The Scottish Parliament

Question reference: S7W-02471

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 14 August 2026
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 3 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of Environmental Standards Scotland's finding of non-compliance with Regulation 13 of the Marine Strategy Regulations 2010 in relation to the monitoring of marine waters to protect and restore the seafloor, what additional monitoring arrangements it plans to introduce for (a) coastal waters, (b) marine protected areas and (c) wider seas areas.

Environmental Standards Scotland's (ESS) report published on 23 June 2026, Protecting Scotland's seafloor: an assessment of Scottish Ministers' implementation of the Marine Strategy Regulations 2010, contains ESS’ findings and recommendations relating to the Scottish Ministers’ implementation of those Regulations, including regarding monitoring of marine waters.

The Scottish Government is carefully considering the ESS report and will work constructively with ESS to seek to agree an appropriate action plan within the timescale suggested in the report. The Scottish Government's position on the report's findings and recommendations will be set out through that engagement and in its formal response.

Question reference: S7W-02470

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 14 August 2026
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 3 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government which a) minister, b) directorate and c) public body will be accountable for ensuring that Scotland delivers its agreed contribution to any UK-wide seafloor integrity targets, and how progress towards meeting those targets will be reported to the Scottish Parliament.

Environmental Standards Scotland's (ESS) report published on 23 June 2026, Protecting Scotland's seafloor: an assessment of Scottish Ministers' implementation of the Marine Strategy Regulations 2010, contains ESS’ findings and recommendations relating to the Scottish Ministers’ implementation of those Regulations, including in relation to UK seafloor integrity targets.

The Scottish Government is carefully considering the ESS report and will work constructively with ESS to seek to agree an appropriate action plan within the timescale suggested in the report. The lead directorate for this work, which currently sits within the portfolios of the Cabinet Secretary for Climate Action and Rural Affairs and the Minister for Agriculture, Marine, and the Islands, is Marine Directorate. The Scottish Government’s position on the report's findings and recommendations will be set out through that engagement and in its formal response.

Question reference: S7W-02351

Asked by: Julie MacDougall, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Reform UK
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 August 2026
Current Status: Answered by Simita Kumar on 3 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government if it has knowledge of how many biological men will be taking part in programs ran by the "LGBT Health and Wellbeing" charity to instruct them in "Queer Milk classes" on how to breastfeed, given the Scottish Government has provided nearly £262,000 in aid to this charity.

The Scottish Government has received clear and unambiguous assurance that the voluntary run parental group, Queer Milk, is not training men to lactate and feed infants. Any claim to the contrary is untrue.

Queer Milk is a small, volunteer-led peer-support group for LGBTQ+ parents and carers. The group forms part of LGBT Health and Wellbeing's wider community wellbeing programme, which aims to reduce social isolation, support mental wellbeing, and provide opportunities for peer connection. The Scottish Government does not directly fund Queer Milk.

It is important to be clear that Queer Milk is not a clinical service. The group does not prescribe medication, induce lactation, provide medical treatment, offer clinical advice on infant feeding, train individuals to breastfeed or replace professional healthcare services.

Any media reports, organisations or individuals claiming the contrary is false.

Question reference: S7W-02161

Asked by: Julie MacDougall, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Reform UK
Date lodged: Monday, 17 August 2026
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 3 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that high levels of E. coli have been found in the water around Kinghorn Harbour and, whether it considers that a previous decision by it to overturn a SEPA enforcement notice issued to Scottish Water in 2024, regarding the identification and elimination of sources of contamination in the Kinghorn area, has had any bearing on the current situation, and what the reasons are for its position on this matter.

We take all reports of poor water quality at bathing waters seriously. SEPA, Scottish Water and other relevant bodies continue to work together to understand the source of contamination at the bathing water at Kinghorn Harbour and identify any necessary actions to improve water quality.

Following an appeal against SEPA’s 2024 enforcement notice, the reporter determined that the notice was not valid, as it did not meet the requirements of the Water Environment (Controlled Activities) (Scotland) Regulations 2011. This finding was issued in February 2025.

The 2024 enforcement notice required Scottish Water to carry out investigative work. Scottish Water had already begun the scoping, resourcing and implementation of this work prior to receiving the revised enforcement notice in September 2025. In addition, SEPA continued to sample and investigate pollution sources between February 2025 and September 2025. This would suggest that the decision to overturn the enforcement notice had no material bearing on the reports of high levels of E.coli identified in the Kinghorn Harbour bathing water.

Question reference: S7W-02663

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 24 August 2026
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 3 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of projects supported by the Just Transition Fund are required to report the number of (a) jobs created, (b) jobs safeguarded and (c) people subsequently entering employment, and when it expects to have complete outcome data for any projects supported in 2025-26.

Launched in 2022, the Just Transition Fund (JTF) is a 10-year commitment focused on creating new jobs and economic opportunities as the North East and Moray transitions away from carbon-intensive industries.

Scottish Government has an established reporting process which is used to monitor progress on each project during delivery. We also undertake regular independent impact evaluation to ensure that impacts of the Fund are well understood, and that the projects deliver as much impact as possible.

A fresh independent impact evaluation of the first four years of delivery of the JTF is being commissioned currently, and we intend to publish findings in early 2027. This will provide a comprehensive view of the jobs created, investment leveraged and wider impacts of the Fund. Importantly, it will also estimate the forward impact of these projects as they mature and continue to deliver and provide an estimate of the impact of the newly announced projects for 26/27. Some projects have their own independent evaluation, such as the ETZ Supply Chain Pathway and Challenge Fund Programme which has recently reported that their project alone directly led to the creation of 267 FTE jobs between 2022 – 2026, with the report estimating it would create 786 FTE jobs over a 10 year period. See here.

Question reference: S7W-02499

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 17 August 2026
Current Status: Answered by Stephen Flynn on 3 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what dedicated financial and technical support it is currently providing to regional transport partnerships, including the Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT), to assist in the development of bus service franchising business cases under the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019.

On 17 March, the Scottish Government published the guidance for Local Services Franchises on the Transport Scotland website, which is intended to provide technical support to all local authorities, including Strathclyde Partnership for Transport (SPT) in developing their franchising proposals. On 12 June 2026, the SPT Strategy and Programmes Committee approved an award of contract for services to undertake a Franchising Assessment.

We recognise that SPT is the only local transport authority in Scotland who has officially announced its intentions to pursue bus franchising, following the publication of its Regional Bus Strategy in September 2025. To support local transport authorities financially we are committed to investing £4 million in 2026-27 to support Local Transport Authorities to build business cases for local bus improvement through franchising.

The Scottish Government also provides revenue grant funding to support RTPs’ core operating costs and statutory functions, alongside contributions from constituent councils. In 2026/27, we awarded £3.468 million in revenue funding across all 7 RTPs, which included £617,025 to SPT. Decisions on the allocations of Scottish Government funding in future years is subject to the annual Budget Bill process.

Question reference: S7W-02842

Current Status: Withdrawn

Question reference: S7W-02408

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Edinburgh and Lothians East, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 10 August 2026
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 2 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether patients aged under 18 are able to access rapid cancer diagnostic centres, and what dedicated diagnostic pathways are available to children and young people presenting with possible cancer symptoms.

Question reference: S7W-02421

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 August 2026
Current Status: Answered by Stephen Flynn on 2 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government which trade unions it has consulted on its plans for a Council for Economic Growth.

Question reference: S7W-02364

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 10 August 2026
Current Status: Answered by Stephen Flynn on 2 September 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with ScotRail in light of the Gourock to Dunoon ferry service temporarily running as a single vessel service between 2 September 2026 and 25 March 2027.

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