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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-38185

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 17 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of working age adults with neurodevelopmental conditions are unemployed in Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-38188

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 17 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide statistical data on bus usage in the last 10 years, broken down by year to compare the number of (a) journeys, (b) passengers, (c) miles travelled, (d) number of services and (e) quantity of public buses on the roads.

The number of public service vehicles, passenger journeys, and distance travelled by local bus services are published each year within Transport Scotland's Scottish Transport Statistics publication. The most recent version of the bus tables can be found at https://www.transport.gov.scot/media/ea2pp3vv/sts-chapter-02-bus-and-coach-travel-reference-tables-accessible.xls.

The Scottish Government does not hold data on the number of bus services. This information is held by the Traffic Commissioner for Scotland, with the most recent figures included in the Traffic Commissioners for Great Britain Annual Report 2023-24 available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/traffic-commissioners-annual-report-2023-to-2024.

Question reference: S6W-38447

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 06 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 17 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many green jobs have been created in Scotland since 2021, broken down by (a) sector, (b) region and (c) whether the funding was from public or private sources.

It is not possible to assess how many new green jobs have been created by region and sector, however the PwC Green Jobs Barometer shows that 5.6% of all job adverts in Scotland in 2024 were for jobs that have a positive impact on the environment, up from 4.0% in 2023. This helped Scotland once again retain first place among 12 nations and regions of the UK in the overall Green Jobs Barometer, once again showing that Scotland is leading the way in delivering a green jobs revolution and unlocking the tremendous potential that our energy transition and wider net zero journey holds.

In 2022 Scotland’s net zero economy (defined narrowly around low carbon and renewable energy) generated an estimated £13bn turnover and supported an estimated 25,700 direct full-time equivalent jobs. This is the most recent ONS data. Sectoral break downs are available via the ONS. These data are based on a UK-wide survey, and so are subject to a 95% confidence interval of between 23,200 and 28,100 at Scotland level. They are not available by region. These figures will include existing jobs which have transitioned over from outside of low carbon and renewable sectors. Looking at the broader impact of the sector, it is estimated that the renewable energy industry supported over £6.6bn of GVA and over 47,000 FTE employment across the Scottish economy in 2022 (Fraser of Allander Institute, 2025).

Question reference: S6W-38183

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 13 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many P1 to P3 pupils were in class sizes of (a) zero to 18, (b) 19 to 25, (c) 26 to 30 and (d) 31 or more pupils, in each year since 2022.

Question reference: S6W-38159

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 13 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any regional disparities in GP-to-patient ratios, and how this informs workforce planning.

Whilst the Scottish Government sets the strategic policy direction for the NHS in Scotland, operational matters including staffing are in the first instance the responsibility of the relevant NHS board working alongside General Practices. The model for General Practice will depend on local population health needs as well as local service planning priorities.

NHS Boards are required to undertake workforce planning to ensure a full range of services are provided, including working with independent contractors in primary care. These plans should align with the National Workforce Strategy.

The Scottish Government is aware of an increasing gap between the GP Registered Population and Scotland’s population as estimated by the census. A working group has been established to look at the disparity between the two in more detail.

Question reference: S6W-37930

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 13 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government from which line of the Scottish Budget 2025-26, as passed by the Scottish Parliament, the funds will be sourced to meet the request from Ferguson Marine Port Glasgow, reportedly of £25 million, to complete the construction of the Glen Rosa vessel, in light of comments made by the Scottish Government's Director-General Economy to the Public Audit Committee on 21 May 2025 that "there is insufficient capital allocated to Ferguson Marine to accommodate that", and, if this is the case, from which other budget line or by which means the funds would be found.

Question reference: S6W-38160

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 13 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many additional support for learning (a) teachers and (b) pupil support assistants have been employed in each year since 2019, also broken down by local authority.

Statistics on additional support for learning teachers are published in the teacher census supplementary statistics, available on the Scottish Government website here:

https://www.gov.scot/publications/teacher-census-supplementary-statistics/

Statistics on pupil support assistants are published in the school support staff statistics, available on the Scottish Government website here:

https://www.gov.scot/publications/school-support-staff-statistics/

Question reference: S6W-38184

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 13 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on how many retail units are vacant in high streets and town centres across the country.

Question reference: S6W-37929

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 29 May 2025
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 10 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government from which line of the Scottish Budget 2025-26, as passed by the Scottish Parliament, the funds will be sourced to potentially acquire Ardrossan Harbour from Peel Ports, and how much has been set aside for any such transaction.

The potential harbour purchase sits within the ‘Vessels and Piers’ budget for 2025-26, which also includes a number of port improvements and upgrades. As previously stated in Parliament, whilst we await the outcome of the commercial negotiations between CMAL and Peel Ports, we cannot provide further information during this confidential process. I will of course update Parliament once there is progress and an outcome reached.

Question reference: S6W-37923

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 May 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 10 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether NHS Scotland plans to roll-out the new gonorrhoea vaccine, which is being made available to eligible and high risk groups in England from August 2026.

NHS Scotland will introduce a new vaccination programme which offers protection against gonorrhoea from August 2025. This targeted opportunistic programme is specifically aimed at Gay, Bisexual and other Men who have Sex with Men (GBMSM) who are at increased risk of gonorrhoea. Clinicians may also offer vaccination to a small number of individuals at equivalent risk outside of the primary GBMSM cohort who they identify as being at on-going risk.