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-20493

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 August 2023
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 25 August 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to assist local authorities in installing (a) solar panels on local authority buildings and (b) electric vehicle charging points in local authority parking facilities.

(a)The Scottish Government supports the installation of solar panels on public sector buildings through the Scottish Green Public Sector Estate Decarbonisation scheme which provides several funding routes for public sector organisations to decarbonise their buildings.

(b) The Scottish Government has invested over £65m in the ChargePlace Scotland network that provides over 2,500 public charge points, many of which are located in local authority parking facilities. Through the Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Fund, Transport Scotland is supporting Scotland’s local authorities to work together to establish and deliver electric vehicle charging strategies and infrastructure expansion plans.

Question reference: S6W-20833

Current Status: Withdrawn

Question reference: S6W-20260

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 23 August 2023

To ask the Scottish Government when it last discussed expanding access to environmental health courses accredited by the Royal Environmental Health Institute of Scotland with tertiary education providers.

Question reference: S6W-20256

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 27 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 23 August 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions its ministers have had with their counterparts in Wales and Northern Ireland regarding amendments to any provisions in the Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill that could potentially allow the UK Government to legislate on devolved matters without the consent of the relevant devolved administration.

Question reference: S6W-20296

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 28 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 23 August 2023

To ask the Scottish Government when it last discussed the issue of establishing new Gaelic-medium schools with (a) COSLA and (b) local authorities.

The establishment of new Gaelic medium schools is a matter for local authorities and the Scottish Government will seek to provide support where possible. Officials from the Gaelic and Scots team discussed these matters with COSLA in a meeting in June 2022 and there were further exchanges in September 2022. The establishment of new Gaelic medium schools or Gaelic medium units in schools features regularly in discussion with local authorities and in particular the Gaelic and Scots team has discussed these matters recently with the following local authorities; Glasgow, Edinburgh, Highland, Argyll and Bute, Inverclyde, East Renfrewshire, Renfrewshire and North Lanarkshire.

Question reference: S6W-20255

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 27 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 23 August 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding whether it plans to introduce amendments to the Levelling-up and Regeneration Bill to address the Scottish Government’s concerns as set out in its Legislative Consent Memorandum (LCM-S6-23) that provisions in the Bill could potentially allow the UK Government to legislate on devolved matters without the consent of the Scottish Ministers.

Scottish Ministers have been clear that it is for the Scottish Government, accountable to the Scottish Parliament, and not the UK Government to decide how policies in devolved areas are developed and delivered in Scotland, including allocation of funding, in line with the devolved settlement. Scottish Government and UK Government Ministers and officials have had extensive engagement on the Levelling-Up and Regeneration Bill and further detailed engagement around the Bill is ongoing.

Question reference: S6W-20257

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 22 August 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what measures are in place to assist local authorities to implement low emission zones in towns.

The Scottish Government published both the National Low Emission Framework, and Low Emission Zone (LEZ) Guidance to assist any local authority wishing to introduce a LEZ to improve air quality.

Substantial grant funding has also been provided to assist local authorities in establishing and enforcing their LEZ.

Scottish Government also provides grant funding to support lower income households and smaller businesses to adapt to LEZs via the LEZ Support Fund.

Question reference: S6W-20297

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 28 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Christina McKelvie on 22 August 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it can provide an update on the establishment of a Scottish Government office in Warsaw.

Question reference: S6W-20337

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 August 2023
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 22 August 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether the reported new ministerial working group on child poverty, to be led by the Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice, will consider and make recommendations before the end of 2023 regarding (a) accelerating the delivery of universal free school meals to P6 and P7 pupils and (b) establishing a pilot for universal free school meals in secondary schools.

Tackling poverty and protecting people from harm is one of three critical missions of this government.

The Tackling Child Poverty Ministerial Oversight Group, which I will convene, will provide Ministerial-level oversight and assurance of the delivery of the actions set out in Best Start, Bright Futures.

The Scottish Government provides £169 million in funding for the provision of free school meals – which is one of the most generous of anywhere in the UK. All pupils in primaries one to five, and eligible pupils in primary six through to S6, can benefit from free school meals, saving families an average of £400 per eligible child per year.

The Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills has announced that the next phase of our free school meal expansion will see them rolled out to all primary six and seven pupils, whose families are in receipt of the Scottish Child Payment. This will be the next step in fulfilling our commitment to universal provision in primary schools and we are working with partners to take this work forward. Further phases, including a pilot at secondary, are being considered.

Question reference: S6W-20335

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 August 2023
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 22 August 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether the reported new ministerial working group on child poverty, to be led by the Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice, will consider and make recommendations before the end of 2023 regarding any policy to mitigate the effects of the UK Government's policy of a two-child cap on benefits, including the so-called rape clause.

Tackling poverty and protecting people from harm is one of three critical missions of this government.

Scottish Government analysis, published in April 2022, estimated that reversing key UK Government welfare changes that have taken place just since 2015 could lift an estimated 70,000 people out of poverty, including 30,000 children, in Scotland this year. We will continue to urge the UK Government to match our ambitions in tackling child poverty head on through reversing its policies such as the benefit cap and child cap and bedroom tax.