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-01960

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 23 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 20 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what guidance it provides to local authorities and the General Teaching Council for Scotland on balancing teachers' responsibilities to demonstrate political impartiality in schools with their rights to hold and express protected religious beliefs under the Equality Act 2010, and what action it is taking to ensure that individuals working in the education sector are protected from discrimination on the grounds of religion or belief.

Question reference: S7W-01916

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 19 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of recent large fires, including at a recycling centre in the Perth Harbour area, what action it is taking to give the Scottish Fire and Rescue the resources that it needs to deal with the modern causes of such incidents, such as lithium batteries from electronic vapes.

Question reference: S7W-01845

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 20 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 17 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it, the Energy Consents Unit or the National Planning Hub holds data on the cumulative electricity and water demand of all data centre proposals currently in the planning system, and if not, what its position is on commissioning such data before further determinations in relation to these proposals are made.

Question reference: S7W-01846

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 20 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 17 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact on household and business electricity bills in Scotland of transmission network charges forecast by the National Energy System Operator (NESO) to rise from £2.8 billion in 2020-21 to £13.6 billion in 2030-31, and of Ofgem's early funding decisions indicating substantial cost increases for transmission projects in Scotland, including the Denny to Wishaw and Tealing to Kincardine projects.

Question reference: S7W-01847

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 20 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 17 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of whether Scotland’s construction and engineering workforce has the capacity to deliver simultaneously the consented onshore wind pipeline, the electricity transmission network expansion, which the National Energy System Operator (NESO) has reportedly said must proceed at more than four times the rate of the last decade, and proposed hyperscale data centres, and what role its skills agencies will play in meeting any workforce requirements.

Question reference: S7W-01843

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 20 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 17 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the implications for Scotland, including for the period after Torness closes in 2030, of the electricity grid frequency event of 23 June 2026 and the subsequent matters raised in the letter by the Shadow Secretary of State for Energy Security and Net Zero to the National Energy System Operator (NESO) of 10 July 2026.

Question reference: S7W-01844

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 20 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 17 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government by what date it will publish guidance on the factors that define a green data centre, and whether, pending publication of that guidance, it will invite planning authorities to defer determining applications for hyperscale data centres.

Question reference: S7W-01149

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Hannah Mary Goodlad on 2 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to introduce a national strategy plan for the location of AI data centres or allow local authorities to determine this on an individual basis.

Decisions on the location of such developments are currently taken through Scotland’s plan-led planning system. This includes the National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4), which sets out national planning policies and priorities, alongside local development plans prepared by planning authorities. Together, these ensure that proposals are assessed in a consistent manner. Ministers are considering whether additional strategic coordination is required to support future investment, manage cumulative impacts on infrastructure, resources and communities. In a response to Martyn Day MSP on Thursday 25 June, I advised that the Scottish Government is urgently considering whether more formal guidance is required to help local planning authorities. In a response to Gillian MacKay MSP on Thursday 25 June, the First Minister set out that he is giving active consideration to whether the Scottish Government should provide planning guidance to balance the rapid expansion of hyperscale data centres with national energy and climate goals, which are vital to our future prosperity.

Question reference: S7W-01148

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Hannah Mary Goodlad on 2 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it considers that the National Planning Framework 4 provides sufficient guidance to local authorities to appropriately with applications for AI data centres, including the impact on the grid.

Planning authorities have qualified planning officers who apply their professional analysis and judgement to inform decisions. National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) designates “Green Data Centres” as National Development. NPF4 must be considered, read and applied in the round, accounting for all of its relevant provisions when assessing planning applications. We are considering whether more formal guidance would also help planning authorities. We have already committed to publish guidance on what factors are prevalent in a “green” data centre.

Question reference: S7W-01147

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Hannah Mary Goodlad on 1 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what advice it provides local authorities in relation to assessing planning applications for AI data centres, including regarding the cumulative energy demand and energy security impact of the entire national data centre pipeline.

National Planning Framework 4 (NPF4) designates “Green Data Centres” as National Development. Policy 24 of NPF4 supports Digital Infrastructure, encouraging, promoting and facilitating the roll out of digital infrastructure across Scotland to unlock the potential of all our places and the economy. The Scottish Government is a co-commissioner of the Strategic Spatial Energy Plan which will model likely energy demand up to 2050 and the generation approaches required to support that demand. In a response to Martyn Day MSP on Thursday 25 June, I advised that the Scottish Government is urgently considering whether more formal guidance is required to help local planning authorities. In a response to Gillian MacKay MSP on Thursday 25 June, the First Minister set out that he is giving active consideration to whether the Scottish Government should provide planning guidance to balance the rapid expansion of hyperscale data centres with national energy and climate goals, which are vital to our future prosperity.