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-14610

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 03 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 28 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its planned timeline is for ensuring that all NHS boards are providing abortion services locally up to 24 weeks, as set out in Action 17 of the progress report on the Women's Health Plan.

The Women’s Health Plan aims to ensure that women can access abortions up to 24 weeks’ within Scotland regardless of the reason for the termination.

The Scottish Government is pleased to see progress being made on this issue, with all mainland Health Boards now providing abortion services up to at least 20 weeks’ gestation. However further progress is needed to allow women to access services between 20 – 24 weeks’ gestation as locally as possible.

The Scottish Government is working closely with Health Boards, and has commissioned NHS National Services Scotland (NSS) to draft a specification for a national or regional service. This will ensure the service created takes into account the complexities involved with offering abortions at a later stage, and addresses the needs of women in Scotland. NSS will then invite one or more Health Boards to agree to deliver the service in line with the specification.

Question reference: S6W-14619

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 28 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that drink producers and retailers are considering reducing product ranges in Scotland due to Circularity Scotland’s reported failure to provide necessary information to producers ahead of the registration deadline, and concerns about inadvertently not being able to follow any rules that they have yet to be informed about.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-14338 on 8 February 2023.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at: https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/questions-and-answers .

Furthermore, any producer with questions or concerns about registration should contact Circularity Scotland for advice and guidance.

Question reference: S6W-14626

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 28 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reported concerns that guidance on what would be considered a GS1 compliant barcode within the Deposit Return Scheme has not yet been published; what discussions it has had with (a) Circularity Scotland and (b) SEPA regarding this, and when it expects this guidance to be published.

Circularity Scotland set out the requirement to use a GS1 compliant barcode in 2021 and this has not changed – it is an international standard. The ability to use a UK-wide EAN barcode within Scotland’s DRS was confirmed by SEPA in summer 2022. Guidance on the use of barcode stickers, to support smaller producers who don’t currently use them on their products, will be published shortly by the Scheme Administrator.

Question reference: S6W-14621

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 03 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 28 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether specific funding has been allocated to SEPA to allow it to prosecute any retailers in breach of Deposit Return Scheme regulations.

Question reference: S6W-14538

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 30 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 28 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, before an order was placed for Hull 802, whether an alternative option of ordering two smaller vessels to serve on the Uig to Lochmaddy and Uig to Tarbert ferry routes was considered, and, if it was the case, for what reason any such alternative option was rejected, and, if it was not the case, for what reason such an alternative option was not considered.

The proposal for the procurement of what became vessels 801 and 802 was set out in the Vessel Replacement and Deployment Plan (VRDP) Annual Report 2014 vrdp-annual-report-2014.pdf (transport.gov.scot)

The recently published Ferries Plan 2013-2022 had concluded that the level of services then in place on the Uig-Tarbert/Lochmaddy routes met identified community needs. Vessel 802 was earmarked for initial deployment to those services, to bring additional vehicle deck capacity; noting that the deployment plan would be reviewed prior to delivery.

Question reference: S6W-14889

Asked by: Donald Cameron, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 10 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by Angus Robertson on 28 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government on what date it (a) will publish the results of its survey into an International Culture Strategy, launched on 2 February 2023, and (b) plans to launch the finalised International Culture Strategy.

We will aim to publish a report on the analysis of consultation responses, along with responses that responders have given their consent to share, within 12 weeks of the survey’s closing date. The survey is due to close on 26 April.

A final publication date for the strategy will be determined by the level of returns we receive to the survey, the analytical requirements of processing them and the drafting process.

Question reference: S6W-14789

Asked by: Donald Cameron, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 28 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-08412 by Lorna Slater on 19 May 2022, how many individual bids have local authorities made to the Recycling Improvement Fund since it was established, broken down by local authority area.

The following figures are correct as at December 2022, when the last Recycling Improvement Fund Board was convened.

Local Authority	Number of Bids
Aberdeen City	6
Aberdeenshire	2
Argyll & Bute	2
City of Edinburgh	1
Clackmannanshire	4
Dumfries & Galloway	1
Dundee	3
East Lothian	1
Falkirk	1
Fife	2
Glasgow	3
Highland	2
Midlothian	3
North Ayrshire	3
North Lanarkshire	2
Moray	1
Orkney	1
Perth & Kinross	1
Renfrewshire	3
South Ayrshire	2
South Lanarkshire	3
Stirling	1
West Lothian	1
Western Isles	2
Total	51

Question reference: S6W-14659

Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 28 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how many complaints of patients’ property being (a) stolen and (b) lost have been received in each of the last five years, broken down by NHS board.

Question reference: S6W-14535

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 30 January 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 28 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what the current estimated total cost, including design, contract management, construction, legal, and administrative costs, is for the upgrading of the ferry terminal at Uig to allow its use by Hull 802, and what percentage of the total cost will be funded by (a) it and (b) other bodies.

The works at each of the ports as part of the Skye Triangle Infrastructure Programme (Tarbert, Lochmaddy & Uig) are aimed at replacing life expired infrastructure, improving resilience and increasing the range of vessels that can use the ports. The Uig project is estimated to cost £64million. Our response to the Freedom of Information request: 2022/00297832 published in July 2022 outlined that we have offered a capital funding contribution of up to £38million with the remaining contribution to be met by the Highland Council as statutory harbour authority.

Question reference: S6T-01218

Asked by: Stuart McMillan, MSP for Greenock and Inverclyde, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 27 February 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 28 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what assistance it can provide to the investigation into the capsizing of the tugboat, MV Biter, on the River Clyde on 24 February.