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-41810

Asked by: Ash Regan, MSP for Edinburgh Eastern, Independent
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 November 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 25 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what future commercial opportunities Scottish Water plans, and whether these include selling water for use in England.

As this is an operational matter for Scottish Water I have asked them to respond. Their reply is as follows:

Scottish Water Horizons drives sustainable growth by leveraging expertise and market position to maximise commercial, reputational, and carbon benefits. They support Scottish Water's strategic ambitions, contributing to Scotland’s prosperity by creating value from Scottish Water assets. Some examples include:

Renewable energy (Solar, Hydroelectric, Wind) including large-scale battery energy storage schemes, which utilises Scottish Water’s land base.
Heat recovery from sewers to help Scottish Water and other public sector organisations (e.g. NHS, Academia) to decarbonise their estate.
Facilitating and delivering off site infrastructure (pipes & sewers) for Housing Developers.
Commercial waste management, supporting business customers to dispose of their waste ethically via Scottish Water’s wastewater assets.

Scottish Water is not currently planning or exploring selling water for use in England as the bulk export of water is extremely expensive in terms of carbon and energy use. Additionally, climate change means that the availability of water in Scotland is changing, with periods of drought becoming more frequent and more prolonged as experienced in summer 2025. It is therefore important that water resources are managed carefully and more efficiently. As Scottish Water’s Long term strategy has noted, given the impacts of climate change, population growth and migration, the East of Scotland will face serious water deficits by 2050.

Question reference: S6W-41811

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 November 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 25 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) legal and (b) illegal sewage discharges there have been in Argyll coastal waters in each of the last five years, and what estimate it has made of the expected number of such discharges by 2030.

Question reference: S6W-41829

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 November 2025
Current Status: Answered by Ben Macpherson on 25 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has carried out any analysis relating to the impact of population decline on apprenticeship uptake in the South of Scotland region.

Question reference: S6W-41814

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 November 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 25 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason it has been reported that not all sewage discharge points in Argyll and Bute are monitored.

Question reference: S6W-41812

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 November 2025
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 25 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) schools and (b) (i) hospital and (ii) other buildings were damaged during Storm Eowyn in January 2025, also broken down by what assessment it has made of how much it will cost to repair these, and what additional resources it has provided to assist with this.

Question reference: S6W-42126

Asked by: Clare Adamson, MSP for Motherwell and Wishaw, Scottish National Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Monday, 24 November 2025
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Angus Robertson on 25 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its commitment to a review of Creative Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-42083

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 November 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 9 December 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether any of its ministers have been involved in any discussions or decisions regarding the case brought forward by For Women Scotland in relation to its policy on the housing of biological male prisoners in female prisons, and, if so, which ministers have been involved, and when any such discussions or decisions took place.

Question reference: S6W-42099

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 24 November 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 9 December 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the University of Stirling's recently published research on the positive benefits of beaver-created wetlands on pollinator numbers, what financial incentives it provides for landowners to accommodate beaver wetlands.

Question reference: S6W-42125

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 24 November 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 9 December 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what English language proficiency requirements are in place for operational staff at the Scottish Prison Service, and how these are assessed during the recruitment process.

Question reference: S6W-42122

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 24 November 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 9 December 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what steps are being taken to strengthen the Scottish Prison Service's recruitment vetting procedures to prevent infiltration by organised crime groups.