Questions and answers

Question reference: S6W-43232

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 January 2026
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 28 January 2026

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-42739 by Ivan McKee on 9 January 2026, what sources provided the evidence for the internal review to implement the 40% in-person working target, and whether it will set out what these sources advised.

Details of the sources of evidence used by, and related advice provided to, the Scottish Government’s Executive Team during an internal review of its hybrid working policy have been available on the Scottish Government website since July 2025 at: Scottish Government hybrid working policy evidence and findings: FOI release - gov.scot. In particular, the sources of evidence considered are set out at annex 6 and advice in annexes 1 to 5 of that publication.

Question reference: S6O-05448

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 January 2026
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 January 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how many new teachers, who qualified in the last three years, are now in permanent teaching posts.

Question reference: S6W-43044

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 January 2026
Current Status: Answered by Angus Robertson on 21 January 2026

To ask the Scottish Government how much has been allocated in its draft Budget 2026-27 to a museum of empire, slavery, colonialism and migration in Glasgow.

The Scottish Government received a funding bid from the Scottish Museum of Empire, Slavery, Colonialism and Migration to enable them to continue developing revenue projects and capacities regarding recommendation 1 from the Empire Slavery and Scotland’s Museum Steering Group. The Scottish Government has allocated up to £600,000 to the Scottish Museum of Empire, Slavery, Colonialism and Migration in its draft budget for 2026-27.

The recommendations are outlined in full in the report, Empire, Slavery, & Scotland’s Museums Recommendations.

Question reference: S6W-43002

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 January 2026
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 21 January 2026

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason it has not yet provided a target date for establishing a 24/7 thrombectomy service.

Achieving 24/7 access to thrombectomy across Scotland is a complex piece of work, requiring co-ordination of resources across all NHS Boards. While the Scottish Government cannot currently provide a target date for establishing a 24/7 thrombectomy service, NHS National Services Directorate have established a Task and Finish Group with the goal of producing a list of options for the timely expansion of thrombectomy services across Scotland.

The group met most recently on 4 December 2025, and is making positive progress towards delivering recommendations for expanding the thrombectomy service.

Question reference: S6W-42841

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 January 2026
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 21 January 2026

To ask the Scottish Government when it expects the Sentencing and Penal Policy Commission to publish its final report, and whether it plans to make a statement to the Parliament on the Commission's recommendations following publication.

Question reference: S6W-42729

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 18 December 2025
Current Status: Answered by Ben Macpherson on 21 January 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to prevent skills shortages in priority sectors from worsening due to any contraction in college course provision.

The budget invests over £2.4bn in post school education and skills and reinforces our steadfast commitment to free education. It includes a significant real terms increase in our investment in Scotland’s College and University sectors so that people of all ages have the opportunity to fulfil their potential, while also ensuring that priority workforce needs are met.

The Scottish Government has committed to introduce a new approach to national skills planning, and strengthen regional skills planning.

Alongside setting up these new arrangements, we recognise the importance of tackling current skills needs in priority areas. We are providing targeted support across a range of sectors, including offshore wind, social care and engineering.

For example, we are providing funding to the college sector in 2025-26 to deliver an Offshore Wind Skills Programme, helping to create region-specific training hubs for offshore wind skills. We are investing almost £12 million over three years to deliver a targeted Offshore Wind Skills Programme. This new funding will enable us to deliver the most critical priorities in our action plan, while keeping the programme scalable as future funding decisions are taken.

We are also investing up to £2 million in 2025-26 to develop engineering skills in the Glasgow City Region through a programme led by Clyde Maritime Cluster with Skills Development Scotland. This is supporting industry-led action to increase the supply of engineering and advanced manufacturing workers and reduce levels of economic inactivity.

Operational decisions such as curriculum delivery are the responsibility of individual colleges.

Question reference: S6W-42724

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 18 December 2025
Current Status: Answered by Ben Macpherson on 20 January 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to address reported warnings that college investment has not kept pace with the need for high level technical skills.

For Scotland’s colleges, the 2026-27 budget delivers a combined increase of £70m in resource and capital funding, equivalent to 10% uplift on last year’s budget, taking our total investment in core college funding to £764m. This enables colleges to continue to deliver high quality education and skills to learners across Scotland. Since its inception in July 2023, the Tripartite Alignment Group has been working collaboratively to identify and implement workable flexibilities to further help ease colleges’ financial pressures while ensuring accountability for public funds.

Question reference: S6W-42993

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 January 2026
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 20 January 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to review waste collection statutory requirements for local authorities.

A review of local authorities’ statutory waste and recycling duties is currently in progress and due to conclude by the end of 2026.

The Scottish Government’s Circular Economy & Waste Route Map sets out an ambitious plan to deliver the priorities to 2030 that will help us progress to a circular economy and more sustainable resource use. A priority action in the Route Map is to co-design a new statutory Code of Practice for household recycling to set standards for waste collection services across Scotland, increase recycling rates and cut emissions.

The statutory Code of Practice is currently being co-designed with local authorities, businesses and other waste sector stakeholders to promote greater consistency in services and account for Scotland’s diverse communities and geography. It will also be informed by the findings of recent consultations on textile collections and rural food waste, actions also set out in the Route Map.

The draft Code of Practice will be published for consultation by the end of 2026.

Question reference: S6W-42728

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 18 December 2025
Current Status: Answered by Ben Macpherson on 19 January 2026

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish the workforce planning assumptions used to assess future skills needs across Scotland’s economy.

The budget invests over £2.4bn in post school education and skills and reinforces our steadfast commitment to free education. It includes a significant real terms increase in our investment in Scotland’s College and University sectors so that people of all ages have the opportunity to fulfil their potential, while also ensuring that priority workforce needs are met.

The Scottish Government is working to identify a shortlist of sectors for focused skills planning. Beginning in February, my officials will engage employers, colleges, universities, and regional partners to help refine this work. We will also share further details with the Education, Children and Young People Committee, including our emerging findings. Our intention is to formally publish this work in the Spring.

Question reference: S6W-42717

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 18 December 2025
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 15 January 2026

To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has undertaken of the impact of its housing policies on the supply of affordable homes for families in crisis.

The Scottish Government’s Housing Emergency Action Plan sets out a bold and co-ordinated response to tackling immediate pressures while laying the foundations for lasting, systemic change. The Plan looks to build on our existing policies whilst responding to the challenges of ending children living in unsuitable accommodation, supporting the needs of vulnerable communities and maximising investment in Scotland’s housing sector.

The Affordable Housing Supply Programme will invest £808 million in 2025-26 including £80 million targeted at acquisitions and voids, with a focus on family homes. Over the next four years, up to £4.9 billion of investment will be committed to affordable housing, delivered through a blend of public and privately leveraged investment to help deliver 36,000 affordable homes providing up to 24,000 children with a warm, safe home. This investment will support the delivery of Local Authority strategic housing priorities informed by their Housing Needs and Demand assessments.

Since 2007 we have helped deliver more than 141,000 affordable homes, of which more than 101,000 have been for social rent. In the year to end September 2025 we helped an estimated 2,172 households with children into affordable housing and, more broadly, keeping rents lower than market rents benefits approximately 140,000 children in poverty each year.

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