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-15447

Asked by: Sue Webber, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 15 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the adequacy of current staffing levels for lung cancer nurse specialists within the (a) West of Scotland Cancer Network, (b) North Cancer Alliance and (c) South East Scotland Cancer Network.

The Scottish Government has overall responsibility for health and social care policy in Scotland, however the statutory responsibility for delivering or commissioning services lies with health boards. Operational decisions, including whether there is a need for lung cancer specialist nurses, is therefore, a matter for them.

Scottish Government officials have weekly cancer calls with health boards where issues with staffing can be addressed and supported.

Question reference: S6W-15450

Asked by: Sue Webber, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 15 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of how many new lung cancer patients per whole-time equivalent lung cancer nurse specialist there were in September (a) 2020, (b) 2021 and (c) 2022.

Question reference: S6W-15066

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 15 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has sought advice from the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service regarding any implications of licensing muirburn.

Proposals to amend legislation relating to muirburn were included in our Wildlife Management in Scotland consultation. The Scottish Fire and Rescue Service provided a full response to this consultation and their responses are being taken into account as the provisions for the Bill are developed.

I recently met with Bruce Farquharson, Deputy Assistant Chief Officer and Head of Training for SFRS to discuss their consultation response in more detail.

Question reference: S6W-15064

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 15 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what engagement it has had with the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service on the development of regulatory proposals for muirburn, in light of its potential role in mitigating wildfire risk.

Question reference: S6W-15530

Asked by: Mercedes Villalba, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 15 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what funding it plans to provide for student mental health services within universities and colleges in light of Scottish Funding Council funding for mental health support ending in July 2023.

No decision has yet been taken with regard to Scottish Government funding to support student mental health services within colleges and universities beyond the end of the current Academic Year.

We have met our manifesto commitment to provide more than 80 additional counsellors in Further and Higher Education over four years.

In this, the final Academic Year of the commitment, despite an extremely challenging fiscal environment, we have confirmed a further £2 million to the end of this financial year and are committed to provide further funding for the remainder of this Academic Year, which falls into the Government’s next financial year. Details of this will be confirmed in due course, as part of the budget setting exercise for 2023-24.

We are producing an evidence and evaluation-informed Student Mental Health Plan. The Student Mental Health and Wellbeing Working Group, which I chair, is driving this work forward. The Plan will provide a framework for mental health services in colleges and universities, recognising the existing eco-systems of services available for students, and will be linked to the wider Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy.

Question reference: S6W-15243

Asked by: Pam Gosal, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Christina McKelvie on 15 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the view expressed in a number of the responses to the Violence Against Women and Girls Funding Review that the loss of single-sex services and facilities erodes female privacy and deprives women and girls from feelings of security and comfort.

Question reference: S6W-15350

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 27 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 15 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what advice is currently being provided to residents of buildings that are suspected of requiring cladding remediation, regarding the (a) reinsurance, (b) selling and (c) re-mortgaging of their properties.

Lending and insurance policy are reserved matters for the UK Government. We are aware of the difficulties that some people are facing in accessing mortgages for buildings with potentially unsafe cladding. Work has been undertaken between the UK Government and UK Finance to develop a solution which reflects the situation in England and we are in urgent discussion with UK Finance about adapting that solution for Scotland as quickly as possible. The Single Building Assessment is a crucial element in identifying issues in buildings with potentially unsafe cladding in Scotland. We expect the vast majority of buildings to be found to be safe, but first we have to carry out comprehensive and technical assessments. This is a complex and time-consuming programme, and a number of assessments are either at final or pre-final reporting stage.

Question reference: S6W-15188

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 17 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 15 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a progress update on the National Speed Management Review, including the consideration of HGV speed limit policy, as outlined in the Road Safety Framework to 2030.

Transport Scotland is undertaking the National Speed Management Review to support a range of policy drivers including better road safety and health outcomes, promotion of active travel, climate change mitigation, place making and economic growth.

The review covers comprehensive analysis of all types of speed management policies including HGV speed limits as well as a review of what has been introduced in other countries throughout the world.

We will consult with stakeholders and the public this year to gather and consider their views on future changes to speed limit policies and speed management measures.

Question reference: S6W-14923

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 10 February 2023
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 15 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how long the standard tenure is of each board member, including non-executive directors, of Scottish Rail Holdings.

The current non-executive directors of Scottish Rail Holdings (SRH) Board were appointed on an interim basis to 31 March 2023. The SRH Board non-executive appointments are non-regulated and there is no stipulation of specific appointment length detailed within the Framework Agreement, however going forward it is anticipated that terms for non-interim appointments will be for up to three years.

The standard tenure of the executive members of the SRH Board is permanent.

Question reference: S6W-15721

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Angus Robertson on 15 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to attend the Arctic Circle Assembly in Reykjavik in 2023.

Scottish Ministers have attended the Arctic Circle Assembly (ACA) every year it has been held since 2016. The Scottish Government remains committed to building on the strong partnership that it has established with the Arctic Circle secretariat, with a view to continuing to showcase relevant Scottish expertise internationally and facilitating Scottish-Arctic collaboration. A decision on Ministerial attendance will be made once an official invitation has been received.