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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.

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Question reference: S6W-30498

Asked by: Pam Gosal, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don-Innes on 29 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to develop a roadmap to delivering 50 hours of high-quality, flexible funded childcare to all children aged six months and over.

Scotland is the only part of the UK that already offers 30 hours per week, in term time, of funded ELC to all 3 and 4-year-olds regardless of whether their parents are working or not. We also make 1140 hours available to around a quarter of 2 year olds and to all children whose entry to primary school is deferred.

It is far from clear that a universal system of government funded childcare would deliver either value for money for the Scottish taxpayer or the best outcomes for our children and young people.

Before turning to the detail, I think it is important to recognise the financial context that the Scottish Government is currently having to work within. As the Cabinet Secretary for Finance outlined in the fiscal statement on 3 September, we cannot shy away from the fact that Scotland continues to face one of the most difficult public spending environments that this devolved Parliament has ever seen.

That is why we have committed in this year’s Programme for Government to work with local authorities to maximise uptake of funded early learning and childcare for eligible two-year-olds, with a particular focus on families most at risk of poverty and areas with some of the lowest uptake rates.

Over the next two years we are also investing £16 million within six early adopter communities to continue our work to understand what it takes to design and deliver local childcare systems that support those families most at risk of living in poverty.

The engagement and targeted delivery that takes place for younger children in our six EACs will be a key element of our developing evidence base to inform future delivery.

We are continuing to support the ‘Extra Time’ Programme, investing £4 million in a partnership with the Scottish Football Association to deliver before, after school and breakfast clubs, providing 3,000 targeted free places each week for children and their families. We have also invested close to £1 million to deliver free or subsidised school age childcare services through our Access to Childcare projects. These projects consider specific challenges for families, including remote and rural childcare provision, and specialist provision for children with disabilities or complex additional support needs.

We remain committed to expanding funded ELC to reach more young children and to building a system of School Age Childcare, and we are going as far and as fast as budgets allow to deliver that.

Question reference: S6W-30507

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Kaukab Stewart on 29 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the Office of National Statistics mid-year population estimates for the UK and its constituent countries for mid-2023, which shows that Scotland experienced a natural population decline of 19,100 between 2022 and 2023.

Scottish Government welcomes the mid-year 2023 population estimates, which show inward migration driving the biggest single-year increase in Scotland’s population since the 1940s. Scotland continues to be an attractive and welcoming country which people from across the UK and internationally are choosing to call home.

With deaths continuing to outnumber births, these statistics underline the importance of delivering our Population Strategy’s ambition to make Scotland as family friendly as possible, and for collaboration between the Scottish and UK Governments to deliver tailored migration approaches which meet Scotland’s needs, including our Rural Visa Pilot proposal.

Question reference: S6W-30506

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 08 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don-Innes on 29 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-29823 by Natalie Don-Innes on 25 September 2024, when it will publish the National Transitions to Adulthood Strategy.

Allowing sufficient time to support the meaningful engagement and participation of those the Strategy will affect, including robust analysis of their views, and ensuring that it can be published alongside a range of accessible formats to meet the needs of those it aims to support has remained of central importance to the Scottish Government throughout the Strategy’s development.

This was reiterated during a recent meeting of the External Strategic Working Group who reviewed the aim of publishing the Strategy by the end of 2024 and concluded that publication in Spring 2025 presents a more favourable timeline to achieving this.

Question reference: S6W-30353

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Kaukab Stewart on 29 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding its commitments on inclusive communication, what alternative legislation or regulations were considered beyond any restrictions identified under the Equality Act 2010, and what the reasons were for any such alternative routes not being pursued.

Our commitment relating to inclusive communication was part of our work considering improvements to the operation of the Public Sector Equality Duty (“PSED”) in Scotland, which is contained in section 149(1) of the Equality Act 2010. The Scottish Government has limited competence to legislate in relation to equal opportunities including the PSED.

In relation to supporting public authorities to better comply with the PSED, the only available legislation making power Scottish Ministers have is to impose specific duties under the Equality Act 2010, therefore no other alternative legislative route is available.

Question reference: S6W-30088

Asked by: Martin Whitfield, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 30 September 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 29 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish what direct engagement the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills had with young people, in light of the comments made in her ministerial statement on 19 September 2024 on the Scottish Government's response to the recommendations from the Independent Review of Qualifications and Assessment.

I routinely discuss the development of education policy, including in respect of qualifications and assessment, with young people through frequent visits to schools and a range of other events and meetings. The Scottish Government does not intend to publish details of this range of engagements.

I also met with representatives of the Scottish Youth Parliament (SYP) on the 19th of September, prior to the statement, to provide an overview of the Scottish Government response to the Independent Review of Qualifications and Assessment ahead of its publication.

The views of young people have, and continue to be, vital to informing our approach to evolving the qualifications and assessment system and I remain committed to meaningfully engaging with young people (including the SYP) as we take this work forward.

Question reference: S6T-02160

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 28 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that Young Enterprise Scotland faces closure due to it withdrawing its support.

Question reference: S6T-02150

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 28 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason it launched a court appeal against a ruling by the Scottish Information Commissioner, in light of this costing tens of thousands of pounds and it reportedly receiving legal advice that it was likely to fail.

Question reference: S6F-03462

Asked by: Russell Findlay, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 28 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 31 October 2024

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6F-03464

Asked by: Lorna Slater, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 28 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 31 October 2024

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6F-03463

Asked by: Anas Sarwar, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 28 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 31 October 2024

Question to be taken in Chamber.