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Members of the Scottish Parliament (MSPs)

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Martin Whitfield

Scottish Labour

MSP for South Scotland (Region) 2021 - present day

About Martin Whitfield

Contact details

Contact online

X (previously known as Twitter): @_MWhitfield

Facebook: Martin's facebook

Contact at the Scottish Parliament

The Scottish Parliament
Edinburgh
EH99 1SP

Phone: 0131 348 5827
Text relay calls welcome.

Committees

Cross-party groups

Martin is a member of 1 cross-party group

Cross-Party Group in the Scottish Parliament on St Andrew's Day

Member

Parliamentary and Government Roles

Martin has 2 parliamentary and government roles

Conveners Group

Member

Parliamentary Bureau

Member

Party Roles

Martin has 3 party roles

Business Manager

Scottish Labour

Deputy Party Spokesperson on Children

Scottish Labour

Deputy Party Spokesperson on Young People

Scottish Labour

Previous roles

Martin has had 3 previous roles

Previous roles in cross-party groups are not included in this list.

31 May 2021 - 10 April 2023

Deputy Party Spokesperson on Lifelong Learning

Scottish Labour

31 May 2021 - 10 April 2023

Deputy Party Spokesperson on Youth Employment

Scottish Labour

17 June 2021 - 22 June 2021

Standards Procedures and Public Appointments Committee

Member

Register of interests

Martin's register of interests

MSPs must provide details of their financial interests in the Register of Interests. They make an initial statement on becoming or being returned as an MSP. This is then updated with any changes they provide.

Recent Activity

What was said

What Martin Whitfield has said in Parliament

These are the official transcripts of what was said by this MSP in the chamber and at committee meetings. You'll find the topic discussed and how many times this MSP has contributed to the discussion.

Chamber meeting date: 18 November 2025

University of Edinburgh (Redundancies)

3. Martin Whitfield (South Scotland) (Lab): "To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that the University of Edinburgh plans to reduce jobs by up to 1,800 as part of £140 million in budget reductions by 2026-27, including what action it will take to protect staff and students from the impact of any such redundancies. (S6T-02757)"

Chamber meeting date: 13 November 2025

School Buildings (Asbestos)

Martin Whitfield (South Scotland) (Lab): "As was highlighted in the chamber earlier this year during the debate on the action for mesothelioma day, Scotland has one of the highest rates of mesothelioma in the world…

Chamber meeting date: 13 November 2025

Scottish Parliament (Recall and Removal of Members) Bill: Stage 1

Martin Whitfield (South Scotland) (Lab): "I thank everyone who contributed to the scrutiny of the Scottish Parliament (Recall and Removal of Members) (Scotland) Bill; the respondents to the Standards, Procedures and Public Appointments Committee’s call for views; the stakeholders and academics who gave evidence; the Scottish Government for its input; and, of course, Mr Simpson for…

Chamber meeting date: 11 November 2025

Border Security, Asylum and Immigration Bill

Martin Whitfield (South Scotland) (Lab): "Will Tess White take an intervention?"

Chamber meeting date: 6 November 2025

Online Child Abuse

Martin Whitfield (South Scotland) (Lab): "The First Minister will be aware of the chief constable’s comments to the Criminal Justice Committee this week that reports of online child abuse have more than doubled in the past year…

Votes

How Martin Whitfield has voted in Parliament

Find out how Martin Whitfield has voted recently.

Motion ref. S6M-19739

Supporting Scotland’s Fishing Industry

Submitted by: Mairi Gougeon, Angus North and Mearns, Scottish National Party. Date lodged: Monday, November 17, 2025

Supported by: Jim Fairlie
Current status: Taken in the Chamber on Tuesday, November 18, 2025

Result 94 for, 23 against, 0 abstained, 12 did not vote

MSP voted against

Agreed

Motion ref. S6M-19739.1

Supporting Scotland’s Fishing Industry

Submitted by: Ariane Burgess, Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party. Date lodged: Monday, November 17, 2025

Current status: Taken in the Chamber on Tuesday, November 18, 2025

Result 7 for, 108 against, 0 abstained, 14 did not vote

MSP voted against

Disagreed

Motion ref. S6M-19739.4

Supporting Scotland’s Fishing Industry

Submitted by: Beatrice Wishart, Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats. Date lodged: Monday, November 17, 2025

Current status: Taken in the Chamber on Tuesday, November 18, 2025

Result 38 for, 77 against, 0 abstained, 14 did not vote

MSP voted against

Disagreed

Motion ref. S6M-19739.3

Supporting Scotland’s Fishing Industry

Submitted by: Rhoda Grant, Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour. Date lodged: Monday, November 17, 2025

Current status: Taken in the Chamber on Tuesday, November 18, 2025

Result 20 for, 96 against, 0 abstained, 13 did not vote

MSP voted for

Disagreed

Motion ref. S6M-19739.2

Supporting Scotland’s Fishing Industry

Submitted by: Tim Eagle, Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party. Date lodged: Monday, November 17, 2025

Current status: Taken in the Chamber on Tuesday, November 18, 2025

Result 31 for, 82 against, 0 abstained, 16 did not vote

MSP voted against

Disagreed

Motions

Questions

Questions Martin Whitfield has asked

These are the questions that this MSP has asked in Parliament. It also includes any answer to those questions.

Question reference: S6T-02757

Asked by: Martin Whitfield, South Scotland, Scottish Labour

Date lodged:17 November 2025

Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 18 November 2025

"To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that the University of Edinburgh plans to reduce jobs by up to 1,800 as part of £140 million in budget reductions by 2026-27, including what action it will take to protect staff and students from the impact of any such redundancies."

Question reference: S6W-41260

Asked by: Martin Whitfield, South Scotland, Scottish Labour

Date lodged:13 October 2025

Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don-Innes on 10 November 2025

"To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of kinship carers have reported that the financial allowance they receive does not cover the full cost of care since May 2021."

Question reference: S6W-41252

Asked by: Martin Whitfield, South Scotland, Scottish Labour

Date lodged:13 October 2025

Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don-Innes on 10 November 2025

"To ask the Scottish Government how many families have lodged complaints regarding flexibility of hours in the early learning and childcare system since May 2021."

Question reference: S6W-41244

Asked by: Martin Whitfield, South Scotland, Scottish Labour

Date lodged:13 October 2025

Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don-Innes on 7 November 2025

"To ask the Scottish Government how many parents involved in child protection cases have not been offered advocacy support since May 2021."

Question reference: S6W-41219

Asked by: Martin Whitfield, South Scotland, Scottish Labour

Date lodged:13 October 2025

Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don-Innes on 7 November 2025

"To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on the proportion of kinship carers who have reported relying on food banks or emergency grants to support the child in their care since May 2021."

Question reference: S6W-41266

Asked by: Martin Whitfield, South Scotland, Scottish Labour

Date lodged:10 October 2025

Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don-Innes on 7 November 2025

"To ask the Scottish Government how many Disclosure Scotland employees have left their job, including through resignation, within their first year of employment since 2022."

Question reference: S6W-41269

Asked by: Martin Whitfield, South Scotland, Scottish Labour

Date lodged:10 October 2025

Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don-Innes on 7 November 2025

"To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the impact that any delays in the processing of Protecting Vulnerable Groups (PVG) certificates by Disclosure Scotland have had on recruitment in the (a) social care and (b) teaching sector in the last year."

Question reference: S6W-41211

Asked by: Martin Whitfield, South Scotland, Scottish Labour

Date lodged:10 October 2025

Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don-Innes on 7 November 2025

"To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on the number of complaints that have been received regarding dampness, mould or ventilation issues in council-run nurseries since 2021."

Question reference: S6W-41245

Asked by: Martin Whitfield, South Scotland, Scottish Labour

Date lodged:13 October 2025

Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don-Innes on 7 November 2025

"To ask the Scottish Government how many referrals to social work have been made due to parental poverty or housing conditions since May 2021."

Question reference: S6W-41249

Asked by: Martin Whitfield, South Scotland, Scottish Labour

Date lodged:13 October 2025

Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don-Innes on 7 November 2025

"To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of parents who are eligible for 1,140 hours of funded childcare have accessed their full entitlement without restriction on session times since May 2021."

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