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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-34563

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 06 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 21 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how it ensures that park home site owners comply with safety and maintenance standards.

Local authorities are the licensing authority for permanent residential mobile home sites in their area and are responsible for setting the licence conditions and enforcing them if breached.

To ensure a degree of consistency, under section 5(6) of the Caravan Sites and Control of Development Act 1960, the Scottish Government publishes guidance (https://www.gov.scot/publications/guidance-local-authorities-licensing-system-mobile-homes-sites-permanent-residents/) to local authorities on how to operate the licencing system effectively. This includes a set of model standards (https://www.gov.scot/publications/model-standards-residential-mobile-home-site-licences/) for sites which covers issues such as site safety and maintenance, supply of utilities, roads, gateways and traffic routes as well as pedestrian routes. Different organisations have responsibility for enforcing safety standards, depending on the service provided.

Question reference: S6W-34333

Asked by: Richard Leonard, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 31 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Dorothy Bain on 21 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many reports have been made (a) each calendar year and (b) since 1 January 2025 to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service (COPFS) under the Fireworks and Pyrotechnic Articles (Scotland) Act 2022, and how many subsequent (i) prosecutions and (ii) convictions there have been.

The following tables have been produced in answer to the question above. Table 1 shows figures for charges reported under the Fireworks and Pyrotechnic Articles (Scotland) Act 2022, Table 2 shows figures for charges reported with aggravations under the Fireworks and Pyrotechnic Articles (Scotland) Act 2022. It should be noted that cases which are reported in any given year may not result in prosecutions or convictions until subsequent years. Figures for 2025 cover the period from 01 January 2025 to 03 February 2025.

Table 1 Charges reported under the Fireworks and Pyrotechnic Articles (Scotland) Act 2022

Year	Reported Cases	Prosecutions	Convictions
2022	0	0	0
2023	31	20	08
2024	64	28	07
2025	06	0	0

Table 2 Cases reported with aggravations based on the Fireworks and Pyrotechnic Articles (Scotland) Act 2022

Year	Reported Cases	Prosecutions	Convictions
2022	22	2	2
2023	54	9	1
2024	14	10	0
2025	0	0	0

Question reference: S6W-34170

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 30 January 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 21 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many teachers have been signed off work due to stress in each year since 2018, broken down by local authority.

Question reference: S6W-34496

Asked by: Tess White, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 21 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-31037 by Jenny Gilruth on 15 November 2024, whether it will provide an update on what progress it is making in taking forward its work to update the School Premises (General Requirements and Standards) (Scotland) Regulations 1967, and by what date it plans to re-consult on the regulations.

The Scottish Government intends to refresh and modernise the School Premises Regulations (General Requirements and Standards) (Scotland) to ensure that they meet the needs of pupils and schools in Scotland. The Scottish Government still intends to re-consult this year on the Regulations.

Scottish Government officials are taking steps to engage with relevant stakeholders and will be reaching out to further interested parties.

Question reference: S6W-34604

Asked by: Craig Hoy, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 07 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 21 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether the First Minister’s stated priorities are currently considered as superseding the National Performance Framework where and whether they conflict.

Question reference: S6W-34775

Asked by: Mercedes Villalba, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 07 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 21 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-32232 by Gillian Martin on 19 December 2024, which states that fisheries management measures are not a national or regional planning matter, how it will ensure that the views of environmental, recreational and commercial representatives are adequately reflected in inshore fisheries management and governance.

Our Fisheries Management and Conservation group, including its subgroups, already includes representation covering environmental, recreational and commercial interests. In addition, we currently have an open Call for Evidence to inform the development of the Inshore Fisheries Management Improvement Programme. This asks a range of questions about our current and future framework for inshore fisheries management in Scotland, including on Governance and co-management. Responses to the Call for Evidence will help to inform the development of this framework.

Question reference: S6W-34564

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 06 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 21 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what support is available for residents who are in dispute with park home site owners.

Disputes with a site owner about agreements under the Mobile Homes Act 1983 are decided in the Sheriff Court in Scotland. Residents would usually be advised to seek independent legal advice if they believe a site owner is not meeting their legal obligations.

The Scottish Government funds a consumer service, Advice Direct Scotland (ADS), that provides clear, practical advice on all consumer issues to people in Scotland and can refer cases to a local Trading Standards team. Shelter Scotland also has information about Mobile Homes on its website.

In addition to the formal processes for resolving any dispute, if the site operator is a member of the British Holiday & Home Parks Association a resident can approach them. They cannot make a decision in a dispute between a site owner and a resident but they do offer a conciliation service which aims to assist the parties to reach agreement.

The Scottish Confederation of Park Home Residents Associations also provides useful information and support to help residents.

Question reference: S6W-34571

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 06 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 21 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how it will support residents in cases where park home sites are sold or transferred to new owners.

Scottish Government does not have a role in the sale or transfer of sites between owners. Under the terms of residential mobile home site licencing, anyone who applies for a site licence as the result of the sale or transfer of a site will need to meet the license conditions set by the local authority. This includes completing a 'fit and proper person test' to make sure the person holding the site licence (and the person who manages the site, if it's someone else) is an appropriate person to have one.

Question reference: S6W-34613

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 07 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 21 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how much electricity has been generated by any solar panels installed on government-owned buildings in each of the last five years.

Question reference: S6W-34612

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 07 February 2025
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 21 February 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what the expected lifespan is of any solar panels installed on government-owned buildings, and what the estimated cost is of their (a) maintenance and (b) eventual replacement.

The solar panels installed on core Scottish Government buildings have an output warranty of 25 years. The panels will continue to operate past 25 years, however their output will be lower than new panels. Maintenance costs are included in the overall building maintenance costs and cannot be disaggregated. The cost of replacing the panels at the end of their life cannot be estimated due to the timescales involved.