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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-28029

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 June 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angus Robertson on 12 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the refreshed Skills Investment Plan for Scotland's Historic Environment sector, which was published on 1 April 2024, what additional investment has been allocated to progress the priority areas identified, particularly to provide career opportunities in the South of Scotland and in the historic built environment.

The Scottish Government and the Historic Environment sector cannot achieve the aims of the Skills Investment Plan alone. Public, private, and third sectors, private owners, and communities across the country all have a role to play in delivering the Skills Investment Plan actions, and all will benefit from a highly skilled historic environment sector.

The Scottish Government supports the historic environment through its sponsorship of Historic Environment Scotland the lead public body set up to investigate, care for and promote Scotland’s historic environment.

In 2024-25 Historic Environment Scotland’s operational budget is rising by 13.3% to £129.7 million, enabling the organisation to invest in fair staff pay, in running and maintaining its properties, in delivering grants to the heritage sector, continue research on Climate Change and in fulfilling its advisory and regulatory functions.

Skills Development Scotland commenced contracting for new apprenticeship opportunities at the start of April 2024 and Scottish Government investment will support up to 25,500 new Modern Apprenticeship starts across Scotland, and continue to provide support for around 38,000 apprentices already in training for 2024-25. This will include MAs in traditional skills and craft roles.

Skills Development Scotland publishes annual Regional Skills Assessments to provide a coherent evidence base to inform future investment in skills, built up from existing datasets and forecasts. Skills Development Scotland has worked with key partners and stakeholders in the production of these assessments to ensure an inclusive approach to their development, dissemination and utilisation and that they cover all Regional Outcome Agreement areas, City and Growth Deal Regions and Rural Scotland.

Additionally, Scotland’s strategy for the historic environment ‘Our Past Our Future’ will work with regional economic partnerships to embed the historic environment in job creation across the country.

Question reference: S6W-27829

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 May 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 11 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the publication of the Scottish breast screening programme data 2022-23, what steps are being taken to increase uptake of breast screening to reach the achievable 80% target in all NHS board areas.

Question reference: S6W-27828

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 28 May 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 10 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the publication of the Scottish breast screening programme data 2022-23, what steps are being taken to improve uptake rates for women living in Scotland’s most deprived communities.

The Scottish Breast Screening Programme Statistics 2022-23 report confirms that a greater percentage of women experiencing socio-economic deprivation have attended screening for the three year period 2020-23 when compared to the last reporting period.

While this is a positive trend, the Scottish Government continues to ensure work is carried out to address inequalities in uptake and access to screening. The Scottish Government has committed £3 million since 2021 to tackle inequalities in the programmes. This has supported Health Boards to develop initiatives to meet local needs, develop better data capabilities so interventions can be more targeted and work to raise the profile of screening among specific groups. In 2024-25, an additional £1 million will be provided to build on this work.

This funding will support the Scottish Equity in Screening Strategy, which was published July 2023 with Screening Oversight and Assurance Scotland, and provides direction and focus to tackling screening inequalities.

In addition to this, the Executive Summary & List of Recommendations - Scottish Breast Screening Programme: major review - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) published in 2022 noted recommendations to address breast screening inequalities. The Breast Screening Modernisation Board, chaired by Dr Marzi Davies, is currently taking forward these recommendations.

Question reference: S6O-03582

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 06 June 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 13 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Parliamentary Corporate Body whether it will provide an update on the review commissioned by the security team, in light of the protest that took place on 21 February 2024.

Question reference: S6O-03563

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 June 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 12 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the potential impact that replicating the non-domestic rates relief available to businesses in England would have in Ayrshire, including in relation to job creation.

Question reference: S6W-27858

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 May 2024
Current Status: Answered by Natalie Don on 5 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide (a) an update on how it has spent the Whole Family Wellbeing Fund to date and (b) a breakdown of its proposed spending plans for the fund in the current financial year.

In 2022-23 and 2023-24 over £70m of Whole Family Wellbeing Funding (WFWF) was invested by the Scottish Government to deliver a transformational change in holistic family support so that families get the right support, in the right way and at the right time. The funding was distributed as follows:

£32m provided annually for Children’s Services Planning Partnerships (CSPPs) to build local service capacity for transformation and the scaling up of holistic family support in local areas. This funding is being provided on a recurring, multi-year basis to 2025-26.
£0.8m for National Support for Local Delivery – including a package of activity aimed at supporting local transformation. This part of the funding also supports the wider evaluation and research work for WFWF.
£5.3m was provided to Scottish Government led national policy delivery for 12 specific projects that are transforming how families are supported.

We have prioritised £50m funding in 2024-25 to maintain the programme of activity above. Further details will be provided in a Whole Family Wellbeing investment approach to be published in due course.

Question reference: S6W-27694

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 20 May 2024
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 4 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the reported policy change regarding the transfer of funds between revenue and capital departmental expenditure limit budgets that colleges use to manage their estate.

My understanding is that the Scottish Funding Council has concluded that the flexibility it was in a position to be able to use in previous years is no longer possible because of the budgetary position it is now operating within. Therefore, there has not been any change of policy, but rather a lack of flexibility to accommodate switching capital to resource.

This follows the difficult decisions the Scottish Government faced in setting the 2024-25 budget in the most challenging financial context since devolution. The main point therefore is one of SFC budgetary cover.

Question reference: S6W-27695

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 20 May 2024
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 4 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what support and guidance it plans to provide to Ayrshire College, in light of reports that the college will be required to find an additional £882,000 in revenue savings in order to be able to continue to be financially sustainable, following the reported policy change regarding the transfer of funds between revenue and capital departmental expenditure limit budgets.

The Scottish Government and SFC are very conscious of the challenge colleges face. With regards to the specific issue raised, we are working collaboratively to understand the emerging impact and consider if a solution for 2024-25, as well as the longer term, can be found for affected colleges and keeping the Colleges: Tripartite Alignment Group updated.

The tripartite group provides strategic direction on the pressures and opportunities facing colleges. Further detail on the work of this group is available here: Colleges: Tripartite Alignment Group - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

My understanding is that the Scottish Funding Council has concluded that the flexibility it was in position to be able to use in previous years is no longer possible because of the budgetary position it is now operating within, therefore, there has not been any change of policy but rather a lack of flexibility to accommodate switching capital to resource.

Question reference: S6O-03523

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 29 May 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 5 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether Creative Scotland’s funding will be increased during the next financial year.

Question reference: S6W-27536

Asked by: Sharon Dowey, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 14 May 2024
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 28 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in situations where wayleaves cannot be satisfactorily concluded with landowners, what processes are in place to overcome any such issues, and what is considered a reasonable period within which to conclude such negotiations.

Scottish Ministers have no role in the conclusion of voluntary wayleaves in relation to electricity infrastructure and are only able to act on applications made by licence holders for Necessary Wayleaves under the Electricity Act 1989.

Telecommunications is a reserved matter to the UK Government and the framework for wayleaves is legislated for in Schedule 3A of the Communications Act 2003 (The Electronic Communications Code). The Code gives Code operators rights to apply for a wayleave agreement to be imposed by the courts if one cannot be reached voluntarily with a landowner.