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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-25257

Asked by: Donald Cameron, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 06 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 28 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on how many leisure centres have closed over the last five years, broken down by (a) local authority area and (b) year of closure.

The information requested is not held centrally by the Scottish Government. You may wish to contact individual local authorities who may hold this information.

The Scottish Government places great importance on community sports and leisure facilities. They are crucial to the wellbeing of all our country and most importantly, for our children and young people to be healthy and active.

We have asked sportscotland to undertake a review of the facilities estate which will provide vital information in understanding the sport and leisure facilities provision in the long term. In addition, sportscotland and Scottish Swimming have recently published a detailed research study into the condition of Scotland’s swimming pools. The Future of Swimming Facilities in Scotland - sportscotland the national agency for sport in Scotland

We are fully aware that local authorities are facing challenging financial circumstances, particularly in the maintenance and operating of facilities, largely due to energy costs and other cost of living pressures. sportscotland will continue to work with its local partners to help them assess the impact of any potential facility closures across the country. In addition, the Minister for Social Care, Mental Health and Sport and officials engage regularly with Community Leisure UK to discuss the local public facilities landscape.

In recognition of the importance of access to sports and leisure facilities, our Programme for Government sets out our intention to convene a working group, including representatives of sports organisations, community organisations and CoSLA, to explore how community access to community facilities, such as the school estate, can be enhanced.

Question reference: S6W-24913

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 29 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Emma Roddick on 28 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what objectives it set for any funding that it has provided to the Milngavie Old Peoples Welfare Committee since 2019.

Question reference: S6W-25677

Asked by: Martin Whitfield, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 22 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Kaukab Stewart on 28 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the delivery of the 2021 Scottish National Party manifesto commitment to "support the digital capabilities of artists and creative businesses with a £1 million programme of workshops, mentoring and courses".

The Creative Digital Initiative was a £1 million national programme which ran from April 2021 to the end of March 2022 to help the sector develop digital capabilities in response to the limitations imposed by the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic. Led by Creative Scotland and involving all the national enterprise and skills agencies as well as the Scottish Government, the programme provided support to small and medium-sized creative and cultural businesses to help them continue to build their digital capacity and provide the tools needed to respond to the limitations they currently face. This included financial support to build digital capacity as well as practical help to increase confidence, provide new creative opportunities and mentor artists and cultural organisations.

As stated in our Culture Strategy Action Plan, enabling the creative workforce to keep pace with continuing digital innovation is a priority. We will consider learning from the Creative Digital Initiative to support the development of a skilled and resilient creative workforce and meet the needs of the future.

Question reference: S6W-25687

Asked by: Sarah Boyack, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 22 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 28 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government on what date it will publish its Energy and Just Transition Strategy.

Question reference: S6W-25632

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 28 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government when it will publish details, including the (a) timeline and (b) application process, of the £90 million Green Hydrogen Fund, which was reportedly due to be launched by December 2023.

The Hydrogen Action Plan, published in December 2022, set out a clear commitment to support renewable hydrogen production.

Grants from the first tranche of our hydrogen investment programme, the Hydrogen Innovation Scheme, totalled over £7m and were announced in May 2023. The second tranche of up to £90m was intended to be the Green Hydrogen Fund (GHF). Due to the UK Government having inflicted a 10% cut on the Scottish Government capital budget, the GHF is not being taken forward at this time.

Whilst there are no immediate plans to open the GHF, the Scottish Government is working with Scottish Enterprise to consider delivery options for funding support to the hydrogen sector on a case-by-case basis, and to engage with projects as they come forward.

Question reference: S6W-25637

Asked by: Alexander Burnett, MSP for Aberdeenshire West, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 21 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 28 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the increase in the number of storms in Scotland in recent months compared with 2022-23, whether it will increase Scottish Forestry’s budget to reflect the increase in its workload due to these storms.

Question reference: S6W-25347

Asked by: Mark Griffin, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 12 February 2024
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 28 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-21426 by Paul McLennan on 2 October 2023, whether it will provide updated tables, based on the latest information available.

The following tables shows applications and homes formally approved since 19 September to 31 January, including grant offered split by registered social landlord and local authority in 2023-24. It should also be noted that discussions have taken place to support additional acquisitions with other providers but formal applications have either not yet been received or are in the process of being approved.

We have not been able to provide purchase price information at this stage as, although approved, all properties have not yet been purchased:

Date Range 19 September 2023 to 31 January 2024
Registered Social Landlords (RSL)	No. of Applications Received	No. of Homes Applied For	No. of Homes Approved	SG Grant Approved (£)	Average Grant per Home (£)
Ark HA	1	1	1	140,000.00	140,000.00
Buidheann Tigheadas Loch Aillse	1	1	1	85,000.00	85,000.00
Castle Rock Edinvar HA	2	30	30	2,601,000.00	86,700.00
Govan HA	1	1	1	101,894.88	101,894.88
Irvine HA	1	7	7	280,000.00	40,000.00
Kingdom HA	1	8	8	602,734.00	75,341.75
Larkfield HA	1	4	4	160,000.00	40,000.00
Lochfield Park HA	1	4	4	345,020.00	86,255.00
Ore Valley HA	1	1	1	100,000.00	100,000.00
Shettleston HA	1	1	1	81,664.00	81,664.00
The Highland Housing Alliance	4	28	28	2,484,000.00	88,714.29
Tollcross HA	1	1	1	201,740.46	201,740.46
West Of Scotland HA	1	1	1	120,012.00	120,012.00
Total RSL	17	88	88	7,303,065.34	82,989.38

Local Authority	No. of Applications Received	No. of Homes Applied For	No. of Homes Approved	SG Grant Approved (£)	Average Grant per Home (£)
Edinburgh	1	20	20	3,286,000.00	164,300.00
Highland	5	11	11	935,405.18	85,036.83
Moray	2	2	2	103,263.00	51,631.50
Shetland Islands	1	1	1	83,000.00	83,000.00
Total LA	9	34	34	4,407,668.18	129,637.30

Total 19 September 2023 to 31 January 2024	26	122	122	11,710,733.52	95,989.62

Question reference: S6W-25527

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 28 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether the (a) Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 and (b) Control of Dogs (Scotland) Act 2010 contains any mechanism that prevents owners from relinquishing ownership and/or responsibility for a dog that is subject to complaint, and, if this is not the case, what its position is on whether such a mechanism would be desirable.

Section 1 of The Dangerous Dogs Act 1991 (‘Dogs bred for fighting’) already prohibits owners of such dogs from giving away their pets.

This means that, for example, it is now illegal for the owner of an XL Bully to sell, give away or rehome their dog.

The Control of Dogs (Scotland) Act 2010 (“the 2010 Act”) introduced the dog control notice (DCN) regime. The 2010 Act gives powers to local authorities to issue DCNs to owners who allow their dogs to be out of control and this includes discretionary conditions that can be attached to a DCN. The Scottish Government recommends as best practice that when local authority authorised officers issue a DCN to an owner, this should include a condition that the owner is obliged to inform the local authority if they rehome their dog, and provide the name and address of the new owner.

The Scottish Government published updated statutory guidance on the 2010 Act in December 2020. The statutory guidance is designed to enhance understanding of the 2010 Act and assist local authorities and authorised officers: https://www.gov.scot/publications/updated-guidance-control-dogs-scotland-act-2010/

The Scottish Government has no current plans to amend the 2010 Act to prevent dog owners who have a DCN against them from relinquishing ownership and/or responsibility for their dog, but does plan to consider opportunities to enhance and strengthen the 2010 Act in the medium term.

Question reference: S6W-25068

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 01 February 2024
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 28 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its consideration of the future of the (a) Glasgow Colleges’ Regional Board and (b) Lanarkshire Regional Strategic Board.

Question reference: S6W-25008

Asked by: Stephanie Callaghan, MSP for Uddingston and Bellshill, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 31 January 2024
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 27 February 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration has been given to extending the current limit of three years of Student Awards Agency Scotland funding, for part-time postgraduate MSc courses with no full-time equivalent, to support people who may need extra time to complete their course, such as those who work full time, are disabled or have caring responsibilities.