The Scottish Parliament

Question reference: S6W-36007

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 21 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 1 April 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-34510 by Angela Constance on 3 March 2025, in light of its previous commitment to publish an updated memorandum of understanding between the Parole Board for Scotland and the Scottish Ministers by the end of 2024, what the reasons are for (a) the five-year delay and (b) missing the "end of 2024" commitment, and by what date, or nearest quarter, it anticipates that the new document will be agreed by both the Parole Board for Scotland and the Scottish Government.

The Memorandum of Understanding is a jointly drafted and agreed document between the Parole Board for Scotland (PBS) and Scottish Ministers. The MOU defines the relationship and interaction between Parole Board for Scotland and the Scottish Government.

The MoU is set to be rebranded as a Memorandum of Agreement (MoA).

Both the Parole Board for Scotland and the Scottish Government have reached agreement on the MoA document and are now finalising sign-off prior to publication.

Question reference: S6W-36009

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 21 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 1 April 2025

To ask the Scottish Government when the Aberdeen–Central Belt 2026 Enhancement Project was renamed the Aberdeen–Central Belt Service Improvement Project; for what reason the name was changed; at the time that the name was changed, whether anything else was changed, such as the scope, outcomes or delivery dates, and which stakeholders were consulted prior to the name change.

The name change was made in early 2024 during the development of the Aberdeen Route Upgrade business case, to reflect the planned project output of service improvements. There was no change to project scope. This was a project level decision, as such no consultation was undertaken nor was required.

In respect of project timescales, I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-32369 on 8 January 2025. 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: S6W-36008

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 21 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 1 April 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-35073 by Fiona Hyslop on 4 March 2025, whether it will provide the information requested regarding what increase in freight capacity will be delivered through the Aberdeen–Central Belt Service Improvement Project, and for what reason it did not provide this information in its answer, which instead referred to a "freight path".

Freight capacity is usually measured in the number of available paths, i.e. the number of freight trains it is possible for infrastructure to accommodate alongside passenger trains. I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-35073 on 4 March 2025. 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: S6W-35722

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 17 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 31 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the Camphill organisation regarding long-term funding for its work.

Question reference: S6W-35565

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 26 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will legislate to prevent registered sex offenders from changing their name.

The Scottish Government takes the safety of the public very seriously. Sex offender notification requirements apply to an individual, irrespective of what name they use. Multi-Agency Public Protection Arrangements record any aliases in their documentation. The current position in legislation is that sex offenders must inform the police of a name change within three days and failure to notify such a change can result in a prison sentence.

We are aware that the Crime and Policing Bill, recently introduced to the UK Parliament, contains legislative change in this area. We are exploring the possibility of extending the provisions in the Crime and Policing Bill to Scotland. Any such amendment would be the subject of the legislative consent process.

Question reference: S6W-35547

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 24 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many meetings the Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs has had with the (a) Law Society of Scotland, (b) chief constable of Police Scotland and (c) Scottish Retail Consortium since 29 March 2023, and what subjects were discussed.

Meetings with the Law Society of Scotland

1. I have had the following meetings with the Law Society of Scotland since 29 March 2023:

Date	Meeting	Subjects Discussed
1 June 2023	Victims Taskforce (Law Society of Scotland attended)	Criminal Justice - Victims
26 July 2023	Law Society of Scotland	Victims, Witnesses and Justice Reform Bill
25 September 2023	JUSTICE Scotland Roundtable (Head of Research at Law Society of Scotland attended)	Victims, Witnesses and Justice Reform Bill
30 November 2023	Victims Taskforce (Law Society of Scotland attended)	Criminal Justice - Victims
20 June 2024	Victims Taskforce (Law Society of Scotland attended)	Criminal Justice - Victims
21 November 2024	Victims Taskforce (Law Society of Scotland attended)	Criminal Justice - Victims

Meetings with the Chief Constable

2. I have had the following meetings with the Chief constable since 29 March 2023 as part of their regular series of meetings:

Date	Meeting	Subjects discussed
27 April 2023	Regular meeting with the Chief Constable	Chief Constable’s reflections Call handling Police Estate – Fettes Next meeting
18 May 2023	Regular meeting with the Chief Constable	Pay and industrial relations Progress on Recommendations of the Independent Review of Police complaints handling, investigations and misconduct issues Officers on Restricted Duties HMICS/HIS Custody Inspection in Lanarkshire Handover to new Chief Constable Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking Use of tasers
14 June 2023	Trilateral with the Chief Constable and SPA Chair	Chief Constable Statement on Institutional Racism Pay Succession planning Local Policing Improvement Plan
14 June 2023	Regular meeting with the Chief Constable	PVG Certificate – Morgan Prior Chief Constable reflection
14 September 2023	Regular meeting with the Chief Constable	Police staff pay Officer numbers Resource prioritisation North East pilot Recorded Police Warnings (RPWs)
05 October 2023	Regular meeting with the Chief Constable	Budget HMICS reviews Forward look
09 November 2023	Regular meeting with the Chief Constable	Operation Moonbeam Armistice Day Early observations from the new Chief Constable Criminal justice system Financial planning for a sustainable police model
18 December 2023	Regular meeting with the Chief Constable	Budget and workforce numbers Consultation on Police Scotland estate HMICS Thematic Inspection of Organisational Culture in Police Scotland and Equality, Diversity and Inclusion Criminal Justice System efficiencies
9 January 2024	Regular meeting with the Chief Constable	Budget and workforce numbers New operating model Criminal Justice Committee 20 December 2023 Domestic Abuse (Protection) (Scotland) Act
9 January 2024	Quarterly trilateral with the Chief Constable and SPA Chair	Budget and new operating model Mental health
8 February 2024	Regular meeting with the Chief Constable	Budget, workforce and Police Scotland operating model Estates review Proportionate response to crime Safeguards on XL bully dogs Dashcam
1 March 2024	Regular meeting with the Chief Constable	Emma Caldwell case and call for a Public Inquiry Brian Low Case
30 April 2024	Regular meeting with the Chief Constable	Hate crime Criminal justice system Police officer and staff pay Revised model of policing
4 June 2024	Regular meeting with the Chief Constable	Scottish resilience Partnership Emma Caldwell Investigation – NPCC Request Police (Ethics, Conduct and Scrutiny) (Scotland) Bill Revised model of policing Criminal justice system
26 June 2024	Quarterly trilateral with the Chief Constable and SPA Chair (meeting combined with the scheduled June Chief Constable meeting)	Body worn video (BWV) Proportionate response to crime (PRTC) Criminal justice system improvements Revised model of policing Equality, diversity and inclusion (EDI) Mental health and policing Hate crime Police (Ethics, Conduct and Scrutiny) (Scotland) (PECSS) Bill Police officer numbers
20 August 2024	Regular meeting with the Chief Constable	Update on far-right violence and disorder Police officer numbers Police pay negotiations Mental health and policing Criminal justice system reform Body worn video Police (Ethics, Conduct and Scrutiny) (Scotland) (PECSS) Bill Emma Caldwell public inquiry
19 September 2024	Regular meeting with the Chief Constable	Commonwealth Games 2026 Police officer numbers Police pay negotiations Police Scotland three-year business plan Estates Masterplan Emma Caldwell public inquiry Sheku Bayoh public inquiry Police (Ethics, Conduct and Scrutiny) (Scotland) (PECSS) Bill
29 October 2024	Regular meeting with the Chief Constable	Policing budget Estates Masterplan 2025/26 budget proposal Police officer numbers Police officer pay Emma Caldwell public inquiry Police Scotland three-year business plan Commonwealth Games 2026
31 October 2024	Quarterly trilateral with the Chief Constable and SPA Chair	Police Scotland three-year business plan Estates management Police officer and staff pay Recording of sec and gender
19 December 2024	Regular meeting with the Chief Constable	Policing budget Officer and staff pay Estates Masterplan Body worn video Police Scotland three-year business plan Sustainable roads policing Workforce planning Mental health and policing demand Football disorder in Glasgow
16 January 2025	Regular meeting with the Chief Constable	Police (Ethics, Conduct and Scrutiny) (Scotland) (PECSS) Bill Officer and staff pay Emma Caldwell investigation Sheku Bayoh public inquiry Football disorder Mental health and policing demand Estate Masterplan Police Scotland three-year business plan
27 February 2025	Regular meeting with the Chief Constable	Sheku Bayoh public inquiry Sentencing review Secure accommodation Police complaints Police dogs insurance Policing budget 2025-26 3 year business plan Police officer pay UEFA Championship (Scotland) Bill Glasgow 2026 Commonwealth Games

3. The purpose of these meetings is to focus on matters of strategic importance and understand the challenges, risks and issues facing Police Scotland, and plans to mitigate these, as well as implications for policing.

4. I have met the Chief Constable outside these regular meetings. The most recent meetings are in the table below:

Date	Meeting
31 March 2023	Introductory meeting with the Chief Constable, Iain Livingstone
1 August 2023	Cabinet Secretary visit to Police Scotland, Tulliallan Castle
10 October 2023	Introductory meeting with the new Chief Constable, Jo Farrell
2 August 2024	Meeting with the Chief Constable to discuss officer numbers
5 August 2024	First Minister and CSJHA meeting with the Police Scotland following far-right violence and disorder across the UK
4 September 2024	Scottish Police Memorial Service

5. From January 2024, all notes of my regular meetings with the Chief Constable (and with the SPA Chair) are published on the Scottish Government website: https://www.gov.scot/collections/police-minutes-of-regular-meetings. Notes of other meetings involving Police Scotland and the Scottish Government, including those outside regular meetings detailed in the table above, are not routinely published.

6. The note of the meeting between myself and the Chief Constable on 27 February will be published on the Scottish Government website once this has been reviewed by the Chief Constable and myself.

Meetings with the Scottish Retail Consortium

7. I have not met with the Scottish Retail Consortium since 29 March 2023.

8. It may be helpful to note that Siobhian Brown MSP, the Minister for Victims and Community Safety has met with the Scottish Retail Consortium since 29 March 2023 which is listed in the following table:

Date	Meeting	Subjects discussed
19 March 2024	Scottish Retail Consortium	Retail crime

Question reference: S6W-35545

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 20 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many cases it estimates the Victims and Witnesses Commissioner for Scotland will deal with in the postholder's first year in office.

Question reference: S6W-35550

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 20 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many meetings the Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs has held with the (a) Victims’ Commissioner for England and Wales, (b) Commissioner for Victims of Crime Northern Ireland and (c) Victims’ Commissioner London since 29 March 2023, and what subjects were discussed.

Question reference: S6W-35556

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 20 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether police officer numbers will return to at least their level at the beginning of the first COVID-19 pandemic lockdown of 17,431, which was set on 31 March 2020, and, if it anticipates that they will, by when.

The recruitment and deployment of police officers is a matter for the Chief Constable. In 2023, Police Scotland restructuring led to a new establishment figure of around 16,500 to 16,600 officers. The Scottish Government’s record investment of £1.55bn in 2024-25 has enabled Police Scotland to undertake the highest level of recruitment since its inception, bringing officer numbers up to 16,508 at 31 December 2024.

Police Scotland’s three-year Business Plan 2024-2027 aims to make maximum impact with a workforce that has the right skills and capacity to keep people safe. Through workforce modernisation, they will reduce back-office duplication and create capacity to deal with new and increasing threats by moving more officers to frontline roles.

The Chief Constable has been clear that the context of frontline strength goes beyond an overall officer headcount and that of a police workforce which includes police staff.

Question reference: S6W-35562

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 20 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will legislate to split the dual role of the Lord Advocate before the end of the current parliamentary session.

Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Filter your results Hide all filters

Question reference: S6W-36007

Answer

Question reference: S6W-36009

Answer

Question reference: S6W-36008

Answer

Question reference: S6W-35722

Answer

Question reference: S6W-35565

Answer

Question reference: S6W-35547

Answer

Question reference: S6W-35545

Answer

Question reference: S6W-35550

Answer

Question reference: S6W-35556

Answer

Question reference: S6W-35562

Answer