- Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 August 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Angela Constance on 8 September 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports of 23 assaults on prison officers at HMP Greenock between 2020 and 2024, and what measures it is taking to ensure the safety of staff at the facility.
Answer
I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:
SPS has a zero-tolerance approach to violence towards staff and has support mechanisms in place to assist prison officers who have been affected by it. Incidents of criminality are reported to Police Scotland and SPS will actively seek prosecution.
Following the successful pilot of Body Worn Video Cameras at 3 prison sites, cameras are to be rolled out across the prison estate which will include HMP Greenock.
The cameras will complement an already well established range of staff training, security systems and clear operating procedures used to promote and support safety for everyone working and living in prisons.
- Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 September 2025
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 10 September 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to increase the availability of residential social care beds in the west of Scotland, in light of reported closures and service reductions in the region.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 10 September 2025
- Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Monday, 04 August 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 1 September 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how many ScotRail evening rail services currently operate on each route, and how this compares with the number of evening rail services on each route in 2019.
Answer
This is an operational matter for ScotRail Trains Ltd. The Member may wish to contact ScotRail Trains Ltd directly to obtain this information.
- Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Monday, 04 August 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 1 September 2025
To ask the Scottish Government at what time the last ScotRail service of the day on each route (a) currently departs and (b) departed in 2019.
Answer
This is an operational matter for ScotRail Trains Ltd. The Member may wish to contact ScotRail Trains Ltd directly to obtain this information.
- Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Monday, 18 August 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Kate Forbes on 1 September 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to help local authorities fill or repurpose vacant retail space in high streets and town centres.
Answer
The Scottish Government is supporting local authorities to address vacant retail spaces in our high streets and town centres through a range of measures and we remain committed to supporting the broader retail sector where possible, using the levers available to us.
This is why Scotland has a competitive non-domestic rates regime, with the Basic Property Rate frozen for 2025-26 and £733 million in reliefs. Additionally, we are supporting the use or repurposing of vacant units through the Fresh Start Relief and Business Growth Accelerator Relief to support the reuse and improvement of long term empty properties. Further significant funding support is available through programmes such as the Place Based Investment Programme and Regeneration Capital Grant Fund is helping deliver community led regeneration. The Scottish Government’s National Planning Framework 4 also promotes the reuse of empty buildings and town centre living to boost local economic activity.
- Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Monday, 04 August 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 27 August 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how many train journeys have been cancelled for non-weather-related reasons in (a) 2025 to date and (b) each of the past five years, and what compensation was offered to passengers.
Answer
Details on cancelled rail passenger services, for each train operating company for the period until December 2024 are available on the Office for Rail and Road website, and can be found here: https://dataportal.orr.gov.uk/statistics/compendia/toc-key-statistics/. The Member may wish to contact train operating companies directly in order to obtain more recent and more detailed data, related to cancellations of their services.
Compensation that is offered to rail passengers is a matter for individual train operating companies. The Member may wish to contact them directly to obtain this information.
- Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 29 July 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Graeme Dey on 26 August 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how many people are currently in apprenticeships in the digital and engineering and manufacturing subject areas and how many new newly qualified apprentices have entered the workforce in each of the past five years.
Answer
Data on the latest number of individuals currently undertaking modern apprenticeships in the digital, engineering, and manufacturing subject areas was published by Skills Development Scotland (SDS) on 5 August 2025.
Data on the number of modern apprentices in training by occupational grouping is available in table 3.3 of the 'Modern Apprenticeships in Quarter 1 Supplementary Tables' accessible via the SDS website modern-apprenticeship-supplementary-tables-quarter-1-2025-26.xlsx
It is important to note that newly qualified apprentices do not enter the workforce upon completion of their apprenticeship, as they are already in the workplace and employed throughout the duration of their training. Holding a job is a prerequisite for undertaking an apprenticeship.
SDS holds operational responsibility for all matters relating to apprenticeships. As such, it is responsible for this data and can provide further breakdowns if required.
- Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Monday, 04 August 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Fairlie on 26 August 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how many rural bus routes have been reduced or withdrawn in
each year since 2010, broken down by local authority area.
Answer
This information is publicly available on the Traffic Commissioner website under PSV notices and proceedings for Scotland. The address is https://www.gov.uk/guidance/notices-and-proceedings-for-scotland
- Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Monday, 04 August 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Jim Fairlie on 26 August 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how much financial support it has provided to local authorities specifically to maintain or enhance rural bus services since 2019, broken down by local authority.
Answer
In 2025-26 the Scottish Government provided record funding of over £15.1 billion to local authorities, a real terms increase of 5.5%. It is, however, the responsibility of each local authority to allocate the total financial resources available, including on support for bus services, on the basis of local needs and priorities, having first fulfilled its statutory obligations. Ultimately, it is for locally elected representatives to make local decisions on how best to deliver services to their local communities.
Further information on the local government finance settlements, including allocations for each local authority is published annually on the Scottish Government website. The settlement for 2025-26 can be found at the following link - https://www.gov.scot/publications/local-government-finance-circular-10-2024-settlement-for-2025-to-2026/
The amount of funding local authorities provided for bus in Scotland is detailed in our annually published statistics that can be found at the following link - https://www.transport.gov.scot/media/ea2pp3vv/sts-chapter-02-bus-and-coach-travel-reference-tables-accessible.xls. Table 2.9 provides details of funding to Local Authority bus support, concessionary fares, Network Support Grant from 2004-05 onwards. We do not hold the level of detail required to break this down by local authority area.
- Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
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Date lodged: Thursday, 31 July 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi McAllan on 26 August 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what the total underspend has been in its housing capital budgets since 2007, and what assessment it has made of how any underspend has affected affordable home delivery.
Answer
Since 2008-09 we have published information on Affordable Housing Supply Programme budget and actual spend in our annual out-turn reports, available here: Affordable Housing Supply Programme - More homes - gov.scot. Reasons for variance in spend against budget can include lower activity in some demand-led programmes, project delays or, as seen from 2020-21 onwards, the impact of COVID and related construction supplies and workforce issues. We continue to work closely with partners to utilise our investment to help maximise the pace of delivery of affordable homes.
In 2007-08 Communities Scotland, an executive agency of the Scottish Government was responsible for housing throughout Scotland. Communities Scotland was disbanded on 1 April 2008, when most of its responsibilities transferred to the Scottish Government.
Financial Year | Budget (£ million) | Outturn (£ million) |
2008-2009 | 493.000 | 529.711 |
2009-2010 | 644.006 | 673.030 |
2010-2011 | 471.000 | 516.263 |
2011-2012 | 342.000 | 352.471 |
2012-2013 | 214.828 | 317.960 |
2013-2014 | 315.164 | 300.425 |
2014-2015 | 358.800 | 358.885 |
2015-2016 | 461.050 | 386.741 |
2016-2017 | 550.779 | 505.666 |
2017-2018 | 590.589 | 592.306 |
2018-2019 | 752.145 | 745.188 |
2019-2020 | 827.100 | 839.939 |
2020-2021 | 843.245 | 754.497 |
2021-2022 | 831.615 | 671.355 |
2022-2023 | 831.395 | 748.675 |
2023-2024 | 751.945 | 707.777 |
The 2024-25 Scottish Government Consolidated Accounts are currently being finalised and are due to be published later this year.
