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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-39168

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 04 July 2025
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 10 July 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether prostitution is a form of violence against women, and what legislative steps it is taking to address this issue.

The Scottish Government’s Strategic Approach to challenge demand for prostitution and improve support for those with experience of it reinforces the clear message that there is no place for the exploitation of any individual, and that prostitution is recognised as a form of violence against women and girls, as was also set out in our Equally Safe Strategy.

There are a number of specific offences which make certain activities associated with prostitution illegal, including trading in prostitution of others, the running of a brothel, procuring for the purposes of prostitution, as well as publicly soliciting or loitering for the purpose of purchasing sex, and trafficking persons for the purpose of sexual exploitation. Current legislation is clear that no one can be forced into sexual activity without their consent.

Our joint work with Police Scotland forms a key element of our strategic approach and we support their national approach on prostitution, Operation Begonia, which takes a victim-centred trauma-informed approach routing women to support, whilst ensuring that Police more evidently use the powers currently available to them to challenge men’s demand.

Question reference: S6W-38928

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 24 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 10 July 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what safeguards exist to ensure that victims and the courts are aware of an offender’s full history in gender identity cases.

Victims are not provided, in whole or in part, the criminal record of any offender in the context of a prosecution.

Prosecutors may present an accused person’s previous convictions to the court for specific purposes, including the consideration of bail and bail conditions, or in determining the most appropriate sentence. This information is obtained from Police Scotland using the accused person’s Scottish Crime Records Office (SCRO) number, which is a unique identifier used across the justice system in Scotland. This ensures that relevant information is accurately linked to the individual, regardless of any change of name or gender identity.

Question reference: S6W-35411

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 9 July 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how much public money has been spent to date on defending legal challenges related to its policies on gender self-identification.

There have been a number of court cases in recent years relating to gender. Some of them did not relate to gender self-identification. In one of them, the Scottish Government was the pursuer rather than the defender. I list the position in relation to four cases below.

The cost of defending the judicial review of the original definition of “woman” for the purposes of the Gender Representation on Public Boards (Scotland) Act 2018 was £216,063.60.

The For Women Scotland Ltd v the Scottish Ministers case determined earlier this year by the UK Supreme Court concerned the statutory guidance issued by the Scottish Government under the 2018 Act. This guidance referred to the legal sex of persons with a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC) and the correct interpretation of “woman” in that context. The current system for obtaining a GRC is not a form of gender self-identification. Costs for this case are still being calculated and will be published in due course.

In the judicial review challenging the Section 35 Order made by the Secretary of State for Scotland which prevented the Gender Recognition Reform (Scotland) Bill from proceeding to Royal Assent, the Scottish Ministers were the petitioners rather than the defender. The final costs of this case will be published shortly.

In November 2021, Fair Play for Women brought a judicial review in relation to guidance issued by National Records of Scotland, a non-ministerial department of the devolved Scottish Administration, for the Scotland’s Census 2022 question ‘what is your sex?’. In February 2022, the guidance was found to be lawful. Upon appeal, this decision was upheld. Fair Play for Women were found liable to pay Scottish Ministers’ expenses to the sum of £69,500.

Question reference: S6W-39049

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 27 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 9 July 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of whether employee ownership is a sustainable business ownership model, and on what evidence its assessment of this matter is based.

The independent review, ‘Developing Scotland’s Economy: Increasing the Role of Inclusive and Democratic Business Models’, looked at a range of inclusive and democratic business models (IDBMs), including employee ownership, and outlined their important contributions to the Scottish economy. The Economic Democracy Group was formed following the review and will examine the review’s recommendations with the objective of devising a workplan to realise their implementation where this is feasible.

Question reference: S6W-38938

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 24 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 9 July 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many buses have been ordered by Transport Scotland or the Scottish Government from manufacturers in China in the past five years.

Neither Transport Scotland nor the Scottish Government have ordered any buses in the past five years.

Since 2020, Transport Scotland has supported the Scottish bus sector with over £150 million of grant funding to support operating companies to acquire 800 zero emission buses and their supporting charging infrastructure. This is a rapid increase from the 20 zero emission buses on the road in 2020, and we have been right to set ambitious targets for the sector.

Question reference: S6W-39106

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 July 2025
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 8 July 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the launch of the GOV.UK app, whether it has plans to develop a Scottish Government mobile app.

Question reference: S6W-38679

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 23 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 7 July 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reported concerns of the Scottish Police Federation that public inquiries are having a "detrimental impact" on policing.

As Public Inquiries are independent of Ministers, it is for the Chair to direct how an Inquiry carries out its duties whilst being mindful of their responsibilities under section 17(3) of the Inquiries Act 2005 to avoid unnecessary costs.

The operation of Police Scotland, including decisions on the allocation of resources and the deployment of officers and staff, is for the Chief Constable, under the oversight of the Scottish Police Authority. This includes the allocation of budget and staff to support the work of Public Inquiries.

Question reference: S6W-38665

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 23 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 7 July 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether it is appropriate that the First Minister has appointed 16 special advisers, and how this compares to the number of special advisers appointed by former First Ministers.

Special Advisers are appointed by the First Minister to provide important assistance to Scottish Ministers on the development of policy and its presentation. Their appointment is designed to reinforce the political impartiality of the permanent Civil Service by providing Ministers with a separate channel for political advice and assistance.

In 2024-25, the number and total cost of Special Advisers reduced in comparison to the previous year.

The Scottish Government has published a list of current Special Advisers online. These details, as well as lists of former Special Advisers, can be found at the following link: https://www.gov.scot/publications/special-advisers/.

Question reference: S6W-38174

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 17 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 4 July 2025

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason the budget for the Care Reform (Scotland) Bill in 2025-26 is £11 million, in light of its decision to withdraw plans for a national care service.

The Scottish Government is delivering improvement and reform of social care, social work and community health.

Financial information, including the National Care Service Programme 2025-26 budget position, has been provided to the Finance and Public Administration Committee. The Care Reform (Scotland) Bill is one element of our ambitious programme of social care reform that will be delivered through both legislative and non-legislative means, including the recent establishment of the non-statutory NCS Advisory Board.

Question reference: S6W-38578

Asked by: Stephen Kerr, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 16 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 4 July 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many older people are currently on waiting lists for a social care assessment.