- Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 31 March 2025
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 3 April 2025
Question to be taken in Chamber.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 3 April 2025
- Asked by: Kevin Stewart, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 31 March 2025
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 3 April 2025
To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government’s response is to reported comments made by the chair of the North Sea Transition Task Force that the North Sea’s future should be a “national mission”.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 3 April 2025
- Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 17 March 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Jenni Minto on 31 March 2025
To ask the Scottish Government whether there are any plans to allow people who received Zostavax when they became eligible for a shingles vaccination in recent years, before it was replaced by Shingrix, to receive a further inoculation with Shingrix, in light of reports that it provides a greater level of protection and for a longer duration.
Answer
There are no plans to revaccinate individuals who have had a previous Zostavax vaccination. The need for booster doses following previous vaccination has not yet been determined by the Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI).
A statement on the shingles vaccination programme was published on 13 November 2024, advising that the offer of Shingrix vaccination should be expanded to include older adult cohorts aged 80 years and over.
JCVI recognise that some of these individuals will have already received a Zostavax vaccination. However there is a clear cost-effective benefit from offering a single dose of Shingrix to this age group as this would help prevent severe illness and other serious complications from shingles, which can cause illness or hospitalisation.
The Scottish Government, Public Health Scotland and NHS Boards will work together to consider these recommendations.
- Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 17 March 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Maree Todd on 31 March 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the Camphill organisation regarding long-term funding for its work.
Answer
A. There have been no discussions between the Scottish Government and the Camphill organisation regarding long-term funding for their work.
- Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Monday, 17 March 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Jenni Minto on 31 March 2025
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has asked the UK Health Security Agency to conduct a review into any health effects of electromagnetic fields from overhead lines.
Answer
The Scottish Government recognise there could be public concerns relating to the potential health effects of electromagnetic fields from overhead lines.
The UK Health Security Agency (UKHSA) take the lead on public health matters associated with radiofrequency electromagnetic fields for the UK.
Central to their advice is that exposure to radio waves should comply with the International Commission on Non-Ionizing Radiation Protection (ICNIRP).This is the approach adopted by officially mandated authoritative organisations and these bodies conclude overall that a causal relationship between exposure and long-term health effects has not been established.
UKHSA is committed to carefully continue monitoring the emerging scientific evidence in between the publication of comprehensive evidence reviews and providing any necessary advice to Scottish Government.
Therefore, the Scottish Government have not requested the UK Health Security Agency to conduct a review into any health effects of electromagnetic fields from overhead lines.
- Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 21 March 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Neil Gray on 31 March 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on continuing the treatment of people who move to Scotland from abroad with an existing diagnosis and treatment plan, where such treatment is approved by the Scottish Medicines Consortium, as opposed to requiring their condition to be investigated and diagnosed anew in line with NHS Scotland pathways.
Answer
When a patient moves to Scotland from abroad with an existing diagnosis and treatment plan, and where such treatment is approved by the Scottish Medicines Consortium, clinicians will make a decision whether to reassess the patient to ensure it is safe to go ahead with their existing treatment plan.
Patients with an urgent clinical need will always be prioritised.
In all cases, we expect Health Boards to make every effort to ensure equity of care and that any disruptions to the patient’s journey are minimised.
- Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 21 March 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 31 March 2025
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will establish a formal system for reporting and tracking antisocial behaviour on buses, and, if so, when.
Answer
There are no plans for Transport Scotland to introduce a formal reporting and tracking system for antisocial behaviour as there is no requirement on all operators in this deregulated sector to collect and share this data, which will affect the coverage of any data collected. Additionally, operator thresholds for reporting antisocial behaviour will vary affecting the consistency of any shared data.
Nevertheless, Transport Scotland is working with the Confederation of Passenger Transport and operators to encourage the industry to collect more data and to similar standards to improve knowledge of antisocial behaviour on buses. This supports the recommendations from the Independent Working Group on antisocial behaviour. Furthermore, the Transport Focus Your Bus Journey survey provides an indication of perceived trends in behaviour on buses. The results for Scotland show that in 2023 5% of respondents stated that passenger behaviour caused concern (8% in England). This increased to 6% in 2024.
- Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 21 March 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 31 March 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-32449 by Fiona Hyslop on 8 January 2025, what progress has been made on the construction of a controlled pedestrian crossing at Raigmore interchange in Inverness.
Answer
The project is approaching construction stage and has been assessed by Transport Scotland for construction-ready funding through Tier 2 of the Active Travel Infrastructure Fund (ATIF). Our operating company, BEAR Scotland, has been working with project designers to progress the remaining elements of the design.
In recent weeks, work on the drainage design has concluded while work remains ongoing on the electrical design for the traffic signals. In addition, BEAR Scotland’s environmental team has carried out updated tree and winter hibernation site surveys as well as drafting a site environmental management plan for tendering purposes.
The Raigmore Interchange project applied for in 2024-25 has been included in the 2025-26 ATIF prioritisation list, without the need for reapplication. Since the project has already been assessed, and as early funding allocations remain a key focus, we expect to allocate funding early in the 2025-26 financial year, subject to Scottish Government approval procedures.
- Asked by: Mercedes Villalba, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Friday, 21 March 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 31 March 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what communications it has had with the (a) UK Government and (b) Maritime and Coastguard Agency to improve the welfare of seafarers and offshore workers on vessels that use Scottish ports.
Answer
The Scottish Government has regular communication with the UK Government and the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) on a variety of issues affecting the maritime industry in Scotland including related to seafarer welfare.
Whilst shipping safety, seafarer welfare and employment conditions are reserved functions, the Scottish Government is committed to working with the UK Government and the MCA to ensure that these matters are given the highest priority on those vessels accessing Scotland’s waters and ports.
- Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 March 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Graeme Dey on 31 March 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to prevent future financial distress at universities, and whether it is considering a review of the higher education funding model.
Answer
We have a world-leading higher education sector to be proud of, and I value greatly the contribution that universities make to our economy and society. Ministers have been clear that the Scottish Government’s position on tuition fees will not change. The policy ensures that access to higher education is based on the ability to learn and not the ability to pay.
The Scottish Government do not accept that the current model is broken, but we accept that it is under severe pressure, largely because of circumstances that are outwith our control. Universities across the UK are facing financial challenges due to a range of factors, including the hostile immigration policies enacted by the UK Government in recent years hampering the ability of universities to welcome the brightest and best talent from across the world; inflationary pressures and the current UK Government’s increase to employer national insurance contributions, which has resulted in a £48m million pressure across the sector.
Despite the challenging financial circumstances, our commitment to Scotland's universities is demonstrated through our investing over £1 billion every year in the sector since 2012/13. This is continued in the 2025-26 budget which provides over £1.1bn of investment in teaching and research in Scotland’s universities. In addition, since February we have also announced a further £25 million to support universities facing financial challenges. The university funding allocations for 2025-26, which institutions will receive sight of in the next few weeks, will also show an uplift in the teaching price.
We are committed to engaging constructively with the sector to future proof the funding approach. The Cabinet Secretary and I have had a preliminary conversation with Universities Scotland on this and have agreed to return to the subject before the summer. While the sector is keen to lead on the development of potential solutions, Ministers wish to encourage others who want to engage constructively on the issue and bring forward ideas, albeit starting from the position that we will not reintroduce tuition fees. In addition, the Scottish Government fulfilled a Programme for Government commitment by publishing its first International Education Strategy (IES) on 7 February 2024, setting out how we will work with partners to promote Scotland’s education offer globally, including how we will maintain our links with the EU.
While universities are autonomous institutions with responsibility for their own strategic and operational decision making, the Scottish Government and Scottish Funding Council will continue to work closely with the sector and offer appropriate support as institutions develop plans to mitigate their financial challenges.
