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-01025

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 15 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Kirsten Oswald on 6 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the readiness of local authorities to prepare for the implementation of the Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025.

The Terrorism (Protection of Premises) Act 2025 is a reserved piece of legislation that is the responsibility of UK Government to implement. Scottish Government has been supporting the implementation of this legislation in Scotland through holding meetings and organising Webinars for interested parties, including Local Authorities. Scottish Government officials have met with Local Government representatives to discuss the impact of the legislation in Scotland.

Question reference: S7W-01031

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 15 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Kirsten Oswald on 6 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with Police Scotland regarding the availability of armed policing resources in Greater Glasgow.

Question reference: S7W-01029

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 15 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Kirsten Oswald on 6 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with Police Scotland regarding counter-terrorism preparedness in Glasgow.

Question reference: S7W-01030

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 15 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Kirsten Oswald on 6 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of armed policing capacity in Greater Glasgow.

Question reference: S7W-01520

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 30 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding vehicle searches conducted by Police Scotland, (a) how many were carried out, (b) what reasons were recorded for each search and (c) what proportion of these searches resulted in a positive outcome, in each of the last five financial years.

Question reference: S7W-01447

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 29 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding the time taken to approve a criminal warrant, what was (a) the average time, (b) the longest time and (c) the shortest time, in each of the last five financial years.

Question reference: S7W-01367

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 26 June 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 24 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to address food fraud, including the deliberate use of misleading labelling to suggest that an item was produced in Scotland and the United Kingdom rather than only packaged in Scotland.

Question reference: S7W-00889

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 23 June 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-44296 by Jenny Gilruth on 25 March 2026, whether it will provide an update on the work carried out as part of the public inquiry into the response to group-based child sexual abuse and exploitation, and by what date does it anticipate the inquiry's findings will be published.

Work is continuing at pace to establish the inquiry. Detailed Terms of Reference are currently being developed, informed by ongoing discussions with Professor Jay, and these will be published in due course.

I would also reiterate that it is not appropriate for Ministers to direct an independent inquiry Chair in relation to its duration or costs. Professor Jay has made clear her intention to deliver the inquiry at pace, while retaining the necessary flexibility to examine all areas within its remit. Decisions regarding the timing and frequency of the inquiry’s findings will be a matter for Professor Jay.

Question reference: S7W-00905

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 22 June 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how much funding it has provided each month (a) directly and (b) through Transport Scotland to Walking Scotland in each of the last five financial years, and since April 2026.

The Scottish Government does not hold funding information for Walking Scotland (formerly Paths for All) on a monthly basis, as funding is awarded and managed on an annual programme basis. The following table sets out the Transport Scotland programmes and annual funding allocations by financial year:

Year	Programme	Value
2020-21	Smarter Choices, Smarter Places	£7,879,200
2021-22	Smarter Choices, Smarter Places	£9,468,223
2021-22	Scottish Health Walks Network	£45,000
2022-23	Smarter Choices, Smarter Places	£12,633,626
2022-23	Ian Findlay Path Fund	£1,603,000
2023-24	Smarter Choices, Smarter Places – Local Authority Fund	£5,330,000
2023-24	Smarter Choices, Smarter Places – Open Fund	£5,388,000
2023-24	Smarter Choices, Smarter Places – Active Nation Fund	£1,792,000
2023-24	Ian Findlay Path Fund	£1,600,000
2024-25	Ian Findlay Path Fund	£1,523,000
2024-25	Smarter Choices, Smarter Places – Wind Down	£220,000
2025-26	Ian Findlay Path Fund	£1,800,000

Funding levels vary between financial years, reflecting changes to programme design, including the transition and wind down of the Smarter Choices, Smarter Places programme, alongside investment in the Ian Findlay Path Fund.

Additionally, the following table shows the annual funding from Active Scotland to Walking Scotland:

Year	Value
2021-22	£1.4
2022-23	£2
2023-24	£2
2024-25	£2
2025-26	£2

Question reference: S7W-00893

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 22 June 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the risks to public safety of the current household knife disposal policy, which allows for knives to be disposed of in accessible wheelie bins.

There are specific guidelines in place in every local authority area in Scotland for the disposal of sharp household items, including knives, to ensure safety. Neither local authorities nor Police Scotland have raised concerns about the current policy and approach – and have not reported a heightened risk to public safety arising from the disposal of household knives. More broadly, the Scottish Government is supporting a range of programmes such as No Knives, Better Lives, in our schools and in the wider community, to educate young people in particular about the dangers of carrying a knife.