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-00327

Asked by: John Mason, MSP for Glasgow Shettleston, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 October 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will give an assurance that Glasgow Kelvin and Clyde colleges will not be taken over by the City of Glasgow College in connection with the review of tertiary education.

Question reference: S6O-00330

Asked by: Elena Whitham, MSP for Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 October 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the measures it has been taking to protect and enhance the marine environment through no-take zones and marine protected areas.

Question reference: S6O-00328

Asked by: Jeremy Balfour, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 October 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to support the ecological status of Scotland’s lochs and rivers.

Question reference: S6O-00329

Asked by: Willie Coffey, MSP for Kilmarnock and Irvine Valley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 October 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how it supports the climate tech industry.

Question reference: S6O-00333

Asked by: Michael Marra, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 October 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what its plans are for active ventilation in classrooms now that its inspection programme has been completed.

Question reference: S6W-02560

Asked by: Alex Rowley, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 30 August 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 27 October 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it is considering a vaccine booster programme for the whole population, in light of findings in a recent study of people who are double-vaccinated, showing a decrease in protection from COVID-19 after six months.

People who received their vaccination during the early stages of the national COVID-19 vaccination programme started to receive booster injections from 20 September. This follows advice from the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) which advised that the booster dose can be given alongside the flu jab and should be offered no earlier than six months after completion of the primary vaccine course.

Frontline health and social care workers were able to book their appointment online at NHS Inform from 20 September. Residents in care homes for older people were also being offered both flu and COVID-19 boosters from this date. Adults aged 70 years and over and adults aged 16 and over who are on the highest risk list (previously known as the shielding list) are being contacted, either by letter or by their GP.

All those aged 16 to 49 years with underlying health conditions, adult carers, unpaid and young carers, adult household contacts of immunosuppressed individuals and all adults over 50 will be able to book online soon.

As most younger adults will only receive their second COVID-19 vaccine dose in late summer, the benefits of booster vaccination in this group will be considered by the JCVI at a later time when more information is available.

Question reference: S6W-02386

Asked by: Donald Cameron, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 20 August 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 27 October 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what additional resources it has made available to NHS Highland to reduce the number of patients waiting for orthopaedic treatment.

The Scottish Government has released almost £5.3 million to NHS Highland to support the Health Board to support planned care for 2021/22. Of this more than £822,000 was allocated to support the delivery of orthopaedic procedures.

A further £701,000 was allocated to NHS Highland to enable the Health Board to deliver an additional day case procedures, a proportion of this activity will be utilised for orthopaedic procedures.

Question reference: S6W-03517

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 October 2021
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 27 October 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the comments in its Programme for Government regarding the increased demand for genetic and molecular diagnostic testing linked to new advanced medicines, what steps NHS Scotland is taking to identify as early as possible the required tests for any medicine being considered by the Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC), in order to prevent any delay between the SMC accepting a medicine and it being available to patients.

The Scottish Medicines Consortium (SMC) liaises closely with colleagues from National Services Division (NSD) in NHS National Services Scotland (NSS) to share intelligence on emerging new medicines that may require a companion diagnostic test. NSD has commissioning responsibility for the Scottish Genetic Laboratories and is currently conducting a review of NHS Scotland genomics services which includes the Scottish genomic test directory and genomics infrastructure. The review is expected to be complete by the end of March 2022.

The SMC also provides early horizon scanning reports to the Molecular Pathology Evaluation Panel on medicines in clinical development and shares information on the anticipated timelines for these medicines to be granted a marketing authorisation and then be assessed by the SMC. The SMC horizon scanning reports are also supporting ongoing work with NSD, the Scottish Genomics Leadership Group and the Scottish Genetics Laboratory Consortium to understand the laboratory capacity requirements for current and future medicines requiring a companion diagnostic test.

Question reference: S6W-03372

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 30 September 2021
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 27 October 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-01907 by Michael Matheson on 16 August 2021, whether there was a public consultation on its decision to phase out the installation of new or replacement fossil fuel heating systems in off-gas-grid homes five years earlier than homes connected to the gas grid.

The Scottish Government’s draft Heat in Buildings Strategy proposed that any regulations requiring the installation of zero emissions heating systems would be phased in, with all building owners being required to comply by 2045.

The draft Strategy specified that it may be appropriate to require earlier compliance from, for example, those using high emissions fuels like heating oil or coal (which are more prevalent in off-gas grid areas).

The draft Strategy was subject to consultation from 5 February to 30 April 2021, and questions 48 and 49 specifically asked for views on the regulatory actions and timescales proposed.

An analysis of the consultation responses can be found at: https://www.gov.scot/isbn/9781802014464 .

As set out in our final Heat in Buildings Strategy, published on 7 October 2021, the Scottish Government will consult in further detail on our commitment to phase out the installation of fossil fuel heating systems during 2022.

Question reference: S6W-03396

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 30 September 2021
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 27 October 2021

To ask the Scottish Government which trade unions it has met to discuss the Abellio ScotRail document, Fit for the Future, and its reported proposals to reduce the number of train services by approximately 100,000 per year.