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-04704

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 November 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 17 November 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S7W-04098 by Jenny Gilruth on 29 October 2026, whether it will provide details of the regional summits that are planned for November 2026, including dates, locations, anticipated attendees and arrangements for public participation.

Question reference: S7W-04407

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 October 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 3 November 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of concerns expressed by the Office of the Public Guardian (Scotland) regarding waiting times for the registration of Powers of Attorney, what action it is taking to support a reduction in those waiting times, and what the timescale is for this.

The Office of the Public Guardian (Scotland) (OPG), forms part of the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS). The SCTS operates entirely independently of the Scottish Government, and all operational decisions are the responsibility of the SCTS Board under the leadership of the Lord President.

While the Scottish Government does not have a role in operational decision making, it continues to support SCTS through funding. The 2026–2027 Budget includes increased resource funding to help ease system pressures and support ongoing service improvement and modernisation. Decisions on any further funding, including for the continued development of systems and services such as those provided by the OPG, will fall to Parliament as part of any future spending considerations.

The OPG has increased its processing capacity through additional staff, overtime and digital modernisation. The latest case-management enhancement went live on 16 September 2026, addressing significant issues affecting changes of circumstances for Powers of Attorney. The immediate priority is to sustain registrations above incoming demand and translate increased output into continuing reductions in the outstanding caseload and waiting times.

The timescale for significant improvement will depend on how these changes operate in practice, alongside the continued rise in operational demand. SCTS has therefore advised that it is not possible to provide a definitive date for a return to previous processing times.

Question reference: S7W-04696

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 02 November 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 16 November 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how much funding it has provided to the Scottish Women’s Rights Centre in each financial year since 2015-16, and what the purpose of each award of funding was.

Question reference: S7W-04695

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 02 November 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 16 November 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the sustainability and adequacy of funding provided to the Scottish Women’s Rights Centre and whether it has received any representations from the organisation regarding its funding requirements.

Question reference: S7W-04699

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 02 November 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 16 November 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has made any multi-year funding commitments to the Scottish Women’s Rights Centre and, if so, what the value and duration of these commitments are.

Question reference: S7W-04697

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 02 November 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 16 November 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding funding provided to the Scottish Women's Rights Centre since 2016-17, how much has been awarded for (a) core organisational costs and (b) specific projects or programmes, broken down by financial year.

Question reference: S7W-04698

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 02 November 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 16 November 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how much funding it (a) has provided and (b) plans to provide to the Scottish Women’s Rights Centre in (i) 2025-26 and (ii) 2026-27.

Question reference: S7W-04097

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 09 October 2026
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 30 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that its proposals for local government reform include people who are (a) from ethnic minority groups, (b) aged under 18, and (c) who live in social housing.

It is essential that a wide range of voices can participate in and inform the current dialogue on local governance reform. This is why our approach to engagement is designed to support a broad range of people to participate, including current plans for the use of digital engagement with the public and broadly representative panels. By bringing together a diverse range of experiences and perspectives, this engagement will help us build a shared understanding of how governance and service delivery can best support communities across Scotland.

Question reference: S7W-04096

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 09 October 2026
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 30 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what decisions, if any, it expects to be in a position to make regarding its proposals for local government reform by the end of the three-month consultation period.

The Scottish Government’s recently published proposals on local governance reform are intended to be a starting point for discussion. Our current engagement with local government, public bodies, trade unions, the third sector, community organisations and members of the public is working towards an agreed approach to the future of local governance that strengthens public services, empowers communities and supports improved outcomes for the people of Scotland.

Question reference: S7W-04099

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 09 October 2026
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 30 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has set a target for the number of respondents to its consultation on local government reform and, if so, what that target is.