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-26298

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 2 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the progress of the Family Justice Modernisation Strategy, published in September 2019, and whether it plans to further reform family justice, including custodial arrangements for children.

The Scottish Government is preparing an update for publication on progress on the Family Justice Modernisation Strategy (the FJMS). I will write to the Member as soon as this is available.

I also refer the member to the answer to question S6W-26002 on 18 March 2024, which provides an update on implementation of the Children (Scotland) Act 2020 (the 2020 Act). 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/questions-and-answers .

On further reforms in family justice, I assume the member’s reference to “custodial arrangements for children” is to child contact and residence arrangements. Making further progress on implementing the FJMS and the 2020 Act is our priority in relation to child contact and residence. The Scottish Government does not plan any further primary legislation on child contact and residence at this time.

Question reference: S6O-03259

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 14 March 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 21 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body how many visitors to the Scottish Parliament have been asked by security and other SPCB staff to remove badges and other apparel since May 2021.

Question reference: S6W-24717

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 5 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many times intrauterine devices have been prescribed to prisoners in the female prison estate in each of the last five years, broken down by type of device.

Question reference: S6W-24714

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 5 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many trans (a) women and (b) men have (i) requested and (ii) undergone gender reassignment surgery while in prison in each of the last five years.

Question reference: S6W-24712

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 22 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 1 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports that NHS boards have been asked to pause spending on capital projects, when the National Treatment Centre for NHS Grampian is expected to become operational.

As set out in our draft budget the capital funding position is extremely challenging, with a UK Government cut of some 10% in our capital budget over the next five years. That has inevitably led to some difficult decisions on what capital projects will be progressed.

The Scottish Government will bring forward a revised pipeline of infrastructure investment in the spring, alongside the medium-term financial strategy, at which point we would hope that the fiscal outlook will be clearer.

Question reference: S6W-24715

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 22 January 2024
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 30 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many times emergency contraception, or the so-called morning after pill, has been prescribed to prisoners in the (a) female and (b) male prison estate in each of the last five years.

Question reference: S6W-24716

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 22 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 30 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many times an early medical abortion, or so-called abortion pill, has been prescribed to prisoners in the (a) female and (b) male prison estate, who were not pregnant upon incarceration, in each of the last five years.

Question reference: S6O-03028

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 January 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 31 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how it sets the priorities for its international offices each year.

Question reference: S6W-24397

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 23 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-23865 by Jenni Minto on 21 December 2023, when the policy to distribute condoms in the women's prison estate was introduced, and whether sanitary products are available in the men's prison estate, and, if so, when this policy was introduced.

The provision of condoms in all prisons (male and female) in Scotland has been a long standing health intervention dating back before the publication of ‘Respect and Responsibility: A Strategy and Action Plan for Improving Sexual Health’ in 2005.

All individuals in the care of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS) are provided with basic hygiene items and products. This includes clothing such as underwear and socks as well as sanitary products, body wash, shampoo, etc. This is to support the health, wellbeing and dignity of the individual.

Question reference: S6W-24314

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 04 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 22 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-23865 by Jenni Minto on 21 December 2023, whether records are kept of the condoms issued to prisoners on the female prison estate; if so, how many have been issued in each month of the last two years, and for what reason condoms are issued on the female prison estate if conjugal visits are not permitted.

Data on the numbers of condoms issued in prisons is not collected centrally.

Condom provision is one of the most effective harm reduction interventions to control sexually transmitted infections (STIs) including HIV and therefore condoms are available to all prisoners to support health protection in the prison population.

While centralised data is not collected, prison healthcare teams report that women access condoms for home visits and liberation.