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-32681

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 20 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 10 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what resources are available to Police Scotland in Aberdeen for monitoring and addressing the reported issue of illegal e-bikes.

The Scottish Government’s 2024-25 budget includes record police funding of £1.55 billion, which is an increase of £92.7 million on the 2023-24 Scottish Police Authority budget.

Official statistics show there were 16,427 FTE police officers at 30 September 2024. On 30 October the Chief Constable told the Criminal Justice Committee that she expected to reach the target of 16,600 officers soon - and this happened on 4 November.

Deployment of these resources to meet policing priorities is an operational matter for Police Scotland, under the scrutiny of the Scottish Police Authority.

Question reference: S6W-32682

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 20 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 10 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what protocols are in place to (a) respond to incidents involving illegal e-bikes and (b) support the victims of any such incidents.

Question reference: S6W-32678

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 20 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 10 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what support it is providing to Aberdeen City Council to ensure the effective enforcement of laws regulating e-bikes.

The Scottish Government fully supports local authorities and their partners in dealing with the misuse of such vehicles.

There is no record of Aberdeen City Council having requested support from the Scottish Government to enforce the laws regulating e-bikes.

Support for any local authority trading standards service to enforce product safety regulations is a matter for the Office for Product Safety and Standards.

Question reference: S6W-32697

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 20 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 10 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what evidence it has on the effectiveness of current e-bike regulations in reducing the prevalence of illegal modifications.

Legislation surrounding the use of e-bikes and regulatory standards is a reserved matter for the UK Government. For an e-bike to be legal for use in the UK, they must meet the criteria of an electrically assisted pedal cycle and the electric motor should not be able to propel the bike when it’s travelling more than 15.5mph, with a maximum power output of 250 watts. This ensures speeds similar to that of other bicycles.

Ebikes that are modified to exceed speed and power limits are classify under motorcycle legislation. Police Scotland are responsible for taking action against those who ride illegal ebikes. Between January 2024 and Sept 2024 Police Scotland seized 281 illegally modified ebikes.

Members of the public who are seeking clarity on the standards required to ride on public roads should visit https://www.gov.uk/electric-bike-rules

Question reference: S6W-32689

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 20 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 10 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what data it holds on the types of modifications commonly made to e-bikes that render them illegal, including the use of high-powered motors and throttle systems.

Question reference: S6W-32677

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 20 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 10 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what action is being taken to address the use of illegal e-bikes in Aberdeen city centre, particularly in areas with high pedestrian traffic.

Question reference: S6W-32669

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 20 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 10 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to address the reported growing number of illegally modified e-bikes in city centres.

Enforcement of traffic offences, including the illegal use of e-scooters and electric bikes, is an operational matter for Police Scotland, with oversight provided by the Scottish Police Authority which operates independently of Scottish Ministers.

The Scottish Government fully supports Police Scotland and its partners in dealing with the misuse of such vehicles. Local policing teams are ideally placed to identify where the misuse of such vehicles is causing distress to the public and ensure that those areas can be prioritised to prevent future incidents.

Police Scotland issued communications before Christmas, reminding people to consider the legal implications when purchasing an electric scooter or e-scooters. It urged people to be cautious when buying electric bikes or e-scooters reminding the public that some models may not be permitted for use on public roads and that anyone found riding a non-compliant e-bike or e-scooter on a public road will likely have it seized by officers, with a significant cost to the owner. It highlighted that further information on the use of electric bikes is available at: https://www.gov.uk/electric-bike-rules.

Question reference: S6W-32698

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 20 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 10 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many prosecutions have been brought under the Road Traffic Act 1988 in relation to illegal e-bikes in each year since 2020.

Question reference: S6W-32334

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 13 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Dorothy Bain on 9 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many appeals against convictions have been handled by the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) in each year of the last five years.

Question reference: S6W-32602

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 20 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 9 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what safety measures are in place to ensure the continued operation of older diesel trains, including High Speed Trains (HSTs).