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-41569

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 October 2025
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 12 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has instructed Revenue Scotland to begin the development of the systems required to collect Air Departure Tax and if so, when it expects this work to be completed.

Revenue Scotland is responsible for the collection and management of the fully devolved taxes, including Air Departure Tax (ADT) which will replace UK Air Passenger Duty (APD).The Scottish Government and Revenue Scotland have joint responsibility for delivery of ADT.

The Scottish Government regularly engage with Revenue Scotland on business planning related to current and future fully devolved taxes, including ADT. Establishment of an implementation programme for ADT will be informed by Revenue Scotland’s expertise and experience of collecting and managing devolved taxes.

The Scottish Government will provide the aviation sector and Revenue Scotland with sufficient notice of implementation timelines to support sectoral business readiness and efficient collection of the devolved tax.

Question reference: S6F-04409

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 03 November 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 6 November 2025

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6F-04386

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 27 October 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 30 October 2025

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6F-04343

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 29 September 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 October 2025

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6F-04320

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 22 September 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 25 September 2025

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6W-40193

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 01 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 16 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether young people have access to accurate education on British and Scottish history, including on the British Empire and the UK's involvement in slavery.

The Scottish Government believes that it is crucially important that young people have access to accurate education on British and Scottish history, including on the British Empire and the UK's involvement in slavery. Scotland’s history curriculum, including the senior phase courses “The Trade in Enslaved African People 1770–1807” and “Migration and Empire 1830–1939”, present a range of opportunities for young people to learn about these significant histories.

The Breaking the Mould anti-racism curriculum principles include a principle on 'understanding and enquiring into Scotland’s role in historical world events, including trans-Atlantic enslavement and colonial histories, and their continuing impact today'. There are a range of further national actions underway including the following:

The Scottish Government has supported academic-led programmes with the universities of Edinburgh, Glasgow and Stirling for teachers on Teaching Slavery in Scotland and on the Impact of Scots Settlers in Migration and Empire, with resources developed published on the Scottish Association of Teachers of History website.
Education Scotland has published teaching resources on the Transatlantic Slave Trade supported by the University of Glasgow, and a publication on Sugar Histories aimed at Primary 7 learners in transition to S1 in both expressive arts and social studies.
The Scottish Government is currently working in partnership with the SQA and Education Scotland to consider appropriate updates to the history qualifications to embed an anti-racist and decolonised approach. The Curriculum Improvement Cycle will consider further relevant updates to the social studies curriculum.
Museums Galleries Scotland is working with museums who are decolonising their collections and learning resources to reflect the recommendations of the Empire, Slavery and Scotland’s Museums report. National Museums Scotland has developed a specific resource associated with the National 5 qualification on the Trade in Enslaved African People.

Question reference: S6W-40024

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 12 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what engagement it had with civil service unions in advance of the reported comments by the Permanent Secretary regarding an ambition for civil servants to work in the office for at least 60% of their contracted hours.

Question reference: S6W-40023

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 12 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what equality impact assessments were carried out in advance of the reported comments by the Permanent Secretary regarding an ambition for civil servants to work in the office for at least 60% of their contracted hours.

A full Equalities Impact Assessment (EQIA) has been completed for the new hybrid working policy for core Scottish Government staff in hybrid-compatible roles should aim to spend 40% of their contracted hours working in person either in our workplaces, with stakeholders or in communities.

The EQIA has been published on the Scottish Government’s intranet for all affected staff to access, and will continue to be reviewed.

Diversity and inclusion have been central to the Scottish Government’s approach: alongside working with, and formally consulting, recognised trade unions, officials engaged Scottish Government staff diversity networks, who also input to the EQIA.

Question reference: S6W-40195

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 01 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 11 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the number of schools that have a dedicated family income advisor.

Specific data on school-based family income advisors, is not held centrally.

The Scottish Government has invested £1.75 billion in the Scottish Attainment Challenge over the past decade, including over £1billion in Pupil Equity Funding, empowering headteachers to take the best approaches that suit the needs of their pupils and families. This funding is supporting significant numbers of additional staff, like family income advisors, to help close the poverty-related attainment gap.

Across the country we continue to trust and empower Scotland's headteachers to use this extra funding to support their pupils - whether through extra support staff, family link workers or family income advisors. As highlighted in the pupil_equity_funding_report_2025_.pdf, published in May 2025, we know that the majority of the funding supports staff with roles specifically designed to help children and young people impacted by poverty. This includes up to 3,000 additional staff - almost 700 of whom are teachers - with the remainder in roles such as family link workers, pupil support assistants, education psychologists, speech and language therapists and family income advisors.

The Scottish Government also continues to support free income maximisation, welfare and debt advice services with £16.9 million invested in 2025-26, a significant increase on the £12.3 million invested in 2022-23, helping support families get the support they are entitled to.

Question reference: S6W-40192

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 01 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 10 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what resources it is providing to SEPA to support the implementation of the Environmental Authorisation (Scotland) Regulations 2018.

The Scottish Government aims to resource all of its agencies to deliver on their key statutory duties and frontline services for the people of Scotland. In SEPA’s case, resourcing includes Grant in Aid funding, as agreed by Parliament, through the approval of annual budget bills as well as funding raised by SEPA through its various charging schemes.

It is for SEPA to determine how it allocates funding to deliver against each of its priorities. Implementation of the integrated authorisation framework, as set out under the Environmental Authorisation (Scotland) Regulations, was identified as a high priority in SEPA’s 2024-27 Corporate Plan. In each year that the Corporate Plan covers, SEPA’s annual operating plans will set out how resources will be allocated.