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-02164

Asked by: Mercedes Villalba, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 April 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 3 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what progress has been made on the Energy Skills Passport for offshore energy workers.

Question reference: S6O-02187

Asked by: Jeremy Balfour, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 April 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to address antisocial behaviour on public transport.

Question reference: S6O-02176

Asked by: Richard Leonard, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 April 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 3 May 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to support responsible and ethical tax collection practices.

Question reference: S6O-02179

Current Status: Withdrawn

Question reference: S6W-17261

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 26 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether the consequences of climate change were factored into the fourth National Planning Framework (NPF4).

NPF4 encourages, promotes and facilitates development that adapts to the current and future impacts of climate change so that our places are more resilient. Our response to climate change has shaped the long-term spatial strategy and national developments and Policy 1 gives significant weight to the climate and nature crises in all plans and decisions. Policy 2 in NPF4 sets out that development proposals will be sited and designed to adapt to current and future risks from climate change, and development proposals to retrofit measures to existing developments that reduce emissions or support adaptation to climate change are also supported.

Question reference: S6W-17028

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Joe FitzPatrick on 26 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its most recent assessment is of the allocation of resources to Community Planning Partnerships in each local authority area.

Community Planning Partnerships (CPPs) do not hold resources of their own. CPPs’ partner organisations direct and align resources they hold towards collective action in pursuit of priorities agreed by the CPP. These resources can take the form of staff time and expertise, premises and other assets, as well as financial investment.

The statutory purpose of CPPs is to improve outcomes on locally identified priorities; and CPPs are not required to report to Scottish Government on their use of resources. As a result, Scottish Government does not hold information about the value of resources partners deploy in pursuit of CPPs’ priorities.

Question reference: S6W-16641

Asked by: Pam Gosal, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 03 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 26 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that the majority of transgender prisoners in Scotland began the process of transitioning after being convicted.

The Scottish Prison Service are committed to treating everyone in their care with dignity and respect and do not provide the personal information of prisoners.

Any transgender individuals in custody are supported and managed through an individualised risk assessment and case conference process that protects their rights and needs, as well as the welfare and rights of others around them, including staff, in order to achieve an outcome that balances risks and promotes the safety of all.

Question reference: S6W-16847

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 26 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the statement in the Climate Change Committee publication, Progress in reducing emissions in Scotland: 2022 Report to Parliament, that “Scotland’s targets for peatland restoration are not ambitious enough and are not being met”.

Question reference: S6W-16722

Asked by: Graham Simpson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 26 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-15855 by Jenny Gilruth on 28 March 2023, when it plans to publish its updated market study of rail freight growth in Scotland, which was a key recommendation of the second Strategic Transport Projects Review (STPR2).

The second Strategic Transport Projects Review (STPR2) will inform the Scottish Government’s transport investment programme in Scotland over the next 20 years. The Scottish Government have set out 45 recommendations for future investment in Scotland’s strategic transport network, published on 08 December 2022, with 38 of the 45 recommendations already underway.

The scope and timescales of the rail freight market study have yet to be determined. However, a Delivery Plan to provide further insight on the prioritisation of the STPR2 recommendations will follow in the coming months, when there is more clarity and greater certainty on the available capital budget and fiscal policy for the coming years.

Question reference: S6W-16698

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 03 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 26 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what representations it has made to the UK Department for International Trade regarding the interests of Scotland's agricultural sector in future trade negotiations.

The Scottish Government has repeatedly made the case, to all relevant departments of the UK Government (in correspondence and in a range of established forums) for a guaranteed role in all stages of the negotiation and implementation of UK Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) to protect and promote Scottish agricultural priorities. This is because, while the negotiation of FTAs is reserved to the UK Government, trade deals cover many devolved issues which have significant implications for Scottish agri-food producers and for our economy.

The Scottish Government had previously not been given full sight of relevant FTA chapter texts or supporting data from the Department of Business and Trade in the negotiation of the recent agreements such as UK-Australia and New Zealand deals. Through a recent information sharing agreement with the Devolved Administrations, the UK Government has now accepted the benefits of sharing greater information on trade negotiations, such as the agri-food elements of the agreement in principle on CPTPP accession.

We welcome this progress, and the Scottish Government will continue to work regularly and collaboratively with the UK Government in the interests of the Scottish agri-food sector, including by seeking further assurances from the UK Government about the agri-food elements of the UK-CPTPP agreement at the recent 17 April meeting of the Inter-Ministerial Group on Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.