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: S6W-43253

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 January 2026
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 5 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the ongoing employment position of shop-floor manufacturing workers at Alexander Dennis's site in (a) Larbert and (b) Falkirk, in light of reports that the company has not applied for any funding through the furlough scheme that was created to support the retention of jobs at the company.

Question reference: S6W-43251

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 January 2026
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 5 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what engagement it has had with Alexander Dennis since September 2025 to establish the reasons for the company reportedly not having applied for any funding through the furlough scheme that was created to support it, and whether any conditions of the scheme have prevented or delayed access to the funding.

Question reference: S6W-43254

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 January 2026
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 5 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has considered (a) revising, (b) extending and (c) withdrawing the furlough scheme that it created to support the retention of jobs at Alexander Dennis, in light of reports that the company has not applied for any funding through the scheme, and what criteria it is using to determine the scheme’s continued relevance.

Question reference: S6W-43247

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 January 2026
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 5 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether Alexander Dennis has met the contractual obligations required for the release of funding through the furlough scheme that was announced to support the retention of jobs at the company.

Question reference: S6W-43250

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 January 2026
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 5 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how much funding has been formally (a) applied for, (b) approved and (c) distributed to date through the furlough scheme for Alexander Dennis, in each month since the scheme was announced.

Question reference: S6W-43252

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 January 2026
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 5 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding the furlough scheme that was announced to support the retention of jobs at the company, whether Alexander Dennis has provided the required evidence of sufficient contracted orders to sustain long-term manufacturing operations in Scotland, and, if so, on what date any such evidence was (a) received and (b) assessed.

Question reference: S6W-43298

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 23 January 2026
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 4 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason eligibility for the First Minister’s Start Up Challenge is restricted to only young people from disadvantaged or underrepresented backgrounds, and what assessment it has made of the impact this restriction will have on other entrepreneurs aged 18 to 30.

The First Minister’s Start-up Challenge is focussed on young people from disadvantaged or under-represented backgrounds because the evidence suggests that they are less likely to engage in entrepreneurship due to a lack of financial support, networks and role models. Ministers believe that unlocking this talent will have a significant economic impact.

An Equality Impact Assessment is currently being undertaken and will be published on the Scottish Government website prior to applications opening later in the year. Entrepreneurs aged 18 to 30 are able to seek support for a variety of programmes and partners within the ecosystem, including via the Scottish EDGE Young EDGE awards, funded by the Scottish Government.

Question reference: S6W-43300

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 23 January 2026
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 29 January 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how much have electricity generators in Scotland been paid in constraint payments in each year since 2021.

Question reference: S6O-05474

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 January 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 5 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the culture of whistleblowing in the NHS.

Question reference: S6W-43232

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 January 2026
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 28 January 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-42739 by Ivan McKee on 9 January 2026, what sources provided the evidence for the internal review to implement the 40% in-person working target, and whether it will set out what these sources advised.

Details of the sources of evidence used by, and related advice provided to, the Scottish Government’s Executive Team during an internal review of its hybrid working policy have been available on the Scottish Government website since July 2025 at: Scottish Government hybrid working policy evidence and findings: FOI release - gov.scot. In particular, the sources of evidence considered are set out at annex 6 and advice in annexes 1 to 5 of that publication.