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-00214

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 May 2021
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 7 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how many people have been rejected for loans by Home Energy Scotland as a result of poor credit scores.

Question reference: S6W-00232

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 May 2021
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 7 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish a list of all publicly-owned companies in Scotland.

The National Public Bodies Directory provides information on all Scottish Government public bodies, including those bodies constituted as limited companies. The directory was last updated on 26 January 2021.

The Scottish Government Consolidated Accounts also include a complete list of all nationalised companies where Scottish Ministers are the sole shareholder as well as providing information on other organisations and companies where the Scottish Ministers have an interest. The accounts are published on an annual basis with the most recent accounts published on 17 December 2020.

Question reference: S6W-00180

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 May 2021
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 7 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government when it will introduce a register of interests for the judiciary.

Question reference: S6W-00128

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 May 2021
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 7 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, following its decision to extend the 100% business rates relief for retail, hospitality and leisure firms for the whole of 2021-22, what savings will be made, broken down by industry sector.

The extension of the 100% Retail, Hospitality, Leisure, and Aviation (RHLA) relief for the whole of 2021-22 is expected to save ratepayers an estimated £719 million. The following table shows the value of the estimated relief award broken down by property class, as industry sector classifications are not available.

Table 1: Value of RHLA relief in 2021-22, by property class

Property class	Estimated value of relief (£m)
Shops	417.8
Public Houses	51.9
Offices	1.8
Hotels	123.7
Industrial Subjects	17.0
Leisure, Entertainment, Caravans etc.	55.5
Garages and Petrol Stations	13.5
Cultural	3.5
Sporting Subjects	5.3
Education and Training	0.2
Public Service Subjects	23.4
Petrochemical	0.1
Religious	0.4
Health and Medical	0.0
Other	2.2
Care Facilities	2.5
Statutory Undertaking	0.0
All	718.8

Source: Scottish Assessors’ Valuation Roll as at 1 April 2021, Local Authority Billing Information as at 1 July 2020. Ratepayers who have repaid or have publicly committed to repaying the equivalent of the RHLA relief awarded in 2020-21 are assumed not to apply in 2021-22.

Figures may not sum due to rounding.

Property class is a classification used by the Scottish Assessors to describe the type of a property, and may not accurately reflect its use. For example, a property classified as a ‘shop’ may in fact be used to offer financial services. Eligibility for reliefs is defined by the use of the property, so a property listed as a ‘shop’ may not necessarily be eligible for the RHLA relief, while a property used as a retail shop would be eligible regardless of its classification. ‘Public Service Subjects’ includes airports which account for over 70% of the RHLA relief awarded to this property class.

Question reference: S6W-00093

Asked by: Stuart McMillan, MSP for Greenock and Inverclyde, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 May 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 7 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to providing COVID-19 vaccinations to UK seafarers, such as cruise ship employees, using Scottish ports while working in UK waters.

Currently there is no sectoral prioritisation of workers, other than frontline health and social care workers. We are inviting those of working age in all sectors for vaccination, in line with advice on clinical risk of severe disease and hospitalisation.

The Joint Committee on Vaccination and Immunisation (JCVI) priority lists represents 99% of the preventable mortality from COVID-19 and throughout the delivery of the vaccination programme. The JCVI advice is that an age-based approach is the best way to quickly protect those who have not yet had the vaccine but who are at increased risk due to occupation or other factors.

The Scottish Government has met its target to offer all of those in JCVI groups 1 to 9 an initial dose of COVID vaccine, with over 99 per cent of those aged over 50 having received their first dose. Those aged over 40 are now in the process of being invited for vaccination. Beyond that we will aim, supplies permitting, to have offered first doses to the entire adult population by end July, rather than September as previously anticipated.

Question reference: S6W-00136

Asked by: Fulton MacGregor, MSP for Coatbridge and Chryston, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 May 2021
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 7 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide further funding and support for nightclubs and softplay facilities, given that they have remained closed since March 2020.

We have no current plans to provide further support to Nightclubs and Soft Play centres. In October 2020, the first phase of the Business Contingency Fund provided grants of up to £50,000 to eligible Nightclubs and Soft Play centres, depending on the rateable value of the business property. From November they were also eligible for Strategic Framework Business Fund grants every four weeks of either £2000 or £3000, again depending on the rateable value of the business property, and a linked top-up award for retail, hospitality and leisure sectors. Further support was provided through one-off Restart Grant payments in April of up to £19,500.

Question reference: S6W-00111

Asked by: Donald Cameron, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 May 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 7 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the number of vaccination doses (a) allocated to NHS Scotland, (b) delivered to NHS Scotland and (c) received by people in Scotland, and what the reasons are for the differences between these figures.

The Scottish Government greatly values the need for adhering to commercial sensitivity on this area of public policy.

All information on supply volumes – except data that is currently published – is commercially sensitive. There was agreement between Department of Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy( BEIS) and the Scottish Government on specific pieces of information that could be published.

See Daily Data under Vaccinations:

https://www.gov.scot/publications/coronavirus-covid-19-daily-data-for-scotland/

Total doses allocated and doses delivered are published once weekly. Received = administered data which is published daily.

The definitions of allocated and delivered are included under the published figures and should be included. A key reason for the difference between allocated and delivered volumes is that a proportion of stock is held centrally until it is required at Health Board level.

Question reference: S6W-00103

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 May 2021
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 7 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of Section 14(2A) of the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981, what legislative changes it is proposing to mitigate any damage caused to the natural heritage by the release of excessive numbers of non-native pheasants and red-legged partridges.

The release of red-legged partridges and pheasants is a legal activity and is expressly permitted under the Wildlife & Countryside Act 1981.

At present there is no evidence that gamebirds are having an impact on the features of protected areas as shown by NatureScot’s Site Condition Monitoring work and little information to suggest that they are having an impact on Scotland’s wider natural heritage. The Scottish Government therefore has no current plans to legislate in this area.

Question reference: S6W-00089

Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 May 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 7 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how many people have not presented for their scheduled (a) first and (b) second scheduled COVID-19 vaccination.

Question reference: S6W-00082

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 May 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 7 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide guidance on the vaccine certification required by some cruise companies to allow passengers to sail.