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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-19459

Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 26 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 17 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether funding from the National Post Diagnostic Support Service that supports autistic people will be backdated.

The Scottish Government is prioritising investment in a range of support available both pre and post diagnosis.

Our new £1 million Autism Support Fund will soon be launched by Inspiring Scotland. Individual funding awards will be announced following a fair and open application and assessment process based on set criteria. Where these criteria are met through projects already underway, funding can be backdated to 1 April 2023.

Question reference: S6W-19452

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 26 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 17 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it can provide an update as to what contact it has had with local authorities regarding the establishment of a pilot scheme for universal free school meals in secondary schools.

Question reference: S6W-19512

Asked by: Kevin Stewart, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 17 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of child poverty rates in Aberdeen.

Official statistics on poverty rates in Scotland come from the Family Resources Survey. This is a sample survey which does not allow breakdowns at a sub-Scotland level.

However, the Department for Work and Pensions publish children in low income families local area statistics which are available at local authority level. These statistics are based on linked DWP/HMRC data on benefits and tax credits and are before housing costs. There are also estimates published by the End Child Poverty Coalition which model the impacts of housing costs on the child poverty rates produced by DWP. On both these measures for 2021-22, Aberdeen City is among the 10 local authorities with the lowest proportion of children in low income families.

There are a range of assessments made using various data sources to inform local and regional economic development and funding, as well as action to alleviate poverty. For instance, the Scottish Government established an independent Advisory Group on Economic Recovery in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic. The group’s report covered a wide range of indicators at local authority level including the business base, existing deprivation and income levels, digital connectivity and productivity.

Subsequently, the Scottish Government published the Wellbeing Economy Monitor which brings together a range of indicators to provide a baseline for assessing progress towards the development of a wellbeing economy in Scotland. A wellbeing economy toolkit has been developed to support decision making and prioritisation of economic interventions and facilitate the transition to local and regional wellbeing economies, including a local authority level wellbeing economy monitor. This includes child poverty estimates, along with other social, environmental and economic indicators.

Question reference: S6W-19493

Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 17 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will outline the specific reasons for the reported delay in the allocation of funding for community groups and local authorities to build and provide Changing Places toilets.

The Scottish Government is committed to investing in Changing Places Toilets during this parliamentary term, in order to increase the number of these facilities across the country and to support mobile Changing Places Toilets to allow people easier access to events and outdoor venues.

I refer you to written submission PE2027/A I provided in response to a petition published on 18 May 2023.

https://www.parliament.scot/get-involved/petitions/view-petitions/pe2027-launch-the-changing-places-toilet-fund.

Question reference: S6W-19719

Asked by: Donald Cameron, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 03 July 2023
Current Status: Answered by Christina McKelvie on 17 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what meetings it has had with National Galleries Scotland since May 2021, and what the agreed outcomes were of any such meetings.

The Scottish Government Ministerial team has met with National Galleries of Scotland (NGS) on several occasions since May 2021. The meetings were as follows:

31 Aug 2021 Jenny Gilruth, in her role as Minister for Culture, Europe and International Development, had an introductory visit to NGS and met with the NGS Chair and Director General.

3 Feb 2022 Neil Gray, in his role as Minister for Culture, Europe and International Development and Minister with special responsibility for refugees from Ukraine had a meeting with the NGS Chair and Director General to discuss the NGS budget.

29 March 2022 Neil Gray visited the Scottish National Gallery site to view progress of the capital project.

24 Aug 2022 Angus Robertson in his role as Cabinet Secretary for Constitution, External Affairs and Culture met with the NGS Chair and Director General.

30 November 2022 Angus Robertson met the NGS Chair to discuss philanthropy.

8 June 2023 I, as newly appointed Minister for Culture, Europe and International Development, had an introductory meeting with NGS Chair and Director General.

As a public body in receipt of grant-in-aid officials have met regularly with the National Galleries of Scotland since May 2021.

Question reference: S6W-18712

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 17 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how many staff have completed the National Endoscopy Training Programme to date.

The National Endoscopy Training Programme (NETP) offers a range of training packages to improve the quality of endoscopy care for patients in Scotland, helping to provide the clinical capacity needed to reduce Endoscopy and Cancer waiting times. This includes:

Immersion Training
Basic Endoscopy Skills Courses
Train the Trainer Course
Upskilling for Colonoscopy
Endoscopy Non-Technical Skills (ENTS)
National Assistant Practitioner Programme

As of 31 May 2023, over 380 staff have participated in NETP programmes, helping to develop the endoscopy workforce in a coordinated ‘Once for Scotland’ approach.

Question reference: S6W-19491

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 17 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how much funding has been allocated to teachers undertaking (a) Into Headship, (b) Excellence in Headship and (c) master's-level qualifications in each of the last three years, broken down by local authority area.

a) Into Headship

The Scottish Government provided grant funding to Higher Education Institutions to deliver the Into Headship programme, as set out in the following table. This funding was not allocated to local authorities, therefore we do not hold a breakdown by local authority.

	2020-21	2021-22	2022-23	Total
University of Aberdeen	£79,716	£98,112	£107,310	£285,138
University of Dundee	£58,254	£45,990	£36,792	£141,036
University of Edinburgh	£110,376	£162,498	£101,178	£374,052
University of Glasgow	£113,442	£82,782	£67,452	£263,676
University of Highlands & Islands	£76,650	£180,894	£95,046	£352,590
University of Stirling	£177,828	£165,564	£134,904	£478,296
University of Strathclyde	£144,102	£104,244	£135,926	£384,272
Total	£760,368	£840,084	£678,608	£2,279,060

b) Excellence in Headship

The Scottish Government provided funding to Education Scotland to deliver the Excellence in Headship programme, as set out in the table below. This funding was not allocated to local authorities, therefore we do not hold a breakdown by local authority.

2020-21

2021-22

2022-23

Scottish Government Funding to Education Scotland

£400,000

1. Masters-Level Learning for Teachers

The Scottish Government provided grant funding to the recipients set out in the table below to enable the delivery of Masters-level learning for teachers. This funding was allocated to these recipients on behalf of Teacher Education Partnerships, except for City & Guilds and The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland. We do not hold a breakdown by local authority.

Grant Recipient	Universities in Teacher Education Partnership	Local Authorities in Teacher Education Partnership	2020-21	2021-22	2022-23	Total
University of Aberdeen	University of Aberdeen	Aberdeen City, Aberdeenshire, Highland, Moray and Shetland	£71,400	£88,500	£88,500	£248,400
City & Guilds	NA	NA	£45,750	£45,000	£26,000	£116,750
Dumfries and Galloway Council	University of Glasgow, University of Stirling	Dumfries and Galloway	£15,900	£6,964	£5,547	£28,411
University of Dundee	University of Dundee	Angus, Dundee, Fife, Perth & Kinross	£81,900	£81,720	£81,000	£244,620
University of Edinburgh	University of Edinburgh	Edinburgh City, East Lothian, West Lothian, Midlothian, Scottish Borders, Fife	£132,200	£132,400	£132,100	£396,700
University of Strathclyde	University of Strathclyde, University of Glasgow	East Dunbartonshire, East Renfrewshire, Glasgow City, Inverclyde, North Ayrshire, North Lanarkshire, Renfrewshire, South Lanarkshire, West Dunbartonshire	£217,100	£218,700	£218,700	£654,500
University of Highlands & Islands	University of Highlands & Islands	Argyll & Bute, Shetland, Orkney, Eilean Siar, Highland, Moray	£53,900	£53,100	£54,000	£161,000
The Royal Conservatoire of Scotland	NA	NA	£18,300	£18,300	£18,300	£54,900
University of Stirling	University of Stirling	West Lothian, Falkirk, Stirling, Clackmannanshire, Perth & Kinross	£55,000	£55,600	£55,080	£165,680
University of West of Scotland	University of West of Scotland	East Ayrshire, South Ayrshire, North Ayrshire	£40,320	£40,600	£41,000	£121,920
Total			£731,770	£740,884	£720,227	£2,192,881

Question reference: S6W-19511

Asked by: Kevin Stewart, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 17 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of poverty rates in Aberdeen.

Question reference: S6W-19269

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 19 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 14 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how many times it has been notified of a cyber-attack on a public body or educational institution since August 2021.

Between 1 August 2021 and 21 June 2023, the Scottish Government has been notified of 19 cyber incidents on public sector organisations under our Notifiable Scottish Public Sector Cyber Incidents Policy and Procedure. Cyber incidents notified do not however necessarily equate to cyber attacks.

The Scottish Government will not provide further details. The organisations that report cyber incidents under the Notifiable Scottish Public Sector Cyber Incidents procedure reasonably expect these details to be treated as confidential. Disclosure of these to a wider audience would undermine this confidentiality and adversely affect the openness with which organisations currently report incidents and participate in the reporting process.

Question reference: S6W-19274

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 19 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 14 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports that mobile phones will soon be replaced by landlines across the prison estate, what the cost of the scheme to provide mobile phones to people in custody has been since it was announced in April 2020.