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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-32837

Asked by: Kevin Stewart, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 16 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many Pregnancy and Baby Payment Best Start Grants have been awarded in (a) Aberdeen and (b) Scotland since their introduction.

Social Security Scotland routinely releases information on Best Start Grant and Best Start Foods applications and payments.

Since the introduction of the Pregnancy and Baby Payment in December 2018, 97,685 payments with a combined value of £43,041,145 were paid to eligible clients throughout Scotland by 30 September 2024.

Whilst the latest statistics do not contain the number of payments issued broken down by local authority area, the total value of payments issued to clients in Aberdeen City was £1,371,294 over the same period.

The next Best Start Grant and Best Start Foods publication, covering the period to the end of December 2024, will be published on 25 February 2025.

Question reference: S6W-32817

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 06 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 16 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will request that Network Rail replace the bridge height restriction signage on the railway bridge that carries the Glasgow–Edinburgh via Falkirk line over Hawthorn Street in Glasgow, in light of reports that the westbound sign is damaged and the eastbound sign is missing.

Question reference: S6W-32744

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 23 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 16 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many 16-years and over have registered to opt-out of organ and tissue donation after death in each year since March 2021.

Question reference: S6W-32745

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 23 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 16 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many 16-years and over are registered as being opted-in to the system for organ and tissue donation after death.

Question reference: S6W-32585

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 19 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 16 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what the projected total subsidy for the next five years is for (a) ScotRail and (b) Caledonian Sleeper services.

Question reference: S6W-32530

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 19 December 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 16 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish the five-year review of the Civil Litigation (Expenses and Group Proceedings) (Scotland) Act 2018, in light of it being overdue.

Question reference: S6W-33070

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 16 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure the affordability of services provided by Registers of Scotland.

The majority of Registers of Scotland fees are set by Order which is subject to the affirmative procedure. The fees were last updated in April 2021. In making a fee order, Ministers will seek to balance affordability with covering the costs of running the registers. RoS is continuously working to improve its efficiency, and thereby keep its running costs as low as possible.

In October 2024 the average house price for Scotland from UK HPI was £197,000. The RoS fee for a house of this value is £400, which represents 0.2% of the purchase price.

Question reference: S6W-32838

Asked by: Kevin Stewart, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 16 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many Early Learning Payment Best Start Grants have been awarded in (a) Aberdeen and (b) Scotland since their introduction.

Social Security Scotland routinely releases information on Best Start Grant and Best Start Foods applications and payments.

Since the introduction of the Early Learning Payment in April 2019, 126,840 payments with a combined value of £34,465,468 were paid to eligible clients throughout Scotland by 30 September 2024.

The next Best Start Grant and Best Start Foods publication, covering the period to the end of December 2024, will be published on 25 February 2025.

Question reference: S6W-32835

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 16 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether all cycle 1 flood prevention schemes have been approved, and in which financial year the resource will be drawn down.

Local authorities are responsible for developing and delivering flood protection schemes and the Scottish Government provides funding to support this.

31 cycle one flood protection schemes remain eligible for grant funding as they were notified as required under the Flood Risk Management Act 2009 by the 31 March 2024 deadline agreed by Ministers and COSLA Leaders.

8 have been withdrawn from the cycle one funding programme (2 voluntarily and 6 because they failed to meet the notification deadline of 31 March 2024).1 is no longer required.

Local authorities provide a spend profile for each flood protection scheme annually to the Scottish Government and this determines how much funding is distributed to each eligible scheme in any given year.

Question reference: S6W-32844

Asked by: Kevin Stewart, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 16 January 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the potential cost to the third sector in Scotland of the UK Government's decision to raise employer national insurance contributions.

The diverse nature of the third sector means that the impacts of the increase to employers National Insurance contributions will vary by size and industry sector. However, SCVO has estimated that the cost to voluntary sector employers in Scotland is in the region of £75 million per year, plus inflation.

We will continue to work with His Majesty’s Treasury, portfolios and the sector to support an evidence-based approach and will update Parliament when new information is available.

Scottish Ministers continue to amplify the concerns of the third sector to the UK Government regarding the change to Employer National Insurance Contributions.