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: S6T-02503

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 06 May 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 6 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what immediate action it will take to address the reported failure by NHS boards to publish significant adverse event reviews related to mother and baby deaths in hospitals.

Question reference: S6W-36889

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 17 April 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 6 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason inmates who reportedly breached prison rules were included in the early release scheme to alleviate overcrowding.

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

I refer the member to the answer to the question S6O-04553 on 23 April 2025. 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

Question reference: S6W-36900

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 17 April 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 6 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of the additional £29 million announced for additional support needs provision will go towards hiring new specialist teachers and classroom assistants.

In 2025/26, an additional £28m will be invested in additional support for learning, to support the recruitment and retention of the ASN workforce at a local level, to help enhance professional learning on inclusion for all teachers at all stages of their careers and to support teacher specialism in inclusion. A further £1 million will be provided to support national initiatives, which will enable us to build on the work being delivered through our Additional Support for Learning Action Plan.

Question reference: S6W-36899

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 17 April 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 6 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any link between its policy of mainstreaming pupils with additional support needs and the reported 580% increase in mental health problems among school pupils.

The Scottish Government recognises the growth in the number of pupils with an additional support need since the pandemic.

Local authorities have the statutory responsibility for delivering education and for ensuring that those pupils identified with an additional support need are fully supported to learn, in the environment that best suits their needs. Most children and young people’s needs are met through a universal level of support and 95% of children and young people with ASN were educated in mainstream classes in 2024. This includes adapting learning and teaching approaches to support children in the classroom. There remains a broad consensus from children and young people, parents and carers, the teaching profession and others that the Scottish approach to inclusive education continues to be the right one.

We continue to seek ways to improve the experience of inclusion for all of our young people and the 2025-26 budget sets out an additional £29 million for additional support needs.

The mental health and wellbeing of children and young people is a top priority for the Scottish Government. We continue to provide £16 million per year to enable local authorities to provide access to school counselling services for pupils aged 10 and over.

Question reference: S6W-36913

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 17 April 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 6 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how many additional school places local authorities may need to provide as a result of pupils transferring from the independent to the state sector, and what the cost will be.

A small number of local authorities have provided indicative figures for the number of pupils enrolling in state schools from independent schools.

However, the annual fluctuation of pupil rolls in those local authorities is typically significantly larger than the increase in the number of pupils enrolling in schools from the independent sector that has been reported. We do not therefore anticipate the number of pupils transferring representing a significant issue for Local Authorities.

In terms of funding, the Scottish Government collects information on the number of pupils in state schools every September as part of the pupil census. The distribution methodology for calculating the Local Government Settlement is agreed with local authorities and is informed by a number of indicators including pupil numbers from the latest annual school census.

Local authorities have the statutory responsibility to provide education for children and young people in their area.

Question reference: S6W-36886

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 April 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 6 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will consider a pilot programme offering subject specialist tutoring in STEM subjects to pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds.

More than £1bn will be provided through the Attainment Scotland Fund (ASF) to tackle the poverty-related attainment gap during this parliamentary term. Headteachers and education authorities are free to decide to use this funding to provide additional tutoring support.

Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that all young people have the opportunity to develop core STEM skills and knowledge, which is why tackling inequity within STEM learning and careers is at the heart of our STEM Education and Training Strategy. Through the Curriculum Improvement Cycle, we have established a systematic approach to curriculum improvement which will help to ensure that STEM subjects are attractive and accessible to all learners.

Specialist STEM programmes for pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds are currently being delivered across Scotland. These include SSERC’s Research Placements Programme, funded by a range of partners, which provides S5 pupils from disadvantaged backgrounds the opportunity to undertake online modules to develop their professional skills, followed by a two-week STEM research placement.

In addition, Strathclyde University run an Engineering Scholars Programme open to senior phase pupils from under-represented groups who are interested in studying Engineering at university. The opportunity includes a scholarship package featuring personal or small group tutoring.

Question reference: S6W-36885

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 April 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 6 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has conducted regarding any attainment benefits of external tutoring programmes, such as the STEM SMART initiative, for state school pupils in Scotland.

More than £1bn will be provided through the Attainment Scotland Fund (ASF) to tackle the poverty-related attainment gap during this parliamentary term. This funding can be used to provide additional tutoring support, if headteachers and education authorities want to deploy this support in a way that targets those who will most benefit from this kind of intervention.

The Scottish Government has provided multi-year funding for mentoring programmes, which has been shown to support confidence building and attainment in care-experienced children and young people and those affected by poverty. In March 2021, the Scottish Government announced a £19.4 million fund over five years for mentoring programmes to support young people as part of the Scottish Mentoring and Leadership Programme (SMLP), including funding for MCR Pathways to further rollout provision across Scotland to a much larger cohort of young people.

An interim evaluation report on the SMLP programme published in December 2024 found that mentoring had increased participant’s academic confidence, attainment/achievement, social confidence, and confidence in doing well at a job in the future. A Value for Money and Impact Evaluation report is due to be published in 2025. Previous independent evaluation of the MCR Pathways mentoring programme showed that there were statistically significant positive differences between the outcomes of care-experienced young people who were mentored and care-experienced young people who were not mentored, in staying on rates, attainment, and positive destinations.

Question reference: S6W-36827

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 11 April 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 6 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what immediate steps it is taking to address the reported alleged breach of exam marking security procedures at the Scottish Qualifications Authority.

Question reference: S6W-36851

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 11 April 2025
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 6 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that the cost of publicly funded care home beds in Scotland are significantly higher than those in England, and what assessment it has made of the reasons for any such disparity.

The Scottish Government is aware of the reports indicating that the cost of publicly funded care home beds in Scotland is higher than in England. This disparity is likely to be influenced by several factors, including differences in service models, staffing levels, and the geographical distribution of care facilities.

Service Models and Staffing Levels: Scotland's approach to care often involves higher staffing ratios and more comprehensive service models, which can increase operational costs.

Geographical Distribution: The spread of care homes across Scotland, particularly in rural and remote areas, can lead to higher costs due to economies of scale being less achievable.

Regulatory and Quality Standards: Scotland maintains stringent regulatory standards to ensure high-quality care, which may result in higher compliance costs for providers.

Question reference: S6W-36831

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 11 April 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 6 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish in full the reported internal review undertaken by the Scottish Qualifications Authority in relation to secure assessment materials being compromised, and what lessons will be learnt from this incident.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-37086 on 6 May 2025.

Responsibility for any decisions on whether to publish the results of their investigation conducted in relation to the sharing of annotated materials is a matter for the Scottish Qualifications Authority (SQA).

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers