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-15943

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 21 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether the Scottish Crime and Justice Survey includes questions on the potential normalisation of violence in sexual activity.

The Scottish Crime and Justice Survey (SCJS) is an annual, large-scale social survey which asks people about their experiences and perceptions of crime in Scotland. It includes a module on sexual victimisation, which produces estimates of adults’ experiences of different types of sexual assault. At present this does not include a question on experiences of violence during what began as consensual sexual activity.

We are currently progressing set up of a new multi-year run of the SCJS, following a recent re-procurement exercise. As part of this ongoing work we will consider in 2023-24 whether a question on this specific topic could be added to the above module. Given the subject sensitivity, this requires careful consideration and testing prior to any roll-out, to ensure such a question is understandable, accessible and doesn’t place undue stress on survey respondents.

Such a change would build on the continuous improvements being made to the survey, whereby we are currently cognitively testing and piloting a new survey module on Partner Abuse and new and updated questions on Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG). These areas were identified as a key priority by survey users in last year’s consultation .

Question reference: S6W-15945

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 21 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether a solar energy target will be included in its forthcoming Energy Strategy, and, if so, whether it will align with the reported 4GW to 6GW ambition recommended by the solar industry.

Through our draft Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan (ESJTP) we are consulting on setting an ambition for solar deployment in Scotland, and what level that ambition should be set at. The consultation period for the draft ESJTP is open until 9 May 2023, and we encourage stakeholders to engage in the consultation and bring forward evidence relating to this.

It is vital that we consult widely upon the need for, and achievability of, any deployment ambition for solar before such an ambition is set. Following engagement with stakeholders and analysis of the consultation responses, we will finalise the solar vision and solar deployment ambition as part of the final ESJTP.

Question reference: S6W-15751

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 21 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on how many people to date have repaid their interest-free loans through the Access Bikes scheme.

Question reference: S6W-15757

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 21 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on when it anticipates meeting the target of 10% of everyday journeys to be taken by bicycle.

Question reference: S6W-15752

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 21 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on how many applicants to the Access Bikes scheme have received an interest-free loan to date, broken down by local authority area.

Question reference: S6W-15755

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 21 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government which specific organisations have been involved in distributing funding allocated to the Access Bikes scheme, and how much funding was allocated to each.

The Access Bikes scheme closed in February 2022. The scheme was run by Cycling UK, who partnered with Capital Credit Union and ScotWest Credit Union as a mechanism for offering the loans. £250,000 was originally provided for financial transactions, though only £7,000 of this was distributed to successful applicants.

A new Access Bikes scheme has been running since April 2022 which focuses on assisting those facing challenges to access a bike through various means. This scheme is also run by Cycling UK.

Question reference: S6W-15754

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 21 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how many additional miles travelled by bicycle, that have replaced miles travelled by vehicles, it estimates there have been as a result of the Access Bikes scheme.

Question reference: S6W-15756

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 21 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to reopen the Access Bikes scheme.

Question reference: S6W-15753

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 21 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on how many people have expressed an interest in receiving an interest-free loan through the Access Bikes scheme to date, broken down by local authority area.

The Access Bikes scheme closed in February 2022. During the life of the scheme, 348 people expressed an interest, 43 people advanced to the application stage and 4 of those applications were successful and received a loan.

A new Access Bikes scheme has been running since April 2022 which focuses on assisting those facing challenges to access a bike through various means. There is no loan aspect provided in the new scheme.

Question reference: S6W-15620

Asked by: Donald Cameron, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 21 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding the General Dental Service, what action it is taking to reverse the decline in the number of registered (a) adults and (b) children participating in the service.

An assessment of participation - defined as the proportion of registered patients who saw a dentist in the last 2 years - needs to be seen against the backdrop of pandemic restrictions to March 2022.

Since April 2022, with the relaxation of restrictions, NHS dentistry has averaged more than 300,000 courses of treatment per month, an increase of 40 per cent in NHS dental activity compared with 2021-22.

The latest report from Public Health Scotland on participation rates (as at 30 September 2022) shows rates increasing for the period March to September 2022 following the emergence from pandemic restrictions.