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-32993

Asked by: Graham Simpson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Alasdair Allan on 21 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will include low-emission heating systems, such as fuel cells, hybrid heat pumps and hydrogen ready boilers, in future Scottish House Condition Survey data.

The Scottish House Condition Survey (SHCS) provides a snapshot of the domestic housing stock in each survey year, including the construction age, built form and primary and secondary heating system and fuel.

The SHCS currently records the following heat systems: Boiler, Community Heating, Storage Heaters, Room heaters, Warm Air Systems, Heat Pumps (with and without and MCS certificate), and Room Heater Back Boiler: no Radiators (these are systems which have a solid fuel fire with a back boiler where the back boiler is used only for heating water, and is not connected to radiators for heating the house). As these are the most common types of heating systems in Scotland.

The SHCS does not currently record heating systems, such as fuel cells, hybrid heat pumps and hydrogen ready boilers. However, we review the survey questions annually and these forms of heating will be considered for inclusion in future surveys when they become more prevalent in the Scottish dwelling stock.

Question reference: S6W-33267

Asked by: Graham Simpson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 21 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the reported link between increases in plant imports and the rise of tree diseases, whether it and its agencies will consider adopting the UK and Ireland Sourced and Grown Standard (UKISG) to improve biosecurity of planting stock and support the nursery sector, for example by committing to an uplift in grant rates for creation schemes that use UKISG trees.

The Scottish government recognises the importance of a UK wide partnership approach to plant health. The establishment of the UK Plant Health Alliance, in collaboration with industry, and publication of a best practice biosecurity standard, the Plant Health Management Standard and associated assurance schemes was an important step to strengthen biosecure procurement. The UKISG is just one of a number of assurance schemes that are in place to help promote responsible sourcing in the plant supply chain.

Under the Scottish Plant Health Strategy 2024 -29 there is a commitment to explore opportunities for biosecure procurement. If and how this can be integrated into Scottish government grant options for woodland creation, including assurance schemes, will be considered as part of work on future grant support for forestry.

Question reference: S6W-32996

Asked by: Graham Simpson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Alasdair Allan on 21 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish a response to its energy performance certificate (EPC) reform consultation.

The Scottish Government published the Government response to the EPC Reform consultation on 21 January 2025 [1]. This confirms that we will lay revised EPC regulations in Parliament during 2025, to come into force in 2026. These regulations will introduce an improved EPC rating system to give consumers better information on the fabric energy efficiency of their building and on the emissions and efficiency of their heating system, as well as on potential improvements they could make to both. We will also retain the rating on modelled energy costs which consumer testing tells us is so important to them at this time of sustained high energy prices. That user testing has, in addition, allowed consumers to tell us how to make the design and accessibility of EPCs better, and we can confirm that introduction of a redesigned certificate will coincide with the regulations bringing the new rating system into force.

[1] https://www.gov.scot/isbn/9781836912408.

Question reference: S6W-32787

Asked by: Graham Simpson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 21 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how it is helping to tackle ash dieback.

The Scottish Government is continuing to work collaboratively to provide information on ash dieback and guidance on the management of trees affected by this disease. Scottish Forestry chairs the Ash Dieback Risk Group Scotland, bringing together practitioners from local authorities and the forestry, arboriculture, transport, utilities, research and nature conservation sectors to share knowledge, experience and examples of best practice in managing ash dieback. Scottish Forestry engaged The Tree Council to work alongside the Ash Dieback Risk Group, producing a toolkit for the preparation of ash dieback action plans by local authorities and other large-scale landowners and asset managers. The toolkit provides a framework for preparing action plans, and contains recent case studies and resources created by a number of Scottish local authorities and other organisations. A suite of guidance tailored for Scotland has been published and further information on safety when working on ash trees affected by ash dieback has been developed with input from stakeholders and is due to be published shortly.

Question reference: S6W-32995

Asked by: Graham Simpson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Alasdair Allan on 17 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish independent analysis of its consultation on proposals for a Heat in Buildings Bill.

Question reference: S6W-32994

Asked by: Graham Simpson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Alasdair Allan on 16 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish a built environment and construction just transition plan.

We are building on our legally binding commitment to just transition principles by developing Just Transition Plans for specific sectors. Our latest Programme for Government sets out our intention to publish Just Transition Plans for energy, transport, built environment and construction, and land use and agriculture. We are staggering the publication of these sectoral plans, to ensure that sufficient time and focus is dedicated to each. We are proposing to publish Just Transition Plans for transport, and land use and agriculture in early 2025, and will develop plans for the remaining sectors subsequently.

Question reference: S6W-32997

Asked by: Graham Simpson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Alasdair Allan on 16 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish the results of the Scottish Climate Survey carried out in 2024.

Question reference: S6O-04147

Asked by: Graham Simpson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 December 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 December 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing to address wait times in temporary accommodation.

Question reference: S6W-31542

Asked by: Graham Simpson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 November 2024
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 5 December 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to re-opening the passenger railway link to Grangemouth.

The re-introduction of passenger services onto the existing freight only rail line to Grangemouth was considered as part of the second Strategic Transport Projects Review (STPR2). The option was taken forward to the Preliminary Options Appraisal stage but was not selected as an STPR2 Recommendation on the basis of its performance against the appraisal criteria and the fact that it would have adverse impacts on the freight capacity and the Glasgow – Edinburgh mainline. It was also deemed unlikely to generate sufficient passenger demand.

Instead, recommendations set out in STPR2 for rail focus on the decarbonisation of the remainder of the network; measures to increase the amount of freight travelling by rail and on improving connectivity between our major cities.

However, there remains a path for regional or local rail projects to come forward, and Transport Scotland will consider these subject to a strong business case being developed in accordance with Scottish Transport Appraisal Guidance (STAG) and suitable funding being available.

Question reference: S6W-31547

Asked by: Graham Simpson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 November 2024
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 4 December 2024

To ask the Scottish Government when it plans to provide a determination on the section 36 consent application for the Berwick Bank offshore wind farm project, and whether it plans to do this in sufficient time to ensure the best possible outcome for energy consumers in the next Contracts for Difference (CfD) Allocation Round, AR7.