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: S6O-03867

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 31 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to support the internal ferry fleet in Orkney.

Question reference: S6W-30511

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 22 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what proportion, expressed as a percentage, of the area of the inshore out to the six nautical mile limit is covered by a year-round prohibition on the use of mobile or active gear to (a) dredge for scallops and (b) trawl for nephrops norvegicus under any legal instrument as of April 2024.

Question reference: S6W-30510

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 18 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how it will maximise the collaborative process under the National Marine Plan 2, supported by the latest science, so that all stakeholders come together and work cooperatively on reaching decisions.

Widespread stakeholder participation is essential if we are to successfully develop a new National Marine Plan for Scotland that helps deliver our statutory targets, supports sustainable economic growth and protects our marine environment. We remain committed to our vision for engaging stakeholders throughout the development of NMP2 and we want everyone who uses, relies on or has an interest in Scotland's seas to have the opportunity to contribute when considering Scotland’s marine space.

In developing the NMP2, we are adopting a blue economy approach - considering our marine economy, local communities, and the environment altogether. The timeline for the development of the plan has been designed to allow for sufficient opportunity for meaningful engagement with stakeholders throughout the process. A public consultation on the NMP2 Planning Position Statement will take place in late 2024 allowing stakeholders to submit their views. A further public consultation for the NMP2 Draft Plan will take place in late 2025.

The timeline also allows for the NMP2 team to host events dedicated to cross-sector discussion and collaboration. Our first National Marine Planning Forum took place on 15 June 2023, providing an opportunity for everyone with an interest in the plan to input into its development at an early stage and discuss the key themes to be addressed in the plan. A further NMP2 forum will be held in winter 2024 specifically designed to bring together stakeholders and promote cooperation between sectors. The forum will facilitate discussions between stakeholders pertinent to the cross-sector issues that exist in the marine environment and give stakeholders the opportunity to collaborate and devise solutions to these issues that can influence NMP2. The NMP2 team will actively seek this feedback at the forum with the intention of integrating it into future policy development from NMP2.

A Steering Group has been established to provide advice on the statutory assessments and Sustainability Appraisal for NMP2, which are used to understand potential impacts on marine sectors and the marine environment from the proposals in the plan. The Steering Group is formed of stakeholders from various sectors who regularly meet with NMP2 officials to advise on the development of the statutory assessment and Sustainability Appraisal.

Question reference: S6W-30509

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 18 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether industry and other stakeholders have been, or will be, consulted on considerations around whether the National Marine Plan 2 will include detailed marine spatial plans.

The Scottish Government’s Marine Directorate will be sharing draft outputs, as noted in our revised Statement of Public Participation and Stakeholder Engagement Strategy, as they become available so we can collaboratively develop the plan with communities as part of our commitment to considering the Just Transition principles in the marine planning process.

By including a staged approach to our engagement for NMP2, and by speaking to people who use or rely on Scotland’s seas, the Marine Directorate can take time to better understand their needs and use these experiences and knowledge to create a new plan that works well for the people of Scotland.

This engagement has included the first National Marine Planning Forum and sector-based workshops, with future engagement planned around the consultation on the NMP2’s forthcoming Planning Position Statement (PPS) and draft plan.

Question reference: S6W-30508

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 18 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether the National Marine Plan 2 will include detailed marine spatial plans.

The National Marine Plan 2 (NMP2) will provide the coordinated overarching planning framework for sustainable development. It will incorporate within the planning framework policy developed in relevant areas - such as marine environmental protection, climate change mitigation and adaption, energy and fisheries - and consider the interaction between these policies in planning decisions. This includes the pathway to deliver net zero and the approach to delivering a green recovery established in the Climate Change Plan 2018 – 2032.

The Marine Directorate will explore, with stakeholders, the potential options for spatial policies as part of the NMP2 process, taking into account the need for protection of the marine environment to serve as a strong platform providing opportunities for sustainable development of our existing and growing marine sectors. NMP2 is intended as a high-level strategic framework which would not contain detailed marine spatial plans or measures.

There is a Sectoral Marine Plan supporting offshore wind development, which provides the spatial framework for the sustainable development of this sector in our seas.

Question reference: S6F-03402

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 23 September 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 26 September 2024

To ask the First Minister what discussions the Scottish Government is having with energy companies regarding a possible "social tariff" to reduce bills for low-income households.

Question reference: S6W-29706

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 09 September 2024
Current Status: Answered by Kaukab Stewart on 20 September 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is currently taking to tackle pensioner poverty in Scotland.

We work closely with partners, including through the Older People’s Strategic Forum (OPSAF) on a range of issues related to age equality. This includes the Strategic Action Framework ‘A Fairer Scotland for Older People’, in which Ensuring Financial Security is a priority area. We are running a number of Roundtables throughout Scotland to hear from older people and older people's organisation as part of the refresh of the Framework.

We support projects that enable older people to live independent and fulfilling lives. Our Equality and Human Rights Fund provides over £2.2M to support older people’s organisations and age equality projects and programmes. We also launched a £3.8m Social Isolation and Loneliness Fund on 8 March 2023 which funds 53 projects supporting people at risk of social isolation and loneliness.

Between Oct 23-March 24 the Equalities and Human Rights Fund resulted in a total of 17,350 individuals helped directly with the provision of support information and advice, with £1097,832 of income maximisation and 1,039 organisations have also been supported via capacity building and information sharing.

We have committed to investing over £12 million for the provision of free income maximisation support, welfare and debt advice services in 2024-25, including support for the Citizens Advice Scotland Money Talk Team Service, which last year supported over 9,000 older people.

The Scottish Government recognises the positive contribution older people make to their communities. We aim to enable better access to a range of services for older people as and when they need them. We want to ensure people are financially secure and supported as they age.

Question reference: S6W-29738

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 September 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 19 September 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what area, in hectares, is currently covered by a year-round prohibition on the use of mobile or active gear to (a) dredge for scallops and (b) trawl for nephrops norvegicus under schedules 1 and 3 of the Inshore Fishing (Prohibition of Fishing and Fishing Methods) (Scotland) Order 2004.

Question reference: S6W-29741

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 September 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 19 September 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what area, in hectares, is currently covered by a year-round prohibition on the use of creels for fishing under any measure other than the Inshore Fishing (Prohibition of Fishing and Fishing Methods) (Scotland) Order 2004.

Question reference: S6W-29740

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 September 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 19 September 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what area, in hectares, is currently covered by a year-round prohibition on the use of creels for fishing under schedule 2 of the Inshore Fishing (Prohibition of Fishing and Fishing Methods) (Scotland) Order 2004.