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.

Find out more about parliamentary questions

Filter your results Hide all filters

Displaying 41367 questions Show Answers

Order by |

Question reference: S6W-03817

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 18 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 4 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how many companies in the Highlands and Islands are currently accredited to carry out work to insulate homes.

As of 28 October 2021 the Scottish Government is aware of four companies based in the Highlands and Islands who are currently approved to carry out insulation work to the BSI retrofit standards.

These companies are certified to install insulation as per the British Standards Institution (BSI) Publically Available Specification (PAS) 2030. There are a larger number of companies accredited to BSI standards to install insulation that operate in the Highlands and Islands. For our example, our national fuel poverty scheme, Warmer Homes Scotland has 12 approved sub-contractors covering the Highlands and Islands.

The Scottish Government is working with industry to co-produce a new 'Heat in Buildings Supply Chain Delivery Plan' by Summer 2022 specifically focussed on strengthening the broad supply chains needed to deliver at the pace and scale we need.

Question reference: S6W-03805

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 18 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 4 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on Glasgow Prestwick Airport holding general agreements with the United States military.

Glasgow Prestwick Airport is operated on a commercial basis and at arm’s length from the Scottish Government, in compliance with our obligations under the Trade and Co-operation Agreement between the UK and the EU.

It is for the airport’s management team to consider all potential business opportunities to maximise the use of the assets of the airport. Handling military flights has been a key part of Prestwick’s business for decades and remains an important and specialised part of its overall offering.

Question reference: S6W-03764

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 4 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-33522 by Michael Matheson on 4 December 2020, whether it will provide the figure for the year 2021-22 to date.

Question reference: S6W-03859

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 4 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how it is supporting the police and industry to eradicate drink spiking and spiking by injection to ensure safety in nightclubs and other social settings.

The act of ‘spiking’ women is absolutely abhorrent and the Scottish Government remains absolutely committed to working with partners to tackle this unacceptable behaviour.

I chaired an urgent roundtable with partners and representatives from across the sector on Thursday 4 November, including from police and industry, to discuss how we can achieve the right balance of targeted and universal intervention to ensure the safety of the public.

Our Equally Safe Strategy sets out Scotland’s ambition to tackle and eradicate all forms of violence against women and we will continue to implement this with a clear and decisive focus on primary prevention of violence. We are dedicating resources to tackling attitudes and inequality within every space for women and girls.

Question reference: S6W-03804

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 18 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 4 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on non-UK military forces using Scottish airports for refuelling and other aircraft handling services.

Question reference: S6W-03776

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 14 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 4 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of air source heat pumps reportedly running at significantly cooler temperatures than gas boilers, what it recommends (a) older and (b) all homeowners do to maintain their heating at a gas boiler temperature level.

The Scottish Government commissioned a review to synthesise evidence on the operation of heat pumps with relevance to Scotland. The report is available at https://www.climatexchange.org.uk/research/projects/heat-pump-use-in-scotland-an-evidence-review/

As the report sets out, the temperature output from a heat pump or boiler is different from the temperature rooms are heated to: heat emitters, such as radiators, transfer heat into rooms by being heated to a higher temperature than the air in the room. While the output temperature of a heat pump is often lower than temperatures boilers commonly produce, when appropriately configured with building fabric and radiators or underfloor heating they efficiently bring indoor temperatures up to adequate levels. In addition, the report sets out evidence on less common high temperature heat pumps.

The microgeneration certification scheme (MCS) certifies heat pump installers to ensure that systems are appropriately designed to provide sufficient heat.

Question reference: S6W-03765

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 4 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S5W-33523 by Michael Matheson on 4 December 2020, whether it will provide the (a) updated figure for 2020-21 and (b) figure for 2021-22 to date.

Funding allocations to the E-bike Loan Fund, and unallocated funds for the financial years 2020-21 and 2021-22 up until mid-October are summarised in the following table.

Financial Year	Funding	Unallocated	Notes
2020-21	£3,786,966	£879,833
2021-22	£3,800,000	£2,553,887	* up until 14 October 2021

The unallocated funds in 2020-21 are made up of loan repayments received by EST throughout the year. These have been taken into account by EST and will form part of any future financial transaction e-bike loan budget.

Question reference: S6W-03706

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 4 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what the new remit of the Clyde 2020 initiative will be, and over what timeframe.

The Clyde 2020 initiative is currently considering their remit moving forward. As a sub-group of the Clyde Marine Planning Partnership, the partnership are drafting a proposal on how Clyde 2020 will evolve, contribute and support the Clyde marine planning process. It is anticipated that the Clyde 2020 group will play an important role in the future governance of the Clyde Marine Planning Partnership.

Question reference: S6W-03810

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 October 2021
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 4 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on Glasgow Prestwick Airport reportedly not charging private aircraft weighing up to 10 tonnes to park at the airport for up to 24 hours.

Glasgow Prestwick Airport’s Schedule of Charges is set out clearly on its website. Parking charges are only one aspect of charges applied to visiting aircraft. Glasgow Prestwick Airport is operated on a commercial basis and at arm’s length from the Scottish Government, in compliance with our obligations under the Trade and Co-operation Agreement between the UK and the EU.

This is a commercial matter for the airport and Ministers do not intervene in commercial decisions at the airport. It is for the airport’s management team to consider all potential business opportunities to maximise the use of the assets of the airport.

Question reference: S6W-03714

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 October 2021
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 4 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government which local authorities it has been contacted by to discuss raising the maximum level of funding that can be used to invest in owners’ homes for the Home Energy Efficiency Programmes for Scotland: Area Based Scheme (HEEPS: ABS), and what the outcome was of any such discussions.