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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-31142

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 11 November 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 14 November 2024

To ask the Scottish Government when it will introduce a free, at-home testing service for hepatitis C.

Scottish Government has no imminent plans to introduce at-home testing for hepatitis C.

Testing for hepatitis C is currently available through a range of routes, with a particular focus on settings which are most likely to be accessed by people at highest risk of infection, such as drugs services and prison healthcare. In addition, anyone who has concerns about exposure to hepatitis C can speak to their GP practice about getting a test, which would allow them to be referred into treatment and services rapidly if required.

Question reference: S6W-31029

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 04 November 2024
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 12 November 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will request that Scottish Water allocates funds from its public top-up taps programme specifically to restore disused historic drinking fountains in public places by fitting top-up taps to them in collaboration with conservation-accredited engineers.

The Scottish Government have no plans to request this.

Scottish Water has a programme of installing blue top up taps in communities across Scotland, with over 120 installed and providing fresh drinking water for bottle refills. However they are not in a position to support the refurbishing/reuse of existing architecture and historic fountains and wells. These older pieces of equipment present a number of issues around health and safety risks, use of historic materials, location, the bespoke nature of every site and ultimately the inability to guarantee water quality. The taps provided by Scottish Water are Water Regulation Approval Scheme (WRAS) approved, which provides an enhanced level of water quality protection. This level of assurance would be very difficult and costly to achieve via pre-existing historic structures – and in some cases it may not be possible.

Question reference: S6W-31027

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 01 November 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 12 November 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether the Scottish Courts and Tribunal Service will engage with the development of the North Laurieston Masterplan on the architectural plan for the Glasgow Sheriff Court building and its environs.

Question reference: S6W-30924

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 29 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Kaukab Stewart on 12 November 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to improve the total fertility rate.

Falling birth rates are a demographic trend replicated across many high-income countries, with significant future implications for our economies, communities and public services.

The Family Friendly Nation strand of our Population Strategy sets out our ambition to ensure Scotland is the ideal place to raise a family. In delivering this, in November 2022, the Ministerial Population Taskforce published ‘Attitudes to Family Formation in Scotland’ to update our evidence base about family planning and ideal family size.

Next steps are being considered by the Taskforce, including scoping potential policy lessons from international comparators to support people to have the number of children they wish to have.

Question reference: S6W-30908

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 29 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 11 November 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-30441 by Alasdair Allan on 28 October 2024, what its position is on whether (a) this commercial shipbuilding opportunity is of national importance, (b) it should be a key priority for the Scottish Government to develop a domestic supply chain and industrial base and (c) this should also be integrated with the UK Government's National Shipbuilding Strategy.

Our evidence paper, Offshore Wind Focus - gov.scot (www.gov.scot), sets out our strategic approach to investing up to £500m over five years to anchor our offshore wind supply chain in Scotland, supporting the delivery of our Green Industrial Strategy.

Vessels have been identified in that paper as a priority for strategic investment, alongside ports and harbours infrastructure and the wider offshore wind supply chain, including blades and turbine manufacturing, foundations, offshore services, and cables.

We are committed to working collaboratively with the UK Government to ensure alignment on investment priorities to support the offshore wind supply chain in Scotland, including vessels.

Question reference: S6W-30900

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 29 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 11 November 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-30385 by Fiona Hyslop on 25 October 2024, what its response is to reports that the Edinburgh to Glasgow Improvement Programme (EGIP) originally aimed to increase service frequency to six trains per hour, but that Transport Scotland commissioned Jacobs to examine the project for potential savings and it identified that a similar capacity increase could be achieved by increasing train length while maintaining a four-train-per-hour frequency, and what its position is on whether further reducing that frequency to a two-train-per-hour off peak service undermines the (a) EGIP project investment benefits and (b) convenience of a "turn up and go" frequency for passengers.

The decision was made to choose four longer trains per hour rather than six shorter trains per hour between Edinburgh and Glasgow because this was the better value for money option to deliver the necessary peak capacity for passengers.

ScotRail adjusts its services to reflect changing travel patterns over time. The emission free electric train peak capacity delivered by the Edinburgh to Glasgow Improvements Project is being used today to the benefit of passengers.

Question reference: S6W-30899

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 28 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 8 November 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it is aware of any complaints of bullying by senior members of the Scottish Ambulance Service.

The Scottish Government is aware of complaints of bullying by senior members of staff in the Scottish Ambulance Service (SAS).

Whilst Scottish Government provide support in applying the appropriate policies, this is a contractual issue which, by law, must remain between an employee and SAS as their employer. We expect all health boards to thoroughly investigate any complaints made about bullying, regardless of grade, and to ensure that these are appropriately actioned.

Question reference: S6W-30901

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 28 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 7 November 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will support local government to develop an open source cashless parking service app to avoid the rents extracted by private cashless parking app vendors, which are reported to be around 20p per transaction.

The Roads (Scotland) Act 1984 places the statutory responsibility for local roads with the local road authorities, including parking. The provision of parking, the charges levied and how they are collected is therefore at the local authorities discretion and this is not something in which the Scottish Government would become directly involved.

There is a National Parking Platform available across the UK, run at no cost to local authorities by the Department of Transport, which local authorities in Scotland would be free to participate in if they so wish.

Question reference: S6W-30602

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 10 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 7 November 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many improvement notices relating to mental health wards in Scottish hospitals have been issued by the Health and Safety Executive in each of the last five years, also broken down by hospital.

The Health and Safety Executive is a body exercising reserved powers and the information requested is not held centrally. It would be a matter for them to provide the information requested.

The quality and safety of mental health estates is an important issue for the Scottish Government. We expect Health Boards across Scotland to place significant emphasis on patient safety and the environments mental health services are delivered from.

Question reference: S6O-03948

Asked by: Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 November 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 13 November 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the UK Government announcing the largest funding settlement in real terms since devolution, how it will use any increase in funding to ensure that Glasgow’s arts and culture sector is able to thrive.