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-03394

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 17 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 1 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with NHS Scotland regarding the safe use of weight loss drugs in industries where workers are subject to a maximum weight limit.

Obesity medicines offer a highly effective treatment for obesity, as part of a range of weight management interventions for eligible patients, used alongside a reduced calorie diet and increased physical activity.

Individual Health Boards are responsible for decisions on the implementation and availability of medicines, including obesity medicines. These decisions are supported by guidance set out in the national consensus statement published in September 2024.

NHS Lothian is partnering with Ministry of Defence (Defence Medical Command) to develop obesity medicines pathways for military personnel, including policy that may have application across all safety critical industries. Learning from this national innovation programme will be shared widely and used to inform future treatment pathways across the NHS in Scotland.

Question reference: S7O-00345

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 September 2026
Current Status: Due to be taken in the Chamber on 6 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to support domestic abuse advocacy services.

Question reference: S7W-03393

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 17 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Stephen Gethins on 30 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with (a) the UK Government and (b) employers regarding the potential impact on offshore workers of any maximum worker weight limits applied in the oil and gas industry.

Question reference: S7W-03015

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 22 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service's (a) resource and (b) capital budget, how much has been allocated, and how much would have been allocated had budgets increased in line with the inflation measure used by the Scottish Government, in each year since its creation.

Scottish Fire and Rescue Service Budget from 2013-14

Year	Resource £m	Depreciation £m	Capital £m	Total £m
13-14	277.230	22.016	15.3	314.5
14-15	287.541	22.625	22.3	332.5
15-16	259.221	24.679	25.3	309.2
16-17	259.221	24.679	10.8	294.7
17-18	259.221	24.679	32.5	316.4
18-19	264.4	24.679	32.5	321.6
19-20	269.9	24.753	32.5	327.2
20-21	276.007	24.753	32.5	333.26
21-22	287.4	26.0	32.5	343.2
22-23	294.207	26.0	32.5	352.7
23-24	304.2	27.0	32.5	363.7
24-25	317.3	33.0	43.0	393.3
25-26	332.1	33.0	47.0	412.1
26-27	353.56	34.0	48.4	435.96

The budget for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service is set each year as part of the annual Budget Act process. The Scottish Government provides SFRS with the budget it needs to keep communities safe and therefore the budget is not allocated in line with inflation.

In terms of comparisons with hypothetical inflation figures, I refer the member to the answer to question S7W-02951 on 17 September 2026. 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.

Question reference: S7W-02868

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 17 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding the recent Cairngorms wildfire, what assessment it has made of whether best practice was adhered to in relation to cumulative exposure to toxic smoke, including guidance that firefighters should shower within one hour of such exposure.

Operational decision-making and decontamination procedures are matters for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS).

SFRS has established procedures and guidance to reduce firefighters' exposure to contaminants, including guidance that personnel should shower as soon as reasonably practicable following exposure. SFRS continues to review operational activity and learning from significant incidents to inform ongoing improvements to firefighter health, safety and wellbeing.

There will be a multi-agency debrief to examine the specific circumstances of the recent Cairngorms wildfire incident.

Question reference: S7W-02866

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 17 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of whether the current resources available to the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service are adequate to respond effectively in the event of multiple large-scale and protracted wildfires occurring simultaneously.

Deployment of resources is an operational matter for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, (SFRS). As a national service it has the ability to strategically mobilise operational capabilities from across Scotland to meet operational risk and demand.

SFRS has established specialist wildfire capabilities, including Wildfire Tactical Advisors, dedicated wildfire support assets and specialist vehicles strategically placed throughout the country and have in place defined escalation arrangements for larger incidents.

The Scottish Government is assured that the SFRS continually reviews and develops its operational capability to respond to wildfire incidents, recognising that climate change is increasing both the frequency and complexity of wildfire events in Scotland.

Question reference: S7W-02953

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 17 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has regarding the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service's capital backlog.

The most recent available information on the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service’s capital backlog is contained within the SFRS Risk Based Capital Investment Plan 2025.

Risk Based Capital Investment Plan 2025 | Scottish Fire and Rescue Service

Audit Scotland and His Majesty’s Fire Service Inspectorate in Scotland are currently carrying out a joint audit and inspection of SFRS’s management of estate, fleet and equipment. This report is expected to be published in March 2027.

Question reference: S7W-02951

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 17 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what funding would have been allocated to the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service in the 2026-27 Budget had its funding had been increased in line with inflation in each year since its creation in 2013.

SFRS was formed in April 2013 and the Resource budget for its first year of operations in 2013-14 was £277.23 million. Adjusting that figure using the GDP deflators that are published by the OBR at UK fiscal events, means the equivalent annual budget for 2026-27 would be £399.99m.

The SFRS Capital budget for 2013-14 was £15.292m. Using the same adjustments means the equivalent annual budget for 2026-27 would be £22m.

The non-fiscal element of the SFRS budget has not been included for the comparison of the impact of inflation. For reference, this figure was £22.02 million in 2013-14. Whilst this element is included in the total budget allocated to SFRS each year, the amount is allocated on the basis of actual cost to SFRS to cover accounting elements such as depreciation. As such, this element of the SFRS budget is not subject to inflationary pressures.

Question reference: S7W-02958

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 17 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what the average incident response time has been for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service in each year since its creation.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information.

SFRS publishes Fire Safety and Organisational statistics and Incident statistics on their website https://www.firescotland.gov.uk/about/statistics/, the next edition of Incident statistics is expected on 30 October 2026. There are currently no official statistics on the average incident response times in Scotland.

SFRS continues to respond to every emergency incident with the appropriate level of resources. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service's (SFRS) Operations Control rooms dynamically mobilise fire appliances based on their real-time location and availability, rather than fixed station response areas. This approach ensures that the nearest available resource is always deployed to achieve the quickest possible response time.

Question reference: S7W-02949

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 17 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how many wildfires the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service has recorded each year since its creation.

Statistical information concerning wildfires and associated data collection is compiled by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service, (SFRS). The Service publishes two statistical bulletins annually, which are Fire Safety and Organisational Statistic and Incident Statistics.

SFRS has provided the following information on wildfires attended by year:

Wildfires attended by year

Calendar Year	Total
2013	394
2014	123
2015	111
2016	103
2017	192
2018	210
2019	179
2020	103
2021	143
2022	146
2023	145
2024	55
2025	238