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-16771

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 3 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what progress has been made in preventing leachate from reaching water courses near Tarbolton Moss Landfill Site.

The Scottish Government is not directly responsible for the site, or its regulation.

The Scottish Government met with SEPA and the Council in January 2023 to discuss future options for the site. At this meeting it was noted that, given new information around the increased and potential ongoing costs of the leachate management strategy, and other changes of circumstances, a fresh strategy for the management of the site should be considered to enable progress.

Subject to final approval and available funding, the intention is to fund and commission a review by consultants, who will be asked to identify the possible options for remediation at the site. Scottish Government, SEPA and the Council will then meet to consider these options.

SEPA continues to monitor ongoing environmental risks at the site and completed its latest survey in January 2023. This found no significant increasing trends associated with the impact to groundwater or water courses from leachate.

Question reference: S6W-16741

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 3 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government when it plans to publish the results of the Scottish Agricultural Census for 2022.

Question reference: S6W-16838

Asked by: Edward Mountain, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 April 2023
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 3 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its latest assessment is of the total number of veterans in Scotland.

The most recent estimate of the number of veterans of the UK Armed Forces resident in Scotland is 220,000, which was taken from the annual population survey conducted by the Office for National Statistics in 2017. Scotland's Census 2022 included for the first time a question on previous service in the UK Armed Forces. Census data will help to support a better understanding of the veterans community in Scotland, including numbers.

Question reference: S6W-17437

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 3 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has any plans to (a) ban and (b) restrict the breeding of the Scottish Fold cat.

The Scottish Government has no plans at this time to ban the breeding of the Scottish Fold cat. The breeding of this particular breed is however restricted under The Animal Welfare (Licensing of Activities Involving Animals) (Scotland) Regulations 2021 (the 2021 regulations).

The 2021 Regulations include a licence condition (section 8(4), schedule 2) which states that "no cat may be kept for breeding if it can reasonably be expected, on the basis of its genotype, conformation, behaviour or state of health, that breeding from it could have a detrimental effect on its health or welfare or the health or welfare of its offspring". Given the well documented conformational health issues with this breed, the licensing authority is likely to refuse any application for a licence or a request to vary a licence where the intention is to breed the Scottish Fold. Comprehensive guidance produced for local authorities and cat breeders also makes it clear that persons seeking to breed the Scottish Fold are unlikely to be granted a licence to do so.

Question reference: S6T-01344

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 May 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reported comments from the Scottish Solicitors Bar Association that its plans for juryless trials would be an affront to justice and that any proposed pilot could result in boycott action.

Question reference: S6T-01340

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 May 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking in light of the grounding of MV Pentalina and any impact on ferry services to and from Orkney.

Question reference: S6F-02068

Asked by: Karen Adam, MSP for Banffshire and Buchan Coast, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 May 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 May 2023

To ask the First Minister, in light of this being Deaf Awareness Week, what work the Scottish Government is undertaking to ensure that deaf people have their communication needs met.

Question reference: S6F-02070

Asked by: Russell Findlay, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 May 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 May 2023

To ask the First Minister what action the Scottish Government plans to take in light of his declared support for the Daily Record’s “Our Kids … Our Future” campaign to tackle violence against young people.

Question reference: S6F-02067

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 May 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 May 2023

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to a recent report suggesting that current forestry grant funding rules are supporting projects that are harmful to peatlands, and which, as a result, generate more CO2 than they sequester.

Question reference: S6F-02064

Asked by: Collette Stevenson, MSP for East Kilbride, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 May 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 May 2023

To ask the First Minister whether he will provide an update on the anti-poverty summit that took place on Wednesday 3 May.