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-40831

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 26 September 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 10 October 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will commission a national shipbuilding strategy to address the reported current structural and competitive barriers to the growth of commercial shipbuilding exports.

Question reference: S6W-40832

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 26 September 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 10 October 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment has been made of the impact that the Highlands and Islands Development Board had on the economic and social development of the Highlands and Islands.

Question reference: S6W-40499

Asked by: Ash Regan, MSP for Edinburgh Eastern, Alba Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 11 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 26 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many Nuclear Decommissioning Authority (NDA) governance meetings its officials have attended in each of the last five years.

Scottish Government officials have attended four governance meetings between Scottish Ministers and senior NDA officials in the last five years. Scottish Ministers also have a role in approving governance documents such as the NDA Business Plan and NDA Strategy documents. This requirement is enshrined in the 2004 Energy Act.

The Scottish Government’s formal role in NDA governance is underpinned by a strong partnership approach to ensure NDA are implementing devolved policies and contributing their expertise to our future policy development. For example, Scottish Government Officials are also members of a number of UK wide networks that oversee key themes related to the NDA’s work.

Question reference: S6W-40758

Asked by: Clare Haughey, MSP for Rutherglen, Scottish National Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Thursday, 25 September 2025
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Neil Gray on 26 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the planned launch and subsequent roll-out of the digital front door for health and social care.

The Digital Front Door programme has progressed over the summer to ensure we launch the Health & Social Care online app this year. In recent months, the programme has worked collaboratively with stakeholders on technical delivery, organisational readiness and branding of the service.

Following the conclusion of the work on branding, I am pleased to confirm Scotland’s app will be called MyCare. Like any digital service, good practice means the first version of MyCare will be evaluated thoroughly in Lanarkshire before it is rolled out across Scotland for the population from April 2026. With the delivery of MyCare, Scotland’s app will go further than other models proposed elsewhere in the UK and will support services in both health and social care.

Furthermore, today the Scottish Government has published an update on our approach to rolling out MyCare.scot across Scotland and the anticipated timelines. Members can read this publication at: https://www.gov.scot/isbn/9781806431717

Question reference: S6W-40594

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 26 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what funding it has provided to the Centre for Good Relations CIC in each of the last three years; how this funding was used, and what assessment it has made of the effectiveness of this expenditure.

The Centre for Good Relations has been grant funded to carry out three strands of work – civic diplomacy in relation to marches and parades; civic mediation and facilitation of dialogue in relation to protest and demonstrations; and steward and marshal training for those involved in organising and running processions and protests.

This work is funded and delivered on the submission of a business plan, a condition of which is the completion of quarterly reports with clear deliverables and an annual review. Additionally, feedback sought from stakeholders who engage with the Centre for Good Relations has continued to be positive. This ensures that the Centre for Good Relations continues to effectively address community tensions and improve the quality of stewarding for marches, parades and protests.

The breakdown of funding is set out in the following table:

Year	Total Funding	Funding Breakdown
2023-24	£123,570	Civic Diplomacy, Marches and Parades – £65,000
		Protest and Demonstrations Civic Mediation – £40,000
		Steward and Marshal Training – £18,570
2024-25	£165,000	Civic Diplomacy, Marches and Parades – £65,000
		Protest and Demonstrations Civic Mediation – £59,800
		Steward and Marshal Training – £40,200
2025-26	£168,300	Civic Diplomacy, Marches and Parades – £70,000
		Protest and Demonstrations Civic Mediation – £68,300
		Steward and Marshal Training – £30,000

Question reference: S6W-40606

Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 18 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 26 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what training is provided for (a) police officers and (b) dog wardens to recognise the difference between dog breeds, such as the Cane Corso and XL Bully.

The two main pieces of dog control legislation are the Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 (“the 1991 Act”) and the Control of Dogs (Scotland) Act 2010 (“the 2010 Act”). In general terms, Police Scotland will deal with offences under the 1991 Act, and local authority dog wardens will deal with matters under the 2010 Act.

The training of police officers in relation to the enforcement of the 1991 Act is an operational matter for Police Scotland to consider. Equally, the training of local authority dog wardens is an operational matter for local authorities.

The Scottish Government is committed to ongoing engagement with Police Scotland, local authorities and other relevant stakeholders, in order to consider any issues, concerns, or barriers to effective dog control enforcement including in relation to how best dogs can be identified.

Earlier this year the Scottish Government provided Police Scotland with funding to assist with the training of police officers who would be tasked with identifying prohibited dog breeds. Separately, the National Dog Warden Association also received funding from the Scottish Government to help improve how dog wardens are trained.

Please see the news release issued by the Scottish Government on 8 April 2025 for details: https://www.gov.scot/news/investing-in-community-safety/.

Question reference: S6W-40487

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 11 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 26 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the Scottish Rugby report, Breaking the silence: why breast health matters in rugby, which was published in September 2025 and highlights research concerning the difference in performance made by having a proper fitting for a sports bra, how it will raise awareness among women and girls of the potential damage to health that can be caused by ill-fitting sports bras, including informing them of the potential damage that might arise in sporting settings.

The Scottish Government understands the importance of sport and physical activity for women and girls in Scotland and the positive impact that has on their physical, mental, and social health across all stages in life. We recognise the importance of having a proper fitting sports bra to support women and girls in sport and physical activity, and to reduce barriers to participation.

The Female Athlete Performance Working Group at the sportscotland Institute of Sport has developed a range of resources for female athletes and anyone supporting and working with girls and women in sport at any level. This includes a learning module on bras and breast health, amongst other female athlete health modules. These are available on Brightspace, free of charge. These modules have been promoted by a number of Scottish Governing Bodies of Sport, as well as through our national agency for sport, sportscotland.

Question reference: S6W-40171

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 29 August 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 25 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what action it will take to fully decriminalise abortion, in light of the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) Concluding Observations on the seventh periodic report of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the recommendation to be guided by the World Health Organization’s 2022 Abortion Care Guideline.

The Scottish Government committed in the 23-24 Programme for Government to undertake a review of abortion law to identify potential proposals for reforms to ensure that abortion services are first and foremost a healthcare matter.

To take this forward, the Scottish Government established an Expert Group in August 2024 to examine the current law; international examples; a range of stakeholder views and other evidence will be published in due course.

Question reference: S6W-40540

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 16 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 25 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what the cost is of each contract required for chartering the MV Alfred from Pentland Ferries, including extensions.

I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-40538 on 25 September 2025, which covered the costs of the current charter agreement between CalMac Ferries Limited and Pentland Ferries Limited. 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-40539

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 16 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 25 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the discussions that it is holding with ferry companies and brokers regarding the availability of vessels to operate on the ferry network.