Official Report: search what was said in Parliament
The Official Report is a written record of public meetings of the Parliament and committees.
The Official Report search offers lots of different ways to find the information you’re looking for. The search is used as a professional tool by researchers and third-party organisations. It is also used by members of the public who may have less parliamentary awareness. This means it needs to provide the ability to run complex searches, and the ability to browse reports or perform a simple keyword search.
Searching by different views
The web version of the Official Report has three different views:
- Report: this is the whole Official Report for a particular meeting of a committee or Parliament
- Item of business: this is each individual agenda item in an Official Report. For example, Portfolio Questions would be the item of business in a Meeting of the Parliament report
- Contribution: this is each time someone has made a spoken contribution to a meeting.
Depending on the kind of search you want to do, one of these views will be the best option. The default view is to show the report for each meeting of Parliament or a committee. For a simple keyword search, the results will be shown by item of business.
Search by MSP
When you choose to search by a particular MSP, the results returned will show each spoken contribution in Parliament or a committee, ordered by date with the most recent contributions first. This will usually return a lot of results, but you can refine your search by keyword, date and/or by meeting (committee or Chamber business).
We’ve chosen to display the entirety of each MSP’s contribution in the search results. This is intended to reduce the number of times that users need to click into an actual report to get the information that they’re looking for, but in some cases it can lead to very short contributions (“Yes.”) or very long ones (Ministerial statements, for example.) We’ll keep this under review and get feedback from users on whether this approach best meets their needs.
Searching by keyword
There are two types of keyword search:
- A keyword search without quotation marks will look for every instance of each word used and rank the results by frequency and proximity. It will also include variants of the keywords using “porter stemming”. This is when the search looks for the “stem” of a word regardless of its ending. So, for example, a search for [salmon farm] will return each instance of “salmon” and each instance of “farm” as well as potentially including results for “farms”, “farmed” and “farming”.
- A keyword search with quotation marks will only return instances of that exact phrase used. So, for example, a search for “salmon farm” in quotation marks will only return instances of that exact phrase.
Combining search filters
If you select an MSP’s name from the dropdown menu, and add a phrase in quotation marks to the keyword field, then the search will return only examples of when the MSP said those exact words. You can further refine this search by adding a date range or selecting a particular committee or Meeting of the Parliament.
More complex keyword searches
It’s also possible to run basic Boolean searches. For example:
- a search for “salmon farm” AND “Loch Lomond” will return only results which include both exact phrases
- a search for “salmon farm” NOT “Loch Lomond” will return results for “salmon farm” but exclude results which also include “Loch Lomond”
- a search for “salmon farm” OR “Loch Lomond” will return all results for “salmon farm” and all results for “Loch Lomond” regardless of whether they appear together
Searching by date
There are two ways of searching by date.
You can either use the Start date and End date options to run a search across a particular date range. For example, you may know that a particular subject was discussed at some point in the last few weeks and choose a date range to reflect that.
Alternatively, you can use one of the pre-defined date ranges under “Select a time period”. These are:
- Current session (all Official Reports since the current sessions started)
- Last 6 months
- Last 12 months
- each of the previous sessions of Parliament. (Selecting the information icon above the “Select a time period” menu will give you the exact dates for each session.)
- All sessions
- You can also choose to select a custom date range, although adding a Start or End date will mean the search automatically defaults to this option.
If you search by an individual session, the list of MSPs and committees will automatically update to show only the MSPs and committees which were current during that session. For example, if you select Session 1 you will be show a list of MSPs and committees from Session 1.
If you add a custom date range which crosses more than one session of Parliament, the lists of MSPs and committees will update to show the information that was current at that time.
All Official Reports of meetings in the Debating Chamber of the Scottish Parliament.
All Official Reports of public meetings of committees.
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Displaying 595 contributions
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Social Justice and Social Security Committee [Draft]
Job Start Payment
Meeting date: 5 March 2026
Carol Mochan
Is that about a need for hard copies or is it because applicants have not worded the application correctly? Do you understand what I am getting at?
Social Justice and Social Security Committee [Draft]
Job Start Payment
Meeting date: 5 March 2026
Carol Mochan
In this style of meeting, some of our questions get answered early. The points that Zara Kitson made a few minutes ago were helpful and I was thinking about the support to get the benefit. It seems to me that we should be able to immediately help people to get it rather than them having to think about applying for it. Zara said that there are barriers, so how do we break them down? Do we need different or clearer criteria so that it is easier for young people to understand what they are being asked to provide? Are you saying that young people are unable to provide the information or just that it is complicated, so they find it a wee bit tricky to follow the whole process?
We said at the beginning of the meeting that some people apply online and some do it with support. Do we know how many people who are applying online do so with support? I know that a person can attend a joint meeting with an employability person, who can help them to go through the process. Do we know any of that information?
Health, Social Care and Sport Committee [Draft]
Sport and Physical Activity
Meeting date: 3 March 2026
Carol Mochan
This adds to what Emma Harper and Kim Atkinson have been saying. I would be interested in hearing about the piece of research that has been done. I recently visited a group of women in quite a rural area—the boost group in Girvan—and they were talking about the kinds of things that they would like to do. It is sometimes difficult to find the space, as has been said, but people are often very good at coming up with their own solutions. Referring to the research that you have talked about, what can we do to gather information about how people can get solutions for different kinds of sports and activities that would suit their health needs? Is there something more that we need to do at a Scotland-wide level to capture that?
Health, Social Care and Sport Committee [Draft]
Non-surgical Procedures and Functions of Medical Reviewers (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2
Meeting date: 24 February 2026
Carol Mochan
:Amendment 109 would require the Government to carry out a review of the bill’s impact on the NHS workforce. It arose from concerns about the impact that the bill could have on the NHS if workers are trained in a specific area and then pulled into the private sector. It is really a probing amendment to put on record Scottish Labour’s concern about the impact that the bill could have on the NHS workforce, given the amount of pressure that it is already under.
Health, Social Care and Sport Committee [Draft]
Non-surgical Procedures and Functions of Medical Reviewers (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2
Meeting date: 24 February 2026
Carol Mochan
:We have discussed that. The Government needs to ensure that we get the right person in the right place at the right time in whatever profession they choose, and back that up with the knowledge that we have the right staffing for public services.
I thank members for their interventions, which are much appreciated.
Health, Social Care and Sport Committee [Draft]
Non-surgical Procedures and Functions of Medical Reviewers (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2
Meeting date: 24 February 2026
Carol Mochan
:Yes—it is something that we in Scottish Labour have been thinking about, and I lodged amendment 109 to probe whether the Government takes that issue seriously. We know that there are already pressures on the NHS workforce, so I would like to hear from the minister what the Government can or will do to ensure that, if the bill is passed, it does not disrupt our NHS workforce.
Health, Social Care and Sport Committee [Draft]
Non-surgical Procedures and Functions of Medical Reviewers (Scotland) Bill: Stage 2
Meeting date: 24 February 2026
Carol Mochan
Like others, Scottish Labour supports the Government in exploring how best to approach the regulation and licensing of non-surgical cosmetic procedures. In considering the bill, we have sought to balance the need for fair and appropriate regulation that prioritises public safety with not putting unnecessary requirements on the service, while ensuring that we get the right support for current practitioners.
The purpose behind my amendment 110 is to ensure that proper checks and balances are put in place. It would require the Scottish Government, within 12 months and then within two years of royal assent, to assess the support that has been provided to the industry. The amendment arose from concerns about ensuring that many skilled practitioners are not left behind. It would require the Government to assess the support that has been provided to independent and non-medical providers. That support includes training opportunities to upskill and the provision of guidance and qualification pathways. The amendment would also require the Government to report on whether any financial support has been offered to remote and rural businesses.
The Government has provided an assurance that proper support and guidance has been put in place, which is something that Labour supports, but my amendment would require the Government to report on that.
Health, Social Care and Sport Committee [Draft]
Subordinate Legislation
Meeting date: 17 February 2026
Carol Mochan
My initial thought is that I can imagine that, sometimes, a review request might be time sensitive in order to support family members and to get that appropriate access. Will the system allow for that?
Health, Social Care and Sport Committee [Draft]
Subordinate Legislation
Meeting date: 17 February 2026
Carol Mochan
You say that the guidance will contain some information about how the Care Inspectorate will be involved if a review is in place. How will that process work?
Health, Social Care and Sport Committee [Draft]
Subordinate Legislation
Meeting date: 17 February 2026
Carol Mochan
Good morning. I have some questions around the review process. Regulation 6 requires a care home provider, on receipt of a valid request, to review a decision. Concerns have been raised with us about that. One is about whether there could be proactive rather than reactive reviews. Another concerns the fact that there is no judicial appeal route. Has there been any consideration of that?
