The Scottish Parliament

Question reference: S6W-44180

Asked by: Maggie Chapman, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 March 2026
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 18 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason the publication of the equality strategy for women and girls, which was due before the end of the current parliamentary session as committed to in the Programme for Government 2025-26, has been delayed.

The strategy will set out what women and girls told us is needed for a gender equal Scotland. The vision and goals cover a wider range of issues, therefore we need to engage widely with the public sector to ensure they are ready to help us meet its ambitions. The additional time will allow us to build support and lay the foundations for effective and sustainable delivery.

Question reference: S6W-44178

Asked by: Maggie Chapman, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 March 2026
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 18 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, whether a fall in the rate of successful applications for Adult Disability Payment, reportedly at an all-time low, and now lower than the equivalent payment in England and Wales, is the result of a policy decision(s) by the Scottish Government or Social Security Scotland.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring disabled people get the support they are entitled to and Social Security Scotland has robust quality assurance and evaluation processes to ensure the accuracy and integrity of decision making. Since the launch of ADP to October 2025, 45% of new applications have been approved, slightly higher than the 44% of new applications awarded PIP in England and Wales over the same period.

Question reference: S6W-44174

Asked by: Maggie Chapman, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 March 2026
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 13 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the latest statistics on the number of deaths of homeless people in Scotland, which show that 231 people died in 2024, representing an increase of 40% since the data was first collected in 2017.

Behind every statistic is a human being. We know that experience of multiple forms of extreme disadvantage, including homelessness, poor mental health and opioid dependence, is linked to higher rates of ill health and premature death. The Scottish Government remains committed to doing all we can to address disadvantage, tackle health inequalities and prevent homelessness from happening in the first place.

We continue to support local authorities through funding of £8 million per annum for rapid rehousing to deliver Housing First, which provides the best response for people experiencing homelessness who have multiple and complex needs. 26 local authorities in Scotland offer Housing First and, as of March 2025, it is estimated that more than 2,100 people have been provided with a settled home and wrap-around support.

Our housing emergency action plan recognises that people with multiple, complex needs are particularly vulnerable during a housing crisis, and we provided an additional £4 million in 2025-26 to expand the delivery of Housing First. We also extended rapid rehousing funding to 2026-27, bringing total funding provided to local authorities since 2018 to £84.5 million. In addition, the Housing (Scotland) Act 2025 will introduce gold-standard homelessness prevention measures to ensure people receive the help and support they need before reaching crisis point.

We are committed to continuing to strengthen our response to the harms caused by drugs and alcohol. In 2025-26 we made £160 million available for drug and alcohol programmes, including widening access to treatment, residential rehabilitation and life-saving Naloxone. We are maintaining record levels of investment of over £160 million in 2026-27, including £115 million for Alcohol and Drug Partnerships across Scotland. We are also continuing to improve treatment and harm-reduction services through the implementation of the medication-assisted treatment (MAT) Standards and the establishment of the UK’s first safer drug consumption facility in Glasgow, which is backed by Scottish Government funding.

We recognise that addressing the harms caused by substance use requires an integrated and coordinated approach. Our new Alcohol and Drugs Strategic Plan, published on 10 March, sets out actions to tackle substance related harms and deaths in Scotland and ensure that people receive the care and support that is right for them.

We are also working with colleagues across the UK to identify opportunities for collaboration to respond to emerging drug trends, including the increasing prevalence of new synthetic substances, which is a matter of significant concern across the UK.

Question reference: S6W-44175

Asked by: Maggie Chapman, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 March 2026
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 13 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it is considering a faster roll-out of the Housing First approach, in response to the latest statistics on the number of deaths of homeless people in Scotland, which show that 231 people died in 2024, representing an increase of 40% since the data was first collected in 2017.

The Scottish Government remains firmly committed to the delivery of Housing First and continues to support its growth across Scotland through sustained investment in rapid rehousing and the implementation of rapid rehousing transition plans. Between 2018 and the end of March 2027 a total of £84.5 million will have been provided to local authorities to support rapid rehousing activity, including the delivery of Housing First.

The Scottish Government’s housing emergency action plan demonstrated our ongoing commitment to improving housing options for people with multiple and complex needs by including investment of £3 million capital and £1 million resource for the expansion of Housing First in 2025-26.

The Scottish Government also provides funding annually to Homeless Network Scotland to deliver a suite of tools designed to support local authorities and their delivery partners to scale-up and expand Housing First in Scotland, including the National Framework for Housing First and the Housing First Check-Up process.

Reporting on the delivery of Housing First will become a statutory requirement under the Housing (Scotland) Act 2025, ensuring transparency, consistency and evidence based improvement.

Question reference: S6O-05659

Asked by: Maggie Chapman, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 March 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 18 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of Audit Scotland’s recent statement that local authorities will face a budget gap of nearly £1 billion by 2027, what action it is taking to provide additional support to third sector organisations that prevent and respond to rent and council tax arrears.

Question reference: S6O-05601

Asked by: Maggie Chapman, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 February 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 5 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the forthcoming International Women’s Day, what action it is taking to ensure that Scotland’s economy provides women with equitable access to economic opportunity, including how it supports them to live free from poverty and financial inequality.

Question reference: S6O-05559

Asked by: Maggie Chapman, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 February 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 25 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment the finance secretary has made of the impact of lengthy national budget consultation processes on the financial sustainability of third sector organisations in north east Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-43615

Asked by: Maggie Chapman, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 06 February 2026
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 18 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reported concerns regarding a greater need for agility and clear information, whether it will support SCOTS (Scottish Collaboration of Transportation Specialists) and others to develop a database of equipment, including vehicles and other kit, that can be mobilised to support local responses to severe weather events.

The Scottish Government recognises the importance of effective coordination, clear information and agility in responding to severe weather. We work closely with local authorities, SCOTS and resilience partners to strengthen preparedness and support local decision-making.

Mutual aid arrangements already enable partners to share equipment and expertise when required and are kept under review within our wider resilience framework. While understanding available assets can be beneficial, any proposal for a national equipment database would require careful consideration of scope, governance, cost and alignment with existing systems and responsibilities.

Transport Scotland engages extensively with winter service partners at local, national, and international levels and works closely with contractors and Scottish Government colleagues to plan and respond to network disruption. Through Multi-Agency Response Team (MART) arrangements with partners including the Met Office, Police Scotland and SCOTS, transport agencies coordinate operations, communications and recovery efforts to minimise disruption and support effective local and national responses during severe weather events.

Question reference: S6F-04691

Asked by: Maggie Chapman, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 16 February 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 February 2026

To ask the First Minister whether he will provide an update on the development of a Just Transition plan for the north east of Scotland, including how communities and workers have been engaged.

Question reference: S6W-43343

Asked by: Maggie Chapman, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 27 January 2026
Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don-Innes on 10 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether the review of the legislative landscape of Scotland's care system, which is being led by Professor Kenneth Norrie, will explicitly include unaccompanied asylum seeking children and young people, including whether it will consider the specific legal and immigration related processes that affect their care, protection and long-term outcomes.

The Independent Review of Scotland’s Legislative Framework for Children’s Care will undertake a comprehensive, independent review of Scotland’s legislative framework affecting children, young people, families and the children’s care system, and to provide Scottish Ministers with clear, evidence-based and practical recommendations with the aim of simplifying legislation for practitioners and those working with, and supporting, children and families.

The remit will be finalised in the coming weeks however it is expected to take account of:

• challenges around access to justice and effective participation;

• the need for clarity about rights, responsibilities and routes to help;

• evidence of tensions, contradictions or misalignment across statutes and policy frameworks; and

• the benefits for children’s rights of re-enacting specific provisions relating to the care system in Scotland that are currently contained in UK Acts.

Immigration legislation and policy is a reserved matter, and won’t specifically fall within the scope of the review. However unaccompanied asylum-seeking children are entitled to support within the care system, and the review will consider relevant Scottish legislation such as the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 - which applies in relation to the care, protection and support of children and young people in Scotland, including unaccompanied asylum seeking children and young people.

Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Filter your results Hide all filters

Question reference: S6W-44180

Answer

Question reference: S6W-44178

Answer

Question reference: S6W-44174

Answer

Question reference: S6W-44175

Answer

Question reference: S6O-05659

Answer

Question reference: S6O-05601

Answer

Question reference: S6O-05559

Answer

Question reference: S6W-43615

Answer

Question reference: S6F-04691

Answer

Question reference: S6W-43343

Answer