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-25187

Asked by: Paul O'Kane, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 02 February 2024
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 12 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, since the introduction of annual health checks for adults with a learning disability in May 2022, how many adults had received such a health check by 31 March 2023.

Question reference: S6W-25437

Current Status: Withdrawn

Question reference: S6W-25463

Asked by: Emma Harper, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 08 February 2024
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 9 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to continue direct payments in the new rural support framework.

The Scottish Government has committed to no cliff edges in support between existing schemes and the introduction of the new four tier framework. We remain committed to supporting active farming and sustainable food production with direct payments, while also delivering on our nature and climate commitments.

We have previously set out that there will be a four-tiered approach to funding and there is ongoing engagement with key stakeholder organisations to determine what goes where in each of those tiers. I want to thank everyone who is contributing their expertise and ideas to that process.

Clearly, part of that depends on how much funding is available in each tier. I can advise Parliament that the funding for Tiers 1 and 2 will constitute at least 70% of the overall funding envelope to support farming, crofting and land management from 2027.

These are the tiers that will reflect most closely the direct payment regime, albeit with conditions built in from the start.

I can also advise that once we have determined what and how to replace the current Less Favoured Area Support Scheme – LFASS – with additional support for where the greatest need is and where people are farming and crofting in the most marginal and challenging of circumstances, that funding will also be made available through Tier 2.

This approach is the right one for 2027 – it delivers on our promise not to create cliff edges but to support farmers and crofters to transition to the new support framework.

Question reference: S6W-24893

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 29 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 9 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it undertook any action to mark Clean Air Night on 24 January 2024.

Clean Air Night 2024 was the first such event, and has been introduced to complement Clean Air Day, which has taken place since 2017 with funding support from the Scottish Government.

The Scottish Government will consider how to engage with future Clean Air Night activities in the context of the public engagement framework around air quality which we are developing with partner organisations. It will include a focus on raising awareness of the impact of domestic fuel combustion emissions, which was the overarching theme of Clean Air Night.

Question reference: S6W-24926

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 29 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 9 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the reported plans to increase household water bills by almost 30% over the next three years.

Question reference: S6W-24905

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 29 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 9 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what objectives it set for any funding that it has provided to SAY Women since 2019.

The Scottish Government has provided funding to SAY Women through the Equally Safe (2019-21) and Delivering Equally Safe Fund (2021-25). The objectives of funding are to improve mental and physical health amongst young women survivors of sexual abuse; to support them to cope with trauma-anxiety in order to reduce self-harming, substance abuse, and poverty; and to reduce challenging behaviours that can lead to homelessness amongst young women.

In 2019-20, 2020-21, 2021-22 the Scottish Government provided funding to SAY Women through the Housing Voluntary Grant Scheme with the objective of delivering safe, supported accommodation and related services for young women who are survivors of childhood sexual abuse, rape or sexual assault and who are homeless or threatened with homelessness.

In 2020-21 the Scottish Government provided funding through the COVID Immediate Priorities Fund for SAY Women to deliver enhanced independent living support to vulnerable individuals and those in need as a result of COVID-19. The objective was to help communities respond to the needs and challenges they were experiencing, and to protect the wellbeing of the people of Scotland.

The Scottish Government has also provided funding through the Third Sector Homelessness Fund (2021-22, 2022-23) and the Homelessness Sector Prevention Fund (2023-24) with the objective of preventing and responding to homelessness among survivors of childhood sexual abuse. This supported the delivery of training to frontline staff, and work to support young women survivors of childhood sexual abuse under threat of eviction due to challenging behaviours.

Question reference: S6O-03085

Asked by: Rona Mackay, MSP for Strathkelvin and Bearsden, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 31 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 8 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government when the project board that is being formed to oversee the consideration of future funding for violence against women services will next meet.

The Violence Against Women and Girls Sustainable Funding Project Board is currently being developed and I expect it to meet for the first time in March. It has been formed to take forward our commitment to develop a flexible and stable funding model that will ensure a focus on prevention and high quality, accessible, specialist violence against women and girls services.

‎ The Project Board, will be co-chaired by Scottish Government and CoSLA, and will include representatives of public sector and specialist stakeholders. The remit of the group will be agreed with the members and will include producing an accurate assessment of the current costs and spend of violence against women and girls, to help inform the development of a sustainable funding model.

Question reference: S6W-25006

Asked by: Donald Cameron, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 31 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 8 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-24530 by Fiona Hyslop on 29 January 2024, whether Transport Scotland’s Ferries Unit is in possession of performance and carrying statistics for CalMac for the period after 16 May 2023, in light of its contract management team monitoring the performance of operators through analysing monthly performance reports and meetings with operators, as stated in the Audit Scotland report, Transport Scotland’s ferry services, and, if so, whether Transport Scotland will consider publishing that information.

CalMac Ferries Ltd have recently provided detail in relation to cancelled and additional sailings beyond 16 May 2023. This will now be reviewed by Transport Scotland. Once reviewed and agreed it will be for CalMac as the operator to publish this information. As a matter of course Transport Scotland would not normally publish this information.

As part of the expected monthly reporting, we have not received carrying figures. Transport Scotland would not normally publish such information.

CalMac Ferries Ltd publish indicative performance figures for all the Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Service (CHFS) routes, and we would expect that the verified Contractual Performance figures from May 2023 will be published in due course and can be located on CalMac website: CalMac Performance Data Browser | CalMac Ferries .

Question reference: S6W-24807

Asked by: Kevin Stewart, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 25 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 8 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the reported contribution of international students to modern languages at Scottish universities, what specific assessment it has conducted to understand any potential impact of new UK visa restrictions, in relation to family members accompanying students, on students studying modern languages at Scottish universities.

The Scottish Government has not undertaken any specific assessment regarding the impact of recent changes to visa restrictions introduced by the UK Government on students studying modern languages at Scottish universities.

The Scottish Government recognises the important and valuable contribution that international students make to the Scottish economy, our educational environment and Scottish society. It is essential that immigration policy allows Scotland to attract and retain talent without excessive barriers.

Question reference: S6W-24869

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 26 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 8 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason dentists treating patients privately are reportedly unable to issue NHS prescriptions, in light of reported concerns that this means that patients who are unable to get NHS dental appointments have to pay for both appointments and any medication.