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: S6W-43377

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness and Nairn, Independent
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 January 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 11 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the Scottish Retail Consortium’s analysis of its draft Budget 2026-27, as set out in its Post-Scottish Budget submission to the Local Government, Housing and Planning Committee, that Scotland’s less competitive retail hospitality and leisure sectors rates relief compared with England is at odds with the commitments on tax competitiveness outlined in its Tax Strategy, New Deal for Business Implementation Plan, and the 2021 Scottish National Party manifesto, and contradicts the Retail Industry Leadership Group’s vision of making Scotland the best place in the UK to grow a retail business.

Question reference: S6W-43318

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness and Nairn, Independent
Date lodged: Monday, 26 January 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 9 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the decision taken in its draft Scottish Budget 2026-27 to provide a smaller business rate discount for retail and hospitality premises than will apply in England from April 2026, what analysis or assessment it has undertaken of the potential risk to the funding of Business Improvement Districts should commercial investment in retail and hospitality shift to England if Scotland does not introduce a commensurate reduction in the business rate.

Question reference: S6W-43319

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness and Nairn, Independent
Date lodged: Monday, 26 January 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 9 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the decision taken in its draft Scottish Budget 2026-27 to introduce Retail Hospitality and Leisure sectors rates relief, what analysis or assessment it has undertaken of the potential risk to commercial investment in retail, hospitality and leisure shifting to England if Scotland does not introduce a commensurate reduction for premises liable for the Higher Property Rate.

Question reference: S6W-43317

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness and Nairn, Independent
Date lodged: Monday, 26 January 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 9 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the decision taken in its draft Scottish Budget 2026-27 to provide a smaller business rate discount for retail and hospitality premises than will apply in England from April 2026, what analysis or assessment it has undertaken of the potential risk to fulfilling its Town Centres Action Plan should commercial investment in retail and hospitality shift to England if Scotland does not introduce a commensurate reduction in the business rate.

Question reference: S6W-43320

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness and Nairn, Independent
Date lodged: Monday, 26 January 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 9 February 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it had with its Tax Advisory Group regarding excluding premises liable for the Higher Property Rate from the new retail, hospitality and leisure sectors rates relief.

Question reference: S6W-42888

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness and Nairn, Independent
Date lodged: Thursday, 08 January 2026
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 21 January 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish all of the analyses referred to by the Minister for Public Finance during the debate on motion S6M-20295 on 7 January 2026, including (a) the analysis of the estimated level of revenue that will be raised from non-domestic rates should the revaluation proceed in line with the draft rateable values and (b) what its estimate is of the revenue that could be lost on that basis due to the potential closure of businesses that may no longer be able to trade profitably.

The independent Scottish Fiscal Commission is responsible for forecasting tax revenues in its Scotland's Economic and Fiscal Forecasts and for 2026-27 the forecast Non-Domestic Rates revenue is £3,387 million.

Once final rateable values are available, the Scottish Government will publish a report on the 2026 revaluation as it did at the 2023 revaluation. An interim revaluation report based on the 2026 draft rateable values has been published on the Scottish Government website at Non-domestic rates revaluation 2026: draft valuation roll statistics - gov.scot.

The draft Budget ensures the estimated revenues raised from non-domestic rates in 2026-27 will be 6% lower in real terms measured by CPI than pre-COVID, despite the number of properties on the valuation roll increasing in that time, and introduces the lowest Basic Property Rate for 2026-27 since 2018-19.

Question reference: S6W-43141

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness and Nairn, Independent
Date lodged: Friday, 16 January 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 30 January 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6O-05362 by Kate Forbes on 14 January 2026, how much investment has been confirmed for each of the next four years for dualling the A96, and for what specific purposes the investment has been allocated each year.

Question reference: S6W-43142

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness and Nairn, Independent
Date lodged: Friday, 16 January 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 30 January 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6O-05362 by Kate Forbes on 14 January 2026, by what date before the end of the current parliamentary session the Cabinet Secretary for Transport will provide an update on the procurement method for the dualling of the section of the A96 between Inverness and Auldearn and the Nairn by-pass, and what the timetable is for its construction.

Question reference: S6W-43143

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness and Nairn, Independent
Date lodged: Friday, 16 January 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 30 January 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish the advice note, and any speaking note, provided to the Cabinet Secretary for Finance and Local Government for the draft 2026-27 Budget statement relating to the dualling of the (a) A9 and (b) A96, including the section of the A96 between Inverness and Auldearn and the Nairn by-pass.

Question reference: S6O-05410

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness and Nairn, Independent
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 January 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 22 January 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether, without the use of private finance to enable construction of key infrastructure projects, there is a risk that Scotland could be seen as less attractive for inward investment and as a location for business, compared with other European countries.