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-38654

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 June 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 26 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the potential impact of the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill on the cost of borrowing for rural businesses.

Question reference: S6W-38658

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 June 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 26 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment has been made of the potential impact of prior notification and lotting decisions within the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill on individuals employed by landowners on landholdings impacted by the legislation.

Question reference: S6W-38656

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 June 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 26 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what action a landowner can take in the event that the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill is passed and they are placed in breach of contract with a lender as a result.

Question reference: S6W-38655

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 June 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 26 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to make compensation available to any businesses that are materially disadvantaged by the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill.

Question reference: S6W-38653

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 June 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 26 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether any consultation with the financial services sector was undertaken during the development of the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill.

Question reference: S6W-38652

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 June 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 26 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what work it plans to undertake to ensure that any ministerial decisions taken in accordance with the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill are compliant with the Transfer of Undertakings (Protection of Employment) Regulations 2006.

Question reference: S6W-37973

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 May 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 12 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on each of the recommendations in the Climate Change Committee report, Scotland’s Carbon Budgets.

Following receipt of the Climate Change Committee (CCC)’s report, work is ongoing to consider the advice carefully and at pace. My intention is to lay regulations to set Scottish carbon budgets in legislation as soon as possible following Scottish Ministers’ consideration of both the CCC’s advice and the target-setting criteria contained in the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009. On the same day as laying the regulations, I will publish an accompanying statement providing further detail on the proposed carbon budgets and the Scottish Government’s position.

Question reference: S6W-37974

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 May 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 12 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on each of the "key drivers" targets in the Climate Change Committee report, Scotland’s Carbon Budgets, that are deemed necessary to achieve net zero emissions by 2045.

Question reference: S6O-04812

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 June 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 18 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what urgent action it is taking to address GP waiting times in NHS Grampian, in light of reports of ongoing staffing shortages, delayed discharges and critical incidents.

Question reference: S6W-37380

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 May 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 10 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding any contingencies that have been identified for maintaining electricity system security of supply in Scotland under any potential zonal pricing scenarios that result in lower generation margins within individual zones.

Decisions on the Review of Electricity Market Arrangements (REMA) are reserved to the UK Government. The UK Government has published impact assessments and is updating its analysis ahead of a final decision this summer. We are awaiting sight of this updated modelling. In addition, a range of impact assessments have been carried out by consultancies and industry bodies.

We met with researchers, industry and consumer organisations – as well as international electricity market experts – in December 2024 to consider the evidence and have engaged extensively with stakeholders over the past two years to understand all impacts.

This is a complex area and the Scottish Government is clear that UK Government reforms must reduce costs for Scottish consumers, ensure Scotland’s communities feel the benefit of the energy transition and protect investment in our renewables industry and supporting decarbonisation.