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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-03309

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 April 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 18 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment the Ministerial Taskforce on Population has made of the potential impact of the centralisation of services on the sustainability of rural communities.

Question reference: S6O-03296

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 April 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 17 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact of the Register of Persons Holding a Controlled Interest in Land since it launched on 1 April 2022.

Question reference: S6O-03294

Asked by: Foysol Choudhury, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 April 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 17 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether its Land Reform (Scotland) Bill will help protect communities from development on land of public importance.

Question reference: S6O-03297

Asked by: Russell Findlay, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 April 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 17 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to reduce the number of cases of livestock worrying.

Question reference: S6O-03314

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 April 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 18 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what work it is undertaking to give greater representation to older people.

Question reference: S6W-26552

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 28 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Emma Roddick on 10 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government when it expects to introduce a bill on ending conversion practices.

The Scottish Government is committed to introduce legislation to end conversion practices in Scotland that is as comprehensive as possible within devolved competence.

Conversion practices, which aim to change or suppress a person’s sexual orientation or gender identity, are damaging and destructive acts that violate people’s human rights. Whilst our proposals will protect people from the harms of conversion practices, our approach also recognises and respects established rights and freedoms. This includes freedom of thought, conscience and belief and private and family life as well as parents exercising their rights and responsibilities in relation to their children.

Our public consultation, containing detailed proposals, ran for 12 weeks and closed on 2 April 2024. Responses to that consultation will now be analysed and considered.

Future legislative programmes will be announced in relevant Programmes for Government in the usual way.

Question reference: S6W-26447

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 25 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by George Adam on 10 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the anticipated local government elections in 2027, what information it has on when any work to redraw mainland council wards will commence.

Boundaries Scotland has the statutory responsibility to review the electoral arrangements for local government areas. In line with the requirements of the Local Government Act 1973, Boundaries Scotland must submit to Scottish Ministers a report on its review of the electoral arrangements for a local government area no more than 15 years after the previous report for that area was submitted. Boundaries Scotland is currently conducting the Second Review of Scottish Parliament Boundaries, and will report to Ministers by 1 May 2025. Work to review council wards will recommence once this review has been submitted. The Scottish Elections (Representation and Reform) Bill proposes an amendment to the deadline by which Boundaries Scotland must complete the next local government reviews, from 31 December 2028 to 30 April 2031. This is to align the 15-year period between reviews with the five-year local government election cycle.

Question reference: S6W-26413

Asked by: Mark Ruskell, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 22 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 9 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on funding commitments for the research priorities identified in the report of the James Lind Alliance's Priority Setting Partnership for myalgic encephalomyelitis/chronic fatigue syndrome (ME/CFS), which was published in May 2022.

The Scottish Government has no plans to create specific funding commitments for the research priorities identified in the report of the JLA PSP on ME/CFS

Within the Scottish Government, funding of Health and Care Research comes under the remit of the Chief Scientist Office (CSO).

The CSO's Translational Clinical Studies (TCS) Committee and Health Improvement, Protection and Services Research (HIPS) Committee each meet twice per year to consider funding applications. Details of the application process are published on the CSO website.

https://www.cso.sc ot.nhs.uk/grant-funding/response-mode-funding-schemes/

Applications on the underlying causes, diagnosis, treatment and management of ME/CFS are welcomed. Any such applications would go through CSO's standard independent expert review process to allow funding decisions to be made.

Through UK-wide funding agreements, researchers based in Scotland are able to access research funding programmes administered by the National Institute for Health & Care Research (NIHR). Within their individual remits, these programmes can consider applications for research in ME/CFS. CSO is working with the health research community in Scotland to ensure awareness of these opportunities and to maximise the number of high quality applications from Scotland to the NIHR research funding programmes going forward.

Question reference: S6W-26322

Asked by: Martin Whitfield, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 22 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by George Adam on 9 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how often it reviews statistical collection and publishing cycles in order to deliver joined-up policy making.

Scottish Government statistics are produced in accordance with the Code of Practice for Statistics. The Code of Practice states that statistics producers should routinely review the relevance and usefulness of statistics, including the timeliness of the statistics and data.

The Code of Practice also requires statistics producers to maintain and refresh their understanding of the use and potential use of statistics, and that they regularly engage with users. This is to ensure that statistics support the public good, which includes the development and evaluation of public policy.

The application of the Code of Practice in Scottish Government is overseen by the Chief Statistician, with decisions about particular collections and publications made on a case-by-case by the responsible statisticians.

Question reference: S6W-26303

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 9 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what work it is undertaking to ensure that a more preventative approach to the health and wellbeing of young people is being adopted within communities across all government portfolio areas.

The Scottish Government wants to ensure that every child can attain the highest level of health and wellbeing possible.

Between pre-birth and starting school, all children in Scotland are entitled to support from our universal Health Visiting service. In addition, 3- and 4-year-olds are entitled to 1,140 hours of funded early learning and childcare (ELC). We have also invested in targeted early years interventions such as the Family Nurse Partnership, ELC funding for eligible 2-year-olds and perinatal and infant mental health services. This work is underpinned by our Early Child Development Transformational Change Programme which focuses on prevention, better integration of policies, identifying policy and implementation gaps, and building collaboration across the whole system.

The health and wellbeing of school-aged children is also supported by Curriculum for Excellence (CfE). Health and Wellbeing is one of the eight curricular areas in CfE and is one of the three core areas that are the responsibility of all staff in a school. Furthermore, the Scottish Government has invested in the recruitment of School Nurses and School Counsellors, both of whom are able to prevent the escalation of health and wellbeing concerns.

Our work across all child health and wellbeing interventions continues to be guided by ‘Getting it right for every child’ (GIRFEC). GIRFEC is embedded across Scottish Government portfolios and helps to safeguard, support and promote the health and wellbeing of all children and young people.