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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: S5O-04431

Asked by: John Mason, MSP for Glasgow Shettleston, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 June 2020
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 18 June 2020

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the Black Lives Matter campaign, how dealing with racism and Scotland's links with slavery are taught in schools.

Question reference: S5O-04405

Asked by: John Mason, MSP for Glasgow Shettleston, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 June 2020
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 11 June 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Bill could impact on sectarianism, in light of this not being specifically mentioned in it as a characteristic that might attract expressions of hatred.

Question reference: S5O-04354

Asked by: John Mason, MSP for Glasgow Shettleston, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 May 2020
Current Status: Answered by Clare Haughey on 28 May 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking in response to research by GambleAware, which suggests that 46% of people with a gambling problem are not accessing treatment and support.

The Scottish Government is already working with GambleAware and the Gambling Commission on the implementation of the Commission's National Strategy to Reduce Gambling Harms , which was published in 2019. It is estimated that one percent of the adult population in Scotland has some sort of problem with gambling. The three-year strategy calls for collaboration, evaluation and research as the basis for improvement. The aims of the strategy are to develop an appropriate regulatory framework to prevent harm and to develop existing, and new, treatment pathways to treat the harms associated with gambling. In Scotland, we are working closely with Public Health Scotland to assess existing evidence on which pathways to treatment are likely to be most successful in Scotland. This includes some evaluation of pathways being trialled in other nations. We are also keen to understand why some people with problematic gambling are not accessing treatment and support services.

Question reference: S5O-04377

Asked by: John Mason, MSP for Glasgow Shettleston, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 May 2020
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 June 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what the finance secretary's response is to reports that extra funding commitments pledged by the UK Government to assist with the response to the COVID-19 outbreak have not been fulfilled.

Question reference: S5O-04284

Asked by: John Mason, MSP for Glasgow Shettleston, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 March 2020
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 18 March 2020

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the comments in its China engagement strategy regarding respect for human rights, what its position is on the recent full judgement of the China Tribunal on forced organ harvesting from prisoners of conscience.

Question reference: S5O-04230

Asked by: John Mason, MSP for Glasgow Shettleston, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 27 February 2020
Current Status: Answered by Liam McArthur on behalf of the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body on 5 March 2020

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body what requirements there are for people working in the Parliament to join the Protecting Vulnerable Groups scheme administered by Disclosure Scotland.

The SPCB employs staff within the Education Team that are required to be registered with the Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) Scheme. The Education Officer posts have been assessed as undertaking duties which fall within the scope of ‘regulated work’ as defined in the Protection of Vulnerable Groups (Scotland) Act 2007. This means that anyone appointed to these posts will be required to be registered with the PVG Scheme and their ongoing suitability to work with children is checked by Disclosure Scotland.

Question reference: S5O-04266

Asked by: John Mason, MSP for Glasgow Shettleston, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 March 2020
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 12 March 2020

To ask the Scottish Government how it ensures that the action that it takes to restrict hate speech does not inadvertently discourage freedom of speech.

Question reference: S5O-04163

Asked by: John Mason, MSP for Glasgow Shettleston, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 February 2020
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 26 February 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the importance of young people leaving school going onto positive destinations.

Question reference: S5O-04151

Asked by: John Mason, MSP for Glasgow Shettleston, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 February 2020
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 20 February 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what treatment programmes are available to help people addicted to gambling.

Question reference: S5T-01934

Asked by: John Mason, MSP for Glasgow Shettleston, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 06 January 2020
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 7 January 2020

To ask the Scottish Government what action it can take in response to reports that ATMs are increasingly charging for taking out cash.