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-30619

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 17 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 29 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the Rural Land Market Insights Report published in summer 2024 by the Scottish Land Commission, confirming that rural land prices remain at an all-time high, whether it plans to (a) review and (b) provide funding routes for communities seeking to take large areas of land into ownership.

The Scottish Government is committed to an ongoing programme of land reform, working with the powers and resources available to us, to tackle the pattern of land ownership in Scotland. Communities in Scotland now have more options than ever before to take ownership of land and assets. Since 2016, the Scottish Land Fund has approved 300 awards of funding for the acquisition of land and land assets, totalling over £50m, bringing over 24,500 acres into community ownership.

The Land Reform (Scotland) Bill introduced into Parliament earlier this year sets out ambitious proposals that will change how land is owned and managed in our rural and island communities for the better. If passed by the Scottish Parliament, the Bill will prohibit certain sales of over 1,000 hectares, until Ministers can consider the impact on the local community. Potentially, this could lead to some landholdings being lotted into smaller parts if this will support community sustainability. The Bill also seeks to empower communities with more opportunities to own land through introducing advance notice of certain sales from large landholdings.

Question reference: S6W-30620

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 17 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 29 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a list of ways in which land can be used to make a community more sustainable.

If passed by the Scottish Parliament, the Land Reform (Scotland) Bill will prohibit certain sales of over 1,000 hectares, until Ministers can consider the impact on the local community. Ministerial consideration of a lotting decision and what factors may be expected to make a community more sustainable will be based on the individual circumstances of the landholding and the particular communities in question.

While this assessment will depend on these individual factors, it is anticipated that the assessment of potential contributions to the sustainability of communities would include having regard to high level objectives such as economic development, repopulation, maintenance of populations, regeneration, public health, social wellbeing and environmental wellbeing.

Further information can also be found in my letter to the Convener of Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee: cabsecralriproviding-further-information-following-informal-briefing-on-the-land-reform-bill-14-may.pdf (parliament.scot)

Question reference: S6T-02150

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 28 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason it launched a court appeal against a ruling by the Scottish Information Commissioner, in light of this costing tens of thousands of pounds and it reportedly receiving legal advice that it was likely to fail.

Question reference: S6T-02160

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 28 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that Young Enterprise Scotland faces closure due to it withdrawing its support.

Question reference: S6F-03464

Asked by: Lorna Slater, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 28 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 31 October 2024

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6F-03477

Asked by: Keith Brown, MSP for Clackmannanshire and Dunblane, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 28 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 31 October 2024

To ask the First Minister what assessment the Scottish Government has undertaken of the impact of the UK Government Budget on Scotland.

Question reference: S6F-03462

Asked by: Russell Findlay, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 28 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 31 October 2024

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6F-03463

Asked by: Anas Sarwar, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 28 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 31 October 2024

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6F-03468

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 28 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 31 October 2024

To ask the First Minister what engagement the Scottish Government has had with Police Scotland officials who are responsible for investigating whether the actions of Professor Eljamel amounted to criminal conduct.

Question reference: S6F-03488

Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 28 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 31 October 2024

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to the reported rise in sex crimes.