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-35395

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angus Robertson on 18 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it has taken to implement its policy on taking a feminist approach to international relations.

Since the November 2023 publication of the Scottish Government’s position paper, Taking a Feminist Approach to International Relations, officials have taken forward a range of activities as part of our commitment to mainstream a feminist approach across key policy areas, including international development, climate justice, trade, and peace & security.

This includes working to embed gender equality throughout our international development work as well as developing specific gender equality programmes. In seeking to equalise power in our international development activities, we work directly with organisations in our partner countries of Malawi, Rwanda and Zambia and have established a Global South Advisory Panel. On trade, the Scottish Government is committed to addressing the gender export gap in Scotland, confirmed by the findings in the recent Gender Export Gap research report. We will be working with our delivery agencies and stakeholders in implementing the report’s recommendations, providing tailored advice, assistance, and international market access opportunities to help women-led businesses succeed on the global stage.

Question reference: S6W-35396

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angus Robertson on 18 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how it is supporting human rights defenders in its partner countries, as part of its work through its International Development Fund.

Through its International Development Fund, the Scottish Government has over the last year, following work with our partner countries, launched new programmes with a heavier focus on investment in health, education, equalities, and renewables, underpinned by and guided by our core Principles. We also launched two new major Climate Justice Fund programmes in 2023.

The Scottish Government separately provides funding to support Human Rights Defenders. The Scottish Government established the Scottish Human Rights Defender Fellowship in 2018 as a temporary relocation programme to support international human rights defenders at risk as a direct result of their work. The Fellowship – and Scotland – has welcomed 19 human rights defenders from 16 different countries, two of whom have been from our partner countries Malawi and Zambia.

Question reference: S6O-04203

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 January 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 16 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what estimate it has made of the number of children and young people leaving school unable to swim.

Question reference: S6O-04109

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 December 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 12 December 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how it determines what constitutes a major service change in the NHS.

Question reference: S6W-30354

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Kaukab Stewart on 30 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-29171 by Kaukab Stewart on 3 September 2024, and in light of the commitment in its Programme for Government 2021-22 to act on inclusive communication, its consultation on new regulations between 2021 and 2022, its proposed new regulations in 2023, and its substantially revised proposals in July 2024 without consultation, when it (a) will start and (b) plans to finish the work detailed in its answer.

Question reference: S6W-30340

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 30 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-29611 by Jenny Gilruth on 20 September 2024, what evaluation it has carried out regarding the impact on educational performance of providing around 280,000 free digital devices and 14,000 connectivity packages to learners, and for what reason it did not provide this information in its answer.

The Scottish Government provision of devices and connectivity packages during the pandemic was an emergency response to ensure disadvantaged learners could remain in contact with schools, teachers and learning during the periods when schools were closed.

The remainder of the devices have been funded, procured and distributed by local authorities themselves, in line with local learning strategies. Local authorities are ultimately responsible for delivery of education, including decisions around how, when and why to deploy any technology. Therefore, it would be for local authorities to undertake any evaluation of local device rollout programmes.

Question reference: S6W-30357

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Kaukab Stewart on 29 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will specify the definition that it used to outline communities that could benefit from regulations on inclusive communication when determining its legal competence to introduce laws in this area.

This work related to a new duty related to inclusive communication in Scotland made under the Equality Act 2010. This means that the legislation could only relate to communities who have protected characteristics set out in that Act.

However, the Scottish Government’s policy understanding of inclusive communication, is as follows: “Inclusive communication is giving information in a way that is accessible to as many people as possible. It ensures people can receive information and express themselves in ways that best meet each individual’s needs.” Therefore we anticipate that many communities could benefit from activities to enhance the use and understanding of inclusive communication across the public sector.

Question reference: S6W-30353

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Kaukab Stewart on 29 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding its commitments on inclusive communication, what alternative legislation or regulations were considered beyond any restrictions identified under the Equality Act 2010, and what the reasons were for any such alternative routes not being pursued.

Our commitment relating to inclusive communication was part of our work considering improvements to the operation of the Public Sector Equality Duty (“PSED”) in Scotland, which is contained in section 149(1) of the Equality Act 2010. The Scottish Government has limited competence to legislate in relation to equal opportunities including the PSED.

In relation to supporting public authorities to better comply with the PSED, the only available legislation making power Scottish Ministers have is to impose specific duties under the Equality Act 2010, therefore no other alternative legislative route is available.

Question reference: S6W-30356

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Kaukab Stewart on 29 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-29171 by Kaukab Stewart on 3 September 2024, whether it will provide further details of the “restrictions related to legislative competence” that led to the decision to stop work on the proposed, and reportedly widely supported, new public sector equality duty on inclusive communication.

The content of any legal advice is confidential. By long-standing convention, successive Scottish and Westminster Governments have not disclosed the source or content of legal advice other than in the most exceptional circumstances.

However, we have sought to provide some further details of the relevant legal background. There are multiple constraints on the ability to legislate in relation to this matter. Firstly, the Scottish Parliament cannot make laws which relate to a reserved matter. The relevant reserved matter is Section L2 of Schedule 5 of the Scotland Act 1998 which reserves the subject matter of “Equal opportunities”. A proposed new duty relating to inclusive communications relates to this reserved matter and therefore falls within one of the limited exceptions to this reservation.

Further, in terms of section 29(2)(c) and schedule 4 of the Scotland Act 1998, the Scottish Parliament cannot make laws which modify the law on reserved matters. The Equality Act 2010 is a law on reserved matters and as such a new duty related to inclusive communications cannot modify any provision of it. Lastly, the enabling power for a new duty was limited to the following (as per section 153 of the Equality Act 2010): regulations which have the purpose of enabling the better performance of listed authorities of their public sector equality duty.

Question reference: S6W-30355

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Kaukab Stewart on 29 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-29171 by Kaukab Stewart on 3 September 2024, how it plans to monitor the use of inclusive communication guidance, tools and resources and the impact of powers under Regulation 11 of the Scottish Specific Duties on listed public authorities.

The Scottish Government recognises the importance of accountability and seeks to ensure that it is built into everything that we do. Regarding monitoring arrangements, the responsibility for oversight of compliance with the Equality Act 2010, including compliance with the Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties) (Scotland) Regulations 2012 including Regulation 11, rests with the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), which has issued guidance on how the Regulations should be applied in practice.