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: S7W-00657

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 29 May 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 12 June 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the commitment in the Scottish National Party manifesto to enact a statutory price cap on essential food items, whether it will provide a list of the essential food items and products to be included in a basket of up to fifty items.

Question reference: S7W-00659

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 29 May 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 12 June 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the commitment in the Scottish National Party manifesto to enact a statutory price cap on essential food items, whether it would require to introduce at least a six-month implementation plan for retailers, in light of this being the case when the most recent increase to the minimum unit pricing of alcohol was implemented.

Question reference: S7W-00658

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 29 May 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 12 June 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the commitment in the Scottish National Party manifesto to enact a statutory price cap on essential food items, what basis it will use to determine the product categories.

Question reference: S7W-00192

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 May 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 5 June 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has received legal advice regarding the compatibility of a statutory cap on supermarket food prices with the United Kingdom Internal Market Act 2020, and, if so, whether it will publish the advice it has received.

Question reference: S7W-00193

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 May 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 5 June 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what estimate it has made of the administrative and enforcement costs associated with introducing a cap on supermarket food prices.

Question reference: S7W-00195

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 May 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 5 June 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that female witnesses involved in serious criminal cases are provided with appropriate protections and support throughout court proceedings, including safeguards relating to single-sex spaces and facilities.

Question reference: S7W-00191

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 May 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 5 June 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any potential impact of a statutory cap on supermarket food prices on Scottish farmers, food producers and processors, particularly in relation to farmgate prices and supply chain sustainability.

Question reference: S7W-00194

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 May 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 5 June 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has undertaken any assessment of whether supermarkets may offset a cap on certain food items through price increases elsewhere, and, if so, what conclusions it reached.

Question reference: S6W-44350

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 March 2026
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 25 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has issued any guidance to local authorities on appropriate levels of screen use for primary school pupils in classroom settings.

Decisions about the delivery of education are devolved to local authorities. As such the Scottish Government has not issued guidance on specific or appropriate levels of device or screen use in classroom settings. It is for councils to decide how and when digital technology is used to support learning, in line with their local education and digital strategies. We have published guidance for parents on screen time for school-aged children via Parent Club.

The term screen use covers a wide range of activities with varying levels of educational value. In schools, digital activity is typically planned, structured and directly linked to learning objectives, and is therefore not directly comparable to recreational or passive screen use outside the classroom. The Parent Club guidance reflects this noting, what they’re watching or doing is just as important as counting the number of minutes.

The Scottish Government would expect content and activities available on school managed devices to be carefully curated by local authorities to support learning and teaching. Devices should be appropriately secured, filtered and monitored, with access to inappropriate or non-educational content restricted, providing pupils with an age appropriate and supervised digital environment.

Digital technologies are one tool among many available to support learning. Teachers are trusted to exercise their professional judgement in deciding when digital approaches add pedagogical ,inclusive or practical value, and when other approaches are more appropriate, as they do with any learning resource.

Question reference: S6W-44336

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 March 2026
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 24 March 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on any action it has taken under section 33 of the Agriculture and Rural Communities (Scotland) Act 2024 to prepare and publish a food security statement.

The Scottish Government takes matters of food security and resilience very seriously. Work is underway on the inaugural food security statement which will have regard to the recently published Rural Support Plan. That statement will build on the package of measures we are already taking to support food production including maintaining direct support for farmers and crofters in stark contrast to policies in other parts of the UK.

The Agriculture and Rural Communities (Scotland) Act 2024 (the 2024 Act) requires Scottish Ministers to make a statement on food security at least every three years, from the Act’s entry into force on 16 June 2025.