- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 12 March 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Ivan McKee on 20 March 2026
To ask the Scottish Government what its most recent assessment is of the number of hospitality businesses in South Lanarkshire that will recieve support as a result of the 40% non-domestic rates relief for licensed premises introduced in its Budget 2026-27, and what steps it is taking to ensure that the £110,000 per-business cap does not unfairly disadvantage any local independent groups that operate multiple sites across Lanarkshire’s high streets.
Answer
The Scottish Budget sets out a decrease in the three non-domestic property rates for 2026-27 and offers more than £320 million of support through transitional relief schemes and retail hospitality and leisure relief over the next three years.
The Scottish Government estimates that around 1,300 properties in South Lanarkshire could benefit from the 15% Retail, Hospitality and Leisure relief, subject to the £110,000 cap per business per year, announced at the Scottish Budget. Around 200 of those properties are also estimated to benefit from the additional 25% relief for licensed hospitality premises and music venues confirmed at Stage 1 of the Budget Bill, a total relief of 40%, subject to the £110,000 cap per business per year.
Non-Domestic Rates (NDR) area property tax and the NDR Valuation Roll includes information on properties subject to NDR, rather than businesses. The number of businesses in South Lanarkshire that may benefit from relief schemes is therefore uncertain.
Local authorities are responsible for administering reliefs. Retail, Hospitality and Leisure relief is likely to be considered a subsidy under the Subsidy Control Act 2022 and local authorities should consider whether this relief is awarded as Minimum Financial Assistance (MFA). MFA allows public authorities to award low-value subsidies without needing to comply with the majority of the subsidy control requirements and has a financial threshold which allows recipients to receive up to £315,000 over three financial years (the current and preceding two financial years). Therefore a business-level cap has been applied to protect businesses from the risk of subsequently needing to repay relief awarded beyond MFA thresholds.
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 12 March 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Kate Forbes on 20 March 2026
To ask the Scottish Government what specific funding it will provide to South Lanarkshire Council in 2026-27 to support the Reinventing the High Street initiatives proposed by the FSB, including (a) pop-up grants and (b) temporary use licenses for vacant retail units in town centres.
Answer
Scottish Government has no plans to provide specific funding for the initiatives proposed by FSB in their 2024 report The Future of the High Street. However, we remain committed to supporting vibrant, thriving towns and town centres, and we are continuing our long standing commitment to regeneration with investment of up to £52 million in 2026-27.
This investment supports the revitalisation of our towns and town centres, helps to bring vacant properties back into productive use, and unlocks opportunities for town centre living, business and community enterprise activity. It also includes support for the Scotland Loves Local programme and Business Improvement Districts.
Since 2014, South Lanarkshire Council has received £25.8 million in regeneration capital funding. This investment has supported a number of projects, including the recently completed Carnwath Business and Community Hub which has transformed a vacant and derelict site in Carnwath town centre.
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 March 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Kate Forbes on 20 March 2026
To ask the Scottish Government what financial and other practical support it will consider making available to individuals, businesses and other organisations affected by the devastating fire on Union Street in Glasgow on 8 March 2026, including for complex legal and insurance-related matters.
Answer
On 14 March, the First Minister announced a financial package worth up to £10 million to help businesses rebuild and renew the part of Glasgow affected by the Union Corner fire. Glasgow City Council will administer the scheme based on engagement with local businesses to understand how they have been affected.
In addition, up to £1 million will be made available to help the council with demolition costs.
Local authorities can also award up to 100% non-domestic rates Hardship Relief to ratepayers if they are satisfied that the ratepayer would be in financial difficulty without it and awarding it is in the interests of local people.
Scottish Government’s contribution to discretionary non-domestic rates Hardship Relief in Glasgow City Council for those impacted will increase from 75% to 95%.
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 12 March 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Kate Forbes on 20 March 2026
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will establish a City Centre Fire Recovery Fund, similar to the one created after the 2018 Glasgow School of Art fire, to provide immediate financial relief and business rates holidays for the small businesses that have lost their premises, stock, and livelihoods due to the Union Street blaze in Glasgow on 8 March 2026.
Answer
On 14 March, the First Minister announced a financial package worth up to £10 million to help businesses rebuild and renew the part of Glasgow affected by the Union Corner fire. Glasgow City Council will administer the scheme based on engagement with local businesses to understand how they have been affected.
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 12 March 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Ivan McKee on 19 March 2026
To ask the Scottish Government what guidance it provides to local planning authorities regarding the proximity of high-risk retail units, such as those storing combustible vaping and smoking materials, to residential properties and major transport hubs, and whether it will review the safety of flats located directly above such retail units, in light of the Union Street building collapse in Glasgow.
Answer
All aspects of the incident at Union Corner in Glasgow are being thoroughly investigated via a multi-agency investigation; this is currently underway and will establish the full circumstances when it is safe to do so. If there are lessons to be learnt from this fire, all levels of government will need to do so and, if it leads to the need for further regulation or policy guidance to ensure the safety of people and buildings, the Scottish Government is very open to that. However, it is important that the investigation is allowed to conclude so that the facts can be fully established, rather than speculated upon.
Planning applications are considered on a case-by-case basis, including an assessment of potential impacts.
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 12 March 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 19 March 2026
To ask the Scottish Government what its specific timeline is for the implementation of the first steps of the minimum income guarantee (MIG) roadmap, as called for in the Trussell 2026 Scottish Parliament election manifesto, and what assessment it has made of how a MIG would reduce the 16% of Scotland's population who are currently living in relative poverty after housing costs.
Answer
The Scottish Government response to the independent Expert Group’s Roadmap, published in November 2025, sets out the associated actions we are already taking to transform the lives of people across Scotland.
However, the UK Government retains powers over a number of key policy levers, including the minimum wage, living hours and Universal Credit, needed to fully address the Group’s recommendations .
We are making progress towards the ambitions we share with the Expert Group by investing in policies which tackle poverty and address the cost of living, providing the strongest package of financial support for families anywhere in the UK.
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 12 March 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 19 March 2026
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will reform the Scottish Child Payment to ensure that families do not experience a so-called "cliff edge" loss of all support due to small changes in household income, and whether it will consider extending eligibility to people aged 16 to 19 who remain in full-time education.
Answer
The childhood assistance section of the Social Security (Amendment) (Scotland) Act 2025 provides powers to legislate for Scottish Child Payment as a standalone benefit. Any future developments would need to take into account finance availability, cost effectiveness and delivery and legal implications.
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 12 March 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 19 March 2026
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of 2026 reporting by the Association of Personal Injury Lawyers suggesting that an average of 26 people per week across Great Britain are harmed in e-scooter collisions, what specific data it holds on the number of such casualties in Scotland, and what urgent steps it is taking to protect vulnerable pedestrians, particularly those with visual impairments, from the illegal use of high-powered e-scooters on pavements.
Answer
Data on collisions which cause injury and take place on the road network, including adjacent pavements and cycle lanes, is collected by Police Scotland as part of the Great Britain-wide dataset known as STATS19.
The following table provides the recorded number of casualties injured in collisions involving e-scooters over the last three years for which we have finalised data.
Number of casualties in e-scooter collisions, by severity:
| | Fatal | Serious | Slight | Total |
2022 | 0 | 5 | 7 | 12 |
2023 | 1 | 8 | 8 | 17 |
2024 | 0 | 6 | 10 | 16 |
The Scottish Government remains committed to enhancing safety across Scotland’s road network. Scotland’s Road Safety Framework to 2030 sets out a vision for Scotland to have the best road safety performance in the world by 2030. This contains mode and user specific targets focussed on our priority areas.
In the 2025-26 financial year, the Scottish Government has invested a record £48m in road safety, alongside significant investment in sustainable and active travel programmes to promote safety.
A dedicated stakeholder group has also been established to monitor risks, identify emerging trends, and develop targeted measures for vulnerable road users.
Transport Scotland is also undertaking policy development work on e-scooters, part of which will involve stakeholder engagement and public consultation, which will include assessment of their impact on the perceived safety to those with disabilities, including visual impairments.
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 12 March 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Siobhian Brown on 19 March 2026
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the effectiveness of Police Scotland’s use of specialist drones to detect and track illegal e-scooter and e-bike riders, and how many vehicles have been seized in the (a) Lanarkshire and (b) Greater Glasgow division as a direct result of these interventions.
Answer
Police Scotland have a Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems (RPAS) capability and rightly make operational decisions on how that is deployed. Police Scotland have advised this capability is within the development and evaluation phase, and future deployment will depend on their ongoing operational assessment and further technological development. Police Scotland also note that Remotely Piloted Aircraft Systems cannot be used to pursue vehicles, and Civil Aviation Authority regulations can restrict operation to within visual line of sight.
Police Scotland have confirmed that, to date, one off-road motorcycle has been seized as a result of this activity in Lanarkshire and no vehicle seizures are attributable to such activity in Greater Glasgow.
- Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Thursday, 12 March 2026
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Current Status:
Answered by Ivan McKee on 19 March 2026
To ask the Scottish Government what its policy is regarding the proximity of high-risk retail units, such as those storing large quantities of combustible lithium-ion products, to critical national infrastructure like Glasgow Central Station, and whether it will review planning and building standards to prevent the location of such businesses in high-density transport hubs.
Answer
Planning applications are considered on a case-by-case basis. Applications for planning permission for a new retail premises would be determined by the relevant planning authority in accordance with the development plan unless there are material planning considerations which, in the authority’s opinion justify a departure from that plan. It would be for the relevant planning authority to consider whether, and if so how, proximity to existing infrastructure is relevant to a decision on the application. Changing the type of goods sold within an existing shop does not generally require planning permission.
Similarly, applications for a building warrant require case by case consideration by a local authority verifier. Where a building warrant is required for a change of use the applicant and verifier should consider the extent to which the building standards apply, including those to address the spread of fire within and to neighbouring buildings.
The Scottish Government is currently undertaking public consultation through a Call for Evidence in relation to fire safety standards. This consultation is seeking industry views on new and emerging fire safety issues and a review of current guidance, and will close on 10 April.
Scottish building regulations - fire safety review and compliance: call for evidence - gov.scot
