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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.

Find out more about parliamentary questions

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Question reference: S6W-38065

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 02 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 10 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, in relation to section 3(1)b(i) of the Good Food Nation (Scotland) Act 2022, when the deadline is for representations to the Scottish Ministers about the proposed national good food nation plan.

Question reference: S6W-38151

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 10 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding the enforcement of the wrasse fishery licensing conditions, how many fixed penalty notices (FPN) have been issued since April 2021, and how many of those went unpaid; of those FPNs that went unpaid, how many have (a) been referred to the Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service and (b) proceeded in the courts, and, of any that resulted in convictions, what the (i) nature of the offence, (ii) value of the original FPN and (iii) court disposal was.

Question reference: S6W-38067

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 03 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 10 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, in relation to section 3(3) of the Good Food Nation (Scotland) Act 2022, by what date the Scottish Ministers will (a) lay the national good food nation plan before Parliament under section 1(1) and (b) deliver a statement setting out details of any (i) representations, (ii) resolutions and (iii) reports mentioned in subsection (1)(b); what changes they made to the plan in response to any such (A) representations, (B) resolutions and (C) reports, and what the reasons were for any such changes.

Question reference: S6W-38064

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 02 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 10 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, in relation to section 3(1)a of the Good Food Nation (Scotland) Act 2022, when (a) the proposed plan will be laid before the Scottish Parliament and (b) the expiry of the 60-day period will fall.

Question reference: S6W-38074

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 02 June 2025
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 10 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to publish a dedicated strategy for scaling up ecosystem-based approaches to climate mitigation, and, if so, when such a strategy will be released, and how it will be resourced.

The Scottish Government has no plans to publish a separate dedicated strategy for scaling up ecosystem-based approaches to climate mitigation, as these issues are addressed in our Biodiversity Strategy and Climate Change Plans.

Our Biodiversity Strategy and Climate Change Plans include policies to develop healthy and restored ecosystems with landscape scale nature-based initiatives, contributing to our nature and climate targets. This is an effective framework for policy, and we have recently announced that Scotland's Peatland ACTION partnership has put 14,860 hectares of degraded peatlands on the road to recovery last year, which represents a new record in one year.

Question reference: S6W-38034

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 30 May 2025
Current Status: Answered by Alasdair Allan on 6 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government at what stage its ministers are involved in applications to translocate beavers; how they approach any such interventions (a) in general and (b) when an application (i) complies with Scotland's Beaver Strategy and (ii) has strong community support, and how its ministers have approached the translocation in Glen Affric.

The responsibility of the species licensing function was transferred from Scottish Ministers to NatureScot on 1 July 2011. Scottish Ministers retain an interest in the exercise of all the licensing powers delegated.

NatureScot must inform Scottish Ministers about any novel or contentious issues that arise in connection with the exercise of the delegated licensing functions.

The Scottish Government has not been involved in the licensing decision regarding the translocation of beavers to Glen Affric. The Scottish Government fully supports the decision by NatureScot that further consultation with those land managers who may be affected by the translocation of beavers in Glen Affric will be beneficial, and to ensure that appropriate mitigation measures will be agreed before any licensing decision is made.

Question reference: S6O-04776

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 June 2025
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 11 June 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what funding allocations it has made, and plans to make, to enable local authorities to fulfil their statutory duties to uphold the statutory right of access to outdoor spaces, commonly known as the right to roam.

Question reference: S6W-37759

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 20 May 2025
Current Status: Answered by Alasdair Allan on 30 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-34497 by Alasdair Allan on 19 February 2025, by what date it will publish the Nature Conservation Order to protect the Parallel Roads of Lochaber Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) at Achnabobane.

Further to the answer to question S6W-34497 on 19 February 2025, drafting of the proposed Nature Conservation Order and associated Land Register of Scotland and General Register of Sasines searches have continued to progress. I expect to receive advice and a recommendation on the proposed NCO imminently.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers

Question reference: S6W-37743

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Monday, 19 May 2025
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 27 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on when the outcomes of the Inshore Fisheries Management Improvement Programme will be published, and when the public consultation will open.

We received an excellent response to the Inshore Fisheries Management Improvement Programme call for evidence which ran for twelve weeks from 26 November 2024. We intend to publish an analysis in due course. The responses are both numerous and voluminous and have required longer than anticipated to fully analyse and report upon. The scale of the responses has however provided a detailed insight into the views of our stakeholders on numerous aspects of inshore fisheries management. These will be invaluable as we begin to develop proposals for a new inshore fisheries management framework, which we intend to consult on in early 2026.

Question reference: S6W-37569

Asked by: Ariane Burgess, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 13 May 2025
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 27 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how it ensures that any incidents of environmental pollution by the salmon farming industry that have been caused by the sinking of vessels, and fuel spills, are investigated and sanctioned appropriately.

Salmon farming is regulated primarily as development by Local Authorities through planning permissions granted under the Town and Country Planning (Scotland) Act 1997. Other consents can include a seabed lease from Crown Estate Scotland, a licence from the Scottish Environmental Protection Agency (“SEPA”) under the Water Environment (Controlled Activities) (Scotland) Regulations 2011 and a Marine Licence from the Scottish Government's Marine Directorate - Licensing Operations Team for the deposit of equipment under the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010.

Incidents of marine pollution are typically reported to the Maritime and Coastguard Agency (“MCA”), who then inform other relevant authorities. Where pollution is suspected to be associated with an aquaculture site, SEPA has primacy in investigating the cause and considering any potential sanctions.

In cases of pollution elsewhere than at an aquaculture site, the Scottish Government’s Marine Directorate can investigate and it can take action if the evidence indicates that an offence under the Marine (Scotland) Act 2010 has been committed. This can include cases of unlicensed deposits of a substance or object into the marine environment or a failure to comply with the conditions of a licensed activity.

In the case of a vessel sinking, the responsible authority is the MCA and it directs any salvage operations through powers held by the Secretary of State’s Representative for Maritime Salvage and Intervention (“SOSREP”). The MCA also has responsibility for pollution emanating from vessels under the International Convention for the Prevention of Pollution from Ships (“MarPol”).