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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-17911

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 12 May 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi McAllan on 1 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how many green jobs currently exist in Scotland, broken down by the region in which they are located, and what the definition is that it uses for such jobs.

Approaches to measuring green jobs are still under development and as a result estimates on how many green jobs exist differ.

A definition of green jobs was published by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) in March in 2023 “Green jobs” update, current and upcoming work - Office for National Statistics (ons.gov.uk) . ONS will now develop a detailed framework to underpin this definition, including the identification of appropriate activities (what the definition does and does not cover) and grouping them into useful sub-categories.

In the meantime our focus is on extracting the greatest number of job opportunities linked to the net zero transition, including via grants from the Green Jobs Fund to create new green jobs throughout Scotland and the Just Transition Fund to support people’s jobs and livelihoods in the North East.

Question reference: S6W-18248

Asked by: Brian Whittle, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 May 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 1 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to commission a report on how to encourage responsible private investment into the restoration and expansion of Scotland's rainforest in order to support the Rainforest Restoration Fund model proposed by environmental NGOs, similar to the report that it published recently on encouraging responsible private investment in peatland restoration, Mobilising private investment in natural capital.

Rainforest expansion and restoration is a key Scottish Government priority. Scottish Forestry manages the Woodland Carbon Code which offers opportunities to expand and restore Scotland’s rainforests in line the Scottish Government’s Interim Principles for Responsible Investment in Natural Capital, which can be found at https://www.gov.scot/publications/interim-principles-for-responsible-investment-in-natural-capital/ .

Whilst there are no imminent plans to commission a report similar to the one for peatland, Scottish Forestry have also just appointed a new Rainforest Action Co-ordinator and one of the tasks is to develop a framework of potential funding sources. Part of that work will be to further encourage private investment where possible, working closely with partners and stakeholders such as the Alliance for Scotland’s Rainforest, and commission work as required.

Question reference: S6W-18270

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 May 2023
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 1 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it can detail when the short-life working group, established by the Managed Service Network for Children and Young People with Cancer (MSN CYPC) to carry out a robust workforce review and mapping exercise of posts across the network, (a) last met and (b) will next meet.

Question reference: S6W-18277

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 May 2023
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 1 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how many applications to the Hydrogen Innovation Scheme were (a) received and (b) successful, and what continued engagement and support has been offered to unsuccessful applications in relation to future or alternative funding streams.

The Hydrogen Innovation Scheme received a total of 74 applications with 32 successful projects offered grant funding.

Unsuccessful applicants to the scheme were directed to potential alternative sources of assistance, including available business grants and other funding calls and the SME Loan and Cashback Scheme which provides interest free loans (from £1,000 up to £100,000) to small and medium sized Scotland based businesses.

Question reference: S6W-18245

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 May 2023
Current Status: Answered by Christina McKelvie on 1 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that changes to short-term lets legislation is causing rising costs for accommodation in Edinburgh (a) in general and (b) during the Edinburgh festivals.

Concerns regarding accommodation costs during the August Festivals pre-date short-term licensing mandatory standards, whereby the success of festivals and tourism within Scotland in recent years has seen increased visitors during peak holiday periods, which has resulted in higher demand for accommodation in the central Edinburgh area.

Short-term lets continue to be a growing sector and as such Scotland is not alone globally in deciding to regulate the sector. Licensing is now in place to ensure short-term lets are safe and the people providing them are suitable. Guests can have confidence that licensed hosts and accommodation have reached a recognised standard of assurance complying with mandatory conditions such as fire, gas, water and electrical safety. Many hosts are already complying with these through existing law or best practice, and we do not consider them onerous.

This additional assurance is expected to enhance Edinburgh’s reputation as an attractive, high quality, all-year round destination and help towards delivering the six-council City Region Regional Prosperity Framework Delivery Plan & 2023-24 Prospectus. 39% of the 2.2 million tickets for the Edinburgh Festival Fringe in 2022 were sold to Edinburgh locals, which was an increase of 4% on 2019, pre-COVID figures.

We continue to work with Festivals Edinburgh, the City of Edinburgh Council and industry groups (such as the Events Industry Advisory Group) to continue to support them to build on this success, and to address associated challenges. This is in addition to our continued support to the sector, including fourteen major festivals in Edinburgh and Glasgow receiving a share of this year’s £1.8 million Expo Fund.

Question reference: S6W-18125

Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 23 May 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 1 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what steps are being taken on public land that is managed by Forestry and Land Scotland to ensure that nests of (a) raptors, (b) red squirrels and (c) other protected woodland fauna are protected during the harvesting of commercial woodlands and at the time of their respective breeding seasons, where applicable.

Forestry and Land Scotland (FLS) take the protection of (a) raptors, (b) red squirrels and (c) other protected woodland fauna within our woodlands very seriously, and when appropriate conduct our operations outwith their breeding seasons to avoid disturbance.

FLS adhere to the industry guidance set by the Scottish Government forestry regulator, Scottish Forestry, and where necessary apply for and follow the species licencing process regulated by NatureScot.

FLS have rigorous planning systems, checks and procedures with accompanying guidance to ensure all regulations and licence requirements to protect species are followed.

Question reference: S6W-18174

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 22 May 2023
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 1 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what plans are in place to improve the (a) awareness and (b) survival rate of bladder cancer in Scotland.

A new Detect Cancer Earlier campaign – Be The Early Bird – was launched on 6 th March 2023 and ran for four weeks, aiming to reduce fear of cancer and empower those with possible symptoms to act early. The campaign has been developed with primary and secondary care clinical input and will be independently evaluated. We have a dedicated page on our NHS inform website, which highlights the causes, symptoms and treatment for bladder cancer .

We know that the earlier cancer is diagnosed, the easier it is to treat and even cure, which is why we continue to invest in our Detect Cancer Early (DCE) Programme. Since DCE launched, positive shifts have been noted. Our new earlier cancer diagnosis vision in Scotland is due to be published shortly as part of our ambitious new 10-year cancer strategy, which will outline the future of the DCE Programme.

The Endoscopy and Urology Diagnostic Recovery and Renewal Plan, backed by £70 million investment, was published on 30 November 2021. The Plan focuses on key areas such as clinical pathways, workforce training and development and innovation.

In partnership with the Centre for Sustainable Delivery (CfSD), we are committed to developing and implementing clinical pathways that optimise the value of endoscopy and urology diagnostics in each patient’s care. This includes refreshing ‘Once for Scotland’ clinical pathways to prioritise demand for cystoscopy, including where bladder cancer is suspected.

Question reference: S6W-18011

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 16 May 2023
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 1 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) local authority and (b) private care homes have closed in each local authority area in each year since 1999.

This information is not held centrally and is a matter for the Care Inspectorate (CI).

The CI does not hold data in relation to care homes that have closed, however information on cancelled services is publicly available on the CI website: https://www.careinspectorate.com/index.php/publications-statistics/93-public/datastore

These are services who have had their registration cancelled and this does not necessarily mean closure. Some services will have cancelled their registration but a new legal entity may have continued the provision of the service.

Question reference: S6O-02322

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 May 2023
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 1 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of Ofcom’s latest Connected Nations update, whether it will provide an update on superfast broadband roll-out in Orkney.

The investment of over £400 million that we are making through the R100 North contract is directly benefitting communities on the Orkney Islands. Building on the seven new subsea fibre optic cables connecting islands across Orkney concluded last year, with terrestrial build now underway to connect over 3,300 premises across the local authority area to full-fibre, Gigabit-capable connectivity.

Of course, mobile connectivity is just as vital as broadband connectivity for island communities, and the four masts we have delivered in Orkney through the S4GI programme will greatly extend 4G coverage and enable superfast connectivity for many.

Question reference: S6O-02352

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 31 May 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 8 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what value it places on resourcing community sport as part of efforts to eradicate health inequalities.