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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: S6W-35596

Asked by: Marie McNair, MSP for Clydebank and Milngavie, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 26 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the potential impact on devolved social security benefits, including Adult Disability Payment, of the UK Government’s proposed reforms to disability and sickness benefits.

The Scottish Government oppose the UK Government’s reforms which drastically reduce levels of financial support to disabled people. It is disappointing that the UK Government did not engage with the Scottish Government before announcing these measures.

We need to take the time to scrutinise the detail of the UK Government’s Green Paper and understand the impacts of the reforms on both devolved disability benefits in Scotland and on the people who rely on this support.

In 2025-26 we will invest around £3.6 billion in Adult Disability Payment - £314 million more than we are forecasted to receive from the UK Government.

The Scottish Government’s positive and compassionate approach ensures access to Adult Disability Payment is as straightforward as possible so more disabled people get the support they are entitled to.

Question reference: S6W-35681

Asked by: Beatrice Wishart, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 14 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 26 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will require the return of the option of shared cabins for passengers on the Northern Isles Ferry Service as part of the next Northern Isles Ferry Service contract.

Question reference: S6W-35687

Asked by: Beatrice Wishart, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 14 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 26 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many people are currently working on the Islands Connectivity Plan.

Question reference: S6W-36042

Current Status: Withdrawn

Question reference: S6W-35695

Asked by: Pam Gosal, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 14 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 25 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many people were convicted of aggravated offences under section 1(1)(a) of the Abusive Behaviour and Sexual Harm (Scotland) Act 2016 in 2022-23; of those convicted, how many (a) were given (i) prison sentences of 12 months or longer and (ii) community payback orders and (b) are subject to multi-agency public protection arrangements (MAPPA) notification requirements.

Data sourced from the Criminal Proceedings in Scotland, 2022-2023 data set shows that 7807 people were convicted of aggravated offences under section 1(1)(a) of the Abusive Behaviour and Sexual Harm (Scotland) Act 2016 in 2022-2023. Of those convicted, 251 were given prison sentences of 12 months or longer and, of those convicted, 2407 were given community payback orders. The remaining 5149, are made up of other disposals which may include: fines, short-term prison sentences (under 12 months) and admonishments.

Sentencing is of course a matter for the independent courts.

We have interpreted part (b) of the question as relating to sex offender notification requirements (SONR). Section 1(1)(a) of the Abusive Behaviour and Sexual Harm (Scotland) Act 2016 does not create an offence. It creates an aggravator which is something that is applied to an existing offence. Section 1(1)(a) (or section 1 as a whole) is not listed in Schedule 3 of the Sexual Offences Act 2003 (offences which trigger SONR).

Therefore, whether the offender would be subject to SONR would depend on the offence they were convicted of and whether that was on the list in Schedule 3. Schedule 3 of the 2003 Act does also contain paragraph 60 which is a provision which allows the court to trigger SONR where the offence is not on the list in Schedule 3 but the court determines that there was a significant sexual element in the offender’s behaviour.

Data on the numbers of those with this aggravator who are also subject to SONR is not held centrally by the Scottish Government.

Question reference: S6W-35357

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 25 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-26881 by Jim Fairlie on 5 June 2024, what engagement took place with (a) communities and (b) land managers to test the appetite for nature finance and to design the potential investment; what the results of this engagement were; whether a report on the engagement will be published, and, regarding the Wild Heart Expansion Project, when it will be announced; how many private finance partners will be involved; what the value is of that private investment, and what the total amount is of public funding.

Question reference: S6W-35604

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 25 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what specific support is being provided to apprentices and training providers in rural areas, where access to placements may be more challenging.

We are committed to promoting apprenticeship opportunities in island and rural communities to encourage inclusive growth.

As part of this effort we provide a rural uplift for Modern Apprenticeship delivery, offering increased payments to training providers to support the expansion of apprenticeship programmes in these areas.

In addition, funding for travel and subsistence (including accommodation) is available for apprentices who are required to attend structured, formal off-the-job training beyond normal travel limits.

Question reference: S6W-35602

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 25 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how it determines which sectors are prioritised for apprenticeship funding, and what assessment criteria are used.

Question reference: S6W-35631

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 13 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 25 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what it is doing through its No One Left Behind programme to help disabled people access employment.

No One Left Behind, has a key role to play in meeting our commitment to halving the Disability Employment Gap by 2038. Through a concerted focus on delivering person centred, place-based employability support, there has been significant progress in reaching and supporting disabled people towards and into work since the local delivery model was implemented in 2022. In the most recent quarter July to September 2024 32% of participants accessing the service reported a disability, which is the largest proportion in a single quarter to date, this is an increase of 6 percentage points from April to June 2024. We know there is more to be done to ensure our support remains accessible and meets the needs of disabled people who experience structural barriers to entering and sustaining employment. As set out in the Programme for Government 2024-25, we are introducing Specialist Employability Support for disabled people across Scotland by Summer 2025 underpinned by an uplift in funding of £5 million to Local Employability Partnerships to support delivery. We are building on past investment and engagement with employers across Scotland through an Apt Public Social Partnership to share learning and tools developed to support recruitment and retention of disabled people in employment.

We remain committed to continuously improving our services to ensure disabled people are effectively supported towards and into work, which includes working closely with disabled people and representative organisations to ensure that their voices and experiences help shape and guide policy.

Question reference: S6W-35572

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 25 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how much the (a) Scottish Funding Council and (b) Student Awards Agency for Scotland has spent on the delivery of (i) Graduate and (ii) Foundation Apprenticeships in each of the last five years, and what that spend delivered.

Funding

The following tables set out how much the Scottish Funding Council (SFC) and the Student Awards Agency for Scotland (SAAS) has spent on the delivery of Graduate Apprenticeships (GAs) and Foundation Apprenticeships (FAs) in each of the last 5 complete financial years.

Accountability for, and funding of, Graduate Apprenticeships and Foundation Apprenticeships (delivered through colleges) was passed to the SFC in Academic Year (AY) 2021-22. In the same year SAAS became responsible for funding tuition fees for new GA enrolments.

In this time period, Skills Development Scotland (SDS) also provided funding for FAs and GAs that resulted in enrolments in addition to those below.

Table 1: Split of GA Funding Across SFC and SAAS from 2019-20 to 2023-24

Academic Year	SFC funding (£m)	SAAS funding (£m)
2019-20	-	-
2020-21	-	-
2021-22	7	2
2022-23	15	3
2023-24	23*	5

*Note: SFC funding for 2023-24 should be treated as notional

Note: Figures are those provided to the Scottish Government by SAAS and SFC and are rounded to the nearest £, million (cash terms)

Table 2: Split of FA Funding Across SFC and SAAS from 2019-20 to 2023-24

Academic Year	SFC funding (£m)	SAAS funding (£m)
2019-20	-	-
2020-21	-	-
2021-22	9	-
2022-23	9	-
2023-24	10	-

*Note: SFC funding for 2023/24 should be treated as notional

Note: Figures are those provided to the Scottish Government by SAAS and SFC and are rounded to the nearest £, million (cash terms)

Enrolments resulting from funding

Table 3 and 4 below show the enrolments for FAs and GAs that this funding has delivered.

Table 3: Number of Graduate Apprenticeship (GA) enrolments by academic year funded by SFC/SAAS

Academic Year	GA Enrolments
2019-20	-
2020-21	-
2021-22	1,165
2022-23	1,140
2023-24	*

Source: HESA Student data, SFC Secondary Analysis

Note: GA Enrolments: The number of new apprentices registered on a GA framework at the beginning of each academic year, regardless of entry point.

Note: These figures will not align with the data published in the SDS Modern Apprenticeship Statistics as SDS stats represent a snapshot of enrolments mid-way through the academic year

*Note: As part of official statistic regulations the Scottish Funding Council are unable to share data prior to publication

Table 4: No. of pupils enrolled on a Foundation Apprenticeship (FA) by academic year funded by SFC/SAAS

Academic Year	FA Enrolments
2019-20	-
2020-21	-
2021-22	2,925
2022-23	2,485
2023-24	*

Source: SFC's Further Education Statistics (FES) return.

Note: FA Enrolments: The number of new apprentices registered on a FA or pilot FA framework at the beginning of each academic year, rounded to the nearest five

*Note: As part of official statistic regulations the Scottish Funding Council are unable to share data prior to publication