The Scottish Parliament

Question reference: S7W-03895

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 01 October 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 29 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the Prison Officers' Association report, Crisis Point Reached - The Pressures Facing Scotland’s Prison Officers Uncovered, published in October 2025, and which of the 41 recommendations have been implemented.

Question reference: S7W-03894

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 01 October 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 29 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government on what dates ministers have visited HMP Barlinnie during (a) 2025 and (b) 2026, and which of these visits involved meetings with (i) trade unions, (ii) prison officers and/or staff, (iii) prisoners and (iv) prisoners' families.

Question reference: S7W-03692

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 25 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 1 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government when the Fair Work Oversight Group last met and whether any future meetings are planned.

Question reference: S7W-03480

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 21 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 1 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will ring-fence the £7.38m arising from Barnett consequential generated by the UK Government’s Species Recovery Programme and allocate that funding to a new Species Recovery Fund.

Matters relating to the environment are fully devolved in Scotland. Our approach to species recovery and related matters are set out in our Strategic Framework for Biodiversity.

Our Nature Restoration Fund has now committed over £90 million to support projects, including both ecosystem and species recovery, since 2021. Habitat and species restoration are one of the Fund’s priority themes. We extended the NRF for a new round of projects starting in 2026-27 in light of the success of the programme.

Consequentials accrue to the Scottish Government as a whole and Scottish Ministers will decide how best to allocate these based on their priorities.

Question reference: S7W-03486

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 21 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 1 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding the case for a funding model for species recovery that takes account of Scotland’s landmass, coastline and natural assets, as well as population, and what response it has received.

As set out in the answer to S7W-03480 on 1 October 2026, matters relating to the environment are fully devolved in Scotland and consequentials which accrue as a result of UK Government funding for reserved matters, accrue to the Scottish Government as a whole. No such discussions have therefore been undertaken.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

Question reference: S7O-00340

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 September 2026
Current Status: Due to be taken in the Chamber on 6 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will commit to including the expansion of 1,140 hours of funded early learning and childcare to all twins and other multiple-birth children from age two in its forthcoming Early Learning and Childcare Strategic Framework.

Question reference: S7W-03484

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 21 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 30 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-44440 by Natalie Don-Innes on 24 March 2026, what assessment it has made of the impact of childcare costs on the ability of parents with twins and other multiple births to return to, remain in or increase their participation in the workforce, and whether it will publish the evidence informing that assessment.

The Scottish Government has not made an assessment of the impact of childcare costs on the ability of parents with twins and other multiple births to return to, remain in or increase their participation in the workforce.

As highlighted in answer to S7W-03482 on 29 September 2026, the recent Programme for Government set out our intention to publish and consult on a blueprint for a transformed childcare offer in 2027, focussing on what matters most to families. I encourage families with multiples to engage with the consultation when it is published to inform consideration of future policy.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

Question reference: S7W-03483

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 21 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 29 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, further to its answers to question S6W-44443 by Natalie Don-Innes on 19 March 2026 and question S7W-03030 by Siobhian Brown on 18 September 2026, whether it has undertaken or commissioned an estimate of the annual cost of providing 1,140 hours of funded early learning and childcare from the age of two to children in families with multiple births and, if not, whether it will undertake such an assessment before finalising its forthcoming childcare blueprint.

Full assessment of future childcare delivery options and costs will be undertaken as part of the parliamentary and budgetary processes. While a definitive assessment of scope or costs of any new policy position is not available at this time, information relating to previous limited considerations of this matter was released as part of a Freedom of Information request in May 2026. It can be found in the following document (document 33):

FOI+202600511271+-+Information+Released+-+Attachment+3.pdf

Question reference: S7W-03485

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 21 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 29 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what estimate it has made of the number of families with twins or other multiple births who are currently unable to access funded early learning and childcare for their children from the age of two solely because multiple-birth status is not an eligibility criterion, and what estimate it has made of the number of additional children who would become eligible if such a criterion was introduced.

As set out in answer to S7W-03483 on 29 September 2026, a definitive assessment of scope or costs of any new policy position has not been undertaken. Some limited consideration was given previously and released as part of a Freedom of Information request in May 2026. It can be found in the following document (document 33): FOI+202600511271+-+Information+Released+-+Attachment+3.pdf.

This included an estimate of the number of additional children who would become eligible although this was for illustrative purposes only.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

Question reference: S7W-03482

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 21 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 29 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether its forthcoming childcare blueprint will include a specific assessment of the case for extending 1,140 hours of funded early learning and childcare from the age of two to children in families with multiple births, including an assessment of the costs, benefits and potential impact on parental employment, and whether it will publish its conclusions on this issue as part of the consultation.

As set out in the Programme for Government in early September, we will publish and consult on a blueprint for a transformed childcare offer in 2027, focussing on what matters most to families. Given the scale of our ambition to transform childcare, it is only right we take the time to develop that blueprint and we will publish it for consultation next year. Decisions on future delivery and costs will be considered through the appropriate parliamentary and budgetary processes.

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Question reference: S7W-03895

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