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-39988

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 August 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 4 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will review current referral pathways to improve early detection of brain tumours.

Question reference: S6W-39990

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 August 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 4 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the long-term support needs of brain tumour survivors and their families.

Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that anyone diagnosed with cancer has access to a range of services throughout their cancer pathway. We are aware that individuals’ support needs change and evolve during this time.

The Scottish Cancer Network (SCN) has developed National Clinical Management Pathway (CMP) for adult neuro-oncology. This sets out an optimal treatment and support pathway for adults diagnosed with a brain tumour from diagnosis to end of life care.

The CMP outlines a consensus of clinical best practice, and includes information on a range of treatment and supportive care support following a diagnosis. This, ensures that everyone diagnosed with and living with a brain tumour have access the best possible care and support.

Question reference: S6W-39991

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 August 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 4 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what steps it is taking to address any unmet need in diagnosing cancer, including brain tumours.

Scottish Government knows that the earlier cancer is diagnosed the easier it is to treat, and even cure. Diagnosing brain cancer can be challenging as symptoms are wide-ranging and often vague.

We continue to have a focus on the less survivable cancers, including brain tumours, and improving their outcomes and this vision is part of our Cancer Strategy for Scotland 2023-2033 along with an initial three year Cancer Action Plan for Scotland 2023 – 2026.

The Detect Cancer Early (DCE) Programme initially launched in 2012, takes a whole-systems approach to early detection and encompasses primary care, diagnostics, public education, data, innovation and screening.

A new primary care cancer education platform - Gateway C, launched in 2024, is a free online platform providing innovative and tailored information to support earlier cancer diagnosis efforts and enable effective decision-making.

The Scottish Referral Guidelines (SRGs) for Suspected Cancer support primary care clinicians to identify those with symptoms suspicious of cancer and identify those who require urgent assessment by a specialist. For the first time, the guidelines includes an update to the guidance for urgent referral for suspected brain tumours, to help ensure the right person is on the right pathway at the right time.

A new National Headache Pathway has also been published by the Centre for Sustainable Delivery. This pathway, based on presentation at General Practice, clearly lists red flag symptoms that indicate the need for urgent and/or emergency assessment to exclude a secondary cause, such as a brain tumour.

Question reference: S6O-04912

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 September 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 10 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the UK Government’s recently announced funding to test new ways to tackle obesity and the reported limited access to weight management treatments across Scotland, what steps it is taking to ensure that people in rural areas, such as Dumfries and Galloway, can access new weight loss treatments, including through innovative models such as pharmacist-led pilot schemes in GP practices.

Question reference: S6W-39370

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 July 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 12 August 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports of a significant number of people in Dumfries and Galloway moving from NHS dental services to paying privately for dental services, whether any funding that was previously used for NHS dental services has been ring-fenced for future reinvestment in NHS dental provision in the region.

Question reference: S6W-39371

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 July 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 11 August 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how much NHS Dumfries and Galloway has saved as a result of any reduction in publicly funded dental services, and how any such savings are being accounted for within the region’s financial recovery plans.

Question reference: S6W-39369

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 July 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 11 August 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports of a significant number of people in Dumfries and Galloway moving from NHS dental services to paying privately for dental services, where any funding that was previously used for NHS dental services has been reallocated.

Payments to independent contractors providing NHS dental services, responsible for almost all primary care dental service provision, is funded through a national General Dental Services (GDS) budget. This is a non-cash limited budget where National Services Scotland make payments on behalf of NHS Boards directly to independent contractors. There is no separate budget for each NHS Board for these services. NHS Boards do have budget for the Public Dental Service (a specialist service provided by employees of the Board) as part of their general allocation. Information that is held at NHS Board level.

I can confirm that there has been no reduction in funding for NHS dental services. On the contrary, as part of the 2025-26 budget we have increased funding for primary care dental services by 15%. This takes total funding to over half a billion pounds for the first time and means that over the course of this Parliament, we will have increased investment in primary care dental services by 33%.

A breakdown of GDS spending for the 2024-25 financial year can be viewed at https://publichealthscotland.scot/publications/nhs-dental-data-monitoring-report/nhs-dental-data-monitoring-report-quarter-ending-march-2025/

Question reference: S6W-39056

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 30 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 10 July 2025

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish the Rural Support Plan.

The Agriculture and Rural Communities (Scotland) Act 2024 requires the Scottish Ministers to publish a five-year Rural Support Plan and have regard to it when exercising functions under the 2024 Act. The Agriculture and Rural Communities (Scotland) Act 2024 (Commencement No. 1) Regulations 2025 came into force on 16 June 2025. In the first instance it provides the legal basis for the introduction of the Rural Support Plan, which will set out how support over each five-year period will deliver to 2024 Act objectives and wider Scottish Government priorities.

It will build upon for the Vision for Scottish Agriculture and the Agricultural Reform Route Map and outline the phased transition from legacy EU Common Agricultural Policy support to the new four-tier framework. It will reflect the on-going engagement and co-development taking place within the Agriculture Reform Programme. The Rural Support Plan will collate this information into a single strategic and coherent package, add programme level input and ensure the totality of measures is considered. This work is part of normal duties within the Agricultural Reform Programme and any costs will be met within existing budgets.

The initial Rural Support Plan is intended to be drafted through the remainder of 2025 and laid in Winter 2025, to reflect the Route Map, the on-going work of the Agricultural Reform Programme and published ahead of the first plan period of 2026-2030.

Question reference: S6W-39019

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 26 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 8 July 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how it will ensure that the eligibility criteria for tier 3 of the Agri-Environment Climate Scheme support a range of actions, such as managing species-rich pastures, and do not only support tree planting.

Since it was launched in 2015, the Agri-Environment Climate Scheme (AECS) has supported land managers to undertake a wide range of actions to benefit the environment. Support is provided for the management of species-rich grassland and small-scale tree planting, alongside options spanning nature restoration, climate change mitigation and adaptation, improving water quality and mitigating flood risk. The scheme offers both capital and resource funding to enable the uptake of options which complement existing farming systems and support both productive agriculture and nature and climate outcomes. Full scheme guidance is available on the Rural Payments website.

As stated in the Agricultural Reform Route Map, AECS is expected to continue until at least 2026 to deliver elements of Elective support ahead of Tier 3 launching in 2027.

Tier 3 Elective will support action that protects habitats or species or improves business sustainability. It will focus on funding a range of targeted actions for climate change and nature restoration. This could be specific to a particular species or habitat, support conversion to alternative forms of agriculture such as organic production, encourage innovation and provide supply chain support.

Question reference: S6W-37909

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 3 July 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to prevent carbon leakage from agricultural imports as a result of any reduction in domestic agricultural production.

The Scottish Government does not accept the premise of the question. As the Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs, Land Reform and Islands set out at the Royal Highland Show on 19 June, while we have accepted the Climate Change Committee’s proposed carbon budget levels to reach net zero, we will not be accepting their policy recommendations which would have had a detrimental impact on our agriculture sector and wider rural economy.

We have been crystal clear: this government has no policy, and will have no policy, to cut livestock numbers. We will reach net zero, and we intend to do that in a way which works for rural Scotland without simply offshoring our emissions and environmental responsibilities.

In terms of trade, I would highlight the impact of UK Trade Deals in terms of their impact on domestic production/offshoring as outlined in the answer to question S6W-37892 on 4 June 2025. Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanisms are also an important policy tool; however, the trade-related powers that could be used to protect Scotland’s livestock industry are held in Westminster under the current constitutional settlement.

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.