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: S5W-35808

Asked by: Angus MacDonald, MSP for Falkirk East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 08 March 2021
Current Status: Answered by Ben Macpherson on 22 March 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the proposals by the Agricultural Industries Confederation regarding a simpler and more efficient plant protection products regulatory regime, in response to the National Action Plan for the Sustainable Use of Pesticides.

The Scottish Government is currently involved in the review of the UK National Action Plan (NAP) for the Sustainable Use of Pesticides.

The revised NAP draft, agreed by all four nations of the UK, represents our shared ambition to increase uptake of Integrated Pest Management (IPM) and sustainable crop protection to minimise the risks and impacts of pesticides to human health and the environment.

The public consultation closed on 26 February 2021 and the process of analysis and consideration is now underway. The Agricultural Industries Confederation’s response and those of other respondents will be fully considered during this stage of the consultation process.

Question reference: S5W-36145

Asked by: Angus MacDonald, MSP for Falkirk East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 11 March 2021
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 19 March 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what impact the Falkirk Growth Deal will have on Falkirk district.

The Falkirk district contributes significantly to Scotland’s economy, with nationally important industrial assets, a reputation for high-value manufacturing, the Port of Grangemouth, and internationally-recognised tourist attractions. The Scottish Government have committed £50 million to the Falkirk Growth Deal, which demonstrates our commitment to supporting the area and delivering long-term benefits to local communities and businesses. We continue to work with our partners in Falkirk and the UK Government, supported by our enterprise and skills agencies, to help them to consider proposals that will ensure Falkirk can thrive as a great place for innovation, sustainability and culture. We hope to be in position to sign a Heads of Terms agreement this summer.

Question reference: S5W-35806

Asked by: Angus MacDonald, MSP for Falkirk East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 08 March 2021
Current Status: Answered by Paul Wheelhouse on 19 March 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on establishing a hydrogen production and distribution company with majority state ownership.

The Hydrogen Policy Statement published on the 21 December 2020 sets out the Scottish Government’s vision to develop Scotland into a leading Hydrogen Nation in the production of reliable, competitive, sustainable hydrogen and to secure Scotland’s future as a centre of international excellence as we establish the innovation, skills and supply chain that will underpin our energy transition.

The Hydrogen Policy Statement has provided the framework for the development of a Hydrogen Action Plan in 2021 which will provide further detail on the planned approach and necessary actions to implement the policy positions outlined in the Policy Statement.

In the development of the Hydrogen Action Plan, the Scottish Government will consider a wide range of options and actions to realise this vision and our ambition to reach 5GW’s of renewable and low-carbon hydrogen production by 2030 as set out in the Hydrogen Policy Statement.

Question reference: S5W-35862

Asked by: Angus MacDonald, MSP for Falkirk East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 March 2021
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 18 March 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports that supermarkets might be higher-risk workplaces, what consideration it has given to allowing supermarkets to sign up for routine testing of staff for COVID-19, including the provision of free lateral flow antigen test kits for staff.

Under Regulations, supermarkets must take all reasonable measures to ensure that a distance of two metres is maintained between any persons on the premises, with the exception of those within the same household or a carer assisting another person. They must also take all reasonable measures to ensure that it only admits people to its premises in sufficiently small numbers to make it possible to maintain that distance. This includes those queueing awaiting entry to the premises. We also know from our discussion with supermarkets that frequency of visits has reduced and shopping baskets are larger. We will continue to work with sector leads to protect workers and customers in retail settings as we monitor the transmission risks associated with COVID.

At the moment our focus on testing in the food sector is focused on higher risks premises (eg meat and fish processing) and retail distribution to ensure continuity of food supply but we will keep this under review.

Question reference: S5W-35914

Asked by: Angus MacDonald, MSP for Falkirk East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 March 2021
Current Status: Answered by Roseanna Cunningham on 17 March 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what research it is undertaking into the vulnerability to disturbance by bottom-contacting fishing gears of carbon stored in 'hotspots' in inshore water.

The Scottish Blue Carbon Forum, a partnership between Scottish Government and academia, is currently conducting a multi-year research programme to further investigate blue carbon habitats, their role in carbon uptake and their vulnerabilities to human activities. The potential impact of the disturbance by bottom-contacting fishing gears on blue carbon habitats forms part of one of the research projects within the Scottish Blue Carbon Forum: ‘Assessing the resilience of Scotland’s Blue Carbon Sediment Stores’. Initial results are expected in the near future.

Question reference: S5W-35863

Asked by: Angus MacDonald, MSP for Falkirk East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 March 2021
Current Status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 16 March 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what audits it conducts on companies participating in its Warmer Homes Scheme, and whether the scheme has provided value for money.

The Scottish Government contracted Pennington Choices to provide independent quality assurance and audit services to the Warmer Homes Scotland Scheme. Pennington Choices audit all aspects of the customer journey and all Warmworks sub-contractors involved in the delivery of the scheme. This ensures that Warmworks aim which is to provide good quality installations which are right first time are closely monitored. With regard to value for money, Warmworks bid for a fully compliant European tender and won on the basis of quality and costs.

Question reference: S5W-35544

Asked by: Angus MacDonald, MSP for Falkirk East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 25 February 2021
Current Status: Answered by Fergus Ewing on 5 March 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what progress has been made with research on the feasibility of the introduction of mobile abattoirs to assist farmers and crofters in rural areas.

The feasibility study, published in March 2020, provides details of what would be required to operate mobile abattoirs in Scotland, including the regulatory framework, and offers a cost-benefit analysis of possible operational models. However, the report also highlights the difficulty in achieving a sustained economic return from a mobile abattoir in Scotland.

The Scottish Government in conjunction with Food Standards Scotland would be willing to discuss in more detail with any organisation who are considering operating mobile abattoirs in Scotland.

The full report can be found at https://www.gov.scot/publications/assessing-viability-sustainability-mobile-abattoirs-scotland/ .

Question reference: S5W-34923

Asked by: Angus MacDonald, MSP for Falkirk East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 February 2021
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 17 February 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the financial impact of the pandemic on private out-of-school care providers, and what plans it has to provide specific support to this sector.

The Scottish Government has worked closely with local authorities and sector representatives to assess and address the financial sustainability of the childcare sector through the Working Group on Early Learning and Childcare and Childcare Sector Recovery. We are working with the whole childcare sector to understand the challenges they face and to establish whether there are reasons why the financial support needs for Out of School Care providers may differ to those of the rest of the childcare sector.

We have made £22 million in dedicated support available to private and third sector day care of children settings, including private out of school care providers, since the start of the pandemic. During the current period of restrictions, £3.8 million has been made available for grants in each 4 week period, this will total £11.2 million between January-March. In view of the reopening of the early learning and childcare sector from the 22 February we are considering how best to utilise the one third of the fund identified for March to best support those in the sector in greatest need, in particular if restrictions continue for school age childcare settings.

Question reference: S5O-04973

Asked by: Angus MacDonald, MSP for Falkirk East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 January 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 February 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what research has been undertaken regarding the long-term impact of long COVID on Scotland’s health services, and whether it is considering establishing long COVID clinics.

Question reference: S5W-34053

Asked by: Angus MacDonald, MSP for Falkirk East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 December 2020
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Maree Todd on 16 December 2020

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its approach to implementing the Provision of Early Learning and Childcare (Specified Children) (Scotland) Amendment Order 2020, which will entitle all children whose school start is deferred to access funded early learning and childcare in their deferred year, from August 2023.

On 2 October 2019, I confirmed that the Scottish Government would introduce legislation in this parliamentary session to entitle all children whose school start is deferred to access funded early learning and childcare in their deferred year.

The legislation required, an affirmative Scottish Statutory Instrument (SSI) under the Children and Young People (Scotland) Act 2014, was laid on 7 December 2020.

To progress the implementation of this policy, the Scottish Government and the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities (COSLA) have agreed a Joint Implementation Plan under which five local authorities will pilot early implementation of this obligation in 2021-22. The Scottish Government has committed £3 million to support this early implementation.

The Joint Implementation Plan has been published at

https://www.gov.scot/publications/funded-early-learning-and-childcare-places-joint-implementation-plan/

The pilot authorities will be: Angus; Argyll and Bute; Falkirk; Scottish Borders; and Shetland. The Scottish Government and COSLA have committed to working to increase the number of authorities implementing the obligation fully or partially from August 2022.

An evaluation of the impact in pilot authorities will be undertaken to monitor the impact of the policy, inform assessment of likely uptake of the entitlement and inform wider implementation of this legislation.