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: S7W-01776

Asked by: Jenny Young, MSP for Central Scot and Lothians West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 July 2026
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 5 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government (a) how many and (b) what proportion of 16- to 24-year-olds who are not in education, employment or training (NEET) also report as having a work-limiting health condition.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) Annual Population Survey (APS) is the main source for Labour Market Indicators for more detailed characteristics. The ONS state there are concerns with the quality of the APS estimates for smaller groups of the population. Therefore, it is not possible to produce robust estimates of the number of people aged 16 to 24 who are not in education, employment or training who also report having a work-limiting health condition from this source.

Scotland’s Census 2022 results show that, excluding full-time students, there were around 23,600 people aged 16 to 24 in Scotland who were unemployed or economically inactive and had a disability or health problem that limited their day-to-day activities a lot or a little.

The Annual Participation Measure published by Skills Development Scotland provides estimates for 16 to 19 year olds not participating in education, employment or training by disability status. In 2025, the SDS Annual Participation Measure estimates that 8,910 people aged 16 to 19 years old in Scotland were not participating in education, employment, or training (3.9% of 16 to 19 year olds). Of those who were not participating in education, employment or training, 11.1% (985 people) were identified as being disabled.

Question reference: S7W-01777

Asked by: Jenny Young, MSP for Central Scot and Lothians West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 July 2026
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 5 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has regarding how many 18- to 24-year-olds who are not in education, employment or training (NEET) are not in receipt of out-of-work benefits, including what reasons they give for their NEET status.

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) Annual Population Survey (APS) is the main source for Labour Market Indicators more detailed characteristics. The ONS state there are concerns with the quality of the APS estimates for smaller groups of the population. Therefore, it is not possible to produce robust estimates of the number of people aged 18 to 24 who are not in education, employment or training and not receiving out-of-work benefits from this source.

The Annual Participation Measure published by Skills Development Scotland provides estimates for 16 to 19 year olds not participating in education, employment or training by age and reason for not participating. In 2025, the SDS Annual Participation Measure estimates that 6,758 people aged 18 to 19 in Scotland were not participating in education, employment, or training. The status for those not participating in education, employment or training are included in Table 1.1b: https://www.skillsdevelopmentscotland.co.uk/media/appbneac/2025-annual-participation-measure-supplementary-tables.xlsx.

Question reference: S7W-01778

Asked by: Jenny Young, MSP for Central Scot and Lothians West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 July 2026
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 5 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government (a) how many and (b) what proportion of (i) 16- to 17-, (ii) 18- to 20-, (iii) 21- to 23- and (iv) 24-year-olds are classified as not being in employment, education or training (NEET).

The Office for National Statistics (ONS) Annual Population Survey (APS) is the main source for Labour Market Indicators for detailed characteristics. The ONS state there are concerns with the quality of the APS estimates for smaller groups of the population. Therefore, it is not possible to produce robust estimates of the number of people aged 16 to 24 who are not in education, employment or training by age group from this source.

The Annual Participation Measure published by Skills Development Scotland provides estimates for 16 to 19 year olds not participating in education, employment or training by age.

In 2025, the SDS Annual Participation Measure estimates that:

2,152 people aged 16 to 17 in Scotland were not participating in education, employment, or training (1.8% of 16 to 17 year olds)
6,758 people aged 18 to 19 in Scotland were not participating in education, employment, or training (6.1% of 18 to 19 year olds)

Question reference: S7W-01793

Asked by: Jenny Young, MSP for Central Scot and Lothians West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 July 2026
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 3 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government (a) how many and (b) what proportion of (i) 16- to 24-year-olds and (ii) people aged 25 or more who are in receipt of Adult Disability Payment remain in receipt after (A) one, (B) two and (C) five years, also broken down by how many have undergone a review or reassessment, and what the outcome was.

Social Security Scotland regularly publishes statistics on its benefits, including Adult Disability Payment, which covers the current number of clients in receipt of the payment, their age breakdown, and the information on completed reviews and outcomes.

The latest Adult Disability Payment statistics are available at: Adult Disability Payment statistics to 30 April 2026.

The specific breakdown of information requested is not routinely produced and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost, in line with Scottish Government guidance on Parliamentary Questions.

Question reference: S7W-01792

Asked by: Jenny Young, MSP for Central Scot and Lothians West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 July 2026
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 28 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of 16- to 24-year-olds in receipt of Adult Disability Payment are in employment (a) when they first receive the payment and (b) (i) 12 to 23, (ii) after 24 to 35 and (iii) 36 or more months after receiving their first payment.

Question reference: S7W-01788

Asked by: Jenny Young, MSP for Central Scot and Lothians West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 July 2026
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 28 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how much Social Security Scotland has spent in each of the last five years on welfare payments to 16- to 24-year-olds, broken down by benefit type,

Question reference: S7W-01179

Asked by: Jenny Young, MSP for Central Scot and Lothians West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 22 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 8 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the Scottish National Party’s manifesto commitment to deliver a Scottish Paths Fund, what discussions ministers have had regarding the potential impact of this on the visitor economy.

Question reference: S7W-01180

Asked by: Jenny Young, MSP for Central Scot and Lothians West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 22 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 8 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the Scottish National Party’s manifesto commitment to deliver a Scottish Paths Fund, what engagement there has been since 7 May 2026, or is planned, with organisations working in outdoor recreation and access regarding this.

Question reference: S7W-01181

Asked by: Jenny Young, MSP for Central Scot and Lothians West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 22 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 8 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the Scottish National Party’s manifesto commitment to deliver a Scottish Paths Fund, what assessment has been made of the level of funding required to ensure that this results in improvements in the quality of the country's recreational path network.

Question reference: S7O-00062

Asked by: Jenny Young, MSP for Central Scot and Lothians West, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 June 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 16 June 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on when construction work on Winchburgh train station will begin.