Questions and answers

Question reference: S6W-38300

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 16 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what action it will take if the £5 million being allocated to hospices is not enough for them to match 2025-26 NHS staff pay levels.

The Scottish budget for 2025-26 includes £5 million of investment to support independent hospices to provide pay parity with NHS levels. This figure is based on estimates provided by independent hospices. Officials are working with a variety of colleagues across the health directorates to explore mechanisms for providing this funding to hospices, while respecting existing commissioning arrangements with Integration Joint Boards (IJBs).

We expect the £5m for pay parity to significantly help independent hospices in increasing their pay offer for staff. However, as independent hospices are charitable organisations, they are responsible for setting their own staff terms and conditions, including pay arrangements.

The Scottish Government does not undertake financial planning for local services, which is why commissioning and contractual discussions are carried out at a local, operational, level between independent hospices and IJBs.

Question reference: S6W-38298

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 16 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions have taken place between the finance and workforce sections of its health directorate regarding the allocation of funding to ensure pay parity for hospice staff.

The Scottish budget for 2025-26 includes £5 million of investment to support independent hospices to provide pay parity with NHS levels. Officials are working with a variety of colleagues across the health directorates to explore mechanisms for providing this funding to hospices, while respecting existing commissioning arrangements with Integration Joint Boards (IJBs).

Most recently, policy officials have been working closely with health finance officials to ensure that the relevant governance and approval procedures are correctly followed to ensure this funding can be provided as soon as practically possible. We look forward to engaging further with Scottish hospices as we conclude this work.

Question reference: S6W-38299

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 16 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what action it will take to ensure that hospices do not lose staff as a result of the reported delay in allocating the £5 million of funding to hospices.

The Scottish Government has already provided reassurances to independent hospices that the funding will be allocated as soon as practically possible, based on the analysis of financial data provided by the hospices.

However, it is important to reflect that it remains the responsibility of Integration Joint Boards (IJBs) to commission palliative care services, including independent hospices, to meet the needs of their local populations. As such, we expect Scottish hospices and IJBs to continue to engage on any matters that may impact on the delivery of local palliative care services.

Question reference: S6W-37649

Asked by: Russell Findlay, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 02 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 16 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-37209 by Shona Robison on 12 May 2025, in light of this information being sought via a parliamentary question and not via a Freedom of Information request, whether it will provide the information requested regarding how much it has spent on advertising in (a) national and (b) local newspapers, broken down by title, in each of the last five years, and for what reason it considers that exemptions under the Freedom of Information (Scotland) Act 2002 apply to parliamentary questions.

We acknowledge there was an error in sharing an FOI response to S6W-37209 on 12 May 2025.

The information requested is highly commercially sensitive and therefore we are unable to provide the expenditure broken down by newspaper title, as requested.

As per the initial response, disclosure of this information would materially disadvantage the Scottish Government contractor. Providing the specific expenditure for a newspaper or outlet would potentially allow competitors of the media buying agency to calculate the rates negotiated by the appointed media buying agency who work on behalf of the Scottish Government. It would also impact the newspaper titles involved as their competitors (other newspaper titles) would be able to work out the rates they are selling at.

Please see the advertising spend for press, for the last five years, outlined below.

Year	Press advertising spend
2018-2019	£178,785.33
2019-2020	£434,318.41
2021-2022	£465,042.88
2022-2023	£379,348.54
2023-2024	£163,616.55
2024-2025	To be published on 19 June

Scottish Government marketing and advertising spend is published each year and can be found at https://www.gov.scot/collections/marketing-spend/.

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/written-questions-and-answers

Question reference: S6W-38088

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 02 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 16 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the degree to which achieving net zero is a moral imperative, in light of reports that doing so will have a disproportionate impact on Scottish industries.

The Scottish Government recognises that achieving net zero is more than a moral imperative: it is an economic necessity and an opportunity to grow our economy. The Green Industrial Strategy sets out actions to achieve growth in priority areas, ensuring Scotland secures the maximum economic benefit from the energy transition, including the enormous opportunities provided by offshore wind and other net zero opportunities. Our Circular Economy Act (2024) can help grow the economy, by opening up new market opportunities, improving productivity and saving money. Both of these approaches are underpinned by our focus on growth in our National Strategy for Economic Transformation.

We are also clear in our support for a just transition for Scotland’s valued and highly skilled oil and gas sector, which recognises the maturity of the North Sea basin and is in line with our climate change commitments and energy security.

We are supporting businesses to transition and grow, including through our £500m 10-year Just Transition Fund and our investment of up to £500m over five years to help anchor the offshore wind supply chain in Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-38123

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 02 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 16 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of the £28 million provided to local authorities in 2025-26 to support additional support needs provision in schools has been allocated to Scottish Borders Council.

Spending on additional support for learning by local authorities reached a record high of over £1 billion in 2023-24. The latest finalised local government statistics show that Scottish Borders spent £13.912 million on additional support for learning last year.

Local government will receive an additional £28 million of investment from 2025-2026 to help improve outcomes from all children and young people with Additional Support Needs (ASN) through an enhanced offer of support to develop the ASL education workforce.

The Allocation for Scottish Borders Council was £0.554m

The allocation of the £28m investment to individual authorities is based on pupil numbers, as agreed through the standard CoSLA Settlement & Distribution Group process, agreed by Leaders.

Question reference: S6W-38081

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 02 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 16 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on Police Scotland’s reported policy of not automatically recording the biological sex of rape or sexual assault suspects.

The recording of sex or gender in crime reporting and case management is an operational matter for Police Scotland. The Scottish Government expect Police Scotland to ensure its recording practices are compliant with legal obligations and support accurate, consistent data collection. The Scottish Government also recognises the importance of public confidence in how sensitive crimes are recorded and investigated. Police Scotland is currently undertaking a review of their recording and use of data relating to sex and gender.

Question reference: S6W-38082

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 02 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 16 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what guidance it has issued to Police Scotland on the recording of sex and gender in criminal justice processes.

The Office of the Chief Statistician published guidance for public bodies in Scotland on the collection of data on sex and gender in 2021. The Scottish Government has committed to reviewing this guidance on collecting data on sex and gender by the end of 2026. The Scottish Government has not issued other specific guidance to Police Scotland on the recording of sex and gender in criminal justice processes. These are operational matters for the Chief Constable, who is responsible for ensuring compliance with legal obligations and for maintaining accurate and consistent recording practices.

Question reference: S6W-38483

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Monday, 09 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 16 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what actions it is taking to increase the number of breeding (a) cattle and (b) sheep.

The Scottish Government does not set targets for the number of breeding cattle or sheep in Scotland. Livestock numbers are primarily driven by market conditions and individual business decisions.

However, we are committed to supporting a resilient and sustainable livestock sector. This includes continued investment in schemes such as the Scottish Suckler Beef Support Scheme, which provides £40 million annually to support beef producers and encourage improvements in herd efficiency, and the Scottish Upland Sheep Support Scheme to provide support to breeding hill flocks.

We also provide broader direct support to sheep and cattle producers through the Basic Payment Scheme and Less Favoured Areas Support Scheme payments – in stark contrast to the UK Government approach.

Through our Vision for Agriculture and ongoing reform programme, we will continue to work with farmers and crofters to ensure future support enables productive, sustainable farming.

We remain concerned that recent UK trade deals, agreed without meaningful consultation with the Scottish Government, risk undermining domestic livestock production by allowing imports produced to lower environmental and welfare standards—potentially increasing global emissions and undercutting Scotland’s high-quality producers.

Question reference: S6W-38474

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 06 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 16 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason the Young Carer Grant is only available to carers aged 16 to 18, in light of many young carers being younger than this.

The Young Carer Grant is part of a package of measures to support young carers alongside non-cash support through the Young Scot Young Carers Package, which is available to young carers aged 11-18 and provides tailored discounts and opportunities including high value e-vouchers, wellbeing boxes and vouchers for family days out.

The eligibility criteria for Young Carer Grant were developed with carers and those that represent and support them. As highlighted in the Equality Impact Assessment for the grant it is “…targeted at young adults at a transition point in their lives. There was a firm consensus among stakeholders that it would be inappropriate to pay benefits to people under the age of 16.”

The interim evaluation of the Young Carer Grant, published in 2021, showed the grant was having a positive impact on young carers' ability to take part in opportunities that are the norm for their peers and that stakeholders were generally supportive of the age criteria.

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