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-41438

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 October 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 19 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on introducing a point of entry levy for ferry passengers, including allowing local authorities to implement these.

Question reference: S6W-41439

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 22 October 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 19 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government by what date it will publish the results of, and response to, its consultation on a cruise ship levy.

Question reference: S6O-05039

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 October 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 8 October 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any impact of sustained overcrowding in prisons on suicide and self-harm prevention.

Question reference: S6W-40055

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 29 August 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 29 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the comment by the former General Secretary of the Scottish Police Federation (SPF), Calum Steele, to the Justice Sub-Committee on Policing on 30 May 2019 that "the Ayr office was probably carved out of asbestos”, when it last met the SPF to discuss the reported presence of asbestos in more than 170 police stations, and what was discussed.

I meet regularly with the Scottish Police Federation (SPF), where we discuss a range of issues which affect their members. At our meeting on 19 December 2024, the SPF raised concerns about the condition of buildings in the Police Scotland estate, and we discussed the Police Scotland Estates Masterplan.

Management of the Police Scotland estate, including assessments of the condition of its buildings, is an operational matter for the Chief Constable under the oversight of the Scottish Police Authority. The Scottish Government supports Police Scotland’s commitment to providing a safe environment for officers, staff and the public, and notes that Ayr police station moved from old and outdated premises to a new modern location in May 2023.

We are investing a record £1.64 billion in policing in 2025-26. This includes £70 million of capital funding for investment in police assets, including the police estate.

Question reference: S6O-05014

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 September 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 October 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will commit to reintroducing the "shared cabin" policy as a condition of the next Northern Isles Ferry Services contract.

Question reference: S6W-40380

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 08 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 23 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the work that it is carrying out to reduce the use of single-use plastic.

Scotland's Circular Economy and Waste Route Map to 2030 confirms the Scottish Government’s commitment to develop further measures to tackle consumption of problematic single-use items and promote uptake of reusable alternatives , prioritising action on single-use drinks cups, as part of wider work to promote responsible consumption, production and reuse.

The Scottish Government has consulted on proposals to introduce a minimum 25p charge on single-use drinks cups, to tackle their significant environmental impact. The findings from the independent analysis of the consultation, published in June 2025, indicated there was support amongst the public for a charge. We are now working closely with stakeholders to develop an approach that is deliverable, taking on board the views of businesses and consumers and giving them ample time to prepare. We are taking time to fully consider the issues raised in the consultation to ensure the charge is effective, proportionate, and fair.

The Scottish Government is also committed to matching or exceeding the standards set out by the EU Directive on single-use plastics where we are able to do so and in a manner that contributes towards maintaining and advancing standards, and is committed to building on the work done to ban on some of the most problematic single-use plastic products through the Environmental Protection (Single-use Plastic Products) (Scotland) Regulations 2021.

For example, on 1 June 2025, the Scottish Government introduced a ban on the sale and supply of single-use vapes in Scotland.

Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging is also being implemented this year on a four nations basis across the UK. It will incentivise businesses to reduce excess packaging, to design and use packaging that is easily recyclable, and encourage use of reusable and refillable packaging.

Question reference: S6W-40381

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 08 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 23 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the work that it is carrying out towards the regulation of companies contributing to marine litter pollution.

The Scottish Government continues to develop policy and legislation to reduce marine litter pollution and grow our circular economy by reducing waste which can become litter.

We know that a lot of our marine litter comes from single-use products and we are building on previous legislation to tackle more of these items in the future. We are working across the four nations towards legislation that will ban businesses from supplying and selling wet wipes containing plastic, with exceptions for medical or industrial use. We remain committed to the delivery of a successful deposit return scheme for single-use drinks containers, working closely with industry and the rest of the UK to launch this in October 2027. In addition, we have also consulted on proposals to introduce a minimum 25 pence charge on single-use drinks cups, with the aim of incentivising the use of reusable alternatives.

To reduce packaging waste an Extended Producer Responsibility scheme is being implemented in 2025 across the UK. It will move the full cost of dealing with packaging waste from households to the producers. It will also incentivise businesses to reduce excess packaging and to design packaging that is more easily recycled.

Question reference: S6W-40382

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 08 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 23 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the work that it is carrying out to maximise the efficiency of household recycling systems.

The Scottish Government’s actions to improve the efficiency of household recycling systems are set out in the Circular Economy and Waste Route Map.

In partnership with local authorities and other stakeholders, the Scottish Government is co-designing a new statutory Code of Practice for household recycling. The Scottish Government held co-design events with local government on 23 June and 22 July 2025. The findings from these sessions are being used to inform the planning of wider stakeholder engagement with business, the third sector and citizens. The new Code of Practice will be completed by the end of 2026, after which it will be made available for public consultation.

We are making one of the biggest investments in a generation to modernise recycling in Scotland through the Recycling Improvement Fund. A total of £66.6 million has now been allocated to 27 local authorities for 48 projects to increase the quantity and quality of recycling across Scotland.

Local authorities in Scotland will see around £150 million per year in funding to support collection for household packaging waste through extended producer responsibility (EPR) for packaging. These payments will start from November 2025

Question reference: S6W-40442

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 23 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to seek stakeholder input into the development of the Agri-Environment and Climate Scheme, and what the timeline is for any stakeholder engagement.

The Agri-Environment and Climate Scheme (AECS) was launched in 2015 to promote land management practices which protect and enhance Scotland’s natural heritage, improve water quality, manage flood risk and mitigate and adapt to climate change.

AECS has a strong uptake from farmers and crofters in Orkney. Since 2015 there has been 486 approved contracts from 288 businesses, valued at £24.48 million (figures as of August 2025).

This scheme is expected to continue until at least 2026 to deliver elements of Tiers 3 and 4 until new Elective and Complementary Support mechanisms are introduced.

Co-development and co-design with rural partners will be the foundational approach to the development of future support structures and delivery. We will work with farmers and crofters to make sure that our support is informed by their needs and experience. This will include specific consideration of our island farming and crofting systems to ensure funding is relevant and remains accessible to as many as possible. For example, a review of AECS is currently underway with stakeholders such as the National Farmers Union (Scotland) and the Scottish Crofting Federation inputting into this process.

Farmers and crofters can volunteer to help shape the policy and support that affects them by registering their interest here: Agricultural Reform Programme (ARP) - Volunteer to take part in research and design (Page 1 of 11)

Question reference: S6O-04981

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 September 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 25 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with NHS Orkney regarding reported delays in ophthalmology appointments for patients.