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: S6F-03477

Asked by: Keith Brown, MSP for Clackmannanshire and Dunblane, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 28 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 31 October 2024

To ask the First Minister what assessment the Scottish Government has undertaken of the impact of the UK Government Budget on Scotland.

Question reference: S6F-03488

Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 28 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 31 October 2024

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to the reported rise in sex crimes.

Question reference: S6W-30237

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 30 September 2024
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 28 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to improve mental health support for people who experience migraines.

Our Mental Health & Wellbeing Strategy lays out our vision for improving mental health so people can get the right help, in the right place, at the right time for any aspect of their mental health. This includes people whose mental health has been affected as a result of migraines.

I acknowledge the recent report by the Migraine Trust, which highlighted the links between migraines and mental health.

Question reference: S6W-30268

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 30 September 2024
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 28 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what the (a) short- and (b) long-term aims are of its Post-school Education and Skills Reform Programme Board.

Post School Education and Skills Reform is a 10-year transformation programme which will help us to achieve the ambitions set out in the Purpose and Principles for Post-School Education, Research and Skills.

Early priorities include:

leading a new, national approach to skills planning and working with partners to strengthen regional approaches;
reforming the education and skills funding system so it is easier to navigate and is responsive to learners and to skills priorities, initially by introducing a Bill to simplify the post-school funding body landscape;
continuing to work closely with partners to improve careers support;
apprenticeships reform to reduce the complexity, make the system more transparent and maximise the value of investment to learners and the economy; and
building up an understanding of the post-school qualifications landscape alongside defining the oversight role for the new qualifications body.

The Programme Board provides the necessary governance and assurance to support successful delivery of the aims of the Post School Education and Skills Reform Programme.

Question reference: S6W-30635

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 11 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 28 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has reviewed what other NHS boards can learn from the pilot initiative in NHS Grampian that is focused on improving training for migraine management and promoting public awareness of migraine treatment options in community pharmacies, and what steps it is taking to assess the case for continuing this work.

The Migraine Trust were awarded £85,675 in 2022-23 through the Scottish Government Neurological Care & Support Framework, for work upskilling community, primary and secondary care pharmacists across NHS Grampian to help people with migraine manage their symptoms and treatments more effectively.

The Scottish Government funded an additional £135,501 in 2023-24 to further embed this work locally, and to partner with other Health Boards to extend the reach of pharmacists trained and increase care and support for people living with migraine based on the blueprint NHS Grampian approach.

We understand that a further six NHS Boards are working towards adopting this model of migraine care in future, including NHS Lanarkshire, NHS Lothian & NHS Tayside who have project teams in place with plans to undertake work with support from the NHS Grampian/Migraine Trust project team.

An eLearning programme for NHS Education for Scotland’s platform TURAS has been developed through the project. This comprises a suite of training materials available for all pharmacists and pharmacy teams in Scotland to access.

The project in Grampian has forged links with Robert Gordon University’s School of Pharmacy and Life Sciences with the aim of helping to shape students’ learning, towards create a sustainable change to the way migraine care is given.

We receive regular progress updates from the Migraine Trust and myself visited the project in August. We are discussing options with the Migraine Trust for further adoption of this approach to delivering care for people with migraine.

Question reference: S6W-30687

Asked by: Beatrice Wishart, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 28 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many people have (a) applied for and (b) received the Paramedic, Nursing and Midwifery Student Bursary in each of the last five academic years, also broken down by type of course.

Eligible Scottish pre-registration nursing, midwifery and paramedic science students receive funding through the Paramedic, Nursing and Midwifery Student Bursary Scheme (PNMSB) which is administered by the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS).

Eligibility for support depends on three conditions:

that the course is eligible;
that the individual has not had previous PNMSB funding; and
that they meet the residence requirements.

Bursaries are for eligible students attending courses which:

lead to registration on the Professional Register maintained by the Nursing and Midwifery Council (NMC), which may include degree, honours and masters levels; or
lead to the award of a BSc Paramedic Science; and
are partly or wholly funded by the Scottish Government Health and Social Care Directorates (SGHSCD).


Paramedic, Nursing and Midwifery Student Bursary Applicants and Recipients by Course, 2019-20 to 2023-24
	2019-20		2020-21		2021-221		2022-23		2023-24
	Applied	Received	Applied	Received	Applied	Received	Applied	Received	Applied	Received
BSc Nursing2	7,815	7,520	8,085	7,875	8,890	8,525	9,040	8,570	8,345	8,015
BSc Nursing Studies	1,080	1,005	2,080	2,060	2,240	2,145	2,235	2,115	2,275	2,165
BSc Midwifery	570	550	650	635	690	670	740	715	680	660
BSc Paramedic Practice	-	-	-	-	160	150	215	200	205	200
BSc Paramedic Science	-	-	-	-	535	515	750	710	815	790
MSc Nursing2	275	260	255	245	235	215	220	210	260	240
MSc Nursing Studies	15	15	55	45	40	35	25	25	-	-
MSc Midwifery	85	75	110	105	120	115	135	130	135	130
Other3	160	150	35	35	c	c	-	-	-	-
Total	10,000	9,575	11,270	11,000	12,915	12,385	13,355	12,675	12,725	12,195
Source: SAAS
Note: Figures relating to student numbers have been rounded to the nearest 5 to mitigate the risk of individuals being identified. Totals may not equal the sum of the parts.
c - value suppressed to protect against the risk of disclosure of personal information
1 from 2021-22 the existing NMSB scheme incorporated those undertaking Paramedic courses
2 Nursing degree courses include those taking a BSc/MSc in adult, child, learning disability and mental health nursing as well as those taking a dual registration qualification.
3 Other includes those undertaking pre-registration courses and conversion courses.

Question reference: S6W-30650

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 14 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 28 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what the timescale is for ministerial decisions to be made after being provided with a report or recommendation from the Energy Consents Unit.

Question reference: S6W-30654

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 14 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 28 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason the use of steroid drugs within prisons is reportedly increasing.

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

SPS have no specific evidence as to why the use of steroids is reportedly increasing within prisons. However, in collaboration with our Partners at Dundee University, the regular re-calibration of Rapiscan machines does support our ability to identify new substances.

We recognise the profound impact that illicit articles entering our prisons and acknowledge the continued need to support to those in our care who misuse substances and those who are on their recovery journey.

Question reference: S6W-30539

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 28 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has made any contract extension for the Chief Entrepreneur.

Question reference: S6W-30516

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 28 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding any impact on its energy policy and strategy, what its position is on the reported calls on the UK Government by Scottish Renewables and other trade bodies to rule out zonal pricing under the Review of Electricity Market Arrangements (REMA), and to instead commit to a Reformed National Market (RNM) programme.

The Scottish Government is aware that the introduction of zonal pricing could have a significant impact on all market participants, including industry, communities and consumers. It is therefore important that any such proposal is considered in the round in wider electricity market reform, which considers how we can establish an energy system that ultimately delivers investment, energy security and translates the lower costs of renewables through to consumers.

The Scottish Government welcomes the constructive engagement we have had with Ofgem, NG ESO, the UK Government and industry on the reform of electricity markets, however, it is crucial that the UK Government urgently provides clarity on the timetable and direction of travel on this key piece of work.