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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-07541

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 March 2022
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 21 April 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how many strip searches have been carried out by Police Scotland on under 18-year-olds in each of the last three years, broken down by (a) age and (b) gender.

The Scottish Government does not hold information on the number of strip searches carried out by Police Scotland. This information is held by Police Scotland.

Data Publication - Police Scotland .

The Stop and Search Code of Practice stipulates that a record must be made of any search in the exercise of any power to which the Code applies. The Code also sets out what information must be recorded, including whether a search was a standard search, a strip search within a police station, a strip search outwith a police station, or an intimate search. Police Scotland publish this data quarterly on their website:

Additionally, section 7 of the Code of Practice outlines additional considerations that should be taken when a search involves a child or a young person, requiring Police Officers to ensure that their actions are fully compatible with the young person’s human rights under the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child.

Question reference: S6W-07540

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 March 2022
Current Status: Answered by Keith Brown on 21 April 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how many strip searches have taken place at (a) young offenders institutions and (b) secure units, in each of the last three years, broken down by age of the individual searched.

The Scottish Prison Service carries out ‘rub down searches’ or ‘full body searches’ rather than strip searches. These are performed in line with SPS search procedures, and are not recorded. Information on the number of body searches carried out is not collated centrally.

The Care Inspectorate is responsible for the regulation of care services for children and young people in Scotland, and assessing safety is a key element of inspection.

Within secure care, this extends to considering how the service protects children and young people from unsafe and unknown articles being brought into the service. The Care Inspectorate require each secure care service to keep records if a member of staff needs to search any person or their property. The service’s record should identify reasons for a search , the person authorising, staff involved and any subsequent action arising. The Care Inspectorate does not hold aggregated or centralised data.

Scotland’s secure centres all subscribe to the October 2020 secure care pathways and standards, co-designed with young people who have experience of secure care. All secure centres have written search policies reflecting the expectations set out in those standards. There is no central data on the number of strip searches carried out in each independent secure unit.

Question reference: S6O-01017

Asked by: Donald Cameron, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 April 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 28 April 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that anyone living with MS has access to a specialist nurse in their NHS board area.

Question reference: S6O-01021

Asked by: John Mason, MSP for Glasgow Shettleston, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 April 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 28 April 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how many refugees and asylum seekers from Afghanistan have arrived in Scotland since the Taliban’s return to power in 2021.

Question reference: S6O-01020

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 April 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 28 April 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to address the reported increase in levels of violence and antisocial behaviour in Glasgow city centre.

Question reference: S6O-01019

Asked by: Stephanie Callaghan, MSP for Uddingston and Bellshill, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 April 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 28 April 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to extend the NHS Scotland COVID Status app to 12- to 15-year-olds in order to support the increasing number of families that are returning to international travel.

Question reference: S6O-01016

Current Status: Withdrawn

Question reference: S6O-01014

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 April 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 28 April 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the provision of funded laptops, tablets and internet connections for young people across Scotland.

Question reference: S6O-01018

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 April 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 28 April 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how many incidents of dog theft there have been in the last five years.

Question reference: S6O-00994

Asked by: Mercedes Villalba, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 April 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 27 April 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any potential impact on its Covid Recovery Strategy of its decision to end the universal provision of lateral flow tests.