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-02080

Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Linlithgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 August 2021
Current Status: Answered by Ben Macpherson on 2 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the 2019 Society of Chief Officers of Trading Standards in Scotland (SCOTSS) trading standards' workforce survey, including its findings regarding the impact of (a) Brexit and (b) the greater environmental protection requirements arising from its green agenda.

Trading Standards Officers are employed by Scotland’s local authorities. Local authorities are independent corporate bodies, responsible for the management of their workforce. The outcome and response to the findings of the SCOTSS survey is therefore a matter for councils and their national body, COSLA. However, in recognition of the sustainability challenges facing the service, we understand that SCOTSS and COSLA continue to engage on developing a workforce strategy for the future.

Question reference: S6W-02079

Asked by: Fiona Hyslop, MSP for Linlithgow, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 August 2021
Current Status: Answered by Ben Macpherson on 2 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had or plans to hold with the Scottish Funding Council regarding supporting universities and colleges to ensure that there is capacity to grow and develop the number of trading standards officers required to meet any increase in demand arising from the (a) impact of Brexit, (b) recovery from COVID-19 and (c) changes in the environmental standards that are delivered through local authorities.

The Scottish Government has not and does not plan to hold any discussions with the Scottish Funding Council on this matter unless approached or asked for support by our partners in local government. Scottish Ministers routinely engage with COSLA which provides an opportunity for areas of concern for local government to be raised.

Trading Standards Officers are employed by Scotland’s local authorities and it is therefore a matter for them, as independent corporate bodies with responsibility for the management of their workforce, to ensure that there is sufficient capacity to meet their future needs and requirements.

Question reference: S6W-02132

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 10 August 2021
Current Status: Answered by Ash Denham on 2 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government when it last met Water Safety Scotland, and what action it is taking to support Scotland's Drowning Prevention Strategy.

I last met with Water Safety Scotland representatives on 11 August 2021 during a meeting that I chaired with a range of key stakeholders on water safety. My officials are regularly in discussion with Water Safety Scotland representatives and their partners as part of our Building Safer Communities work.

The Scottish Government takes the issue of water safety very seriously. We work closely with Water Safety Scotland (WSS) and other partners, including local councils, police and SFRS to implement and support initiatives that can help raise awareness of the hazards around water and reduce deaths from accidental drowning.

The Scottish Government also provides annual grant funding to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents to deliver its annual home and water safety programme, which includes providing a secretariat to Water Safety Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-02092

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 August 2021
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 2 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how many applications from registered social landlords (RSL) seeking consent to waive the Right to Recover Grant it has approved each year, broken down by (a) RSL and (b) amount waived.

The following table contains details of instances over the last five financial years where the Scottish Government has waived the Right to Recover Housing Association Grant on previously grant funded projects and where the grant was not recycled within the Affordable Housing Supply Programme.

Year	Registered Social Landlord (RSL)	Amount waived (£m)
2018-19	Caledonia Housing Association	0.155
2019-20	Arklet Housing Association	0.029
2019-20	Thenue Housing Association	1.634
2019-20	West of Scotland Housing Association	0.351
2020-21	West of Scotland Housing Association	0.333
2021-22	Caledonia Housing Association	0.625
Total		3.127

Question reference: S6W-01531

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 15 July 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 2 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government on what dates its COVID-19 Advisory Group has met since the 10 June 2021, and by what date the minutes and papers of each meeting will be made public.

Question reference: S6W-02225

Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 13 August 2021
Current Status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 2 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what research and analysis it has (a) conducted and (b) commissioned to inform its position on whether (i) children’s (ii) social work, (iii) mental health, (iv) alcohol and drugs, (v) justice social work and (vi) elements of prison services should be incorporated into the jurisdiction of a National Care Service.

All of the services highlighted in the question, apart from social care in prisons, must or can currently be delegated to integration authorities. The Independent Review of Adult Social Care recommended the formation of a National Care Service, and the reform of Integration Joint Boards (IJBs) to take full responsibility for commissioning and procurement of adult social care. Despite the Independent Review’s focus on adult services, it also highlighted integrated arrangements worked especially well where all social care, social work, and community based healthcare were delegated to the greatest extent, and highlighted potential dangers of fragmentation of services if a National Care Service was only developed for adult social care services.

The Review’s recommendations were based on extensive evidence gathering and engagement, as summarised in the evidence paper published alongside the main report. We have carefully analysed the Independent Review, including its evidence and recommendations, in order to develop proposals for the National Care Service.

The Scottish Government is currently consulting on the scope of the National Care Service. All responses to the consultation and engagement events will be carefully analysed to inform the Government’s position on what services will be included in the remit of the National Care Service.

Question reference: S6W-02207

Asked by: Claire Baker, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 August 2021
Current Status: Answered by Ash Denham on 2 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government by what date it will issue regulations and guidance to implement Part 2 of the Alcohol etc (Scotland) Act 2010, which allows local authorities to establish social responsibility levies on alcohol sales to support prevention and treatment of substance misuse.

Our Alcohol Framework 2018: Preventing Harm is in line with the World Health Organization’s recommended approach of reducing the availability, attractiveness and affordability of alcohol. On treatment, our Rights, Respect and Recovery: alcohol and drug treatment strategy clearly sets out that individuals have the right to health and life - free from the harms of alcohol and drugs, are treated with dignity and respect and are fully supported within their communities to find the type of recovery which works for them.

We are undertaking a range of work to improve Alcohol Treatment Services, including implementation of the UK Wide Clinical Guidelines for Alcohol Treatment.

While the Scottish Government keeps legislation under review, we have no current plans to introduce a social responsibility levy.

Question reference: S6W-01839

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 23 July 2021
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 2 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how many people recorded as being homeless have died in each year since 1999.

The exact information is not available, as National Records of Scotland only began collecting this data from 2017 onwards. The latest report, ‘Deaths of People Experiencing Homelessness in Scotland’, can be found here: https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/files//statistics/homeless-deaths/19/homeless-deaths-19-report.pdf .

Please note that these are experimental statistics and remain under development. Users should refer to the limitations section of each report before interpreting these statistics.

Earlier reports can be found here: https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/statistics-and-data/statistics/statistics-by-theme/vital-events/deaths/homeless-deaths/2017-and-2018 .

Supplementary data tables can be found here: https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/files//statistics/homeless-deaths/19/homeless-deaths-19-data.xlsx .

Homeless Deaths 2017 and 2018 | National Records of Scotland (nrscotland.gov.uk) .

Question reference: S6O-00128

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 September 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 9 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to mitigate coastal erosion.

Question reference: S6O-00125

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 September 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 9 September 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with Orkney Islands Council regarding the procurement of low-emissions ferries to replace the current internal fleet.