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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: S6O-05160

Asked by: Keith Brown, MSP for Clackmannanshire and Dunblane, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 November 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on progress with delivery of the Stirling and Clackmannanshire City Region Deal.

Question reference: S6O-05170

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 November 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how much it has allocated in its Budget for the improvement of road safety on the A77 trunk road.

Question reference: S6O-05181

Asked by: David Torrance, MSP for Kirkcaldy, Scottish National Party
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 November 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 20 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how it is supporting communities and local authorities to adapt to the impacts of climate change, including through nature-based solutions.

Question reference: S6O-05168

Current Status: Withdrawn

Question reference: S6O-05157

Asked by: Edward Mountain, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 November 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how much in total has been paid from the public purse to Ferguson Marine since the award of the contracts for both the Glen Sannox and Glen Rosa.

Question reference: S6O-05186

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 November 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 20 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what progress it is making in discussing Scotland’s Draft Climate Change Plan: 2026–2040 with stakeholders and MSPs.

Question reference: S6O-05184

Current Status: Withdrawn

Question reference: S6O-05169

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 November 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the Scottish Fiscal Commission's recently published Scottish median incomes fact sheet.

Question reference: S6W-41306

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 October 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 12 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any impact of poverty on pupils, in light of the NASUWT’s October 2025 survey findings that 89% of teachers who were surveyed said that pupil behaviour has worsened over the last year and 76% said more pupils are lacking in energy and concentration.

The Scottish Government recognises that poverty is a barrier to learning, and eradicating child poverty in Scotland is a national mission and this Government’s top priority.

Our action is making a real difference to families. On average, households with children in the poorest 10% of households are estimated to be £2,600 a year better off in 2025-26 as a result of Scottish Government policies. This value is projected to grow to an average of £3,700 a year by 2029-30.

We are absolutely committed to meeting the 2030 child poverty targets and will continue to do everything within our powers and budget to deliver the change needed in the face of challenging economic conditions. We will publish our third child poverty delivery plan by the end of March 2026, setting out the actions to be taken between 2026-2031 to meet the final targets.

In terms of poverty and education, research has shown that the poverty-related attainment gap emerges early in a child’s life, with data indicating a disparity in cognitive development in the Early Years and Primary School – the Growing Up in Scotland (GUS) longitudinal study found that at age 5, compared to children in the lowest income quintile, those in the highest income quintile were around 13 months ahead in their knowledge of vocabulary, and 10 months ahead in their problem-solving ability.

The negative impacts of poverty on children and young people continue right through the learner journey, with the GUS survey finding that, at entry into primary school and at age 8, children in the lowest income group were more likely to have high levels of social, emotional and behavioural difficulties and to have lower life satisfaction. The Health and Wellbeing Census found that the mental health gap between the most and least deprived pupils reaches its highest between S1 and S3, with evidence suggesting that pupils from more deprived areas were less likely to have a high level of support from parents/carers, trusted adults, and peers.

In recognition of those challenges, the Scottish Government has a range of policies to support children and young people to engage with education and support their readiness to learn. These policies include:

?Investment of up to £1 billion in the Scottish Attainment Challenge to improve outcomes for children and young people impacted by poverty, with a focus on closing the poverty-related attainment gap. There is a vast body of analysis of this programme, including consideration of readiness to learn and the views of children and young people.

?Supported by the Scottish Attainment Challenge, there are lots of examples of how schools are supporting young people to overcome the barriers of poverty, including St Machar Academy in Aberdeen which has a highly effective partnership with the local football club, with an alternative curriculum offer focusing on health, wellbeing, communication and confidence building. Another example is St Ignatius Primary School in North Lanarkshire, which has invested PEF in developing a bespoke tracking system. This allows them to target tailored interventions such as Forest clubs, to encourage improved attendance, attainment and the engagement of children – all underpinned by a lens-like focus on data.

?Free school meals are a crucial element of the Scottish Government’s ambition to eradicate child poverty. This offer is currently available to over 230,000 pupils in primaries 1 to 5 and in special schools across Scotland, plus eligible pupils in Primary 6 to Secondary 6, saving families who take up this offer around £450 per child per year.

?In the current financial year, we have also provided local authorities with funding of £14.2 million in 2025-26 to enable them to maintain the school clothing grant.

Further, in August 2024, the Scottish Government published a national relationships and behaviour action plan to address the concerns raised in the Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research (BISSR). The plan is jointly owned with COSLA, given the statutory responsibility for the delivery of education rests with our councils. The plan was developed in collaboration with SAGRABIS, which NASUWT are a member of. The plan sets out 20 actions to be taken by 2027, including actions to reduce violence in schools in response to the current evidence on relationships and behaviours in Scotland’s schools. As well as tackling violence, it will address issues including attendance, young people’s mental health, exclusion and empowering staff.

As part of the action plan, in June we published new guidance to support school staff in fostering a positive, inclusive, and safe school environment, including the use of consequences alongside guidance on risk assessments for violent, aggressive, and dangerous behaviour. The guidance was developed in collaboration with key stakeholders including teaching unions (including NASUWT), Headteachers, COSLA and ADES.

Question reference: S6W-41283

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 13 October 2025
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 12 November 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will support Glasgow City Council and Glasgow's 59 housing associations to establish a Common Housing Register to improve the efficiency of housing stock allocation in the city.

The responsibility for the management of allocating housing in the social rented sector lies with local authorities and housing associations. It is for them to determine the most effective way to manage allocation policy to balance the housing needs of their communities and addresses the relative needs of individuals.

The Scottish Government continues to see Common Housing Registers as a potentially useful way of simplifying and maximising access to social housing. Where local authorities and housing associations have determined that this is the best way to manage allocations in their local circumstances, we support this through information provided at Common Housing Register (CHR) - building a register: a practitioner's guide - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)