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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: S6O-05232

Asked by: Rona Mackay, MSP for Strathkelvin and Bearsden, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 November 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 3 December 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how it supports cultural initiatives in East Dunbartonshire, such as Acorn Shed Music, to expand opportunities for participation in the arts across all age groups.

Question reference: S6O-05235

Asked by: Stuart McMillan, MSP for Greenock and Inverclyde, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 November 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 3 December 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on any progress that is being made to replace Greenock Police Station and increase police officer numbers in Inverclyde.

Question reference: S6O-05238

Asked by: Douglas Ross, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 November 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 3 December 2025

To ask the Scottish Government for what reasons it is choosing not to answer any questions on the court proceedings in relation to its policy on transgender prisoners, which allows biological male prisoners to be housed in women’s prisons, despite the Supreme Court’s recent ruling, in light of section 5 of the Contempt of Court Act 1981 allowing matters of general public interest to be discussed.

Question reference: S6O-05241

Asked by: Sue Webber, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 November 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 3 December 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to respond to the reported increase in antisocial behaviour and criminality associated with people using e-bikes.

Question reference: S6O-05256

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 26 November 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 December 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how it is supporting skills development to promote the future of the north east fishing industry.

Question reference: S6W-41958

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 17 November 2025
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 26 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what steps are being taken to improve broadband reliability in rural Scotland ahead of the switch-off of the Public Switched Telephone Network, in light of the fact that digital landlines depend on internet connectivity.

In the past decade, Scottish public sector-led digital infrastructure programmes have enabled over one million faster broadband connections. Through the Reaching 100% (R100) and Project Gigabit in Scotland (PGiS) programmes, we are continuing to accelerate access to future-proofed full fibre broadband for those who need it most, despite Scotland having some of the most challenging terrain in which to deploy digital infrastructure in Europe.

The switch-off of the Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) in the UK is industry-led, with oversight from the UK Government’s Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT), reflecting that telecoms legislation is reserved.

Question reference: S6W-41930

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 17 November 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 26 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answers to questions S6W-33389 and S6W-38959 by Neil Gray on 24 January 2025 and 1 July 2025 respectively, whether the business case for a new pre-hospital emergency critical care replacement service has been completed and submitted for consideration, and, if so, by what date the commissioning of a new pre-hospital service to replace Medic One will be completed.

The Scottish Government is awaiting the final business case from the Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS) for a new pre-hospital emergency critical care replacement service.

The development of this business case has been a complex process and work is now nearing completion.

Once received, it will be reviewed through the relevant governance processes. Until that review is complete, it is not possible to confirm a commissioning date for the new service to replace Medic One. Interim arrangements continue to provide critical care.

Question reference: S6W-41848

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 13 November 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 26 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to prevent cases collapsing as a result of witness disengagement caused by repeated adjournments.

The progress of criminal cases through the courts is an independent matter for those involved in the cases directly including those who administer the running of the courts; namely Crown Office and Prosecutor Fiscal Service, the judiciary and Scottish Courts and Tribunals Service (SCTS).

Within this context, the criminal court backlogs generated by the pandemic in Scotland has largely been addressed and the position is that the number of scheduled trials across all criminal business types is below 20,000. Specifically, the total number of scheduled trials outstanding peaked at 43,606 in January 2022 and had reduced to 16,196 at the end of September 2025 (this represents more than 60% reduction). This significantly reduces the waiting time in which victims, witnesses and the accused await their trial.

While this demonstrates the success of the criminal court recovery programme, court modelling undertaken by SCTS shows that the level of business entering Scotland’s criminal courts has changed since before the pandemic. In particular there has been a sustained increase in solemn business levels (High Court and Sheriff and Jury cases) which now sit at twice their 2019-20 level. Work across all relevant interests continues to focus on reducing times for more serious cases of which, by their very nature, are more complex and tend to carry a more time-consuming process to conclude.

We have awarded £48 million to victims’ organisations, which includes £18 million for Victim Support Scotland for the period 2022-2025 under our Victim Centred Approach Fund as part of a commitment to putting victims and witnesses at the heart of the justice system. This fund will continue through 2025-27 where we will be providing £32 million to 23 organisations, including £12 million for specialist advocacy support for survivors of gender-based violence.

Question reference: S6W-41834

Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 13 November 2025
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 26 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the Scottish Retail Consortium’s suggestion in its Scottish Budget 2026–27 recommendations paper that the business rate levied on the 2,400 shops liable for the higher property rate results in them collectively paying £9 million more each year in rates than counterparts in similar sized stores in England.

While some shops, and other rateable non-domestic properties, are liable for the Higher Property Rate, the Scottish Government continues to offer a competitive non-domestic rates regime and the 2025-26 Budget delivered the lowest Basic Property Rate in the UK for the seventh year in a row.

This ensures that over 95% of shops in Scotland are liable for a lower rate than anywhere else in the UK. In addition, the Small Business Bonus Scheme remains the most generous scheme of its kind in the UK, and the retail sector continues to be one of its main beneficiaries, with 30,000 shops receiving SBBS relief, reducing their collective rates bill by £86 million as at June 2025. Overall, 34,000 shops receive rates relief, worth over £110 million, and half of all shops in Scotland pay no rates.

These figures relate to the ‘shops’ property class, as defined by the Scottish Assessors. Property class is a classification used by Scottish Assessors to describe the type of property and does not necessarily accurately reflect the actual use of a property.

Question reference: S6W-42095

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 20 November 2025
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 26 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many of the 4×4 or multi-role vehicles procured by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service in the last three years have entered operational service, and how many are currently awaiting deployment.

All vehicles listed in the answer to question S6W-42094 on 26 November 2025 have been deployed except for two of the Ford Ranger Multi-Role Units (which are at the final stage of commissioning work expected to be deployed by next month) and the Ford Ranger Ultra-Light Pumping Units. These units required additional configuration from the supplier. As present, five of eight are completed, and all eight units are expected to be deployed within the next few weeks. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers.