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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-39507

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 July 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 13 August 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-38909 by Jenny Gilruth on 22 July 2025, whether it will provide the information that was requested and confirm whether any additional Barnett consequential funding is available as a result of the UK Government’s reported additional investment for dealing with reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) in English schools.

We are not able to determine the detail of any consequential impact of the UK Government’s announcements on additional investment in relation to RAAC. These commitments form part of the UK Government’s decisions on departmental allocations at phase 1 and phase 2 of the UK Spending Review, which covers funding for 2025-26 onwards. At Spending Reviews, the Scottish Government receives additional Barnett funding for the net changes in departmental totals only, rather than being provided with a programme level breakdown.

However, through the £2bn Learning Estate Investment Programme, the Scottish Government will provide local authorities with significant funding support to replace 6 schools which contain RAAC.

Question reference: S6W-39434

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 17 July 2025
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 August 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether its ministers are involved in ScotRail's decision-making regarding the reported intention to outsource its complaints handling service.

Question reference: S6W-39433

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 17 July 2025
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 25 July 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether publicly owned companies should operate a presumption against outsourcing of business functions that are capable of being undertaken in-house.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring publicly owned companies deliver services that are high-quality, provide best value, support fair work and contribute to inclusive economic growth. This includes an expectation in favour of in-house delivery where functions can be undertaken effectively within the organisation and where this is demonstrably in the public interest.

However, any decision whether to outsource or utilise in-house functions is for individual, publicly owned companies to make in line with their legal duties, operational requirements and a full assessment of any impacts, including quality of service, value for money and public benefits before such a decision to outsource is made.

Question reference: S6W-38909

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 23 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 22 July 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether any additional Barnett consequential funding is available as a result of the UK Government’s reported additional investment for dealing with reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) in English schools, and whether it has profiled any capital spend for dealing with RAAC in school estates in Scotland.

Although it is the statutory duty of all local authorities to manage and maintain their schools, the Scottish Government continue to provide them with significant funding towards improving the school estate. For example, the £2bn Learning Estate Investment Programme (LEIP) is being delivered in partnership with local authorities and will benefit tens of thousands of pupils across Scotland.

Schools that still have reinforced autoclaved aerated concrete (RAAC) are taking appropriate measures to manage it and have longer term plans to address it. Furthermore, through the LEIP, the Scottish Government will provide funding support to replace a number of schools which contain RAAC.

The proportion of schools in “good” or “satisfactory” condition has increased from 62.7% in April 2007 to 91.7 % in April 2024, and our investment through the LEIP will build on this remarkable progress.

Question reference: S6W-38892

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 20 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angus Robertson on 21 July 2025

To ask the Scottish Government when the Culture Fair Work Taskforce is expected to publish its recommendations.

Question reference: S6W-38893

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 23 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angus Robertson on 21 July 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether the Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC) Freelance and Forgotten report will be considered by the (a) Culture Fair Work Taskforce when making its recommendations and (b) Scottish Ministers when considering the taskforce’s recommendations.

The Culture Fair Work Task Force is independent of the Scottish Government and it is not for Scottish Ministers to influence the work of the independent Chair or the Task Force. However Officials have already circulated the STUC "Freelance and Forgotten" report, together with other relevant material which may prove useful.

Ministers will examine the STUC report, together with a wide range of relevant material, when considering the Task Force's recommendations for a sectoral Culture Fair Work Agreement to further implement Fair Work in Scotland’s creative industries.

Question reference: S6W-38894

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 20 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 3 July 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will update its Fair Work First guidance to recognise that "Unions – not staff forums – are the legitimate voice of workers", as recommended in the Scottish Trades Union Congress (STUC) report, Freelance and Forgotten.

The Scottish Government is aware of the report and the (then) Minister for Employment and Investment held a roundtable meeting with the STUC and Creative Industries trade unions on 3 June, where a discussion on the report formed part of the agenda.

The Scottish Government recognises the vital role that trade unions play in providing effective worker voice and continues to highlight trade union recognition as a key example of good practice within the Fair Work First guidance.

Our Fair Work First policy has been designed to apply to, and be adaptable across, all organisations and sectors. It recognises the different mechanisms for achieving an effective voice will vary at collective and individual levels, and according to sectoral practices and worker choice. The guidance promotes trade union recognition as good practice, and also supports a range of worker voice mechanisms to reflect the diversity of workplaces across Scotland, and the different ways workers can choose to be represented.

There are no immediate plans to revise the Fair Work First guidance which was updated in November 2024 to streamline administrative processes and address points of clarity following consultation with key stakeholders, including the STUC.

Question reference: S6W-37445

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 06 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 19 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what action it has taken, since the publication of the International Court of Justice's 19 July 2024 advisory opinion, to ensure that public bodies are enacting the Scottish Government's 2014 public procurement policy note in relation to discouraging trade and investment from illegal settlements.

Regulations implementing international obligations in relation to public procurement permit bidders to be excluded from tender exercises in certain circumstances. This includes when the bidder can be shown to have engaged in grave professional misconduct. The Scottish Government's long-standing view is that the exploitation of assets in illegal settlements is likely to be regarded as constituting grave professional misconduct for this purpose. Any decision to exclude a bidder from a procurement process must, however, be taken on a case-by-case basis by the contracting authority awarding the contract, and must be grounded in evidence. To that end, the Minister for Business wrote to public bodies in October 2024 to inform them that the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights' (OHCHR) database of companies active in listed activity in the Occupied Palestinian Territory had been updated, and that this should be considered as part of due diligence processes.

As I confirmed in response to S6O-04782 on 11 June 2025, I have asked officials to advise on what further work can be done to strengthen our approach here.

All answers to Oral Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at All answers to Oral Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at Official Report: search what was said in Parliament | Scottish Parliament Website

Question reference: S6F-04189

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 16 June 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 June 2025

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6O-04833

Asked by: Patrick Harvie, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 12 June 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what responses have been received from LGBTQ+ staff or organisations that it has consulted with, or been contacted by, since the announcement of its interim policy on Parliament facilities, following the UK Supreme Court ruling.