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-03447

Asked by: Martyn Day, MSP for Falkirk East and Linlithgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 21 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Stephen Flynn on 5 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the Civil Aviation Authority and the Department for Transport regarding the Edinburgh Airport Airspace Change proposals.

Question reference: S7W-03461

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 21 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 5 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what socio-economic factors it will (a) consider and (b) exclude when assessing proposed fisheries management measures for inshore Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and proposed Priority Marine Feature (PMF) Management Areas.

The Scottish Government as part of it’s consultation on proposed Fisheries management measures within Scottish inshore Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and proposed Priority Marine Feature (PMF) management areas - Scottish Government consultations - Citizen Space undertook a socio-economic impact assessment (SEIA). The SEIA considers the effects of the proposed measures at individual site level for MPAs and at regional level for proposed PMF management areas. It considers the impacts on each of the 11 marine regions with respect to the economic impacts on fishing activities – both for a vessels’ home port and port of landing. This full SEIA is available through the consultation platform.

Question reference: S7W-03463

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 21 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 5 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the feasibility of ensuring compliance with its proposed fisheries management measures for inshore Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and proposed Priority Marine Feature (PMF) Management Areas.

The Scottish Government accepts that there are compliance monitoring challenges with the implementation of fisheries management measures for Inshore Marine Protected Areas and Priority Marine Features. This is why compliance officials have been involved in the process from the start and continue to be so. They are currently developing procedures to ensure effective monitoring and control of any measures imposed.

The proposed measures exclude creel and pelagic midwater trawl vessels which significantly reduces the number of vessels requiring monitoring and most other vessels already have monitoring devices, including Remote Electronic Monitoring (REM) for all scallop dredge vessels and Vessel Monitoring Systems (VMS) on vessels over 12m. Work is underway to make it mandatory for all under 12m vessels to have tracking devices and we are exploring what other technology may assist including drones and automation of monitoring. Inshore MPAs and PMF monitoring will form part of a wider Compliance strategy and risk assessment process.

Question reference: S7W-03449

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 21 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 5 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking following the dredging incident in Ardmore Bay on 23 August 2026 and whether (a) the incident is being investigated and, if so, when this will conclude and the findings will be published and (b) it will issue an urgent Marine Conservation Order and/or take other protective measures to prevent further damage.

The Scottish Government’s Marine Directorate is responsible for the enforcement of fisheries regulations in the Scottish zone. Officers investigated the incident, including analysis of the Remote Electronic Monitoring system (REM) from a vessel identified in the area at the time, no illegal fishing activities were identified and the investigation was closed.

There are no plans introduce an urgent Marine Conservation Order, the area is included in the Scottish Government’s consultation on proposed Fisheries management measures within Scottish inshore Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and proposed Priority Marine Feature (PMF) management areas, which opened recently and runs until 18 January 2027. The Scottish Government encourages interested parties to contribute to this.

Question reference: S7W-03462

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 21 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 5 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to compensate any fishermen adversely affected by its proposed fisheries management measures for inshore Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and proposed Priority Marine Feature (PMF) Management Areas.

Engagement with the fisheries sector has consistently indicated that fishers place greater value on maintaining access to sustainable fishing opportunities and supporting the long-term viability of fishing businesses than on compensation payments. The Scottish Government is not currently proposing a compensation scheme for any fishers affected by proposed fisheries management measures in inshore Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and Priority Marine Feature (PMF) Management Areas. A range of potential measures, including business resilience support, and diversification opportunities are being considered. Any future support measures will be informed by consultation responses, stakeholder engagement and the assessment of impacts.

Question reference: S7W-03460

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 21 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 5 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how it will ensure that individuals and groups affected by the proposed fisheries management measures for inshore Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and proposed Priority Marine Feature (PMF) Management Areas are able to engage with the consultation process in locations where no drop-in consultation event is being held or where access to an event is limited by venue capacity.

The Scottish Government as part of it’s consultation on proposed Fisheries management measures within Scottish inshore Marine Protected Areas (MPAs) and proposed Priority Marine Feature (PMF) management areas - Scottish Government consultations - Citizen Space is undertaking a series of in person events at 26 locations across Scotland. The capacity of these events is limited by the venue size, with most able to accommodate up to 60 people at any one time. Due to the sessions being drop-in events, with people not being there for whole sessions, it is not considered venue capacity will be an issue in most cases.

If individuals are unable to attend an in person event there are also 16 on line sessions available for them to join. The majority of these are general sessions with some region specific and one aimed at young people. There is a limit of 20 spaces for each on line session however that provides the opportunity for a further 320 people to find the information they need in order to respond to the consultation. The sessions are scheduled over a range of days and times to allow attendance. However, we are happy to run more online sessions should these reach capacity or if there is a demand for more.

Due to the consultation’s complexity and size, there is an extended consultation period to ensure respondents have a full and fair opportunity to have their say. The consultation is open until 18 January 2027.

Question reference: S7W-03467

Asked by: Sanne Dijkstra-Downie, MSP for Edinburgh Northern, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 21 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Stephen Gethins on 5 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that local communities receive meaningful financial benefits from new onshore renewable energy developments.

The Scottish Government has already made significant progress in ensuring communities receive meaningful financial benefits from onshore renewable energy developments. In 2025 alone, around £40 million was offered to communities, supported by our Good Practice Principles for Community Benefits from Onshore Renewable Energy Developments.

To build on this, we plan to publish refreshed onshore Good Practice Principles by the end of 2026. This will support local communities to continue to receive meaningful, lasting benefits, by updating the recommended community benefit fund levels, setting clearer expectations across technologies and development types, and strengthening the guidance, tools and support to help communities manage and distribute funds.

Question reference: S7W-03520

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 22 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Alison Thewliss on 5 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has undertaken any economic assessment of the lifetime cost to Scottish public services of Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder, and, if not, whether it has any plans to do so.

Question reference: S7W-03455

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 21 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 5 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether any Glasgow-built NBL MAN L12V18/21A V12 diesel generators are still installed as emergency standby generators in hospitals across the NHS Scotland estate.

Question reference: S7W-03926

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 02 October 2026
Current Status: Answer expected on 30 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the socioeconomic backgrounds of students entering the medical profession, and what action it is taking to increase participation in medicine among people from deprived communities and lower-income households.