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: S7W-03009

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 07 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 15 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether its new Public Procurement Taskforce will include consideration of how to reduce barriers to venison being used more widely in public sector catering menus.

The Public Sector Food Procurement Taskforce has been established to make recommendations to Ministers on strengthening public sector food procurement of local food.

The Taskforce's remit includes identifying barriers to local procurement, considering the capacity and capability of Scottish producers and processors to meet public sector demand, and identifying opportunities to strengthen routes to market for local suppliers.

Whilst decisions on menu content are made locally, the Scottish Government is undertaking a range of activity to support greater uptake of venison across the public sector. The Scottish Government is already working with industry partners to support growth in the venison sector and explore opportunities to increase demand, including through public sector catering and procurement routes.

The Scottish Government is supporting activity to strengthen the Scottish venison sector and increase market opportunities. This includes funding of £75,000 in
2026-07 to Scottish Venison and Scottish Agricultural Organisation Society (SAOS), for a range of marketing and supply chain activities including work to increase awareness of venison amongst public sector buyers.

Alongside this, recent awards through the Food and Drink Processing Scheme Scotland have provided over £200,000 to three venison processing businesses to support equipment and infrastructure upgrades.

Question reference: S7W-02894

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 15 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government when the Agriculture Reform Implementation Oversight Board last met.

Question reference: S7W-02895

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 15 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the comment at the Rural Affairs Committee on 2 September 2026 that the Agriculture Reform Implementation Oversight Board had ceased to exist, whether it will confirm (a) on what date the board was discontinued, (b) for what reason this decision was taken and (c) how its role will be replaced.

I wrote to members of the Agriculture Reform Implementation Oversight Board (ARIOB) in August to confirm that the Board would no longer continue. At that time members were informed that the Scottish Government was forming a new stakeholder group, the Land, Agriculture and Nature Delivery (LAND) Group which will be chaired by the Cabinet Secretary for Climate Action and Rural Affairs.

The LAND Group will be multi-disciplinary, made up of 12 member organisations reflecting the mix of key interest areas. These include agriculture, forestry, peatland, biodiversity, wildlife and species management and water. It will meet three times a year and will take forward strategic discussions around how land use can be integrated to deliver the multiple benefits needed to achieve the wider ambitions of ‘Scotland PLC’ and its people.

The Land, Agriculture and Nature Delivery (LAND) Group is not intended to be a direct replacement for the ARIOB but instead reflects the strategic understanding of our land as an interactive system and the expanded responsibilities in the current Climate Action and Rural Affairs portfolio. This approach ensures our stakeholder engagement is structured to provide a truly holistic approach to land use issues.

Additionally, the Agriculture Policy Development Group (APDG), which was originally set up to support the ARIOB, has been expanded and has met a number of times since the last meeting of the ARIOB. I attended their meeting in May to make clear the APDG is an essential part of our engagement with the industry on agricultural reform and the Scottish Government will rely on it to help get us into the delivery phase of the Agricultural Reform Programme. I will chair the Group going forward and we will continue working towards positive outcomes for agriculture in Scotland.

Question reference: S7W-03279

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 14 September 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 28 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that two in five men in Scotland die prematurely, and in light of this, whether it will commit to publishing a fully costed Men's Health Action Plan with measurable national and regional outcome targets or if it considers that existing arrangements are sufficient.

Question reference: S7W-03271

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 14 September 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 28 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to support investment in mountain biking infrastructure in Dumfries and Galloway.

Question reference: S7W-03273

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 14 September 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 28 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact that ending centralised funding for hybrid closed loop technology will have on the delivery of the prevention-focused ambitions set out in Scotland's Population Health Framework 2025-2035.

Question reference: S7W-03275

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 14 September 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 28 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish, or otherwise make available, the findings of the Centre for Sustainable Delivery's rapid value case on further expansion of hybrid closed loop technology, and what role this assessment is playing in preparations for its 2027-28 Budget.

Question reference: S7W-03288

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 14 September 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 28 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what men's health data is routinely collected and reported at NHS board level, and whether it will publish a men's health profile for each board's area.

Question reference: S7W-03272

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 14 September 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 28 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has assessed the impact of trail closures, downgraded routes or maintenance backlogs on tourism and visitor numbers at 7Stanes centres, and what its long-term strategy is for the 7Stanes network and mountain biking tourism in south-west Scotland.

Question reference: S7W-03276

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 14 September 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 28 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the link between hybrid closed loop technology uptake and resulting cost savings to NHS Scotland from improved health outcomes, such as fewer emergency hospital admissions.