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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-20892

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 August 2023
Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don on 19 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of pupils have had at least one week away at an outdoor centre in the last 12 months.

Scottish Government does not collect the data requested. However the Scottish Advisory Panel for Outdoor Education (SAPOE), which is the forum for Local Authority representatives to consider and debate best practice in the development and safe delivery of Outdoor Learning, conducted a survey exercise earlier this year to gather a range of data and evidence relating to outdoor centres. SAPOE can be contacted at admin@sapoe.org.uk .

Question reference: S6W-20901

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 29 August 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 19 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will make pupils who speak English as a second language eligible within the criteria for Pupil Equity Funding.

Although Pupil Equity Funding is allocated directly to schools on the basis of the estimated number of children and young people in P1-S3 registered for free school meals, headteachers can use their professional judgement to identify any children in their school who may benefit from the targeted interventions and approaches, with the aim of closing the poverty-related attainment gap. Pupils who speak English as a second language are therefore already eligible to benefit from Pupil Equity Funding under the existing allocation criteria, with headteachers having discretion to make decisions about which children and young people would benefit most from any particular intervention or approach, whilst keeping a clear focus on delivering equity through improving outcomes for learners impacted by poverty.

Question reference: S6W-20961

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 04 September 2023
Current Status: Answered by Elena Whitham on 14 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the report, Synthetic Opioids: A Whole System Response to a Public Health Emergency, by the charity, Cranstoun, and what action it plans to take in response to the reported emergence of synthetic opioids in the supply of drugs in the UK.

The appearance of synthetic opioids, such as fentanyl, in the Scottish drug supply has been a concern for some time. At the end of 2022 PHS flagged a small number of deaths related to nitazenes, a new synthetic opioid and issued a public health alert as a result in January 2023. Following recent deaths linked to these substances in England and Wales, the UK Government issued their own alert in June 2023. Changes in the production of heroin, particularly in areas such as Afghanistan, are also raising concerns amongst stakeholders of a likely rise in the supply of synthetic opioids and the danger this will pose to the UK drug supply.

The ability to know what is in the drug supply and when substances of concern, such as synthetic opioids appear, is vital. Recognising the need to understand changes in the substances people are taking, alongside being able to identify potential threats, has meant that through our National Mission we have invested in developing our surveillance abilities. Public Health Scotland now operate their Rapid Action Drug Alerts and Response (RADAR) system which issues quarterly reports, but they have also released two health alerts relating to specific substances to raise awareness to individuals and to enable service providers to deliver vital harm reduction services, including provision of Naloxone. The use of fentanyl testing strips is also currently under consideration. In addition, we are continuing to progress the establishment of drug checking facilities in Scotland through proposed pilot sites in Glasgow, Aberdeen and Dundee. These facilities will be able to provide real-time information about the substances in circulation, issue alerts about anything of concern and provide essential harm-reduction information to individuals using the service.

Scottish Government officials met with UK Government officials recently to discuss the Global Coalition on Synthetic Drugs and are contributing to the sub-working groups on this.

Planning is also underway to host a meeting of national and international partners to discuss this issue and learn from the experience of other countries. A lot of the harm reduction interventions we already have in place are what is recommended to counter the dangers of these new substances.

Question reference: S6O-02545

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 September 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 21 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what the increase in patient charges for NHS dental treatment will be.

Question reference: S6W-20896

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 29 August 2023
Current Status: Answered by Christina McKelvie on 8 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to establishing a museum of slavery highlighting Scotland’s colonial history.

Following the motion passed by the Scottish Parliament showing solidarity with anti-racism in June 2020, funding was provided to Museums Galleries Scotland for the Empire, Slavery and Scotland's Museums project, which was run by an independent steering group, and included the largest ever national consultation on attitudes to Scotland’s museums and racism.

The Scottish Government is carefully considering the response to the steering group's recommendations, including the one which focused on establishing a new organisation to create a dedicated space to address the legacy of colonialism in Scotland. This is an important agenda and we will continue to seek ways of raising awareness of the role Scotland played in slavery and empire and how our museums and galleries can play their part in portraying an accurate story of Scotland's history.

Question reference: S6O-02485

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 30 August 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 7 September 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that increasing numbers of dentists are leaving the NHS.

Question reference: S6W-20419

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 August 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 30 August 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown for each financial year that the Agri-Environment and Climate Scheme has been in operation of how many applications to the scheme have been (a) received and (b) rejected, and, in relation to any rejected applications, what the annual cost (i) to NatureScot of processing and (ii) incurred by applicants of making these applications was.

Applications are categorised as ‘Rejected’, ‘Unsuccessful’ or ‘Successful’. ‘Rejected’ applications are those that were ineligible due to failing the initial eligibility checks. As such, these applications do not progress on to be fully assessed. ‘Unsuccessful’ applications will have passed the initial eligibility checks and will have been fully assessed but failed to achieve the scoring threshold for approval.

Since 2015, 7,429 applications have been received to the Agri-Environment Climate Scheme (AECS) to date, of which 897 were rejected and 792 have been unsuccessful. A breakdown of these figures for each year since the scheme has been in operation is set out in the following table:

Year	No. Applications Received	No. Rejected	No. Unsuccessful
2015	977	234	100
2016	1,333	193	79
2017	1,022	138	44
2018	923	97	199
2019	724	72	131
2020*	N/A	N/A	NA
2021	780	86	37
2022	1,027	75	202
2023**	643	2	N/A
Total	7,429	897	792

*The 2020 AECS Round consisted of a one-year extension of management Options ending in 2020, and therefore no new applications were invited.

**At this time, only Slurry Store applications have been fully assessed and awarded. The remaining applications from the 2023 Round are currently being assessed.

NatureScot do not record staff time spent on processing AECS applications, which could vary greatly depending on the complexity of each case assessed by them.

The Scottish Government does not hold data on the total costs incurred by applicants of submitting an application to the scheme. However, financial assistance is available towards the following assessments and plans:

Farm Environment Assessment claims can range from £200-600 depending on the hectarage covered
Moorland Management Plans claims can range from £100-600 based on the area covered by the Plan
Lowland Bog Plan claimants can receive £300 for land that is 10 hectares or greater.

Question reference: S6W-20437

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 07 August 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 29 August 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-06946 by Maree Todd on 14 March 2022, what its response is to the reported comments of NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde that the implementation of water fluoridation "would need to be considered on a Scotland-wide or regional basis"; what discussions it has had with NHS boards regarding water fluoridation since January 2021, and whether it is currently working with NHS boards on developing plans to introduce water fluoridation.

In Scotland, under current water quality legislation, the initiative for fluoridation of drinking water supplies rests with local NHS Boards. There are currently no plans to fluoridate the public water supply in Scotland, and any decision to do so would be the responsibility of individual NHS Boards in consultation with the public and Scottish Water. There have been no formal discussions with NHS Boards regarding water fluoridation.

Question reference: S6W-20418

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 04 August 2023
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 28 August 2023

To ask the Scottish Government when it plans to provide an initial progress update on its Scams Prevention, Awareness and Enforcement Strategy 2021-24.

The Scottish Government’s Scam Prevention, Awareness and Enforcement Strategy 2021-24 states that an initial update would be published at an appropriate time within 18-24 months of its publication in March 2021. However, our response to the cost of living crisis has meant refocusing resource to ensure that the urgent help and advice required by consumers was delivered as quickly as possible.

We intend to provide a progress update to the Scottish Parliament by the end of this calendar year.

Question reference: S6W-19552

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 31 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 14 August 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether the modern apprenticeship programme remains fit for purpose in delivering government objectives.