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-25686

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 22 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 4 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government on what date it will publish its Green Industrial Strategy.

Question reference: S6W-25687

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 22 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 28 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government on what date it will publish its Energy and Just Transition Strategy.

Question reference: S6O-03145

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 February 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that critical transport infrastructure is resilient against extreme weather events.

Question reference: S6W-24929

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 29 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 21 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-24884 by Lorna Slater on 29 January 2024, whether it plans to use the Circular Economy (Scotland) Bill as the mechanism to ban single-use disposable vapes.

Officials are moving at pace, with the rest of the UK to bring forward the correct mechanisms to ban Single Use Vapes. As this is an area of devolved competence, decisions on whether to act in this area rest with the respective Governments in each part of the UK.

I wrote to the NZET committee on the 26th of January informing them that the Scottish Government intend to bring forward Scottish regulations under the Environmental Protection Act 1990 to enact a ban on the sale and supply of single-use vapes in Scotland. In doing so, we will conduct a full impact assessment which, depending on its outcome in relation to the impact on different groups or communities, may require consideration of limited exemptions to a ban.

We will continue to work with UK Government and other Devolved Governments as we develop this legislation and will engage with Parliament as appropriate and necessary during this process.

Question reference: S6W-24585

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 15 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how much capital funding to NHS boards (a) has been provided in the financial year 2023-24 and (b) will be made available in the financial year 2024-25.

The 22 National and Territorial NHS Boards have received a total of £148.8 million of Capital Formula in the year 2023-24. In addition to formula capital, NHS Boards are anticipating further funding of £283.9 million which will allow all major projects in construction to be completed - Baird and ANCHOR in Aberdeen, Parkhead Health and Social Care Centre in Glasgow, National Treatment Centres in Forth Valley and the Golden Jubilee, continued support for the national replacement programmes for Ambulances and Radiotherapy equipment and other small scale investments. The final outturn has yet to be finalised, but it is currently forecast to be £432.7 million in total in 2023-24.

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. Nonetheless, this settlement allows formula capital to be maintained at 2023-24 levels in the year 2024-25. Additional in-year capital allocations will also be provided, but these have not been finalised at this point.

Question reference: S6W-24586

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 15 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how much capital funding to NHS Lothian (a) has been provided in the financial year 2023-24 and (b) will be made available in the financial year 2024-25.

NHS Lothian has received £24.7 million of Capital Formula and the latest forecast indicates that by the year end a further £10.7 million in allocations will be provided for a total of £35.4 million in capital funding in 2023-24.

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. Nonetheless, this settlement allows formula capital to be maintained at £24.7 million 2023-24 levels in 2024-25. Additional in-year capital allocations will also be provided, but these have not been finalised at this point.

Question reference: S6W-24582

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 18 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 1 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has informed NHS boards that capital funding has been frozen for two years as part of its Budget, in light of reports of it putting in place such a freeze.

As set out in the draft Scottish Government budget, the capital funding position is extremely challenging due to the UK Government’s decision to cut our capital budget by nearly 10%.

The capital budget settlement allows for Health Boards’ delegated capital budgets to be maintained at 23-24 levels, for all major projects in construction to be completed and for continued support for the national replacement programmes for ambulances and radiotherapy equipment. Given the current uncertainty regarding availability of funding, regrettably, we have advised boards to pause any new capital projects until capital funding becomes more certain.

Our Infrastructure Investment Plan identified priority health capital projects for funding within that period. As a result of UK Government cuts, we will bring forward a revised Infrastructure Investment Plan in the spring. All due consideration will be given to what projects can be included to ensure the revised Plan is affordable and deliverable.

Question reference: S6W-24583

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 18 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 1 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-22795 by Michael Matheson on 21 November 2023, whether the review of funding availability took place in line with its Budget.

Question reference: S6W-24584

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 18 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 1 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any impact a freeze on capital budgets will have on the building of a new eye hospital in Edinburgh.

Question reference: S6O-03071

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 31 January 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 8 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what it can do to address potholes on the road network, including what support is available for local authorities to do so, in light of reports that Edinburgh is the second worst city in the UK for potholes.