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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-08339

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 May 2022
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 12 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how many vouchers issued through the ScotSpirit Holiday Voucher Scheme between October and December 2021 have been used to date.

Delivery partners hold the ScotSpirit budget enabling them to book breaks for unpaid carers and low-income families with participating businesses rather than issuing physical break vouchers. This person centred approach ensures that delivery partners work with individuals to broker and book the type of break that best meets their individual needs.

From October to December 2021 just over £58K was spent on breaks.

Question reference: S6W-08338

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 May 2022
Current Status: Answered by Ivan McKee on 12 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how many vouchers from the ScotSpirit Holiday Voucher Scheme were available for issue between October and December 2021.

Question reference: S6W-08400

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 06 May 2022
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 12 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide details of any modelling or estimates it has of the number of applications that will be made for the Self-Isolation Support Grant from 1 May 2022 until the end of the financial year 2022-23.

Question reference: S6O-01086

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 May 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 18 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government when it will provide an update to Parliament on when it plans to bring forward legislation to incorporate human rights treaties.

Question reference: S6O-01061

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 04 May 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 11 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions the veterans secretary has had with the minister for mental wellbeing regarding any urgent action that can be taken to meet the mental health needs of veterans.

Question reference: S6W-07812

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 05 April 2022
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 4 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the commitment in the Tackling Child Poverty Delivery Plan 2022-26 to "mitigate the Benefit Cap as fully as we can", whether the mitigation will cover the full difference between a household's cap and its entitlement; how it plans to deliver this payment to households; what the timescale is for this to be fully implemented, and how many households will receive the payment.

The benefit cap is a UK Government policy that sets a limit on the total annual payment a household can receive from means-tested benefits. The Scottish Government cannot amend this policy but we can provide support to benefit-capped families through the discretionary housing payment system. Our aim is to mitigate the cap as fully as possible within the parameters set by UK legislation on discretionary housing payments.

We are working with local authorities to identify good practice in benefit cap mitigation and agree how to best support those affected. This additional funding will be rolled out as early as possible this year. Estimates show around 4,000 households are capped and we will work with local authorities to identify those.

Question reference: S6W-07754

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 19 April 2022
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 3 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it collects information on the measures being put in place by local authorities to address any barriers faced by disabled people who work for local authorities.

The duty to ensure equality of opportunity rests with employers and so the development and implementation of plans is a matter for Local Authorities. The Scottish Government does not collect this information centrally.

Public sector bodies, including local authorities, are subject to the Public Sector Equality Duty (PSED) which requires listed public authorities, in all their functions, to have due regard to eliminate discrimination, advance equality of opportunity, and foster good relations between persons who share a relevant protected characteristic, such as disabled people, and those who do not.

Furthermore, local authorities in Scotland are subject to The Equality Act 2010 (Specific Duties) (Scotland) Regulations 2012. This includes a duty to gather and use employee information in relation to their protected characteristics, before using that information to better fulfil their duties under the PSED; as well as a duty to publish statements on equal pay and occupational segregation (within organisations) regarding disabled people. Responsibility for ensuring compliance with these duties lies with the Equality and Human Rights Commission.

The Scottish Government is currently reviewing the effectiveness of the PSED in Scotland. This means reviewing the Scottish Specific Duties as well as the implementation environment in which they sit. From December 2021 to April 2022 we ran a public consultation containing ambitious and detailed proposals for changes to the duties, several of which will help to address barriers faced by disabled people in the workforce.

After consultation responses have been analysed, we will continue to work with public bodies and equality advocacy groups with a view to introducing new regulations that will deliver better outcomes for those who experience inequality.

Question reference: S6W-07769

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 01 April 2022
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 28 April 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what community engagement it has carried out regarding its plans to refresh its A Fairer Scotland for disabled people: employment action plan.

The Scottish Government has established a Short Life Working Group (SLWG), co-chaired by Glasgow Disability Alliance, to develop a refresh of the Action Plan, to be published in Autumn 2022 as part of an overarching Fair Work action plan. Membership of the working group includes: disabled people’s organisations (Inclusion Scotland, Glasgow Centre for Inclusive Living), national disability organisations (e.g. ENABLE Works, Scottish Commission for People with Learning Disabilities), as well as wider stakeholders with an interest and expertise in disabled people’s employment (e.g. STUC, the Institute of Directors, Public Health Scotland, Skills Development Scotland) and internal Scottish Government policy teams.

Disabled People’s Organisations (DPO’s) are key to representing the voice of lived experience on the working group itself – they have been clear in their view that the Scottish Government should not repeat previous engagement as to what the barriers to employment are for disabled people. Rather, we have agreed that the working group will develop initial proposals for action to address barriers and discrimination, with engagement with disabled people themselves to then be led by the DPOs, with support from Scottish Government and wider partners. This will enable us to sense check proposals and ensure they align with disabled people’s priorities in order to tackle the disability employment gap. In addition, engagement will be undertaken with wider stakeholders, as part of a communications and engagement strategy for the overarching Fair Work action plan.

Question reference: S6W-07768

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 01 April 2022
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 28 April 2022

To ask the Scottish Government when it plans to publish its update on progress regarding its A Fairer Scotland for disabled people: employment action plan.

The Scottish Government has published two progress reports following the initial publication of A Fairer Scotland for Disabled People: Employment Action Plan in December 2018. These were published in March 2020 and March 2021.

Labour Market Statistics are published regularly by the Scottish Government and include data on disabled people’s employment rate, and the disability employment gap. The most recent full year figures for the Annual Population Survey, allowing comparison with our baseline year (2016), were published on the Scottish Government’s website in March of this year.

We are currently in the process of refreshing A Fairer Scotland for Disabled People: Employment Action Plan, to be published in Autumn 2022 as part of a single, unified Fair Work Action Plan. Where appropriate, this will include a refresh of actions that remain in progress, whilst also identifying new action to be undertaken to reduce the disability employment gap.

Question reference: S6W-07693

Asked by: Pam Duncan-Glancy, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 31 March 2022
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 28 April 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what consultation it has carried out with disabled people and their supporting organisations in relation to Low Emission Zones.

Low Emission Zones regulations provide an exemption for Blue Badge holders, which includes both individual and organisational badges. Throughout the development of Scotland’s Low Emission Zones Transport Scotland have engaged with both the Mobility and Access Committee for Scotland, and Disability Equality Scotland organisations to shape how the schemes will work.

Transport Scotland have completed an Equalities Impact Assessment, and held a public and organisational consultation with stakeholders in December 2021. This provided valuable feedback on the development of the National Blue Badge Exemption system, and Transport Scotland continues to work closely with the four local authorities (Aberdeen, Dundee, Edinburgh and Glasgow) and Disability Equality Scotland as this system develops.

Transport Scotland will continue to consult with relevant stakeholders, including local authority partners who will be operating the schemes going forward.