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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-08576

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 17 May 2022
Current Status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 26 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether further funding will be provided in addition to the recently announced £15 million Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund investment, in order to match the £22 million investment in the financial year 2021-22.

In October 2021, I was delighted to launch the Communities Mental Health and Wellbeing Fund for adults, supported by a £15 million investment for 2021-22. This funding has now been successfully distributed to a wide range of grassroots, community based projects across Scotland. A further £15 million was announced this month for a second year of the Fund in 2022-23.

£15 million in both 2021-22 and 2022-23 is a significant investment in grassroots, community mental health and wellbeing support. To date, almost 2000 awards have been made to projects, focused on a range of at risk groups including older people and those facing social isolation, people with long-term health conditions and people facing socio-economic disadvantage. This is making a real difference to mental health and wellbeing in many communities.

To aid with pandemic recovery and respond to the high demand for community projects in 2021-22, an additional £6 million was provided in February, bringing total funding for 2021-22 to £21 million. We will continue to build on the success of this work in Year 2, and ensure that the sizeable additional £15 million investment makes a valuable impact on mental health and wellbeing within communities across Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-08577

Asked by: Dr Alasdair Allan, MSP for Na h-Eileanan an Iar, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 17 May 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 26 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what plans are in place to continue to support clinical physiology education and training, in light of the viability of the only clinical physiology degree programme in Scotland reportedly being at risk.

Question reference: S6W-08363

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 May 2022
Current Status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 26 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what the average salary for a college principal in Scotland has been in each of the last five years, and what steps are taken to ensure that pay to senior management provides value for money.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information. Principals' salaries are for individual colleges to determine.

Whilst Public Sector Pay Policy does not apply directly to colleges, the SFC’s Financial Memorandum states that colleges must have regard to it.

We expect colleges and their boards to be mindful of Public Sector Pay Policy and demonstrate restraint when determining senior staff salaries.

Pay arrangements for senior staff must ensure value for money, affordability and sustainability in the longer term.

Question reference: S6W-08354

Asked by: Graham Simpson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 May 2022
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 26 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown of ScotRail’s current rolling stock by (a) age and (b) the year that the trains will reach the end of their working life.

The following table represents a breakdown of the current ScotRail rolling stock by class of train, year built and approximate age. There is no single lifespan for a train: any decision to replace a train fleet is based on multiple evaluation criteria. While there are no expiry dates attached to the current train fleet, the Rail Passenger Services Decarbonisation Action Plan commits to all diesel trains (both multiple unit types and High Speed Trains (HSTs)) being replaced by 2035.

Class	Year of Build	Approx. age
318	1986	36
320	1990	32
334	2001	21
280	2010	12
385	2018	4
153	1987	35
156	1989	33
158	1992	30
170	1999 to 2005	23 to 17
HST MK3 Coach	1976 to 1984	46 to 30
HST Class 43	1975 to 1982	47 to 40

Question reference: S6W-08131

Asked by: Alex Rowley, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 21 April 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 26 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how many people who signed up to help deliver the COVID-19 vaccination programme have now taken permanent roles within the NHS in Scotland.

We are grateful to all those staff who supported the delivery of Scotland's Covid-19 vaccination campaign, a significant number of whom were already employed across primary care services or drawn from substantive roles across NHS Scotland. All those individuals deployed in roles normally undertaken by substantive staff were employed by NHS Scotland for the duration of their involvement.

To enable a sustainable vaccination workforce, funding has been made available to Boards, which enables those on fixed-term contracts to be recruited to permanent posts. The Scottish Government expects Boards to support where possible, the redeployment of staff, to retain the valuable skills and experience that this workforce has developed.

Question reference: S6W-07963

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 08 April 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 26 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has for the future of the NHS 24/7 staff helpline.

Question reference: S6W-07923

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 07 April 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 26 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how many retired staff have returned to work in the NHS during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The requested information is not centrally held. NHS Education for Scotland publishes annual data on joiners/leavers, but this information does not specify start date or professional background of joiners.

Information on joiners/leavers by staff group for each financial year can be found (turnover tab) here: https://turasdata.nes.nhs.scot/data-and-reports/official-workforce-statistics/all-official-statistics-publications/01-march-2022-workforce/dashboards/nhsscotland-workforce/?pageid=6429 .

Question reference: S6O-01149

Asked by: Natalie Don-Innes, MSP for Renfrewshire North and West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 May 2022
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 26 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update regarding the implementation of the powers in the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019 that make provision for allowing local authorities to run their own bus services from July.

As I said in March, we are committed to delivering the powers under section 34 of the 2019 Act before the summer recess to enable local authorities to run their own bus services in a way that they see fit within the wider context of their obligations. This power sits alongside their existing ability to subsidise services. We intend to deliver that commitment and are currently working with local transport authorities on the development of an information note to help implement the provision.

Question reference: S6O-01176

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 May 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 1 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how many people in Central Scotland have been helped onto the property ladder through government schemes since 2016-17.

Question reference: S6O-01174

Asked by: Colin Beattie, MSP for Midlothian North and Musselburgh, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 25 May 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 1 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the new National Litter and Flytipping Strategy for Scotland.