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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-38483

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 09 June 2025
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 16 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what actions it is taking to increase the number of breeding (a) cattle and (b) sheep.

The Scottish Government does not set targets for the number of breeding cattle or sheep in Scotland. Livestock numbers are primarily driven by market conditions and individual business decisions.

However, we are committed to supporting a resilient and sustainable livestock sector. This includes continued investment in schemes such as the Scottish Suckler Beef Support Scheme, which provides £40 million annually to support beef producers and encourage improvements in herd efficiency, and the Scottish Upland Sheep Support Scheme to provide support to breeding hill flocks.

We also provide broader direct support to sheep and cattle producers through the Basic Payment Scheme and Less Favoured Areas Support Scheme payments – in stark contrast to the UK Government approach.

Through our Vision for Agriculture and ongoing reform programme, we will continue to work with farmers and crofters to ensure future support enables productive, sustainable farming.

We remain concerned that recent UK trade deals, agreed without meaningful consultation with the Scottish Government, risk undermining domestic livestock production by allowing imports produced to lower environmental and welfare standards—potentially increasing global emissions and undercutting Scotland’s high-quality producers.

Question reference: S6W-38377

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 16 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many new event duration monitors have been fitted to sewage overflows in 2025, and how many monitors in total have been installed as a part of the Improving Urban Waters Route Map.

As this is an operational matter for Scottish Water, I have asked them to respond. Their reply is as follows:

Scottish Water has already installed 1,000 event duration monitors to meet the commitment set out within its Improving Urban Waters Routemap. Scottish Water plans to go beyond this commitment and install a further 700 this year, aiming to cover around 50% of overflows. Scottish Water has installed 135 of these further monitors in 2025.

Question reference: S6W-38464

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 06 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jim Fairlie on 16 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-37894 by Jim Fairlie on 3 June 2025, whether it will provide the information requested, specifically regarding what its position is on what role precision agriculture has in reducing nitrous oxide emissions from fertiliser use, and for what reason it did not provide this information in its answer.

The answer to question S6W-37894 referred to a range of economic and environmental benefits that the Scottish Government believes can be delivered through the use of precision agriculture. These are understood to include the reduction of nitrous oxide emissions through more targeted use of fertiliser. An example of this in practice can be found on the website of the SG funded Farm Advisory Service at Optimise your Nutrient Management with Precision Manure Spreading Technology | Information helping farmers in Scotland | Farm Advisory Service

Question reference: S6W-38388

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 05 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 16 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the UK Government committing £10 million of new funding in 2025-26 for trading standards in England to tackle underage sales of tobacco and vapes, prevent sales of illicit tobacco and nicotine products, and fund up to 80 more apprentice enforcement officers, how much funding it is committing to (a) support trading standards teams in Scotland with the ban on single-use disposable vapes, which came into effect on 1 June 2025, and (b) address any challenges in stopping sales of illicit tobacco and nicotine products in communities.

Enforcement of Tobacco and Vapes legislation, including the Single Use Vape (SUV) regulations is a local government issue, and in line with the Verity House Agreement we do not ring-fence or direct local authority funding.

Funding is provided annually to Local Government and they have responsibility for working to ensure local budget decisions deliver local and national priorities, including those on the enforcement of existing legislation, including on underage sales and illicit tobacco and vapes and the single use vape ban.

In addition, the Scottish Government has made £300k available for transitional costs associated with the ban on SUVs, and to support recycling and responsible disposal of SUV’s seized by local authorities.

We work closely with the Society of Chief Officers of Trading Standards in Scotland (SCOTSS) to support enforcement of existing legislation, including on underage sales and illicit tobacco and vapes. This includes providing funding of £46k for the SCOTSS national co-ordinator role for Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-38093

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 02 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 16 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the reported 600% increase in serious assaults by teenagers over the last five years.

Question reference: S6W-38701

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 13 June 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 27 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how much it has spent through public procurement in each of the last five years, broken down by (a) supplier location and (b) how much went to (i) small to medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) and (ii) larger enterprises.

Question reference: S6W-38709

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 13 June 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 27 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what measurable reductions in (a) littering and (b) fly-tipping have been recorded since the implementation of the National Litter and Flytipping Strategy 2023-24 Action Plan, and whether it will provide a breakdown by local authority area of (i) any such data and (ii) the number of incidents reported within this timeframe.

Question reference: S6W-38718

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 13 June 2025
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answer expected on 27 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any financial impact of fly-tipping on (a) rural landowners and (b) farmers, and what measures it is taking to support the removal of dumped waste on private land.

Question reference: S6W-38641

Asked by: Davy Russell, MSP for Hamilton, Larkhall and Stonehouse, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 13 June 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 27 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, as part of its work with football organisations, what discussions it has had with the Scottish Professional Football League (SPFL) on the reported proposed move by Hamilton Academical FC.

Question reference: S6W-38715

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 13 June 2025
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answer expected on 27 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what engagement it has had with the construction, agricultural and retail sectors to prevent commercial fly-tipping, and what outcomes have resulted from any such discussions.