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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-41597

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 30 October 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 6 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish its guidance on the proposed phasing out of cages for laying hens.

Question reference: S6W-41432

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 October 2025
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 6 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of whether the Family Court system is compliant with article (a) 3, (b) 9, (c) 12, (d) 18 and (e) 19 of the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

In terms of the operation of the courts, the Scottish Government has not made any such assessment and would not seek to do so. The Lord President is the head of the judiciary in Scotland and the Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service supports the courts by providing the staff, buildings and services needed.

As regards family law in Scotland in relation to child contact, residence and Parental Responsibilities and Rights, the key legislation is the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 (the 1995 Act). The driving principle is that the welfare of the child must be the court’s paramount consideration.

The Children (Scotland) Act 2020 (the 2020 Act) reforms the 1995 Act. One of the key aims of the 2020 Act is to ensure further compliance with the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. A Child Rights and Wellbeing Impact Assessment was carried out when the Children (Scotland) Bill (now the 2020 Act) was introduced in 2019.

Question reference: S6W-41433

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 21 October 2025
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 5 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether penalties for parents or carers who breach contact orders approved by Family Courts are to be introduced.

If a party to a case believes that another party has not obeyed a contact order, they can go back to court and either ask the court to change the order or to hold the party who wilfully did not obey the order in contempt of court.

The Children (Scotland) Act 2020 (the 2020 Act) reforms the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 (the 1995 Act, key legislation in relation to contact, residence and Parental Responsibilities and Rights) and makes a number of changes to family law. A key aim is to ensure that the child’s best interests are at the centre of any contact or residence case.

Section 22 of the 2020 Act places a duty on the court to investigate the reasons behind a failure to obey a contact order (or another order relating to parental responsibilities or parental rights made by the court under section 11 of the 1995 Act). As part of this investigation the court must – taking account of the child’s age and maturity – have regard to any views the child wishes to express. This may involve appointing a Child Welfare Reporter. Contempt of court remains the final sanction for wilful non-compliance with an order. This reflects the serious nature of the issue and the effect that non-compliance can have on a child. Section 22 is yet to be brought into force.

Question reference: S6W-41651

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 November 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 18 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-41468 by Gillian Martin on 27 October 2025, what the locations are of the 10 Forestry and Land Scotland onshore wind sites under 50 megawatts that have been identified as pilot sites.

Question reference: S6W-41652

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 November 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 18 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-41468 by Gillian Martin on 27 October 2025, for what reason the Community Asset Transfer Scheme (CATS) is being used for an asset to be transferred to the community, and what consideration it has given to setting a rent to be paid, similar to commercial developers.

Question reference: S6W-41650

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 04 November 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 18 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-41468 by Gillian Martin on 27 October 2025, for what reason the 50 megawatt cap was set, and what the processes are for reconsidering this cap, including how the cap could be removed.

Question reference: S6W-41403

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 17 October 2025
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 31 October 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether the reported purchase of Kinrara Estate near Aviemore by Oxygen Conservation is in the public interest.

Scottish Government does not comment on individual property transactions. We have set out our general expectations for landowners in Scotland in our Land Rights and Responsibilities Statement and we are looking to build on these with the measures in the Land Reform Bill such as the proposed requirement for landholdings above 1,000 ha to publish long-term land management plans. We have also set out our principles for responsible investment in natural capital in our Natural Capital Market Framework.

Question reference: S6W-41404

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 17 October 2025
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 31 October 2025

To ask the Scottish Government where the liability lies for any repayment of planting grants given to the Kinrara Estate, near Aviemore, following the reported sale of the estate by Brewdog to Oxygen Conservation.

The Scottish Government supports new woodland creation through the Forestry Grant Scheme. Forestry Grant Scheme grant recipients are responsible for the maintenance of their new woodland planting and recipients of funding agree to maintain their new woodland creation projects for a period of 20 years.

On the rare occasion a project fails to establish, grant recipients must repay the funds that were provided to create the new woodland.

If a land sale transfers ownership of a new woodland creation project that was supported by the Forestry Grant Scheme, the liability for grant repayment rests with the original grant recipient, unless the obligations are formally transferred to a new owner. This new owner would enter into their own grant contract with Scottish Forestry to maintain the newly created woodland through to establishment.

Scottish Forestry are in discussion with the new owners of the Lost Forest project at Kinrara Estate, and they are working through the process of transferring the grant obligations to the new owner. Once this transfer is agreed, the new owners will assume liability for any potential repayment of grants should the project fail to meet the Forestry Grant Scheme requirements. If no such transfer occurs, this responsibility will remain with the original grant recipient.

Question reference: S6W-40852

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 29 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 22 October 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has considered seeking to amend the definition of peatland under the Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Act 2024 to cover areas of peat with a thickness of 30 centimetres or greater, and if so, what the outcome was, in light of the recent decision by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to restrict burning of upland peat in England to a maximum depth of 30 centimetres, except where covered by a licence.

We are aware of the decision by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs to restrict burning of upland peat in England to a maximum depth of 30 centimetres, except where covered by a licence. However, we are also aware of the extensive damage which can be caused to peatlands by wildfires which are becoming more prevalent and can be exacerbated by increased fuel load.

Therefore, the Scottish Government has not given consideration to amending the definition of peatland under the Wildlife Management and Muirburn (Scotland) Act 2024 to cover areas of peat with a thickness of 30 centimetres or greater.

We will continue to work in partnership with key stakeholders, experts and scientists to better understand the relationship between muirburn and peatlands to ensure our peatlands are protected.

Question reference: S6W-40832

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 26 September 2025
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 10 October 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment has been made of the impact that the Highlands and Islands Development Board had on the economic and social development of the Highlands and Islands.

The impact that the Highlands and Islands Development Board (HIDB), the precursor to Highlands and Islands Enterprise (HIE), cannot be overstated. HIE has an excellent timeline on their website: 50 Years of Highlands and Islands Enterprise which highlights the history and key stories as it evolved into the agency we see today and is being updated to mark its 60th anniversary this year.

At the outset, in the face of chronic population decline, sparse economic activity and high unemployment, HIDB was set up to assist the people of the Highlands and Islands to improve the economic and social conditions in the region. Over the past 60 years, the GVA gap between the region and Scotland, has narrowed considerably. In 1965 the region accounted for 2% of Scotland’s total. In 2023 this had risen to 8.5%. Since 1965, population across the region has grown from 381,000 to 470,000, an increase of 23% compared to 6% across Scotland. The very fact that HIE exists today is testament to the success HIDB made in laying the foundations and supporting economic development.

HIE continues that legacy, having never lost sight of its original role, and it is an integral part of the Scottish Government’s economic development landscape, alongside our other economic development agencies, Scottish Enterprise and South of Scotland Enterprise.

More recently, HIE has supported key projects such as Sumitomo, with its new £350m subsea cable manufacturing plant at Port of Nigg. It continues to deliver the Scottish Land Fund, in partnership with the National Lottery Community Fund, on behalf of the whole of Scotland, enabling people to take control of local resources for the long-term benefit of their communities. It’s development officers play a key role in supporting communities with grassroots driven community wealth building. And HIE’s commitment to a place-based approach through its 8 area teams, keeps it grounded and in touch with the needs of businesses and communities across a diverse part of our country.

During 2024-2025 HIE’s support led to a record 15 inward investment projects, securing £81 million in external investment for the region. Its work led to around £24 million in green investment and £28 million in external investment in community group projects and social enterprises. We have continued to protect HIE’s budget as far as possible with an increased opening budget of £56 million, for 2025-2026.

HIE’s Scottish Government sponsor team, finance partners and policy officials are regularly appraised of HIE’s activities and assess performance on an ongoing basis, through its annual reports and accounts, and regular engagement.

I look forward to seeing the work of HIE contributing to the next 60 years and beyond.