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: S7W-01198

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 22 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 17 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what meetings have taken place with (a) Cabinet Secretary for Justice and (b) Minister for Victims and Community Safety and the Fire Brigades Union since the start of this parliamentary session.

Question reference: S7W-01253

Asked by: Amanda Lindsay, MSP for Central Scot and Lothians West, Reform UK
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 June 2026
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 17 July 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the importance of preventing violence against women and girls, what steps it is taking to address the underlying causes of such violence, including reported demand created by sex buyers, the influence of online pornography, including that depicting violence or degradation, and unhealthy attitudes towards relationships, and whether it will ensure that its approach does not risk treating all men and boys as potential perpetrators.

Both our Equally Safe Strategy to tackle Violence against Women and Girls, and our Strategic Approach to challenge demand for prostitution recognise the need for a preventative approach, and also recognise that boys and men can also be victims of violence and exploitation. We have a range of actions in place to tackle the behaviours that underly these issues, including work with the education sector.

Schools deliver learning that enables young people to be media literate – which can include highlighting the harms associated with pornography; and relationships, sexual health and parenthood education to equip children and young people with the knowledge, skills and values to conduct positive relationships.

Through the Delivering Equally Safe fund we provide funding to Rape Crisis Scotland to deliver Equally Safe at School and the national sexual violence prevention programme which aim to tackle sexual harassment and violence in our schools. In addition, we fund the Mentors in Violence Prevention Scotland Programme, a schools-based, peer education programme working to tackle gender stereotyping and attitudes that condone violence against women and girls.

In February 2026 we launched a public information campaign to help combat the harms of sexist and misogynistic content online. Our campaign was designed to make boys and young men aware of the impact of sexist content on social media and how interacting with that can harm the women and girls they know in the real world – including their sisters, friends and classmates. By choosing not to like, share or comment on sexist content online, boys and men can help stop it spreading.

We have committed to developing a public health campaign to make young people and their parents aware of how to use social media, screen time, and online time in a safe and healthy manner.

We also launched a new Crimestopper’s awareness campaign on Commercial Sexual Exploitation in February 2026, further underlying that there is no place for the sexual exploitation of any individual in Scotland.

The Scottish Government has committed to bring forward legislation to criminalising misogynistic harassment and abuse in Scotland and we will set out the timetable for the upcoming legislative programme in due course.

Further, the Scottish Government has established a new Prevention Unit, to help embed a culture of prevention and early intervention across public services in Scotland.

Question reference: S7W-01750

Asked by: Helen McDade, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Reform UK
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 13 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the contrast between the three to five written complaints made annually and the safeguarding concerns identified by the Care Inspectorate and the European Committee for the Prevention of Torture, what specific steps it will take to improve children's confidence in the internal complaints system at St Mary's Kenmure.

Question reference: S7W-01757

Asked by: Martyn Day, MSP for Falkirk East and Linlithgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 13 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of whether the £3.2 million budget for the Young Patients Family Fund, as set out in the 2026-27 Scottish Budget, will be sufficient to meet anticipated demand from families of children and young people with cancer, and whether the fund will be kept under review to ensure that it meets need.

Question reference: S7W-01756

Asked by: Martyn Day, MSP for Falkirk East and Linlithgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 13 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, following the conclusion of Collaborative and Compassionate Cancer Care: cancer strategy for children and young people 2021–2026, when it plans to publish its next long-term cancer strategy for children and young people and what role the third sector will have in informing and developing that strategy.

Question reference: S7W-01736

Asked by: Julie MacDougall, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Reform UK
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 13 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to conduct or encourage joint research into interlinked sociobehavioural issues regarding male a) alcohol and b) drug deaths.

Question reference: S7W-01759

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh North Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 13 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S7W-01050 by Ben Macpherson on 13 July 2026, when the CLD Workforce Plan will be completed and published.

Question reference: S7W-01762

Asked by: Duncan Dunlop, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 13 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to revise guidance to local authorities on supporting autistic children with a Pathological Demand Avoidance (PDA) profile.

Question reference: S7W-01758

Asked by: Martyn Day, MSP for Falkirk East and Linlithgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 13 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what support is available to children and young people with cancer, and their families, to meet the cost of travelling to and from treatment; what assessment it has made of the adequacy of this support and, in light of recent commitments by the UK and Welsh governments to introduce dedicated travel funds, how such support provided in Scotland compares with the support available elsewhere in the UK.

Question reference: S7W-01740

Asked by: Julie MacDougall, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Reform UK
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 July 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 13 August 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to supporting research into issues affecting males, including depression, separation from family and substance misuse, and to developing targeted support programmes to address these issues.