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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: S6F-02448

Asked by: Anas Sarwar, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 23 October 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 26 October 2023

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6F-02458

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 23 October 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 26 October 2023

To ask the First Minister when the Cabinet will next meet.

Question reference: S6F-02455

Asked by: Meghan Gallacher, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 23 October 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 26 October 2023

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to reported concerns that parents are having to give up their jobs due to childcare costs.

Question reference: S6F-02447

Asked by: Douglas Ross, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 23 October 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 26 October 2023

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6W-21961

Asked by: Richard Leonard, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 October 2023
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 23 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether (a) reduced and (b) extended opening hours are under consideration for any booking offices on the ScotRail network.

There are no plans to close any ScotRail booking offices, unlike plans from UK Government to close ticket offices operated by its train operators. The importance of staff being deployed appropriately across the network to enhance passenger safety and control of antisocial behaviour is clear.

It is important to consider how best to continue to offer services that support those customers who need staff assistance, while also taking into account the substantial increase in ticket purchases made across digital platforms.

Question reference: S6W-21977

Asked by: Dr Alasdair Allan, MSP for Na h-Eileanan an Iar, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 October 2023
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 23 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on proposals from SSE Renewables to halve the number of gannets harvested in the annual Guga Hunt at Sula Sgeir to compensate for mortalities caused by the Berwick Bank Offshore Wind Farm.

Scottish Ministers are currently processing applications from SSE Renewables (via its project company Berwick Bank Wind Limited) for the construction and operation of the proposed Berwick Bank offshore wind farm. This process includes consultations with statutory and non-statutory consultees, as well as the opportunity for the public to make representations.

SSE Renewables has also submitted proposals to compensate for the potential adverse environmental impacts of the proposed wind farm, if a derogation under the Habitats Regulations is required. This includes a proposal regarding the guga hunt, which SSE Renewables has submitted on a without prejudice basis.

As this is a live application, it would be inappropriate to comment on the application further.

In determining an application for any project, the Scottish Ministers will consider a wide range of issues, including the environmental impacts it may have and whether a derogation under the Habitats Regulations is required. Any derogation under the Habitats Regulations, will include an assessment of the feasibility of compensation measures.

Question reference: S6W-21791

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 September 2023
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 23 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to address reported concerns that its communications on the Young Person's Guarantee and No One Left Behind programme are not sufficiently integrated.

The Young Person’s Guarantee was introduced in response to the Covid-19 pandemic as a measure to prevent long-term adverse impacts for young people in the labour market. It contained a number of aspects, covering skills, education, and employability. Employability support for young people is now delivered through No One Left Behind, as part of the long-term ambition to simplify the employability landscape for service users.

In recognition of the importance of the employability aspect of the Young Person’s Guarantee, we commissioned a joint Implementation evaluation of No One Left Behind and the Young Person’s Guarantee to inform future direction of devolved employability support. This was published on 10 August 2023.

We will consider the recommendations from the evaluation alongside the outputs from our recent national stakeholder discussion events and actions will be reviewed to identify how we can improve.

Question reference: S6W-21793

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 September 2023
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 23 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what support and guidance it provides to local authorities on the promotion of employability services.

The Scottish Government continues to work closely with local government partners in each local authority to promote and drive an increase in the reach of our services across all of Scotland.

The Scottish Government set out the policy approach to Employability within the No One Left Behind: review of employability services report which was published on 5 December 2018. Support and Guidance has been provided through the development of national products, including the Customer Charter, Shared Measurement Framework, Service Standards and other materials which are designed to support development and implementation of services at a local level whilst maintaining national coherence.

We continue to work in partnership with local government, key stakeholders, and service users to build capacity for promoting and delivering the Scottish Approach to Service Design in Employability and inter-related national products. This creates the optimum conditions and framework for quality services and how to evaluate them.

Question reference: S6W-21716

Asked by: Russell Findlay, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 25 September 2023
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 23 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown of all recorded police warnings classed under "other sexual crimes" in the publication, Criminal proceedings in Scotland statistics, using the Scottish Government Justice Directorate's crime code descriptions, in each period from 2018-19 to 2020-21.

The Criminal Proceedings in Scotland statistics reported 38 recorded police warnings for ‘other sexual crimes’ over 2018-19 to 2020-21. All but one of them relate to breaches of Section 127 (1) of the Communications Act 2003, which has the crime code description of Communications Act 2003 (Sexual). Whist the remaining case was for a different crime, Police Scotland have confirmed this was a data error and didn’t receive a recorded police warning.

Under Section 127 (1) of the Communications Act, it is an offence to send by means of a public electronic communications network a message or other matter that is grossly offensive or of an indecent, obscene or menacing character; or to cause any such message or matter to be sent. When recording these offences, police officers judge whether the content of the communication is sexual or non-sexual in nature. If the former it will be recorded as a Communications Act (2003) sexual crime, within the ‘other sexual crimes’ category. If non-sexual, it will be recorded as a general post office / telecommunications offence.

During 2018-19 to 2020-21, over one thousand (1,071) recorded police warnings were issued for non-sexual breaches of Section 127 (1). In reviewing their data on recorded police warnings, Police Scotland have identified that a small proportion of those far more voluminous non-sexual offences have mistakenly been classified as sexual breaches of Section 127 (1). This was the case for 17 of the 18 warnings included in the 2020-21 statistics under the ‘other sexual crimes’ category, which should instead have been recorded as non-sexual breaches. Whilst the remaining incident was for a sexual breach of Section 127(1), it has been confirmed a different disposal was given to a recorded police warning.

Based on the above, it is therefore likely there have been no recorded police warnings issued for an ‘other sexual crime’ over 2018-19 to 2020-21.

The next Criminal Proceedings in Scotland National Statistics (for 2021-22) will be published on 24 October. Scottish Government statisticians have worked with Police Scotland to ensure the data on recorded police warnings in 2021-22 reflects the true position, as a result of actions taken by the latter to rectify the above issue. We will also amend the previously published 2020-21 bulletin to (i) urge user caution when interpreting the recorded police warning figures for sexual crimes and (ii) highlight that revised data for 2020-21 will be produced following publication of the 2021-22 statistics.

Question reference: S6W-21721

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 25 September 2023
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 23 October 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how many applications for onshore wind development with a capacity in excess of 50 megawatts have been submitted in each of the past 10 years, broken down by local authority area.

The following table lists the applications for onshore wind development with a capacity in excess of 50 megawatts (including applications to extend and vary wind farms in excess of 50 megawatts where an application was made to Scottish Ministers) made in each of the last ten years broken down into planning authority areas.

Applications 2013 - To date Excluding applications withdrawn

YEAR	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023 (to date)	Total
PA	2013	2014	2015	2016	2017	2018	2019	2020	2021	2022	2023 (to date)	Total
Aberdeenshire	0					1	2		1	1++++		5
Argyll and Bute	1	1	1	1	1	2	2	1		3	2	15
Comhairle nan Eilean Siar	1						1				1	3
Dumfries and Galloway	2	1		1	1	3	4*****	3+++	4++	5+++	4	28
East Ayrshire	2*		3				3	2		3++		13
East Lothian	1	1**										2
Highland	4	3	3	4		1	2	4	11	8	9	49
Moray	1					2	1	1		1		6
Perth and Kinross		1										1
Scottish Borders		2		2		1****	2****		2	3	2	14
Shetland Islands				1		1	1			1		4
South Ayrshire			1				3+	1	3	1+++	1	10
South Lanarkshire	1	1		1***	1	2	2	2	2***	1	2	15
Stirling										1		1
West Lothian											1	1
TOTAL	13	10	8	10	3	13	23	14	23	28	22	167

Table 1 Definitions * = 1 partially in South Ayrshire and 1 partially in Dumfries in Galloway, ** = 1 partially in Scottish Borders, *** = 1 partially in West Lothian, **** = 1 partially in East Lothian and 1 partially in Dumfries and Galloway, ***** = 1 partially in South Ayrshire and 1 Partially in East Ayrshire, + = 1 partially in Dumfries and Galloway, ++ = 1 partially in south Lanarkshire, +++ = 1 partially in East Ayrshire, ++++ = 1 partially in Moray.

in each of the past 10 years, broken down by local authority area.