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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-24584

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 18 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 1 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any impact a freeze on capital budgets will have on the building of a new eye hospital in Edinburgh.

Question reference: S6O-03071

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 31 January 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 8 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what it can do to address potholes on the road network, including what support is available for local authorities to do so, in light of reports that Edinburgh is the second worst city in the UK for potholes.

Question reference: S6W-24352

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 05 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 24 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many jobs have been created to date through its Green Jobs Fund, broken down by the year in which the jobs were created.

More than 100 projects have received support from the Green Jobs Fund.

Jobs created through the Green Jobs Fund are categorised as green jobs if they meet certain criteria including being defined as:

Jobs in businesses that produce goods or provide services that benefit the environment or conserve natural resources.
Jobs in which workers’ duties involve making their establishment’s production processes more environmentally friendly or use fewer natural resources.

118 projects have been forecast to create up to 6,956 green jobs.

Question reference: S6W-24354

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 05 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 24 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown of any allocations made as part of the Green Jobs Fund proposals that were set out in its Programme for Government 2021-22.

The breakdown of the Green Jobs Fund includes actual payments made in financial years 2021-22, 2022-23 and a mix of actual and forecast payments for the 2023-24 financial year, which will be confirmed at the end of this financial year.

	Number of projects supported	Green Jobs Funds Awarded	Number of jobs forecast
Highlands & Island Enterprise	18	£1,659,419	603
South of Scotland Enterprise	11	£2,000,000	212
Scottish Enterprise	87	£20,206,378	3125
Scottish Ministers	2	£6,366,129	3016
Total	118	£28,231,926	6956

Question reference: S6W-24353

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 05 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 24 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it remains committed to delivering a Green Jobs Fund of £100 million to the five-year timescale set out in its Programme for Government 2020-21.

The Green Jobs Fund was created to support new and increased opportunities for green job creation across Scotland, by providing up to £100 million capital investment over a five year term.

Scottish Enterprise, Highlands and Islands Enterprise and South of Scotland Enterprise are working to deliver £50 million to businesses which provide sustainable or low carbon products and services to help them develop, grow and create jobs. Up to a further £50 million is aimed at supporting businesses and their supply chains create and safeguard jobs by investing in equipment, premises, research and development.

While public sector budgets are now under extreme pressure, the Scottish Government continues to invest in supporting existing businesses to transition to a low carbon environment and looking to fund new and innovative projects, which will take time to develop and deliver, and could result in more funding being required over the latter part of the five year term, as these newer markets grow and mature.

Question reference: S6W-24522

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 15 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 23 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the UK Government’s Industrial Energy Transformation Fund opening for applications on 29 January 2024 to support industrial sites in England, Wales and Northern Ireland to decarbonise, when it will open the next phase of the Scottish Industrial Energy Transformation Fund to support Scottish businesses to decarbonise.

During 2020, Scottish Ministers announced their intention to administer a separate fund to the UK Government's Industrial Energy Transformation Fund and that more funds would be available for Scottish Industries than received as Barnett consequentials. We are in the process of concluding the due diligence process for SIETF applications and in the coming weeks intend to announce a further set of projects. Following this, we will engage with industrial representatives regarding potential proposals for future decarbonisation initiatives, including the possibility of a next phase for SIETF.

Question reference: S6W-24385

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 22 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many Cabinet sub-committees are currently in operation, and what the (a) title and (b) membership is of each.

There are currently 5 Cabinet Sub-Committees in operation, the titles and membership of which are set out in the following table.

Cabinet Sub-Committee (CSC)

Membership

CSC on Legislation

Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Finance(Chair)

Minister for Parliamentary Business

Minister for Zero Carbon Buildings, Active Travel and Tenants’ Rights

Lord Advocate

CSC on Local Government New Deal

Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Finance(Chair)

Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice

Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills

Cabinet Secretary for Wellbeing Economy, Fair Work and Energy

Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Net Zero and Just Transition

Minister for Local Government Empowerment and Planning

Minister for Community Wealth and Public Finance

Minister for Zero Carbon Buildings, Active Travel and Tenants’ Rights

Minister for Social Care, Mental Wellbeing and Sport

CSC on the Climate Emergency

Cabinet Secretary for Transport, Net Zero and Just Transition (Chair)

Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Finance

Cabinet Secretary for Wellbeing Economy, Fair Work and Energy

Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs, Land Reform and Islands

Minister for Transport

Minister for Green Skills, Circular Economy and Biodiversity

Minister for Zero Carbon Buildings, Active Travel and Tenants’ Rights

Minister for Small Business, Innovation, Tourism and Trade

Minister for Energy and the Environment

Minister for Local Government Empowerment and Planning

CSC on the National Care Service

Deputy First Minister and Cabinet Secretary for Finance(Chair)

Cabinet Secretary for NHS Recovery, Health and Social Care

Cabinet Secretary for Wellbeing Economy, Fair Work and Energy

Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs

Minister for Drugs and Alcohol Policy

Minister for Equalities, Migration and Refugees

Minister for Social Care, Mental Wellbeing and Sport

Minister for Public Health and Women's Health

Minister for Children, Young People and Keeping the Promise

Minister for Zero Carbon Buildings, Active Travel & Tenants’ Rights

Lord Advocate

CSC on The Promise

First Minister (Chair)

Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice?

Cabinet Secretary for Justice and Home Affairs?

Minister for Children, Young People and Keeping the Promise

Minister for Social Care, Mental Wellbeing and Sport

Minister for Community Wealth and Public Finance

Minister for Drugs and Alcohol Policy

Question reference: S6W-24457

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 11 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 22 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what the anticipated impact of any increase in funding for community eye healthcare will be on patients in (a) Edinburgh and (b) the Lothians.

The 2024-25 draft Scottish Budget document, published on 19 December, set out a budget of £130.1m for community eyecare services. This increase in the budget provision supports national provision of free universal NHS eye examinations, NHS optical vouchers for eligible persons to help with the cost of glasses and contact lenses, and new NHS services such as the Community Glaucoma Service which will enable patients to be seen closer to home.

The Scottish Government can confirm that patients in Edinburgh and the Lothians will continue to benefit as recipients of these national policies.

Question reference: S6W-24387

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 09 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 22 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many ministerial working groups there are that are currently in operation across the Transport, Net Zero and Just Transition portfolio, and whether it will provide a list of any such groups.

There are currently 21 ministerial working groups that fall under the remit of the Transport, Net Zero and Just Transition portfolio. In addition, portfolio Ministers sit on a number of ministerial working groups which are led by other Scottish Government portfolios.

Ministerial working groups that are headed by the Transport, Net Zero and Just Transition portfolio remit are as follows:

FM Environment Council

National Strategy for 20mph Working Group

National Litter and Flytipping Forum

Storm Babet Ministerial Taskforce

National Strategy for Economic Trans Private Investment in Natural Capital Working Group

Deposit Return Scheme Ministerial Strategic Assurance Group

National Transport Strategy Delivery Board

National Transport Strategy Business Group

Orkney Ferry Replacement Task Force

Shetland Ferry Replacement Task Force

A83 Taskforce Group

LEZ Leadership Group

SEFARI Gateway Waste Emissions Specialist Advisory Group

Environment and Economy Leaders' Group (EELG)

Cleaner Air for Scotland 2: Ministerial Group

Peatland Expert Advisory Group

Green Heat Finance Taskforce

Sustainable Aviation Fuel Ministerial Group

Climate Change Plan Advisory Group

Scottish Aquaculture Council

Hydro Nation Forum

Question reference: S6W-24389

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 19 January 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what reporting arrangements have been put in place regarding the role of the Deputy First Minister in co-ordinating cross government delivery, as referred to in the cabinet secretary mandate letters for the financial year 2023-24.