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-30656

Asked by: Pam Gosal, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 31 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government which rate reliefs could potentially be in the scope of any decision to make eligibility for business rates reliefs conditional on payment of the real Living Wage, as set out in its Fair Work Action Plan, and how may relief recipients might be affected.

Question reference: S6W-30689

Asked by: Annie Wells, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 31 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many households it estimates currently have at least one person with an alcohol addiction.

Question reference: S6W-30680

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 16 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 31 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide (a) a breakdown of the cost to partners to kennel XL Bully dogs and (b) the total cost to the public to kennel XL Bully dogs since the ban was announced in January 2024.

The information requested is not held by the Scottish Government. These are operational matters for Police Scotland and local authorities.

The Scottish Government has ongoing dialogue with a range of partners regarding implementation of the new safeguards on XL Bully dogs.

My officials are continuing to engage with Police Scotland, local authorities, Scottish SPCA and other key dog welfare stakeholders about the impact of enforcing and implementation of the new safeguards, including ongoing consideration of kennelling provision and demand.

Question reference: S6W-30533

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 31 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what recent action it has taken to reduce the number of non-smokers, particularly young people, taking up vaping.

The Scottish Government’s Tobacco and Vaping Framework, published in November 2023, committed to taking action to reduce vaping among non-smokers and young people.

Alongside the Framework, we launched the Take Hold marketing campaign which successfully increased parents, carers and young people’s awareness of the harms and risks of nicotine addiction from vaping. New resources were also launched on Parent Club, NHS Inform and Young Scot on vaping.

The Scottish Government is committed to aligning with a four-nation approach towards banning the sale and supply of single-use vapes.

In order to align with timescales recently announced by the Welsh and UK governments and provide consistency across the four nations, the Scottish Government will lay legislation to amend the coming into force date in the Scottish regulations banning the sale and supply of these vapes recently passed by the Scottish Parliament from 1 April 2025 to 1 June 2025.

We continue to work closely across the four-nations on the development of the UK Tobacco and Vapes Bill to ensure that it reflects Scotland’s public health ambitions and remain hopeful this will be reintroduced as soon as possible.

Question reference: S6W-30784

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 31 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has made an assessment of the impact of any so-called banking deserts on local communities within the Highlands and Islands region.

The Scottish Government is aware of the impact that branch closures are having on people in Scotland, particularly in rural areas and our island communities.

The regulation of financial services is reserved to the UK Government. In September the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) assumed new powers to regulate access to cash. The FCA’s access to cash regime is data-led and outcomes focused, with flexibilities to accommodate different cash needs across local areas and changing cash usage trends. The new rules seek to reasonably address the local requirements of consumers and businesses and the FCA’s expectation is that assessment processes will adapt over time based on lessons learned, data analysis, and evolving need. The FCA has indicated that it will also seek to prevent unreasonable delays in the delivery of appropriate cash access solutions as well as costs to accessing services while maintaining assisted services where needed.

LINK, a not-for-profit organisation, has been named as the coordination body under the rules and automatically carries out an assessment when there is any change to cash services within a given community. LINK also have a community request scheme that allows local people and their elected representatives to request an access to cash review if they feel the current level of cash services in their area is insufficient. LINK have stated that they welcome input from elected representatives so that they can assure themselves that they have arrived at the correct decision for areas they have assessed.

In October 2024, In my role as Minister for Business, I convened a cross-party roundtable with representatives from across the financial services sector, including the FCA, to discuss the new rules and the impact on communities, businesses, and individuals. The FCA have set out their belief that the data they will collect under the new regime will provide a more informed view of access to cash provision across the UK. Scottish Government will continue to work closely with the regulator and relevant stakeholders to understand the impact of changes to banking provision across Scotland and to collaborate on ways to support communities who need it most.

Question reference: S6W-30474

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 07 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 31 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had regarding ordering a new vessel to serve the Sound of Harris ferry route, particularly during peak periods, in light of the reported demands on the current service, which is restricted by tides and daylight hours.

The updated Vessels and Ports Plan was published on 1 February 2024 as part of the Islands Connectivity Plan. This includes a plan to replace the current Sound of Harris vessel.

CMAL has commenced work on phase two of the Small Vessel Replacement Programme which includes a replacement vessel to serve the Sound of Harris route. Design work from phase one will be expanded upon with lessons learned applied to phase two. CMAL will shortly launch a procurement process to appoint a naval architect consultant to develop the concept design.

Question reference: S6W-30409

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 31 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish its submission to the Strategic Defence Review.

The Scottish Government welcomes the opportunity we have been given to contribute to the ongoing Strategic Defence Review. Whilst Defence is a reserved matter, the decisions made within it can have far reaching implications for our Armed Forces community in Scotland, as well as devolved areas of responsibility such as industry, public services and the economy.

We will look to publish our submission to the review in the near future, once we have fully consulted with the relevant stakeholders on any sensitivities around the material included within it.

Question reference: S6O-03905

Asked by: Audrey Nicoll, MSP for Aberdeen South and North Kincardine, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 7 November 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the work that it is doing to support oil and gas companies to collaborate with renewables companies to test and deploy new technologies.

Question reference: S6O-03902

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 7 November 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the UK Government regarding cross-border machinery theft in rural areas, including the Scottish Borders.

Question reference: S6O-03907

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 7 November 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how it is ensuring adequate provision of enterprise support to businesses in the Mid Scotland and Fife region.

Parliament dissolved ahead of election

Chamber and committees

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