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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-35563

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 20 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has regarding what proportion of prisoners released under each early release programme in each of the last five years has an outstanding warrant for arrest, also broken down by what proportion has left the UK.

The information requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government and could only be obtained at a disproportionate cost. Outstanding warrants are an operational matter for Police Scotland and other relevant authorities.

Emergency early release regulations have been utilised twice within the last five years (May 2020 and June/July 2024).

Any individuals who were identified during the assessment process as having any outstanding warrants, or court processes, were not eligible for release during either emergency process.

Question reference: S6W-35586

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 20 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government (a) how many and (b) what percentage of police cars are fitted with telematics technology, also broken down by Police Scotland division.

Question reference: S6W-35703

Asked by: Pam Gosal, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 14 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Kaukab Stewart on 20 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many schools were covered by the Equally Safe at School programme in 2022-23.

Question reference: S6W-35672

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 14 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Kaukab Stewart on 20 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has regarding how many people seeking asylum are living in hotels in Scotland, and how many hotels are being used (a) partially and (b) wholly to accommodate asylum seekers.

Under current constitutional arrangements in the UK, asylum is reserved to the UK.

Parliament and handled by the Home Office. This includes the provision of accommodation for people seeking asylum if they would otherwise be destitute while waiting for a decision on their asylum application from the Home Office. The Scottish Government has no control of these processes.

The Scottish Government is aware that hotels have been procured as contingency asylum accommodation in Scotland. Published Home Office statistics indicate that at the end of December 2024 there were 1,421 people seeking asylum accommodated in contingency hotels in Scotland. As the Home Office is responsible for the provision of asylum accommodation, including the use of contingency hotels, questions relating to their operation should be directed to the Home Office.

Question reference: S6W-35685

Asked by: Beatrice Wishart, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 14 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 20 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether the proposed review of the NHS Scotland patient travel scheme will include the impact of local authority visitor levies on NHS patients travelling for treatment.

While the Scottish Government provides the overarching guidance for patient travel expenses reimbursement, NHS Boards are responsible for developing local policy to best meet the needs to their populations, and for assessing eligibly for financial support and level of that support. This includes setting and reviewing reimbursement rates.

Boards are expected to consider local and individual circumstances, ensuring patient care is at the centre of all decisions made.

Question reference: S6W-35684

Asked by: Beatrice Wishart, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Friday, 14 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 20 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-29010 by Neil Gray on 28 August 2024, when it will confirm a start date for the review of the NHS Scotland patient travel scheme.

A start date for the review is not confirmed at this time – it is important that the scope and timing of the review is considered within the context of wider reform on access to health care, which is already underway.

It is recognised that transport to health is a key enabler to ensure equitable access to healthcare, and work to bring travel/transport and health planning closer together is in progress. This work will include bringing local bodies together at a regional level to consider the options for transport to health.

Question reference: S6W-35557

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 20 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has regarding what proportion of prisoners released under each early release programme in each of the last five years (a) were employed, (b) requested voluntary throughcare and (c) were homeless within six months of release.

Emergency early release regulations have been utilised twice within the last five years (May 2020 and June/July 2024).

On both occasions, the conditions of release were as they would have been at the individual’s original scheduled liberation date. Therefore, as those eligible for release were serving short-term sentences, they were not routinely supervised or monitored following their release.

Therefore, information with regards to their housing circumstances, use of voluntary throughcare, and employment status is not held by the Scottish Government.

Question reference: S6W-35523

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 07 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 20 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what installed electricity generating capacity Scottish Water directly owns in relation to wind, hydro and solar electricity generation, and what the current estimated annual revenue value is of any such capacity in (a) cash terms and (b) savings from the use of the grid.

As this is an operational matter for Scottish Water, and the Scottish Government does not hold the information, I have asked them to respond. Their reply is as follows:

Scottish Water Group's (including Scottish Water Horizons) generating capacity by technology (2023-24) is detailed in the following table:

Technology	Installed Capacity (MW)	Actual Output (GWh)
Hydro	7.2	28.8
Solar/PV	23.7	11.1
Wind	0.5	0.9
Bioresources (Combined Heat and Power)	4.5	18.3
Total	35.9	59.1

Scottish Water Group renewables make a significant contribution to reducing Scottish Water’s Tier 1 operating costs: the income received from Feed In Tariff (FIT), Renewable Obligation Certificates (ROC) and export to the grid was £8.6m in 2023-24.

Most of Scottish Water’s renewable assets reduce its reliance on grid electricity and reduce its exposure to electricity price volatility. In 2023-24, Scottish Water saved £5.6m.

Question reference: S6W-35517

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 07 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 20 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what arrangements Scottish Water has in place with private sector providers for wind, hydro and solar electricity generation on land in its ownership or management; what the current capacity in megawatts is of any generation installed; what the most recently recorded annual income was for Scottish Water from any such arrangements, and when each of the arrangements will come to an end.

As this is an operational matter for Scottish Water, and the Scottish Government does not hold the information, I have asked them to respond. Their reply is as follows:

Currently, Scottish Water hosts 0.17MW of hydro (estimated @ 1.3GWh/annum) and 279MW of wind (estimated @ 831GWh/annum).

The income received from hosting 3rd party renewables was £5.9m in 2023-24 and £3.6m in 2024-25 (note that this income tracks the wholesale cost of electricity).

Question reference: S6W-35438

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 06 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 20 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding the target in Zero Waste Scotland’s Corporate Plan to reduce Scotland’s extraction of raw materials by one third, what the (a) start and (b) end date is for this target; what data this is based on, and for what reason one third was chosen as the target.

Zero Waste Scotland's (ZWS) Corporate Plan for 2025-2030 includes present and future targets beyond the life of this Corporate Plan.

The reference to seeking reduction of Scotland's extraction of raw materials by one third is based on a United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) Report, which stresses the importance of high-income countries reducing their material footprint by bending the resource use curve to achieve economic growth, reduced inequality, improved quality of life and dramatically reduced environmental impacts.

During the lifetime of the current Corporate Plan, Scottish Government will continue to work with ZWS in developing data and policies required to establish a baseline and trajectory for future target setting to measure progress towards a circular economy.