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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-41018

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 03 October 2025
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 20 October 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given in the preparation of the 2026-27 Budget to ensure adequate provision of care and support for individuals with severe and enduring mental illness.

Mental health is an absolute priority for this Government and ensuring provision of care and support for individuals with mental illness will be considered as part of the ongoing budget process. The Cabinet Secretary for Finance has confirmed that the Scottish Government will publish the 2026-27 Scottish Budget on Tuesday 13 January 2026. The UK Government’s decision to publish its Autumn Budget on 26 November has significantly compressed the Scottish Budget timetable.

Question reference: S6W-41019

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 03 October 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 16 October 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-10103 by Maree Todd on 16 August 2022, what budget it allocated for smoking prevention and cessation services in (a) 2022-23, (b) 2023-24 and (c) 2024-25.

In 2022-23, 2023-24 and 2024-25 the Scottish Government provided annual funding to Health Boards for smoking cessation and prevention services as part of a wider Outcomes Framework allocation, whereby budget was provided to Health Boards to cover a range of outcomes and individual Health Boards decide how much of this funding to allocate to each outcome.

The value of the Outcomes Framework allocation was £74.1 million (2022-23); £74.1 million (2023-24); and £72.2 million (2024-25).

Question reference: S6W-40962

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 October 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 16 October 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to improve public awareness of the difference between polycystic ovaries and polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), in relation to PCOS being a hormonal disorder that can lead to a number of other health consequences.

NHS Inform helps women to access the information they need on a range of issues relating to their health. The Platform includes comprehensive information on polycystic ovary syndrome This includes an animation produced by the University of Edinburgh which provides an explanation of the condition in an easy to understand way including what polycystic ovaries are and their relevance in a diagnosis of PCOS.

To raise awareness of the condition and provide further information to women we worked with the Health and Social Care Alliance to deliver a series of webinars on menstrual health including a webinar on PCOS. This session explored the condition and how it is diagnosed, included information about polycystic ovaries as well as busting some common myths about the condition.

Each September we highlight the condition to the public by lighting our Scottish Government buildings to mark PCOS awareness month and utilise this opportunity to highlight the information available on NHS Inform.

Question reference: S6W-40961

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 02 October 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 16 October 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to support women with polycystic ovary syndrome, as it develops the next phase of the women’s health plan.

Menstrual health, which includes polycystic ovary syndrome, was a priority in the first phase of the Women’s Health Plan.

To support women with symptomspolycystic ovary syndrome of we have;

improved access to comprehensive information on menstrual symptoms and PCOS through our Women's Health Platform on NHS Inform.
worked with the Health and Social Care Alliance deliver a series of webinars for women on menstrual health including a session on PCOS.
published a workplace policy for NHSScotland on menstrual health and menopause, which can be adapted for use in other employment sectors.
worked with NHS Education for Scotland (NES) to develop eLearning on menstrual health, including PCOS, for those working in primary care.

Menstrual health, including PCOS, will continue to be an important area of focus in the next phase of the Women’s Health Plan.

Question reference: S6W-40839

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 29 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 14 October 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assistance it provides to people with diabetes on low incomes to afford podiatry treatments.

While the Scottish Government’s role is to set the strategic policy for the NHS in Scotland, it is NHS Boards that are responsible for delivering safe, effective, person-centred care at a local level.

To do this effectively, NHS Boards provide a tiered podiatry service, which includes offering support for self-management in order to promote foot health. No single medical condition is automatically deemed to require ongoing general NHS podiatry care and as such podiatry services assess and treat patients based on individual healthcare needs. Whilst routine nail cutting and personal footcare are considered part of daily hygiene, not a clinical service provided by NHS podiatry, advice is available to patients free of charge via their NHS Boards or as part of refreshed footcare guidance published by the Scottish Government in March this year.

Question reference: S6W-40840

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 29 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 14 October 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it is aware of any NHS boards that have stopped providing specialist podiatry care for people with diabetes.

Question reference: S6W-40581

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 1 October 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what the timeline is for the introduction of the next phase of the Women’s Health Plan.

Question reference: S6W-40487

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 11 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 26 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the Scottish Rugby report, Breaking the silence: why breast health matters in rugby, which was published in September 2025 and highlights research concerning the difference in performance made by having a proper fitting for a sports bra, how it will raise awareness among women and girls of the potential damage to health that can be caused by ill-fitting sports bras, including informing them of the potential damage that might arise in sporting settings.

The Scottish Government understands the importance of sport and physical activity for women and girls in Scotland and the positive impact that has on their physical, mental, and social health across all stages in life. We recognise the importance of having a proper fitting sports bra to support women and girls in sport and physical activity, and to reduce barriers to participation.

The Female Athlete Performance Working Group at the sportscotland Institute of Sport has developed a range of resources for female athletes and anyone supporting and working with girls and women in sport at any level. This includes a learning module on bras and breast health, amongst other female athlete health modules. These are available on Brightspace, free of charge. These modules have been promoted by a number of Scottish Governing Bodies of Sport, as well as through our national agency for sport, sportscotland.

Question reference: S6W-40171

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 29 August 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 25 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what action it will take to fully decriminalise abortion, in light of the United Nations Committee on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (CESCR) Concluding Observations on the seventh periodic report of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and the recommendation to be guided by the World Health Organization’s 2022 Abortion Care Guideline.

The Scottish Government committed in the 23-24 Programme for Government to undertake a review of abortion law to identify potential proposals for reforms to ensure that abortion services are first and foremost a healthcare matter.

To take this forward, the Scottish Government established an Expert Group in August 2024 to examine the current law; international examples; a range of stakeholder views and other evidence will be published in due course.

Question reference: S6O-05005

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 September 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 1 October 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the progress being made in developing the next phase of the Women’s Health Plan.