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-06491

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 11 February 2022
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 3 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the planning and development of a replacement for HMP Barlinnie.

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Interim Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

SPS is currently in the process of selecting a contractor to initially develop a design for HMP Glasgow and thereafter award a contract for the construction of the new prison.

It is anticipated that a contractor will be appointed later this year to develop the design stage of the project.

Question reference: S6W-06841

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 25 February 2022
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 3 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how many libraries have closed in each year since 1999.

Public library services in Scotland are devolved to local authorities which have a statutory duty to secure the provision of adequate library facilities for all persons resident in their area.

The Scottish Library and Information Council has provided data on the number of libraries in Scotland, England and Wales, based on data compiled by the Chartered Institute of Public Finance and Accountancy (CIPFA). The data covers the period 2010 to 2020; we do not hold information on the numbers of libraries dating back to 1999. In Scotland, no libraries permanently closed in 2020-21. We do not have figures for England and Wales for this year.

FINANCIAL YEAR	SCOTLAND		ENGLAND		WALES
	Increase/ Decrease	Remaining	Increase/ Decrease	Remaining	Increase/ Decrease	Remaining
2009-10	0	627	0	3,501	0	358
2010-11	-8	619	-32	3469	+20	378
2011-12	-9	610	-149	3320	-51	327
2012-13	-4	606	-59	3261	-3	324
2013-14	0	609	-35	3226	+1	325
2014-15	-3	603	-57	3169	-36	288
2015-16	-15	588	-47	3,122	-16	272
2016-17	-30	558	-65	3,057	+2	274
2017-18	-2	556	-38	3,019	-1	273
2018-19	-13	543	-14	3,005	-1	272
2019-20	+1	544	-30	2,975	-1	273
NET CHANGE	-83		-526		-92
% change from 2010	13.2%		15%		25.7%

[source: Scottish Library and Information Council]

The data shows that Scotland has seen library closures over this period, but at a lower level than that seen in England and Wales. Between 2010 to 2020 13.2% of branches closed in Scotland compared with 16% across England and Wales. No libraries in Scotland permanently closed in 2020 or 2021; however, there were temporary closures due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

Building closures in Scotland have largely bottomed out with significant investment in excess of £25 million taking place in the building and mobile infrastructure since 2015. 2016 was the exception to this, due to a reorganisation of library services in Fife.

Question reference: S6W-06721

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 22 February 2022
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 3 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason glass has been included in its Deposit Return Scheme.

Including glass in our Deposit Return Scheme (DRS) will bring significant environmental and economic benefits. The inclusion of glass will save over 1.2 megatonnes CO 2 equivalent over 25 years. DRS will also reduce the amount of harmful glass litter in our environment.

In addition, DRS will significantly increase the quantity and quality of glass recyclate, creating an aggregated and high-quality feedstock for reprocessing. This will include clear glass which we understand to be in high demand.

Question reference: S6W-06696

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 22 February 2022
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 3 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown of the amount spent on initiatives to promote the re-use of electrical waste in each of the last 10 years.

Question reference: S6W-06805

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 25 February 2022
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 3 March 2022

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Interim Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

The following table details the average number of purposeful activity hours per week for convicted prisoners across the prison estate, in each financial year that incorporates 2019, 2020 and 2021: -

Year	April 2018 – March 2019	April 2019 – March 2020	April 2020 – March 2021	April 2021 – January 2022
Establishment	Average PA hours	Average PA hours	Average PA hours	Average PA hours
Barlinnie	14	12	10	10
Cornton Vale	19	20	20	26
Dumfries	18	15	8	10
Edinburgh	12	13	9	10
Glenochil	17	16	11	11
Grampian	25	25	19	16
Greenock	20	22	19	22
Inverness	25	25	24	27
Low Moss	23	22	16	18
Castle Huntly	22	21	20	22
Perth	18	14	9	14
Polmont	21	18	14	19
Shotts	25	25	9	10

HMP Addiewell and Kilmarnock are privately operated prisons and are not required to provide PA hours on a monthly basis. The delivery of PA hours within these two establishments is monitored through contractual arrangements with SPS Controllers and Contract Managers to ensure compliance.

Question reference: S6W-06153

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 February 2022
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 3 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government (a) when and (b) how it will introduce legislation in relation to reforming gender recognition procedures.

Question reference: S6W-06152

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 February 2022
Current Status: Answered by Angus Robertson on 3 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how much civil service or legal time or resource has been allocated (a) since the May 2021 Scottish Parliament election and (b) for the remainder of 2022 on (i) the detailed prospectus making the case for Scottish independence, (ii) governmental proposals or papers designed to further this case and (iii) the consulting on or drafting of legislation designed to hold a referendum, expressed as (A) the number of FTE staff and (B) total staff hours, and broken down by (1) which of its departments the time or resource was allocated within and (2) the associated known or estimated cost of the time or resource.

The Scottish Government’s 2021/22 Programme for Government commits to work to ensure that a legitimate and constitutional referendum can be held within this Parliamentary term, if the Covid crisis is over, and that a detailed prospectus for an independent Scotland will be prepared to allow the people of Scotland to make an informed choice over their future.

The work to prepare an independence prospectus is being co-ordinated by the Constitutional Futures Division within the Constitution and Cabinet Directorate. This division is currently comprised of one Senior Civil Servant and thirteen other officials (12.9 FTE).

The work to take forward referendum legislation will be co-ordinated by a team in the Elections and FOI Division, also in the Constitution and Cabinet Directorate. The team is currently comprised of three officials.

The staff numbers may change as the work programme evolves. Both streams of work will also draw on other civil servants who will contribute to varying extents as part of their wider responsibilities in supporting the Scottish Government.

As civil servants are not required to record the time spent on individual tasks we cannot provide a figure for total staff hours spent on taking forward these commitments.

Question reference: S6W-06723

Asked by: Maggie Chapman, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 22 February 2022
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 3 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the review of the use of snares, which was due by the end of 2021.

Question reference: S6W-06278

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 03 February 2022
Current Status: Answered by Maggie Chapman (On behalf of the SPCB) on 3 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what the reasons are for the delays in processing written questions.

Session 6 has seen a change in the nature of the items that the Chamber Desk processes. In particular, the number of Urgent Questions being lodged has increased significantly. This had had an impact on the previous pattern of work undertaken by the Chamber Desk. When Urgent Questions are submitted, they are given priority due to the timeframe for such questions to be taken if selected and only selected questions are published. This, combined with the necessary prioritisation of oral questions and motions and amendments for debate, has resulted in a longer turnaround time for written questions than Members will previously have been used to.

To respond to these changes in demand and pattern of work, additional staffing resources have been deployed to the Chamber Desk. Due to the specialist nature of the services provided by the Chamber Desk, the impact of these additional resources will not be immediately realised as staff require to undertake training and familiarisation with the role. However, the position is being actively assessed on an ongoing basis to ensure that questions and motions are processed in the timeliest manner possible. We are grateful for Members’ forbearance while the necessary training is undertaken.

Question reference: S6W-06461

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 11 February 2022
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 3 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-05802 by Michael Matheson on 3 February 2022, what the membership is of the (a) Bioenergy Policy Working Group and (b) Bioenergy Expert Panel, and whether it will publish the minutes of the meetings of the Bioenergy Policy Working Group.

a) The Bioenergy Policy Working Group consists Scottish Government officials from a number of policy areas.

Agriculture Transformation for Environment and Climate Change
Bioenergy
Carbon Capture Utilisation and Storage (CCUS)
Critical Energy Infrastructure & Commercial Projects
Domestic Climate Change
Environmental Protection - Air Quality
Environmental Quality and Circular Economy
Heat Strategy
Hydrogen
Industrial Decarbonisation
Industrial Strategy and Technologies
Just Transition
Land Use Strategy
Land Use Transformation
Natural Capital and Land Management
Office of the Chief Economic Adviser (OCEA)
Rural and Environment Science and Analytical Services (RESAS)
Science and Advice for Scottish Agriculture (SASA)
Scottish Forestry
Sustainable Aviation
Transport -Supply Chains and Alternative Fuels
Whole Energy System

Minutes from the meetings will be published as soon as practical. However the group are still in the process of developing policy and considering options.

b) The Bioenergy Expert panel has still to be assembled.

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