whether a case went to trial. In the most recent year of data (2023-2024), 464 (37%) of the 1,251 people proceeded against in the High court had a main charge classified as a Sexual crime. Sixty-eight (15%) of the 464 had a main charge that specifies a child victim.

Question reference: S7W-04530

Asked by: George Adam, MSP for Paisley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 27 October 2026
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Simita Kumar on 28 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on proposals to recognise the right to a healthy environment in the proposed Human Rights Bill.

The Scottish Government supports the principle of a right to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment, and we recognise the important role that environmental human rights can play in protecting both people and the environment. However, following careful consideration, Ministers have decided not to include a standalone right to a healthy environment in the future Human Rights Bill.

We are concerned that, at this stage, inclusion of the right could create uncertainty or unintended delays in decision-making, potentially impacting the delivery of vital initiatives required to meet Scotland’s net zero ambitions. Our human rights framework must be clear, coherent and effective in practice. Given the developing nature of the right and its interaction with our domestic framework, we do not consider that the necessary level of clarity can be achieved at this time.

We will continue to engage with and monitor developments on the right to a healthy environment through the Council of Europe and other international institutions to ensure that Scotland’s approach is informed by emerging international law and practice. Scotland already benefits from important environmental protections through domestic human rights law, environmental legislation, and our wider environmental policy and regulatory framework. The Bill will add to this by bringing economic, social and cultural rights into domestic law, helping to reinforce protections that are closely linked to environmental conditions.

In the meantime, we are assessing how existing and planned government activity may contribute to the advancement of the substantive elements of the right. The Programme for Government sets out relevant commitments addressing climate change and resilience, biodiversity and nature restoration, air pollution, water quality and availability, sustainable food production, and pollution and waste. Across the substantive elements of the right, our approach combines working towards long-term environmental objectives with specific measures. It also supports investment intended to improve environmental protection and conditions, climate action, pollution reduction, sustainable resource management and measures intended to protect human health and wellbeing. We will continue to assess how existing and future policy and legislative activity can further contribute to the advancement of these substantive elements, and to identify opportunities to strengthen progress over time.