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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-17145

Asked by: Donald Cameron, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 26 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the National Islands Plan Annual Report 2022, whether it will provide a (a) list of projects that have been funded by the £1 million Islands Programme resource funding allocated to support the National Islands Plan and (b) breakdown of how much funding has been allocated to each project.

20 projects were funded through the 2022 Islands Programme resource funding to support delivery of the National Islands Plan. These can be found in the following table:

Project	Amount
Scottish Islands Federation ‎	£56,000.00
Scottish Futures Trust	£128,000.00
Shetland Anchor Project	£29,000.00
Island Heritage and Culture Posts for all six island Local Authorities	£242,000
Island Skills and Employment Repopulation Pilot	£210,000
Ulva Culture & Heritage Practical Policy Test – North West Mull Community Woodland Company	£7,500.00
North Ayrshire Council - Regeneration of Millport Town Hall	£20,000.00
Islands Profiles Project	£5,000.00
Island Communities Impact Assessment Guidance	£410.55
Gaelic translation of Implementation Route Map edits following Spending Review	£66.96
National Islands Plan Annual Report 2021 Publication in English and Gaelic	£8,283.98
Publication of Islands Bond Analysis and Scottish Government Response	£1,195.12
Castlebay Hall Hire for Island Healthcare Event	£42.50
National Islands Plan Implementation Route Map 2022 Publication in English and Gaelic	£6613.21
National Islands Plan Annual Report 2022 publication in English and Gaelic	£10,996.26
National Islands Plan Annual Report 2022 Gaelic translation	£5212.20
Islands Cost Crisis Emergency Fund	£200,000.00
Islands Programme Gaelic translations	£599.90
Hebridean Trust - Hynish Practical Policy Test	£15,000.00
Harris Tweed New Entrants Training Scheme	£25,000.00

Question reference: S6W-16112

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 26 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government when any further decisions will be taken regarding how the deposit value of containers that are within the scope of the Deposit Return Scheme should be displayed on shelving when the scheme launches.

Decisions regarding how the deposit will be displayed is a retained power and the responsibility of Trading Standards. The Scottish Government believes that the deposit should not be included in the unit price displayed either on shelves or price-marked packs, rather it should be clear that the deposit is in addition to the item cost.

The Scottish Government is continuing its discussions with the UK Government and other stakeholders in order to ensure that on-shelf displays and price-marked packs have clear information regarding the Deposit Return Scheme to enable consumers to make informed purchasing decisions.

Question reference: S6W-16113

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 26 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government when any further decisions will be taken regarding how the deposit value of price-marked packs of containers that are within the scope of the Deposit Return Scheme should be displayed when the scheme launches.

Question reference: S6W-16641

Asked by: Pam Gosal, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 03 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 26 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that the majority of transgender prisoners in Scotland began the process of transitioning after being convicted.

The Scottish Prison Service are committed to treating everyone in their care with dignity and respect and do not provide the personal information of prisoners.

Any transgender individuals in custody are supported and managed through an individualised risk assessment and case conference process that protects their rights and needs, as well as the welfare and rights of others around them, including staff, in order to achieve an outcome that balances risks and promotes the safety of all.

Question reference: S6W-16480

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 30 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 26 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what meetings it has had with Inspiring Scotland since May 2021, and what the agreed outcomes were of any such meetings.

The Scottish Government engages regularly with Inspiring Scotland across multiple policy areas including, but not limited to, the Young Person’s Guarantee, the Promise, children and families, mental health, autism and learning disabilities, rural and island communities, child poverty and procurement.

Levels of engagement are tailored to the requirements of each project and agreed in advance between Scottish Government officials and Inspiring Scotland representatives. Most meetings occur on a monthly basis however, ad-hoc meetings may also occur to discuss arising issues.

These regular meeting focus on matters relating to the development and management of projects we provide funding towards and provide an opportunity for Inspiring Scotland to outline progress made against delivery objectives which are agreed at the beginning of any grant management relationship.

Question reference: S6W-16493

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 30 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don on 26 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what meetings it has had with The Promise Scotland since May 2021, and what the agreed outcomes were of any such meetings.

Question reference: S6W-16424

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Elena Whitham on 26 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its commitment to introduce new restrictions on the advertising and marketing of alcohol products.

Our recent consultation on restricting alcohol advertising and promotion set out a range of potential options to restrict alcohol advertising and promotion, in order to prevent and reduce alcohol-related harms.

The consultation closed on 9 March. An independent contractor will comprehensively analyse the responses and a report will be published later this year. We will then further consider possible restrictions.

Question reference: S6W-16900

Asked by: Daniel Johnson, MSP for Edinburgh Southern, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 06 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by George Adam on 26 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how many full-time employees there are in each (a) cabinet secretary's and (b) minister's private office, broken down by pay scale.

The number of full-time employees and their pay scale for each Cabinet Secretary's office and Minister's private office are as follows.

Minister	C1	B3	B2	B1	A4
Deputy First Minister & Cabinet Secretary for Finance	1	1	1		1
Cabinet Secretary for NHS Recovery, Health and Social Care	1	1	2		3
Cabinet Secretary for Education & Skills	1		1		1
Cabinet Secretary for Justice & Home Affairs	1		1	1	2
Cabinet Secretary for Wellbeing Economy, Fair Work & Energy	1	1		1	2
Cabinet Secretary for Net Zero & Just Transition	1	1	1		2
Cabinet Secretary for Social Justice	1		1		2
Cabinet Secretary for Constitution, External Affairs & Culture	1	1		1	1
Cabinet Secretary for Rural Affairs, Land Reform & Islands	1		1		2
Minister for Drugs & Alcohol Policy			1		1
Minister for Parliamentary Business		1	1	1	1
Minister for Independence			1
Minister for Community Wealth & Public Finance			1		1
Minister for Local Government Empowerment & Planning			1		1
Minister for Culture, Europe & International Development			1		1
Minister for Social Care, Mental Wellbeing & Sport			1		1
Minister for Public Health & Women's Health			1		1
Minister for Equalities, Migration & Refugees			1		1
Minister for Housing			1		1
Minister for Transport			1		2
Minister for Small Business, Innovation & Trade			1		1
Minister for Energy			1		1
Minister for Zero Carbon Buildings, Active Travel & Tenants' Rights		1		1	1
Minister for Green Skills, Circular Economy & Biodiversity		1		1	1
Minister for Children, Young People & Keeping the Promise			1		1
Minister for Higher Education & Further Education & Minister for Veterans			1		1
Minister for Victims & Community Safety			1		1

Question reference: S6W-16698

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 03 April 2023
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 26 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what representations it has made to the UK Department for International Trade regarding the interests of Scotland's agricultural sector in future trade negotiations.

The Scottish Government has repeatedly made the case, to all relevant departments of the UK Government (in correspondence and in a range of established forums) for a guaranteed role in all stages of the negotiation and implementation of UK Free Trade Agreements (FTAs) to protect and promote Scottish agricultural priorities. This is because, while the negotiation of FTAs is reserved to the UK Government, trade deals cover many devolved issues which have significant implications for Scottish agri-food producers and for our economy.

The Scottish Government had previously not been given full sight of relevant FTA chapter texts or supporting data from the Department of Business and Trade in the negotiation of the recent agreements such as UK-Australia and New Zealand deals. Through a recent information sharing agreement with the Devolved Administrations, the UK Government has now accepted the benefits of sharing greater information on trade negotiations, such as the agri-food elements of the agreement in principle on CPTPP accession.

We welcome this progress, and the Scottish Government will continue to work regularly and collaboratively with the UK Government in the interests of the Scottish agri-food sector, including by seeking further assurances from the UK Government about the agri-food elements of the UK-CPTPP agreement at the recent 17 April meeting of the Inter-Ministerial Group on Environment, Food and Rural Affairs.

Question reference: S6W-16240

Asked by: Liam McArthur, MSP for Orkney Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 March 2023
Current Status: Answered by Lorna Slater on 26 April 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether it can request that Circularity Scotland voluntarily responds to any requests for information regarding the company's role in the operation of the Deposit Return Scheme in line with the principles of Freedom of Information legislation.

As a private company, Circularity Scotland Ltd is not obligated to comply with requests under Freedom of Information legislation. Circularity Scotland already engage with requests regarding their role in the Deposit Return Scheme, including providing evidence before the Net Zero, Energy and Transport Committee on 28 March 2023, and will be holding a Parliamentary drop-in session 03 May 2023. CSL also engage regularly with Ministers and officials as part of wider DRS assurance structures.