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-03297

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Stephen Flynn on 28 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on whether Liberty Steel Dalzell is currently fulfilling its contract with Navantia, to supply plate for the Fleet Solid Support ships, including what tonnage has been delivered, what the agreed delivery timetable is, and what assessment it has made of any potential risks to that timetable.

Question reference: S7O-00325

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 September 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 30 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that CMAL will no longer publish the names or locations of shipyards bidding for the MV Lord of The Isles replacement contract or any future vessel tenders.

Question reference: S7W-02647

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 August 2026
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 23 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether a pilot programme for automated vending machines dispensing sterile injecting equipment and other harm reduction supplies could be authorised under existing legal exceptions agreed with the Lord Advocate, or whether additional guidance for Police Scotland would be needed to support individuals accessing supplies from these machines.

We remain committed to exploring any evidence-based harm reduction measure which will help us to reduce drug-related harms and save lives. If a local area identified an automated vending machine as a measure which would benefit their area, Scottish Government officials would be happy to work with them on the feasibility and logistics of implementing it. Needle exchange vending machines have already been used in Scotland by Hillcrest Futures in four of their Edinburgh and Glasgow services.

Question reference: S7W-03051

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Stephen Gethins on 22 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what legal assessment it has made of its ability to direct SEPA to refuse environmental permits for a small modular reactor (SMR) development, where the relevant reactor design has successfully completed the UK Office for Nuclear Regulation’s Generic Design Assessment (GDA) process and been deemed safe at a UK level.

Question reference: S7W-02640

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 August 2026
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 22 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how its drug-checking strategy distinguishes between the threat of fentanyl and the rise of synthetic potent analogues, such as nitazenes, and what steps are being taken to ensure that distributed test strips match the reality of current street supply contaminants.

The Scottish Government’s approach to harm reduction is informed by current intelligence on emerging drug trends through Public Health Scotland’s Rapid Action Drug Alerts and Response (RADAR) system. Current intelligence indicates that nitazenes are the most commonly detected new synthetic opioids in Scotland. Fentanyl (as an illicit substance) is not often detected in Scotland but is a widely used street term to refer to all synthetic opioids.

We are aware that nitazene test strips are available from some services in Scotland. We are working with partners including Public Health Scotland and Healthcare Improvement Scotland to consider the evidence and inform appropriate Scottish guidance.

Question reference: S7W-02639

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 August 2026
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 22 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what recent assessment it has made of the clinical efficacy and cost-effectiveness of integrating the distribution of rapid testing strips, including those detecting fentanyl and nitazenes, into existing harm-reduction networks and needle exchanges.

The Scottish Government is committed to continuing to explore innovative drug harm reduction measures. We have not undertaken a formal national assessment of the clinical efficacy or cost-effectiveness of integrating rapid testing strips into existing harm reduction networks or injecting equipment provision services, however we are aware that nitazene test strips are available from some services in Scotland.

We are aware of both the potential benefits and limitations of rapid testing strips as harm reduction tools, including their role in supporting engagement and risk reduction, alongside recognised limitations relating to accuracy and false negative results. We are working with partners including Public Health Scotland and Healthcare Improvement Scotland to consider the evidence and inform appropriate Scottish guidance.

Question reference: S7W-02638

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 August 2026
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 22 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what national guidance or training it is providing to third-sector organisations, such as the Scottish Drugs Forum, to educate drug users on the limitations of test strips, specifically addressing the risks of false negatives and the "chocolate chip cookie effect", where a contaminant is unevenly distributed within a batch.

The Scottish Government does not provide a specific national training programme to third-sector organisations on the use of drug testing strips. However, we work closely with a range of partners, including Scottish Drugs Forum, Public Health Scotland, and local Alcohol and Drug Partnerships to support the provision of evidence-based harm reduction information and advice.

The Rapid Action Drug Alerts and Response (RADAR) website – coordinated by Public Health Scotland – includes information on the use of nitazene test strips, which highlights limitations. This information notes that the accuracy of test strips varies depending on the type and concentration of nitazene present, that not all nitazenes can be detected, and that a negative result does not guarantee that a substance is free from nitazenes.

Question reference: S7W-03053

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Stephen Gethins on 22 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding the potential use of critical national infrastructure designations to facilitate the siting of small modular reactors at established civil nuclear sites, including Hunterston, Torness, Chapelcross and Dounreay, and what assessment it has made of how such designations might interact with or supersede devolved powers.

Question reference: S7W-03052

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Stephen Gethins on 22 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether its policy presumption against new nuclear power generation extends to private-wire micro-reactors constructed entirely on private commercial land to directly power data centres without connecting to the national grid, and what devolved powers it could use to intervene in such developments.

The Scottish Government opposes the construction of new nuclear power stations under current technologies, and this position applies to any variation of conventional nuclear fission technology.

Decisions on whether new power stations may be developed in Scotland are devolved. Consent from Scottish Ministers is required under the Electricity Act 1989 for certain electricity works including electricity generating stations with a capacity greater than 50MW. Applications for development not meeting the criteria for consideration under the Electricity Act 1989 are considered under the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997, as amended, and are primarily a matter for the relevant planning authority.

Question reference: S7W-02646

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 August 2026
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 22 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of international data regarding automated harm reduction kiosks such as those deployed in Ohio, USA and whether it will evaluate the feasibility of deploying similar 24/7, low-barrier vending machines in Scotland to distribute naloxone and rapid adulterant testing strips.

To date the Scottish Government has not carried out any assessment of the international data regarding automated harm reduction kiosks.

We remain committed to exploring any evidence-based harm reduction measure which will help us to reduce drug-related harms and save lives. We are aware of different methods of IEP distribution across the world designed to suit their localities and encourage local areas to consider what would best suit their area.

If a local area has identified an automated vending machine as a measure which would benefit their area, Scottish Government officials would be happy to work with them on the feasibility and logistics of implementing it.