Seòmar agus comataidhean

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

Criathragan Hide all filters

Displaying 43394 questions Show Answers

Order by |

Question reference: S6W-26071

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 08 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 19 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-24181 by Neil Gray on 16 January 2024, how many jobs it anticipates will be created as part of the £500 million commitment to offshore wind supply chains.

Offshore wind was highlighted by the First Minister’s Investor Panel as the single most important opportunity for attracting capital to Scotland and raising Scotland’s wider investment profile. Our up to £500m strategic investment will stimulate and support private investment in the infrastructure and manufacturing facilities critical to the growth of our world-leading offshore wind sector. It is key to unlocking the commitment made by ScotWind developers to invest an average projection of £1.5bn into Scotland per project.

We will ensure we invest this capital in the projects that are going to help us deliver our priorities and bring maximum economic impact – supporting market certainty, helping to create a highly productive, competitive economy, providing thousands of new jobs, embedding innovation and boosting skills.

It is widely accepted that offshore wind represents a significant opportunity to create thousands of good Scottish jobs. Based on the evidence available and assumptions made in individual studies, a range of economic impact from offshore wind deployment in Scottish Waters could be set at 10,400 jobs – 54,000 jobs.

We also want to ensure a just transition that takes our existing skilled workforce and supply chain with us. We will drive forward offshore wind skills development – working with stakeholders to focus on the opportunities for diversification and skills transfer from our oil and gas sector, in line with our commitment to a Just Transition.

Question reference: S6T-01878

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 18 March 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the cost and impact of the transfer of HMP Kilmarnock into public ownership.

Question reference: S6T-01869

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 18 March 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 19 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the reported cyber attack on NHS Dumfries and Galloway.

Question reference: S6F-02965

Asked by: Kevin Stewart, MSP for Aberdeen Central, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 18 March 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 21 March 2024

To ask the First Minister what analysis of passenger behaviour and numbers has been carried out since the inception of the removal of peak rail fares pilot.

Question reference: S6F-02959

Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 18 March 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 21 March 2024

To ask the First Minister what resources the Scottish Government will be providing to Police Scotland for the investigation of complaints made under the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021.

Question reference: S6F-02948

Asked by: Meghan Gallacher, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 18 March 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 21 March 2024

To ask the First Minister whether the Scottish Government will engage with NHS Scotland on ending the prescription of puberty suppressing hormones to children, following the recent announcement by NHS England.

Question reference: S6F-02952

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 18 March 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 21 March 2024

To ask the First Minister when the Cabinet will next meet.

Question reference: S6F-02941

Asked by: Anas Sarwar, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 18 March 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 21 March 2024

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6F-02940

Asked by: Douglas Ross, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 18 March 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 21 March 2024

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6W-26002

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 March 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 18 March 2024

To ask the Scottish Government when it plans to commence, by regulations, the remaining provisions of the Children (Scotland) Act 2020.

We are currently prioritising work across the Scottish Government in light of increased pressures on the Scottish budget.

On 16 March 2023, the then Minister for Community Safety provided a submission to the Citizen Participation and Public Petitions Committee in relation to Petition PE1968 , which outlined our position on full implementation of the 2020 Act and included a section-by-section breakdown of the Act’s commencement status.

I can provide some further updates.

For the provision on the views of the child in proceedings under the Children’s Hearings (Scotland) Act 2011, the recent ‘ Hearings for Children ’ report reviewing the children’s hearings system included a recommendation to commence section 3 of the 2020 Act. The Scottish Government has accepted that recommendation and is taking forward relevant work in that regard.

For the provisions on special measures (sections 4 to 8 of the 2020 Act), Part 3 of the Victims, Witnesses, and Justice Reform (Scotland) Bill currently before the Parliament will, if enacted, extend the provisions which relate to proceedings under section 11 of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 to civil proceedings generally.

In relation to a register for Child Welfare Reporters (section 9 of the 2020 Act), we will be establishing a short-life working group of key stakeholders later this year that will inform the development of policy around the register. It will also consider whether changes made in the past in this area, following a previous working group, are working as intended.

On child contact centres (sections 10 to 12 of the 2020 Act), the Scottish Government continues to prepare Scottish Statutory Instruments on the regulation of these centres.

For the provision placing a duty on Scottish Ministers to ensure the availability of child advocacy services in court proceedings under section 11 of the Children (Scotland) Act 1995 (section 21 of the 2020 Act), the Scottish Government is considering further whether or not to carry out a consultation.

For the provisions on funding for Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) and the ADR information pilot (sections 23 and 24 of the 2020 Act), the Scottish Government provides update reports to Parliament on the progress of this work. The latest report, covering the period 1 October 2022 to 1 April 2023, is available on the Scottish Government website .