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-12398

Asked by: Paul O'Kane, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 21 November 2022
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 5 December 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will be represented by any (a) Scottish Ministers, (b) elected politicians and (c) officials at the World Cup in Qatar.

Question reference: S6W-12422

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 21 November 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 5 December 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has any plans to procure the C-19 YRS app to help people with Long COVID manage their symptoms.

NHS National Services Scotland is currently conducting a procurement process to robustly assess digital products available to support the assessment and screening of people with long COVID, and determine which one is best placed to meet the needs highlighted by NHS Boards.

This national procurement process is expected to identify a preferred supplier shortly, after which licences for the selected product would be procured.

Question reference: S6W-12420

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 21 November 2022
Current Status: Answered by Ben Macpherson on 5 December 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what information is has on how many people are in receipt of (a) Adult Disability Payment or (b) Personal Independence Payments in Scotland as a result of COVID-19 or Long COVID.

Due to Adult Disability Payment being in the early stages of delivery, we have not commenced publication of statistics relating to clients’ specific disabilities or conditions. This information will be included in future statistical publications.

As of July 2022, the number of people in receipt of Personal Independence Payment in Scotland for which COVID-19 or Long COVID is recorded as the client’s primary disability or condition was 307.

Question reference: S6W-12396

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 21 November 2022
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 5 December 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-10307 by Jenny Gilruth on 20 September 2022, whether it will provide updated figures on how many young people have now received a free bus pass through the Young Persons’ (Under 22s) Free Bus Travel scheme, broken down by local authority, based on the latest information available.

The following table shows the number of cardholders under the Young Persons’ Free Bus Travel Scheme as of the end of the day on 21 November 2022, broken down to local authority level.

This data is supplied by the National Entitlement Card Programme Office (NECPO). NECPO support the 32 local authorities by assisting with the integration of various national and local public services on the National Entitlement Card (NEC) and are the joint controller with local authorities of this data. The table includes travel products collected from the Transport Scot Pass Collect mobile application.

Total	548,200
Aberdeen City	24,210
Aberdeenshire	26,796
Angus Council	7,941
Argyll & Bute	6,240
City of Edinburgh	67,950
Clackmannanshire	3,138
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar	1,565
Dumfries and Galloway	9,533
Dundee City	19,129
East Ayrshire	15,221
East Dunbartonshire	9,593
East Lothian	12,313
East Renfrewshire	9,861
Falkirk	10,445
Fife	47,505
Glasgow City	58,799
Highland	16,209
Inverclyde	11,078
Midlothian	9,595
Moray	7,733
North Ayrshire	17,092
North Lanarkshire	33,609
Orkney Islands	1,493
Perth & Kinross	13,242
Renfrewshire	18,904
Scottish Borders	9,798
Shetland Islands	2,621
South Ayrshire	7,677
South Lanarkshire	33,319
Stirling	7,650
West Dunbartonshire	10,200
West Lothian	17,741

Question reference: S6W-12234

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 21 November 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 5 December 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it is the case that 30% of funding for the treatment of Long COVID has not yet been made available to NHS boards, and, if it is the case, what is the reason for its position on this matter, and when it plans to provide any remaining funding.

Territorial NHS Boards’ 2022-23 funding from the long COVID Support Fund has been split into two tranches. The first tranche (70%) was provided to NHS Boards in June. The second tranche (30%) will be made later in the financial year following progress reporting.

This is a well-established practice for the allocation of health board funding to account for any slippage in programme delivery, and is used across a range of policy areas.

Question reference: S6W-12335

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 18 November 2022
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 5 December 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6T-00960 by Lorna Slater on 15 November 2022, whether the figure in the statement that Scotland has “over 40GW of potential offshore wind developments already in the pipeline” includes (a) currently operational offshore wind developments and (b) potential Innovation and Targeted Oil and Gas (INTOG) offshore wind developments.

Question reference: S6W-12363

Asked by: Richard Leonard, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 18 November 2022
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 5 December 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-11596 by Jenny Gilruth on 15 November 2022, when it will announce successor arrangements for the continued provision of Caledonian Sleeper services.

Question reference: S6W-12342

Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 18 November 2022
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 5 December 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the cost of living crisis, whether it will give consideration to delaying the introduction of the New Build Heat Standard proposals regarding conversions for off-gas-grid homes and businesses, in order to protect consumers from the costs associated with installing a new zero direct emissions heating system.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-11865 on 17 November 2022. Our New Build Heat Standard will apply to all new buildings seeking building warrant approval from 1 April 2024, as well as conversions of existing buildings – however, only where certain criteria are met. Installing new zero direct emissions heating systems will reduce the exposure of consumers to the costs associated with volatile fossil fuel prices.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers .

Question reference: S6W-12340

Asked by: Fulton MacGregor, MSP for Coatbridge and Chryston, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 18 November 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 5 December 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to reduce waiting times for cancer patients in Lanarkshire.

£10 million of funding has been directed to support Cancer Waiting Times improvements in our NHS across 2022-23, of which NHS Lanarkshire received a share of £1,229,861. Funding will be targeted towards the most challenged specialties, including colorectal. Significant funds are going towards up-skilling nurses and investment to support extended working days and weekend working to increase capacity and treat patients as timely as possible.

In addition the First Minister announced on 10 October that two new Rapid Cancer Diagnostic Services will be established, one of which will be developed in NHS Lanarkshire within existing infrastructure. The service will provide primary care with access to a new fast-track diagnostic pathway for patients with non-specific symptoms suspicious of cancer, such as weight loss and fatigue.

Question reference: S6W-12333

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 18 November 2022
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 5 December 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6T-00960 by Lorna Slater on 15 November 2022, what figure it used for the gigawatt value of potential offshore wind developments associated with ScotWind for the purposes of producing the figure in the statement that Scotland has “over 40GW of potential offshore wind developments already in the pipeline”.

The figure used for the gigawatt value of ScotWind in the statement that Scotland has over 40GW of potential offshore wind developments in the pipeline, subject to planning and consenting decisions, and finding a route to market, was 27.6 gigawatts. This gigawatt value is based on each of the developers’ proposed project capacity in their applications to Crown Estate Scotland in the ScotWind leasing round.