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.

Find out more about parliamentary questions

Filter your results Hide all filters

Displaying 48973 questions Show Answers

Order by |

Question reference: S6W-22933

Asked by: Russell Findlay, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 23 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 8 December 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it can provide details of any (a) internal communications involving (i) ministers and (ii) officials regarding Sheriff Alistair Duff’s role as a director of the Judicial Institute for Scotland, in light of the Police Scotland investigation that resulted in him being convicted at Edinburgh Sheriff Court.

The Scottish Government has had no involvement regarding Sheriff Duff's role as a Director of the Judicial Institute for Scotland. The judiciary is independent of the Scottish Government. The Lord President delegates responsibility for the delivery of judicial training to the Judicial Institute of Scotland and is responsible for appointments including the role of Director to the Board of the Judicial Institute.

Question reference: S6W-23167

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 23 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 8 December 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to include Argyll and Bute Council in the Storm Babet Ministerial Taskforce.

We recognise the significant impact on people, businesses and communities in areas affected by storm Babet. The Scottish Government is committed to playing its part in helping them through this horrible experience which has destroyed so many people’s property and belongings.

The Storm Babet Ministerial Taskforce was established to co-ordinate the Scottish Government’s support of local recovery efforts. It will consider both the immediate recovery response and longer-term issues such as repairing infrastructure.

The Taskforce has developed a package of support to assist Scotland’s Councils deal with the immediate recovery as well as consider longer term issues such as repairing infrastructure. This package includes initiating the Bellwin Scheme to help all Councils cover eligible expenditure for urgent repairs; grants for farmers affected by severe flooding in parts of Scotland to help repair man-made flood banks; and Flood Recovery Grants to be administered by eligible Local Authorities to assist people whose homes and businesses have been flooded.

This support is in addition to Scotland’s longer-term investment in flood resilience, where we have committed £150m over the course of this Parliament to deliver improved flood resilience, in addition to the £42m provided annually to councils for flood resilience through the general capital grant.

The initial focus of the Task Force has been on the worst affected areas; ones that had an exceptionally rare red warning for rain during October’s storm, and especially Angus, which provisionally experienced its wettest day since 1891.We have therefore invited the Chief Executive of Angus Council to attend the Taskforce in her capacity as Chair of the Tayside Storm Babet Recovery Group. While we will continue to review membership of the group, there are no plans to extend membership at this time.

Question reference: S6W-23153

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 23 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 8 December 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it has made on its commitment to (a) facilitate a process to co-design high-quality, high-performing household recycling and reuse services by the end of 2023, working with service operators and users, and (b) undertake further consultation on the separate kerbside collection of textiles by 2025.

Through the Circular Economy Bill, the Scottish Government is committed to a co-design process to develop a new Household Recycling Code of Practice with local authorities and other stakeholders to provide a clear strategic direction for recycling in Scotland.

This includes enabling progress against future local recycling and reuse targets, informing how the monitoring and reporting framework for local authority waste services can be strengthened, and consideration of further measures to incentivise waste reduction at a household level.

Engagement with Cosla and local authority representatives is ongoing, and Scottish Government officials are currently developing plans for a local authority workshop to be held in early 2024 to continue this process.

The Scottish Government remains committed to a public consultation on the separate kerbside collection of textiles by 2025. Evidence from the consultation will inform the development of the new Household Recycling Code of Practice.

Question reference: S6W-22932

Asked by: Russell Findlay, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 23 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 8 December 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it can provide details of any (a) internal communications involving (i) ministers and (ii) officials and (b) external communications in respect of the Police Scotland investigation that resulted in Sheriff Alistair Duff being convicted at Edinburgh Sheriff Court.

The Police and Fire Reform (Scotland) Act 2012 stipulates that the Chief Constable is responsible for the policing of Scotland, and is accountable to the Scottish Police Authority for this, rather than to Scottish Ministers directly. These arrangements are in place to ensure public confidence that the police act independently, free from unwarranted Ministerial interference. The Scottish Government had no involvement in the Police Scotland investigation that resulted in Sheriff Alistair Duff being convicted at Edinburgh Sheriff Court.

Question reference: S6W-23170

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 23 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 8 December 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-22388 by Mairi McAllan on 6 November 2023, whether it will publish the responses to the consultation on its Report into the Effectiveness of Environmental Governance Arrangements before the end of 2023.

Question reference: S6W-22934

Asked by: Russell Findlay, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 23 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 8 December 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it can provide details of any (a) internal communications involving (i) ministers and (ii) officials regarding the former First Minister’s appointment of Sheriff Alistair Duff to the Fitness for Judicial Office Tribunal in 2019, in light of the Police Scotland investigation that resulted in him being convicted at Edinburgh Sheriff Court.

Under the Courts Reform (Scotland) Act 2014, it is for the First Minister, with the agreement of the Lord President, to select persons to be members of a Fitness for Judicial Office Tribunal. In consultation with the Lord President, and in accordance with the legislation, the former First Minster appointed Sheriff Duff as a shrieval member of two Fitness for Judicial Office Tribunals in October 2018 and November 2019. On 3 November 2021, the Scottish Government was advised by the Tribunal that Sheriff Duff was unable to fulfil his duties on the Fitness for Judicial Office Tribunal, because of personal matters and requested a new shrieval member be appointed. No further details were provided to the Scottish Government.

Question reference: S6W-23568

Asked by: Fergus Ewing, MSP for Inverness and Nairn, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 05 December 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 8 December 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-23481 by Mairi McAllan on 30 November 2023, whether any farms affected by flooding will qualify for the grant scheme, and whether farms in Inverness-shire will be excluded from the grant scheme, even if damaged by flooding.

Question reference: S6W-23547

Asked by: Donald Cameron, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 04 December 2023
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 8 December 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what feasibility studies it has conducted into using Hybrid Air Vehicles (HAV) to transport cargo and passengers in the Highlands and Islands region.

Question reference: S6W-23238

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Monday, 27 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 8 December 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what responsibility the Minister for Housing has for the delivery of private housing.

The Scottish Government is defined by three distinct and interdependent missions centred on the principles of equality, opportunity and community: to tackle poverty; to build a fair, green and indeed a growing economy; and to improve our public services. In that context, the Minister for Housing’s specific responsibilities are:

Affordable Housing Supply Programme
Housing to 2040 strategy
homelessness and rough sleeping
cladding remediation
welfare and debt advice
regulation of existing housing systems

Question reference: S6W-23362

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Claire Baker (on behalf of the SPCB) on 8 December 2023

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body whether any evidence was provided by Michael Matheson to prove the parliamentary nature, rather than a personal or governmental nature, of his reported expense claim for over £10,000 for cellular data in Morocco.

The Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body announced on 23 November that it will undertake an investigation in line with its duties under the MSP code of conduct.

As stated then, in the interests of fairness to all, and to avoid prejudicing our investigation, the Corporate Body will not comment on any matters that could have a bearing on the process. It is important to stress, however, that the Corporate Body remains wholly committed to openness and transparency and will release all material that it can, when it can, in line with its legal obligations.

Parliament dissolved ahead of election

Chamber and committees

Questions and answers

Filter your results Hide all filters

Answer

Answer

Answer

Answer

Answer

Answer

Answer

Answer

Answer

Answer