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-26626

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 April 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 30 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what options exist to expedite court cases involving XL Bully dogs, in order to avoid any long periods of kennelling.

Question reference: S6W-26556

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 28 March 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 26 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the compulsory microchipping of pet cats.

Question reference: S6W-26527

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 March 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 25 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-26076 by Maree Todd on 22 March 2024, whether it will confirm if the data provided on waiting times includes those referred to child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) for both mental health issues and neurodevelopmental issues.

Question reference: S6W-26512

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 March 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 25 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide the research used as the basis for the reported comments of the Minister for Energy, Just Transition and Fair Work, during the March 2024 Scotonomics Festival of Economics, that Scotland will "potentially not even have the population capacity to deal with the amount of jobs" created by the energy transition away from fossil fuels.

Question reference: S6W-26445

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 22 March 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 22 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-26073 by Lorna Slater on 21 March 2024, how much targeted funding it has provided to SMEs in the construction sector to provide retraining and upskilling for workers.

Question reference: S6W-26446

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 22 March 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 22 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-26073 by Lorna Slater on 21 March 2024, what proportion of the green jobs required in the construction sector identified in the report are estimated to be as a result of its policy initiatives.

Question reference: S6W-26077

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 08 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 22 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-25597 by Maree Todd on 4 March 2024, in light of it stating that "information...on patients starting treatment within 10 weeks is not available", how it is also able to state that "1 in 2 people referred to CAMHS [child and adolescent mental health services] start treatment within 10 weeks".

In question S6W-25597 part of the question asked:

To ask the Scottish Government…. What proportion of [CAMHS] patients have started treatment within 10 weeks of referral…. In each NHS Board for the last three years

Data on patients starting treatment is divided into wait bands. These are divided into 4-wait bands of 0-18 weeks, 19-35 weeks, 36-52 weeks and 53 weeks plus. Information on patients starting treatment within 10 weeks is therefore not recorded and as such, is not available. This is why the answer to question S6W-25597 indicated that it was not possible to provide this information.

However the statistic that 1 in 2 people referred to CAMHS start treatment in 10 weeks, is determined using a separate data point. This states that the median treatment time (ie the point at which half of patients begin treatment) for quarter ending September 2023 is 10 weeks. This data is published quarterly and monthly and changes frequently, as such the answer to S6W-25597 cannot be derived using this data point.

As indicated in the previous answer, this information is compiled and held by Public Health Scotland and as such they may hold further data which may be able to help given the technical nature of your query.

Question reference: S6W-26076

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 08 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 22 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-25599 by Maree Todd on 4 March 2024, what the current trajectory and timeline are for clearing long waits for child and adolescent mental health services (CAMHS) in NHS Tayside.

Boards are being commissioned to produce updated trajectories for 2024-25 and these are expected to be submitted throughout April and May.

In the most recent data published on 5 March 2024, covering the quarter ending December 2023, Tayside had zero patients waiting over 52 weeks to start treatment in CAMHS and a total of 5 patients waiting over 18 weeks to start treatment, which accounts for 3.2% of the total waiting list (156).

Question reference: S6W-26011

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 22 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-25286 by Lorna Slater on 22 February 2024, and in light of the specific commitment given by the then Cabinet Secretary for Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform in a letter to the Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform Committee, dated 24 March 2021, that "work is underway on the development of roadmaps" for each of the priority sectors listed in the updated Climate Change Plan, whether it will address that commitment and provide an update on when the sectoral roadmaps will be published for (a) electricity, (b) buildings, (c) transport, (d) industry, (e) waste and the circular economy, (f) land use, land use change and forestry, (g) agriculture and (h) negative emissions technologies.

In 2021, we published an updated Climate Change Plan which covers the period 2018 – 2032. The updated plan includes over 200 policies across all eight sectors and proposals to drive future emissions reductions.

Since publication of the update to the Climate Change Plan, progress has been delivered at speed to drive forward the various strategies, plans, roadmaps and routemaps that support delivery. I have highlighted some of this progress as follows:

(a) The draft Energy Strategy and Just Transition Plan was published for consultation on 10 January 2023, setting out our vision for a future net zero energy system. The consultation closed in May 2023 with over 1500 responses and on 28 September we published an independent consultation analysis.

(b) We have just completed two consultations, one on proposals for a Heat in Buildings Bill and one on a new Social Housing Net Zero Standard.

(c) We have committed to producing a Route map to achieve a 20% reduction in car km by 2030 against a 2019 baseline. The Draft route map was published in January 2022 followed by post publication public consultation to April 2022. A finalised route map and analysis of the public consultation is due for publication in the coming months.

(d) The Scottish Government is combining current research with revised funding strategies to develop and enhance the route map for industrial decarbonisation. This will include elements of energy efficiency, energy switching and carbon capture and utilisation for residual emissions. The final route map will form part of the next Climate Change Plan.

(e) In January 2024 we published our draft Circular Economy and Waste Route Map for consultation, setting out clear actions to deliver sustainable use of our resources and progress a circular economy in Scotland by 2030. This includes measures to decarbonise the resources and waste sector, and embed circular practices in the construction sector. We intend to review the feedback from the consultation and confirm the final Route Map later in 2024.

(f) A new (5th) edition of the UK Forestry Standard (UKFS), agreed by all four countries, was published last year following a comprehensive review process. The new edition aims to make forests more resilient to a changing climate and the increased risk of pests and diseases so they can continue to deliver multiple benefits.

(g) The Agricultural Reform Route Map was published in February 2023 and updated on 23 June 2023. The Route Map outlines what information and guidance the sector can expect from 2023-2025 and when it will be available. A phased transition will take place from 2025 to implement the Future Support Framework’s proposed conditional payments under 4 tiers: Base, Enhanced, Elective, and Complementary.

(h) The Scottish Government commissioned a feasibility study on negative emissions technologies which was published on 30 November 2023. The deployment of NETs is dependent on CCUS, and while there is an understanding of next steps for growing the NETs industry in Scotland, a route map will be finalised once there is certainty from the UK Government on funding for Acorn.

Question reference: S6W-26074

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 08 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 21 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any demand for traditional building skills to support its net zero policies.

Last November, the Scottish Government welcomed the net zero pathfinder report published by Skills Development Scotland which assessed demand and skills issues across a range of sectors including construction. This information can be found here: https://www.skillsdevelopmentscotland.co.uk/what-we-do/skills-planning/green-skills-research-and-evidence/cesap-pathfinder-wp1-an-evidence-based-approach-to-supporting-the-transition-to-net-zero