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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.

Find out more about parliamentary questions

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Question reference: S6W-22827

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 23 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it was consulted by Scottish Water regarding the salary of its chief executive.

Question reference: S6W-22822

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 23 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether Scottish Water uprates any private sector contracts using the Consumer Prices Index.

Question reference: S6W-22878

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 23 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has considered extending concessionary travel for over-60s to include the Edinburgh Trams, in light of a reported reduction in the number of buses and trains running from West Lothian to Edinburgh city centre.

Any decision to extend local concessions to the trams rests with the City of Edinburgh Council. The Scottish Government has no role in the ownership and operation of the tram system which is run by Transport for Edinburgh. The Scottish Government currently has no plans to extend the National Concessionary Travel Scheme for Older and Disabled Persons to Edinburgh Trams.

In addition, Edinburgh Trams do not run to West Lothian. Lothian Country is due to take over some of the bus services due to be withdrawn and West Lothian Council are in the process of tendering other routes.

More widely, the Fair Fares Review is progressing to ensure a sustainable and integrated approach to public transport fares. The review is considering both the cost and availability of services and the range of discounts and concessionary schemes which are available on all modes including bus, rail and ferry to ensure our public transport system is more accessible, available, and affordable, with the costs of transport more fairly shared across government, business and society.

Question reference: S6W-22815

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 23 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with Scottish Water regarding the planned industrial action.

Question reference: S6W-22875

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 23 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to increase manufacturing output as a share of GDP.

The Scottish Government wants a strong manufacturing sector, one which is innovative, thriving and international looking. We are supporting our manufacturing companies to increase their output, sustainability and efficiency through a range of funding programmes and initiatives.

Our £75 million investment into the National Manufacturing Institute Scotland represents a real investment in our manufacturing sector’s future; helping both our large and small manufactures to unlock productivity gains through developing new products and processes and transforming their skillsets. Twelve Advancing Manufacturing Challenge Fund projects are also delivering free support to SMEs.

Our £26 million Low Carbon Manufacturing Challenge Fund is helping our manufacturers progress towards net zero by providing funding for innovative proposals to decarbonise manufacturing processes. This will better enable our manufacturers to enter low carbon markets and supply chains, with potential benefits in terms of increasing productivity and output.

The Scottish Manufacturing Advisory Service is also engaging with both large and small manufacturers to look at ways in which they can make improvements to their processes. Measures such as adopting plant efficiency savings and automation can help companies to significantly increase their output while also reducing costs.

Our Green Industrial Strategy - which is currently in development - will also set out how we plan to take advantage of Scotland’s green energy potential, which will have particular benefits for our manufacturers as we look to develop our supply chains.

Question reference: S6W-22824

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 23 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government which private sector companies are strategic partners of Scottish Water, and what the monetary value has been of the contract for each such partner in each of the last 10 years.

Question reference: S6W-22922

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 23 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what work (a) has been and (b) is planned to be carried out in relation to mapping biofuel feedstock production.

The Scottish Government has commissioned several pieces of research to consider biofuel feedstock production in recent years.

The report Perennial energy crops and their potential in Scotland: evidence review examines the potential for a sustainable expansion of perennial bioenergy crop production on low-grade agricultural land or underutilised land, focusing on short rotation coppice, miscanthus and short rotation forestry.

The study Comparing Scottish bioenergy supply and demand in the context of Net-Zero targets considered how biomass can contribute to negative emissions when deployed as Bioenergy with Carbon Capture and Storage (BECCS), including reviewing domestic supply.

Transport Scotland commissioned independent research to understand the role that low carbon or alternative fuels, which include biofuels, can play in supporting transport decarbonisation

Research currently underway is considering the economic opportunities from energy crops in Scotland for rural communities.

Question reference: S6W-22911

Asked by: Alexander Stewart, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 23 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on whether it has any plans to conduct an analysis of the impact of the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) (Amendment) (Scotland) Act 2021 since its introduction.

The Scottish Government does not currently have plans to assess the impact of the Dogs (Protection of Livestock) (Amendment) (Scotland) Act 2021 following its introduction.

The Scottish Government considers increasing people’s awareness a key factor in the prevention of livestock worrying incidents and the associated unnecessary suffering. The Scottish Outdoor Access Code is clear on the rights and responsibilities of land managers and those exercising access rights, and is widely publicised.

Question reference: S6W-22816

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 23 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason Scottish Water is reportedly not prepared to separate negotiations on a revised pay and grading structure from the pay offer for 2023.

Question reference: S6W-22866

Asked by: Richard Leonard, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Friday, 10 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 23 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what the income differential between the lowest and the highest paid workers in Scottish Water has been in each of the last five financial years.