- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 27 June 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 17 July 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, following the removal of peak rail fares in September, whether super off-peak tickets will still be available for purchase at a reduced rate to commuters, and, if so, to which routes this will apply.
Answer
Super off-peak journeys account for 0.2 per cent of all journeys made on ScotRail services. Only a very small number of journeys actually qualify for the ticket, and there are restricted travel times aimed at the quietest trains on particular routes, between 11am and 3pm, and after 8pm. Details of all ScotRail fares and products, following the removal of peak fares on 1 September 2025, will be available in early August.
- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 July 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Claire Baker (on behalf of the SPCB) on 11 July 2025
To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what steps it is taking to make the parliamentary estate more pollinator-friendly, and whether these steps include (a) planting a more diverse array of plants for wild pollinators, (b) encouraging nature across the parliamentary estate more generally and (c) moving away from keeping bees in hives, in light of reports that organisations such as the Bumblebee Conservation Trust state that the latter is not a sustainable practice.
Answer
- Supporting Pollinators and Biodiversity at Holyrood
The Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body (SPCB) is committed to enhancing biodiversity and supporting pollinators across the parliamentary estate.
These are the key initiatives that are currently in place or planned:
- Biodiversity Policy and Route Map
- We have a Biodiversity Policy and Route Map. Facilities Management works with the Sustainability Team to ensure best practices are followed.
- Monitoring and Evidence
- From 2025, we will conduct biodiversity surveys twice a year to monitor progress and guide future actions. This will help us track our efforts and make informed decisions.
- Landscaping and Maintenance
- Our landscaping avoids pesticides and includes regular checks for invasive species. These efforts are managed through our Facilities Management contract to maintain a healthy ecosystem.
- Pollinator-Friendly Planting
- Each year, we plant a variety of wildflowers to support pollinators. This has increased the variety and number of pollinator-friendly plants across the estate, contributing to a healthier environment.
- Partnership and Engagement
- We work with internal teams and external organizations, including community benefit clauses in our contracts, to support biodiversity. This collaborative approach ensures a broad impact.
- Wildlife Support Measures
- Regular bat surveys are conducted, and bird and bat boxes have been installed in suitable locations to support local wildlife.
- Public Engagement and Education
- Information boards are placed in landscaped areas, and we provide opportunities for public engagement and education on biodiversity. This helps raise awareness and encourages community involvement.
- Encouraging Nature Across the Parliamentary Estate
To further support biodiversity, we have implemented several initiatives:
- Landscaping
- We have incorporated native species of trees, shrubs, and meadow grass. This landscaping approach helps reduce carbon footprints, manage groundwater movements, and encourage biodiversity, including bees, butterflies, insects, and birds.
- Management Practices
- We maintain a pesticide and peat-free regime to ensure a sustainable environment.
- The Butterfly Project/Square Metre for Butterflies
- We are working on the recovery of the Northern Brown Argus butterfly at Holyrood, contributing to the conservation of this species.
- Biodiversity Surveys
- We conduct regular biodiversity surveys and review bird and bat boxes to ensure they are effective.
- Beehives
- The Scottish Parliament was the first legislature in the UK to have beehives, showing our commitment to supporting pollinators. Please refer to our response under ‘c’ below for the current position relating to beehives on the parliamentary estate
- Waste and Recycling
- We aim to be a Zero Waste Parliament, reducing our environmental impact through effective waste management practices.
- Sustainable Procurement
- We minimise ecological impacts through sustainable procurement practices, ensuring our operations are environmentally responsible.
We are committed to tackling climate change and reducing our environmental impact. Recently, we planted fifteen new trees around the Parliament perimeter. Soft landscaping, such as trees, grasses, and shrubs, supports biodiversity and reduces groundwater movement to minimise erosion.
No pesticides, fertilisers, or peat are used onsite by our contractors.
- Review of On-Site Beekeeping following recent changes to guidance
As the current beekeeping contract neared its end in early 2025, Facilities Management and Procurement reviewed the role of managed beehives on the estate, following guidance from the Bumblebee Conservation Trust. This review involved engaging with stakeholders to determine the best approach. The existing contract was extended by one year to allow time for this review. A project is now underway to explore sustainable pollinator support from 2026 onwards.
- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 27 June 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 8 July 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what medical assessment is required by decision makers when authorising the renewal of Blue Badges; what type of healthcare professionals are involved in the renewal process; how they are involved, and whether they are involved in all applications.
Answer
Local authorities often refer to Blue Badge applications as 'renewals', but legally, all badges expire after three years and must be reassessed equally.
When authorising Blue Badge applications, local authorities are responsible for determining eligibility based on the information and evidence provided. Medical assessments are not automatically required. Where eligibility cannot be confirmed from the application alone, the applicant may be referred to an Independent Mobility Assessor (IMA). IMAs are regulated healthcare professionals, such as occupational therapists or physiotherapists, qualified to assess mobility impairments.
- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 05 June 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Fairlie on 17 June 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-35205 by Jim Fairlie on 11 March 2025, whether it has reconvened the working group with third sector representatives to explore delivery options for free bus travel for asylum seekers, and, if it is the case that it has not yet done so, when this commitment is likely to be delivered.
Answer
The development of a national pilot to provide free bus travel for people seeking asylum, and who are currently not eligible for existing National Concessionary Travel Schemes, is progressing with the Working Group. This group, which includes third-party representatives, reconvened on 7th May, with the most recent meeting taking place on 11 June.
- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 12 June 2025
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 19 June 2025
To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body, further to the response to question S6O-04050, what the findings were of the review of the terms and conditions of staff employed by MSPs, particularly in relation to parental leave policies.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 19 June 2025
- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 June 2025
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 19 June 2025
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its discussions with the UK Government regarding the Asylum Right to Work Pilot proposal, in light of the Home Office reportedly stating that it is unable to commit to exploring the feasibility of the proposal.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 19 June 2025
- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Thursday, 05 June 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Fairlie on 10 June 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answers to questions S6W-35787 and S6W-27244 by Jim Fairlie on 26 March 2025 and 13 May 2024 respectively, whether it will provide an update on how many (a) journeys have been made and (b) young people have now received a free bus pass through the Young Persons' (Under 22s) Free Bus Travel scheme, broken down by local authority area, based on the latest available data.
Answer
The following table shows a) the number of Young Persons’ Free Bus Travel Scheme cardholders broken down to local authority level as of 31 May 2025, and b) the number of journeys, broken down by local authority, made through the Young Persons’ Free Bus Travel Scheme since its launch in January 2022 up to 31 May 2025. Journeys are based on the local authority in which the card was issued, therefore some journeys will have been undertaken out with the local authority area.
Local Authority | Cardholders | Journeys |
Aberdeen City | 32,890 | 12,965,715 |
Aberdeenshire | 39,462 | 6,422,788 |
Angus Council | 15,266 | 3,098,694 |
Argyll & Bute | 10,137 | 1,766,719 |
City of Edinburgh | 90,476 | 46,677,709 |
Clackmannanshire | 5,793 | 1,062,834 |
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar | 3,234 | 321,498 |
Dumfries and Galloway | 16,725 | 3,106,846 |
Dundee City | 24,377 | 10,008,686 |
East Ayrshire | 18,402 | 5,586,745 |
East Dunbartonshire | 15,052 | 3,012,501 |
East Lothian | 17,579 | 6,438,478 |
East Renfrewshire | 16,090 | 2,966,398 |
Falkirk | 21,162 | 3,295,980 |
Fife | 62,111 | 17,636,651 |
Glasgow City | 94,983 | 29,954,613 |
Highland | 26,002 | 4,707,157 |
Inverclyde | 11,675 | 3,385,868 |
Midlothian | 14,901 | 5,983,790 |
Moray | 12,049 | 1,880,556 |
North Ayrshire | 20,684 | 6,272,609 |
North Lanarkshire | 52,612 | 9,089,543 |
Orkney Islands | 2,587 | 316,030 |
Perth & Kinross | 20,255 | 5,065,882 |
Renfrewshire | 26,335 | 7,508,699 |
Scottish Borders | 14,428 | 2,976,138 |
Shetland Islands | 3,551 | 608,594 |
South Ayrshire | 13,508 | 3,242,870 |
South Lanarkshire | 51,409 | 8,284,182 |
Stirling | 12,339 | 2,811,432 |
West Dunbartonshire | 14,478 | 3,921,799 |
West Lothian | 25,559 | 5,382,597 |
Total | 806,111 | 225,760,601 |
- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 May 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Gillian Martin on 3 June 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports of fires at recycling centres across the Mid Scotland and Fife region, what action it is taking to (a) identify and (b) reduce any risk of fires at recycling centres, particularly in relation to the correct storage of recycled batteries.
Answer
Following the fire at the WEEE Solutions site in Linwood in June 2024, I asked my officials to consider the safety of these sites and battery energy storage (BESS) sites. In particular, this was to examine whether existing safety provisions and regulations are sufficiently robust, whilst also considering compliance and enforcement aspects.
This concluded that the current legislative and regulatory framework is sufficiently robust, recognising however that it is complex and requires inter-agency cooperation to be effective. Moreover, responsibility also lies with the operators of waste, recycling and BESS sites to ensure that they have effective and robust arrangements in place to minimise the fire risk involved with the disposal and storage of batteries.
Also, on 4 April Siobhian Brown MSP, Minister for Victims and Community Safety, wrote to all MSPs and MPs to highlight the recent work that the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (SFRS) has undertaken recently concerning public safety awareness on the use of lithium-ion batteries.
Moving forward, Scottish Government officials are working with sector partners to host a workshop in the near future in order to further explore these issues and to identify if any potential changes can be made to reduce the risk of fire at recycling centres.
- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 02 June 2025
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 5 June 2025
To ask the First Minister what action the Scottish Government is taking to secure a direct ferry route between Scotland and France.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 5 June 2025
- Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 16 May 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Gillian Martin on 30 May 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-31971 by Gillian Martin on 12 December 2024, and the publication of its Programme for Government 2025-26, for what reason it no longer plans to introduce new primary legislation on drinking water and wastewater in the current parliamentary session.
Answer
The ongoing review of water, wastewater and drainage policy and consideration of legislation is important to equip our water industry with the tools to adapt to the accelerating impacts of climate change. This Government is pressing ahead with the policy development to ensure that proposals can be brought forward at the earliest opportunity, subject to the outcome of the 2026 elections.
