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: S6O-02603

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 September 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 5 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the City of Edinburgh Council regarding funding to address the housing shortage resulting from population growth.

Question reference: S6O-02597

Asked by: Stephanie Callaghan, MSP for Uddingston and Bellshill, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 September 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government when it last engaged with the Scottish General Practitioners Committee and what was discussed.

Question reference: S6O-02590

Current Status: Withdrawn

Question reference: S6O-02588

Asked by: Rona Mackay, MSP for Strathkelvin and Bearsden, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 September 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how it is helping to provide capacity for community groups to buy any neglected land in their local communities.

Question reference: S6W-21430

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 18 September 2023
Current Status: Answered by Elena Whitham on 27 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will replicate the Welsh Emerging Drugs and Identification of Novel Substances Project (WEDINOS) in Scotland.

Plans to pilot drug checking facilities are being developed in Dundee, Aberdeen and Glasgow following a research project funded through the Drug Deaths Taskforce.

The research work, carried out by Stirling University, highlighted the need for a national hub for drug checking to be established alongside the facilities in the three pilot cities.

That national hub will: provide the ability to re-test samples from the city drug checking sites; confirm the identity of compounds; and quality check the results supplied by the sites. This will allow for the establishment of levels of accuracy and error margins, and assess limitations from the city drug checking sites. The information produced can then be used to inform services and individuals as well as feeing into Public Health Scotland’s RADAR system.

Once the national hub has been established it has the potential to be used to provide a similar type of service as the WEDINOS service currently operating in Wales.

Question reference: S6W-21758

Asked by: Emma Harper, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 26 September 2023
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Maree Todd on 27 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government when the Independent Review of Inspection, Scrutiny and Regulation of Social Care Support in Scotland recommendation report will be published.

I can confirm Dame Sue Bruce, the Chair of the Independent Review of Inspection, Scrutiny and Regulation of Social Care Support in Scotland, has submitted her findings to Ministers and the Independent Review of Inspection, Scrutiny and Regulation Recommendation Report alongside the IRISR Call for Evidence Analysis Report have been published on 27 September 2023.

Dame Sue Bruce has made 38 recommendations and I will consider these in full before setting out a full response.

I am content with the recommendation report provided by Dame Sue Bruce and I will consider the recommendations in full before setting out a full response and make a statement to Parliament.

Question reference: S6W-21625

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 September 2023
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 27 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government when legislation enabling local authorities to charge a premium of up to 100% on council tax for second homes will be laid; whether it is expected that the legislation will enable local authorities to implement and charge the premium from 1 April 2024, and what guidance it has provided to local authorities to ensure that they can make preparations to include the premiums when setting council tax rates for 2024-25 in advance of the relevant date prescribed in the Local Government Finance Act 1992.

Question reference: S6W-21756

Asked by: Maggie Chapman, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 26 September 2023
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 27 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the progress in developing future plans for supporting displaced people from Ukraine living in Scotland.

Today I am pleased to announce the launch of ‘A Warm Scots Future’ in partnership with the Convention of Scottish Local Authorities, and the Scottish Refugee Council.

The paper sets out the policy direction for the next phase of Scotland’s response to the humanitarian crisis created by Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine. This will help the Scottish Government, and its partners, to transition from an emergency response to a long-term and holistic approach that supports the integration of displaced people from Ukraine. This is in alignment with the New Scots approach, which aims to support integration from day one.

To aid this transition, five overarching and interlinked strategic priorities have been identified to guide the next phase of Scotland’s Ukraine response. These are:

1. A trauma informed, holistic and rights-based approach to long-term integration, in line with the New Scots refugee integration strategy

2. Reduce reliance on welcome accommodation

3. Boost long-term, settled housing that leaves a legacy for Scotland

4. Pursue clarity on routes to settlement, family reunification and repatriation

5. Continued partnership and collaboration, ensuring good governance and recognising the lived experience of displaced people from Ukraine.

We will now work closely with partners to deliver against these strategic priorities, and ensure displaced people from Ukraine achieve the best outcomes possible as they build their lives in Scotland.

‘A Warm Scots Future’ Policy Position Paper.

Question reference: S6W-21670

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 22 September 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 27 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how it has factored the role of young people into its proposed Agriculture Bill.

Question reference: S6W-21238

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 18 September 2023
Current Status: Answered by Elena Whitham on 27 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the recommendations made in the publication by Camurus, A primary care solution to Scotland’s drug deaths crisis.

The Scottish Government has noted with interest the recommendations made in the publication by Camurus - A primary care solution to Scotland’s drug deaths crisis and is working with local partners to address the challenges highlighted.

We are working with local Health Boards and Integration Authorities to ensure as many primary care providers as possible are actively implementing the MAT standards, including MAT standard 7 which seeks to ensure that people who choose to will be able to receive medication or support through primary care providers. We will ensure that Health Boards appropriately disperse the annual £10 million ring-fenced under the Enhanced Service contract to support the provision of drug services in primary care settings.

Healthcare Improvement Scotland has established a learning system for sharing best practice between local services which will include existing models for implementing MAT standard 7. Public Health Scotland will publish further information on potential best practice models which local areas may wish to consider.

The Scottish Government is supporting Health Boards and local practices to adopt multidisciplinary shared care arrangements wherever appropriate and we remain committed to tackling stigma across all drug services

Parliament dissolved ahead of election

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