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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-04910

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 September 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 10 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that paid-for visits at private health clinics in the first quarter of the year were at the highest level recorded in a single quarter.

Question reference: S6O-04923

Asked by: Jamie Halcro Johnston, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 September 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 11 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what percentage increase in re-determinations of Pension Age Disability Payment assessments there has been since January 2025.

Question reference: S6O-04906

Asked by: Katy Clark, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 September 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 10 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the recently published report by National Records of Scotland, Healthy Life Expectancy 2021-2023.

Question reference: S6O-04908

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 September 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 10 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on the number of children currently waiting for an ADHD assessment and the median length of wait.

Question reference: S6O-04902

Asked by: Elena Whitham, MSP for Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 September 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 10 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to support small-scale food producers in rural communities, in light of its commitments under the National Good Food Nation Plan.

Question reference: S6W-40126

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 August 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 3 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether any formal requirement is placed on NHS boards to record the age of all GP premises in their geographical regions as part of preparing property strategies for investment prioritisation and for this information to be directly communicated to ministers.

Question reference: S6W-40123

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 26 August 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 3 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government when it last reviewed The Primary Medical Services - (Premises Development Grants, Improvement Grants and Premises Costs) Directions 2004, and whether there are plans to update the existing directive.

Question reference: S6W-40030

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 22 August 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 3 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) care homes and (b) care home places there (i) were in 2015 and (ii) currently are, broken down by local authority area.

Question reference: S6W-39897

Asked by: Ash Regan, MSP for Edinburgh Eastern, Alba Party
Date lodged: Friday, 15 August 2025
Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don-Innes on 3 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of its public appointments guide, which states that “terms of appointment vary from role to role and are usually between one and five years” and that “the total period of appointment in one role on one board may not exceed eight years”, for what reason a member of the Children’s Hearings Scotland (CHS) Board, appointed on 1 July 2017, has reportedly had their term extended until 30 September 2025, in apparent breach of this guidance; what action is being taken in response to any such non-compliance by CHS with this appointments policy, and on what grounds the decision was made to exceed the maximum term permitted.

Under the Children’s Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011, board members of Children’s Hearings Scotland are appointed through a public appointments process regulated by the Ethical Standards Commissioner (ESC). Appointments are typically made for a standard term of up to four years, with the possibility of reappointment for up to four more years. Where the legislation governing the body allows, and the ESC and the appointing minister are content, short-term extensions beyond the 8 years, such as the one specified here, can also be granted in exceptional circumstances. This is highlighted in The Code of Practice, under Section H.2:

In exceptional circumstances, the Scottish Ministers may make appropriate appointments (including reappointments or extensions), with the agreement of the Commissioner, to ensure the effective continuing governance of boards.

Due to a delay in the appointment process for new board members, an existing member of the Board had their appointment extended. This process was managed by the Scottish Government, with the agreement of CHS.

The news release announcing this extension states that it was regulated by the Ethical Standards Commissioner, and can be accessed publicly here: https://www.gov.scot/publications/public-appointment-member-appointment-extended-on-the-childrens-hearings-scotland-board/

Question reference: S6W-39915

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 15 August 2025
Current Status: Answered by Kaukab Stewart on 3 September 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what action it has taken to support initiatives that encourage workplace policies and practices that contain the values of Equally Safe.

Under Equally Safe, Scotland’s strategy for preventing and eradicating violence against women and girls, we are progressing a range of activity to eradicate and prevent VAWG through the priorities identified in the Equally Safe Delivery Plan that we published last year. Included within the Delivery Plan is the commitment to develop a streamlined approach to trauma-informed workplace practices that will promote and enhance VAWG knowledge, skills and expertise.

The Delivery Plan contains the actions we are taking to achieve this, including that we will support and promote initiatives that exemplify and promote workplace policies and practices that take a gendered analysis of VAWG and embed the principles of Equally Safe, particularly in the public and third sectors.

Under this action we are continuing to support Close the Gap on the Equally Safe at Work employer accreditation programme, which helps employers in local government, the NHS and third sector to develop gender and VAWG sensitive workplace practices.

The Delivery Plan also contains the action to develop and implement a national framework that will inform an approach to trauma-informed VAWG training and workforce development across the public and the third sectors, which we fund Scottish Women’s Aid to lead on. We are working with them and key stakeholders to ready the framework for implementation across the public and third sectors in spring 2026.

There is no place for harassment or abuse in the workplace, and everyone deserves to be respected and to feel safe in their working environment no matter their job or industry. All employers have a duty of care to protect the health, safety and welfare of their workers.

While employment law is reserved to the UK Parliament we continue to use our Fair Work policy to drive up labour market standards for workers across Scotland. Fair Work First criteria in procurement and grants is the tool we use to raise employment standards in Scotland and to promote more diverse workforces. Our Fair Work First guidance encourages all employers to have in place robust workplace policies for handling issues such as bullying or harassment and it provides advice and signposting to our Equally Safe strategy and the Equally Safe at Work framework.

On 25 April 2025 we launched our Fair Work Resource Hub for employers where they can find all relevant guidance, advice, case studies, signposting and networking opportunities on removing barriers to Fair Work for many workers, including signposting to guidance on preventing sexual harassment at work.