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-03536

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 22 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Stephen Flynn on 2 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will share any legal advice that it has received to date in relation to the direct award of contracts to Ferguson Marine.

Question reference: S7W-03465

Asked by: Martyn Day, MSP for Falkirk East and Linlithgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 21 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 2 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether the National Headache Pathway, which was published in May 2024 with a review date of April 2025, has been reviewed, and, if so, what changes have been made following that review.

The National Headache Pathway was reviewed in July 2026 and the current version is published on NHS Scotland's Right Decisions platform. The review ensured that the pathway and supporting guidance remain aligned with current clinical evidence and best practice, including updated guidance on migraine diagnosis, treatment, prevention and referral. The Scottish Government does not hold detailed records of the amendments made as a result of the review.

Question reference: S7W-03475

Asked by: Martyn Day, MSP for Falkirk East and Linlithgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 21 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Alyn Smith on 2 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with the UK Department for Science, Innovation and Technology regarding the reported £45 million cut in UKRI-Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) funding, and its potential impact on a planned upgrade to the Large Hadron Collider beauty (LHCb) project and the universities involved in the project, including the University of Edinburgh and the University of Glasgow.

Decisions on UKRI funding are reserved to the UK Government. The Scottish Government has consistently highlighted the need for UKRI’s future funding decisions to be developed in genuine partnership with Scotland’s research sector including our research-intensive universities. The former Deputy First Minister wrote to the former UK Minister of State for Science, Research and Innovation in early 2026 to reinforce these points.

While STFC cuts have created uncertainty across Scotland’s Physical Sciences and Advance Technologies research and innovation community, the Scottish Government is continuing to invest in Scotland’s research and innovation base, increasing core research and innovation funding by 8% to over £355 million in 2026-27. In 2025-26, we invested £5 million to support innovation and economic growth in advanced technology sectors, including more than £2 million to support the development of innovation clusters in the key areas of space, robotics, critical technologies, the built environment, fintech, offshore wind and life sciences .Building on this success, we are investing a further £3 million in 2026/27 to scale activity to grow these key clusters and their economic impact.

Question reference: S7W-03537

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 22 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Stephen Flynn on 2 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government when it first contacted the Competition and Markets Authority regarding the direct award of contracts to Ferguson Marine.

Question reference: S7W-03487

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 22 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Stephen Flynn on 2 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact of ScotRail’s restrictions on the size of bicycles permitted on trains on disabled passengers who rely on larger, cargo or adapted cycles for independent mobility.

Question reference: S7W-03539

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 22 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Stephen Flynn on 2 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it received legal advice before it announced the direct awards to Ferguson Marine.

Question reference: S7W-03540

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 22 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Stephen Flynn on 2 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether any legal advice that it received ahead of the announcement of the direct awards to Ferguson Marine supported the position that a direct award would be possible.

Question reference: S7W-03541

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 22 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Stephen Flynn on 2 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will share the most up to date legal advice that it has received to date regarding the direct awards to Ferguson Marine.

Question reference: S7W-03488

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 22 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Stephen Flynn on 2 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with ScotRail regarding how to ensure that its cycle carriage policies allow for reasonable adjustments where a cycle exceeds a dimensional limit but can safely be accommodated within the designated cycle space.

Question reference: S7W-03466

Asked by: Martyn Day, MSP for Falkirk East and Linlithgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 21 September 2026
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 2 October 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how it is monitoring the implementation of the National Headache Pathway across NHS boards, including what information it holds on variation in any aspects of the implementation between NHS boards.

Responsibility for implementing national clinical pathways, including the National Headache Pathway, rests with individual NHS boards, taking account of local service delivery arrangements and population needs. The Scottish Government does not routinely monitor implementation of the National Headache Pathway at NHS board level and does not hold information centrally on variation in implementation between NHS boards.