- Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 31 October 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Shona Robison on 13 November 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how much it has spent on services to support the relocation of civil servants to international offices in each year since 2021, broken down by cost type.
Answer
The Scottish Government partners with a relocation company to assist staff who are assigned to Scottish Government offices overseas.
The costs for the services provided, from financial year 2021-22 to date, are detailed in the following table:
Year | Management Fee | Removals | Storage | Sale/Purchase |
2021-22 | £2,580 | £43,519 | £8,672 | |
2022-23 | £3,420 | £50,759 | £31,756 | £7,689 |
2023-24 | £4,884 | £24,231 | £36,504 | |
2024-25 | £1,710 | £9,005 | £27,180 | £6,747 |
2025-26 | £660 | £18,257 | £7,857 | |
- Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Friday, 31 October 2025
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Current Status:
Answered by Natalie Don-Innes on 13 November 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how many calls the Disclosure Scotland helpline has received in the last 12 months, and what the (a) average and (b) longest recorded waiting time for a call to be answered was.
Answer
I have asked Gerard Hart, Chief Executive of Disclosure Scotland to respond. His response is as follows:
The Disclosure Scotland helpline received 129,575 calls over the past 12 months. Customers waited an average of 16 minutes and 18 seconds to speak to an advisor, with the longest recorded wait time being one hour, 49 minutes and 32 seconds. Call volumes to the Disclosure Scotland helpline usually range between 6,400 to 10,400 per month. From April to July 2025, Disclosure Scotland experienced higher than normal call volumes, which reflects the application volume peak during this period and has increased overall average wait time in the 12 month period.
Monthly calls received and wait times are provided in the following table:
Activity period | Total calls received | Average wait time (hours:minutes:seconds) |
November 2024 | 8446 | 00:00:47 |
December 2024 | 6440 | 00:01:32 |
January 2025 | 8092 | 00:00:59 |
February 2025 | 7732 | 00:00:59 |
March 2025 | 10427 | 00:01:54 |
April 2025 | 14221 | 00:06:44 |
May 2025 | 19262 | 00:23:14 |
June 2025 | 17393 | 00:31:20 |
July 2025 | 11334 | 00:27:22 |
August 2025 | 8032 | 00:38:36 |
September 2025 | 7370 | 00:42:17 |
October 2025 | 10826 | 00:19:51 |
- Asked by: Michelle Thomson, MSP for Falkirk East, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 November 2025
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 20 November 2025
To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the demand for neurodevelopmental assessments and treatment for children and adults, what its assessment is of the recommendations by the Royal College of Psychiatrists in Scotland, such as its four-tiered service model for assessment and intervention.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 20 November 2025
- Asked by: Maggie Chapman, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Green Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 November 2025
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 20 November 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to support tenants and owner-occupiers affected by RAAC in the North East Scotland region.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 20 November 2025
- Asked by: Douglas Ross, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 November 2025
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 20 November 2025
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will commit to providing full details of why each of the 3,537 (or 47%) of applications to The Future Farming Investment Scheme were deemed ineligible, including whether ministers raised any concerns when presented with this figure.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 20 November 2025
- Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 November 2025
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 20 November 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to reduce the number of repeat shoplifting offenders, in light of reports that 10 individuals have accumulated over 1,500 charges in the last four years.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 20 November 2025
- Asked by: Rachael Hamilton, MSP for Ettrick, Roxburgh and Berwickshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 November 2025
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 20 November 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what legislative action it plans taking in the remainder of this parliamentary session to protect farmers from the threat of rural crime.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 20 November 2025
- Asked by: Elena Whitham, MSP for Carrick, Cumnock and Doon Valley, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 November 2025
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 20 November 2025
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the work it has been doing regarding people obtaining in-person GP appointments.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 20 November 2025
- Asked by: Alex Rowley, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Labour
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 November 2025
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 20 November 2025
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to address waiting times for gynaecological diagnostic procedures in NHS Fife.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 20 November 2025
- Asked by: Ruth Maguire, MSP for Cunninghame South, Scottish National Party
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Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 November 2025
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Current Status:
Taken in the Chamber on 20 November 2025
To ask the Scottish Government when the Children (Scotland) Act 2020 will be fully implemented.
Answer
Taken in the Chamber on 20 November 2025