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: S6O-02809

Asked by: Kevin Stewart, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 November 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what work the NHS is undertaking to support people with gambling addiction.

Question reference: S6O-02781

Asked by: Kevin Stewart, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 November 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 23 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what difficulties there are, if any, in recruiting staff for jobs in the Scottish Parliament.

Question reference: S6W-22378

Asked by: Kevin Stewart, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 24 October 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 7 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding the impact on production in Scotland, what its position is on whether the current industrial hemp licensing regime is a "light touch regime", as stated by the UK Government.

Question reference: S6W-22377

Asked by: Kevin Stewart, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 24 October 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 7 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding changing the licensing regime to increase the production of industrial hemp in Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-22358

Asked by: Kevin Stewart, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 23 October 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 6 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-21542 by Jenni Minto on 3 October 2023, whether it plans to lobby the UK Government and the Gambling Commission to restrict the advertising of gambling in Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-22376

Asked by: Kevin Stewart, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 24 October 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 3 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the UK Government in relation to increasing hemp production in Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-22375

Asked by: Kevin Stewart, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 24 October 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 3 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether the current licensing and labelling regimes in relation to hemp threaten the development of a sustainable hemp supply chain in Scotland and the rest of the UK.

The licensing regime for growing hemp is a reserved matter controlled by the UK Home Office, however we recognise the potential benefit for hemp production in Scotland as a sustainable crop with multiple uses.

The Scottish Government has not engaged in any discussions on this issue with the UK Government. Currently, industrial hemp is not a major crop in Scotland; although there are a small number of independent growers who grow hemp for a variety of reasons and we are keen to speak with those interested in growing hemp to find out more about this crop.

The Scottish Government is interested in understanding the evidence behind the benefits of hemp. As such, as part of the Strategic Research Programme, we have funded several projects via the Scottish Environment, Food and Agriculture Research Institutes (SEFARI) Gateway Fellowship programme. These include a study entitled “Potential Market Opportunities for Hempseed and Fibre in Scotland” published in October 2022 in partnership with the University of Aberdeen and the Scottish Hemp Association. More about this study can be found at the following link: https://www.abdn.ac.uk/news/16425/ .

Question reference: S6W-22359

Asked by: Kevin Stewart, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 23 October 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 30 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-21543 by Jenni Minto on 3 October 2023, what was discussed in its meeting with the Gambling Commission regarding the UK Government White Paper on Gambling on 21 September.

The meeting on the 21 September was an introductory meeting with the Gambling Commission. It discussed the role of the Gambling Commission and the consultations that they were leading on as part of the White Paper.

The meeting also discussed the role of evidence and the developments by the Gambling Commission to improve the evidence base across the UK. There was a commitment to build links between officials to support the development of gambling policy in Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-22360

Asked by: Kevin Stewart, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 23 October 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 30 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-21540 by Jenni Minto on 3 October 2023, when the "whole systems approach" being piloted by Public Health Scotland in Glasgow to mitigate the impact of gambling harm will (a) begin and (b) report back on its findings to the Scottish (i) Government and (ii) Parliament.

The whole systems approach in Glasgow to mitigate the impact of gambling harm is led by a Multi-Agency Group chaired by Glasgow City Council. It reports into the Glasgow City Council Wellbeing, Equalities, Communities, Culture and Engagement City Policy Committee (WECCE).

A report on progress was taken to the WECCE in August 2023. It is available from Committee Information - View Committee Document (glasgow.gov.uk) .

Question reference: S6O-02651

Asked by: Kevin Stewart, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 October 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 1 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to boost hydrogen production in Scotland.