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: S6O-03799

Asked by: Edward Mountain, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 September 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 3 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many people are homeless in the Highland Council area.

Question reference: S6O-03802

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 September 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 3 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what its proposed timeline and target date are for the establishment of a leavers fund to support victims of domestic abuse to leave abusive relationships.

Question reference: S6O-03796

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 September 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the use of locums in local mental health services.

Question reference: S6O-03783

Asked by: Clare Adamson, MSP for Motherwell and Wishaw, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 September 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what assessment it has made of the impact of Brexit on Scotland's food and drink sector.

Question reference: S6W-29618

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 06 September 2024
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Alasdair Allan on 25 September 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has carried out to estimate how many rural jobs in the Highland and Islands will be impacted by its announced reduction of £1 million from the Nature Restoration Fund.

The reduction of £1 million referred to in the letter from the Finance Secretary to the Scottish Parliament's Finance and Public Administration Committee dated 3 September relates to the nature restoration budget line, rather than the Nature Restoration Fund (NRF). The £1m reduction will result in reduced scope of some projects and delay in implementing other projects.

The Edinburgh Process strand of the NRF is provided directly to Local Authorities and the £5 million allocated to this strand for 2024-25 has been redirected to help meet the public sector pay deal. Scottish Ministers have made a commitment to replace this funding in 2025-26. We remain firmly committed to tackling the twin crises of climate change and biodiversity loss. However we are also taking on significant additional financial pressure, not least as a consequence of wider decisions around funding made by the current and previous UK Governments. The Finance Secretary has been clear that painful choices have had to be made as a result. The Scottish Government will work with local authorities to understand and mitigate any impacts on rural jobs, wherever that is feasible in these circumstances.

Scottish Ministers know the vital role local government employees play in delivering local services which are valued by the public. This pay offer demonstrates just how much we value these workers too. It will provide an above-inflation pay increase for all council employees and ensure the most support is focused on the lowest paid.

Whilst this difficult fiscal choice has had to be made, NatureScot is providing NRF funding to 14 partnership projects this year, to transform nature including through river and woodland restoration, rainforest regeneration, tackling invasive species and conserving iconic species such as the red squirrel.

Question reference: S6W-29402

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 30 August 2024
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 25 September 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what engagement it has had with Forth Ports regarding securing green jobs in Edinburgh.

The Scottish Government is working closely with Forth Green Freeport and Forth Ports as a consortium member, to ensure that it delivers maximum positive impact as soon as possible, including at the tax site in Leith where a renewable energy hub is being developed and a potential customs site at Edinburgh Airport. This includes regular engagement at official level to support the development of their recently submitted full business case.

Scottish Ministers have had a number of engagements with Forth Ports in the last few months about the company’s challenges and opportunities as they look to support a just transition to a decarbonised economy. This includes a visit of Cabinet Secretary for Transport Fiona Hyslop to Port of Grangemouth on 6 March 2024, a meeting between Deputy First Minister Kate Forbes with Forth Ports CEO Stuart Wallace on 12 July and a visit to the Leith tax site of Forth Green Freeport of Minister for Employment and Investment Tom Arthur together with UK Government Secretary of State for Business and Trade Jonathan Reynolds on 22 August 2024.

Green Freeports will play a crucial role in the Scottish Government’s commitment to a just transition to net zero, by creating clusters of high-tech manufacturing excellence in low carbon sectors and high-quality, well-paid new jobs within these sectors.

Question reference: S6W-29393

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 30 August 2024
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 25 September 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to S6W-03307 by George Adam on 5 October 2021, whether any progress has been made on revisions to the (a) Scottish Ministerial Code and (b) Code of Conduct for Special Advisers.

(a) The First Minister announced his intention to publish a strengthened Scottish Ministerial Code later this year on 4 September 2024, as part of his Programme for Government statement in the Scottish Parliament. Under his new Code, the First Minister's independent advisers will be able to launch investigations into alleged breaches of the Code whenever they feel it is warranted, without a referral from the First Minister. They will also be able to provide advice to the First Minister on appropriate sanctions should the First Minister deem that the Code has been breached. The advisers will also be given a role in scrutinizing Ministers' declarations of interests and their Terms of Reference will be published.

The 2023 Scottish Ministerial Code already set an extremely high bar in terms of standards in public life. The forthcoming updates to the Code, which, collectively, will be the most significant since independent advisers were introduced in 2008, will further increase transparency and independent scrutiny. The changes meet a number of the asks of Petition PE2093, which is currently being considered by the Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee.

(b) In accordance with PQ answer S6W-03307, the Scottish Government has considered matters relating to Special Advisors, including the Code of Conduct for Special Advisors, which is reserved to UK Government. The Scottish Government has no plans to ask the UK Government to make changes to the Special Advisers' Code. The Scottish Government’s plan for implementing the recommendations of James Hamilton’s report, alongside the recommendations of the reports by Laura Dunlop QC and the Scottish Parliament Committee on the Handling of Harassment Complaints, were published in June 2021 and implemented through the Continuous Improvement Programme, which was reported regularly to the Scottish Parliament’s Finance and Public Administration Committee.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.

Question reference: S6W-29394

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 30 August 2024
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 25 September 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to S6W-28676 by Kate Forbes on 27 August 2024, what its position is on whether its answer represents a reversal of its previous position of considering changes to the Scottish Ministerial Code and the Code of Conduct for Special Advisers, as recommended by the Hamilton Report in March 2021.

The Scottish Government set out in June 2021 its plan for implementing the recommendations of James Hamilton’s report, alongside the recommendations of the reports by Laura Dunlop QC and the Scottish Parliament Committee on the Handling of Harassment Complaints. Implementation was delivered through the Continuous Improvement Programme, which was reported regularly to the Scottish Parliament’s Finance and Public Administration Committee. The final report on the Continuous Improvement Programme was provided in January 2023, and with the agreement of the Committee, the programme was then concluded and activities were absorbed into ongoing work. In line with previous commitments, the Scottish Government considered matters relating to Special Advisors, including the Code of Conduct for Special Advisors, which is reserved to UK Government. The Scottish Government has no plans to ask the UK Government to make changes.

Question reference: S6W-29987

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 17 September 2024
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 25 September 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how much funding will be available for the Highlands and Islands in each of the next five years from the Rural Affordable Homes for Key Workers Fund, as set out in the Programme for Government 2024-25.

The Rural Affordable Homes for Key Workers Fund is a demand led fund of up to £25 million from the Affordable Housing Supply Programme budget over a five year period 2023-24 to 2027-28.

Local authorities and registered social landlords can apply to the fund to purchase existing suitable properties in rural and island areas where there is identified need and we would expect this to be included in local authorities' Strategic Housing Investment Plans. Annual funding levels will reflect the pace at which projects are brought forward as well as available budgets.

Question reference: S6W-29977

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 17 September 2024
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 25 September 2024

To ask the Scottish Government when its planning hub will start operating

The Planning Hub was established in September within the Improvement Service.

Scoping and engagement has commenced in collaboration with planning authorities, industry and other key organisations to identify the support and expertise needed by planning authorities to support consenting on hydrogen planning applications.

The Scottish Government continues to support the Improvement Service to work at pace to make the Hub fully operational.