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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-15326

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 27 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 7 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the 2022 Scottish teacher census, which showed that there had been a reduction in teacher numbers in North Ayrshire, compared with 2021.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that numbers of teachers and support staff are protected. We will provide local government with £145.5 million in next year's budget, which is conditional on the successful delivery of the following objectives:

Maintaining teacher numbers at 2022 census levels, as published in the Summary School Statistics in December 2022.
Maintaining pupil support staff numbers at 2022 census levels, which we will publish on 21 March 2023 based on the data collected from local authorities in September 2022.
Ensuring that places remain available for probationer teachers who need them through the Teacher Induction Scheme.

Where these objectives are not being met, the Scottish Government reserves the right to withhold or recoup funding which has been provided for this purpose.

Question reference: S6W-14767

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by Ben Macpherson on 6 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what work it is doing with Social Security Scotland to develop contingency measures for the redeployment of any staff who face redundancy following the Department for Work and Pensions’ (DWP) closure of the Radnor House site in Clydebank.

Question reference: S6W-14768

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by Ben Macpherson on 6 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what communication it has had with the UK Government regarding the decision taken by the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) to close Radnor House site in Clydebank.

Question reference: S6W-15026

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 6 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on time chartering vessels, including catamarans, to provide additional capacity on the current Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Services contract.

Question reference: S6W-15025

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 20 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 6 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what recent discussions it has had with CalMac regarding employment conditions on its vessels, chartered from CMAL, which are operating on routes on the Clyde and Hebrides ferry network.

Question reference: S6W-14845

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 10 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 2 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what strategies it has put in place to ensure that local authorities have the in-house capability and capacity to identify current and future community needs and infrastructure requirements.

Assessing the future needs of places, in collaboration with communities, is a core part of the local development plan process and infrastructure needs should be considered early in the process as part of an evidence based approach.

We continue to engage closely with COSLA and Heads of Planning Scotland to understand the pressures faced by the planning service, including skills shortages, and to promote a highly performing system.

Along with other key stakeholders including Partners in Planning we will develop a skills strategy which will identify the specialist skills required to address the requirements of National Planning Framework 4, and the wider skills required to ensure we have planners with the expertise to deliver on our ambitions for Scotland.

In 2022 we commissioned work on the pipeline of new planners coming into the system. The research report is available at Future Planners Project Report (rtpi.org.uk) . We are working with the Royal Town Planning Institute Scotland and Heads of Planning Scotland to implement the report’s recommendations, and will focus on this as we move forward with delivery of NPF4.

The forthcoming development planning guidance will set out the various stages in plan preparation.

Question reference: S6W-14844

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 20 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 2 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to propose any updates to the Prudential Code in relation to local authorities' financing of costs incurred under public private partnerships (PPPs), including any requirements regarding transparency.

The Prudential Code for Capital Finance in Local Authorities is produced by CIPFA. The Prudential Code requires a local authority to ensure that the financing of capital expenditure is prudent, affordable and sustainable and refers specifically to the requirement to consider credit agreements and associated financing costs as part of capital investment decisions. CIPFA is an independent organisation and as such the Scottish Government has no authority to propose or decide the content of CIPFA's Codes of Practice.

Question reference: S6W-15322

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 23 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by Christina McKelvie on 1 March 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will develop a strategy to tackle so-called pensioner poverty that includes statutory targets.

The Scottish Government does not plan to develop a strategy to tackle pensioner poverty. We already work closely with partners, including through the Older People’s Strategic Forum on a range of issues related to age equality. This includes the Strategic Action Framework ‘A Fairer Scotland for Older People, in which Ensuring Financial Security is a priority area. In addition, the forthcoming Human Rights Bill will include provision for older people.

Our Cost of Living website contains dedicated information on the support available for older people, including benefits and travel.

Question reference: S6W-14828

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 28 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on putting the mutual investment model (MIM) into active use in Scotland.

The Medium-Term Financial Strategy (MTFS) (most recently published in 2021) ( The Scottish Government's Medium Term Financial Strategy - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) ) sets out the revenue finance models available to the Scottish Government. The mutual investment model (MIM) is considered alongside a range of financing approaches including capital grant, capital borrowing, financial transactions and other forms of finance when determining how to finance projects. The approaches are regularly reviewed to ensure the best value for money.

Question reference: S6W-14843

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 February 2023
Current Status: Answered by John Swinney on 28 February 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what communication it has had with the UK Government regarding any changes to the fiscal framework that would enable Scotland to use alternative funding arrangements to the public private partnership (PPP) model for infrastructure projects.

The Scottish Government continues to engage with the UK Government as part of the forthcoming Fiscal Framework Review. The scope and timings of the review are subject to agreement with the Chief Secretary to the Treasury.

The review must ensure the Scottish Government and Parliament has the necessary powers to manage the risks we face within our devolved responsibilities, and to support economic recovery.