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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-30679

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 15 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 29 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what rate of direct cash return it is expecting from any public investment made in support of attracting private investment into nature recovery.

Scottish Government is currently assessing alternative spending models for natural restoration that will seek to encourage greater responsible private investment.

Scottish Government has not set an expected rate of direct cash return that may be derived from these models.

Scottish Government’s approach will focus on maximising the value of public spending to achieve the greatest amount of nature restoration and positive environmental outcomes while ensuring communities benefit from this investment.

Question reference: S6W-30518

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 09 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 29 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-30045 by Fiona Hyslop on 4 October 2024, what the (a) value and (b) length of the contract is with (i) naValue GmbH and (ii) Addleshaw Goddard.

Question reference: S6O-03853

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 30 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how youth groups can access funds to buy community assets.

Question reference: S6W-30464

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 07 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 15 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government when the medicines homecare services review will be published.

Question reference: S6W-30044

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 20 September 2024
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 8 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government by what date CMAL will publish the invitation to tender to design and build seven new ferries for the Clyde and Hebrides network under phase 1 of the Small Vessel Replacement Programme, and how many expressions of interest in this contract have been received.

Question reference: S6W-30082

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 24 September 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 7 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to using remote electronic monitoring to help respond to any modern slavery, human trafficking and human rights abuses in the fishing sector.

The Scottish Government is not considering the use of remote electronic monitoring (REM) technologies in its response to modern slavery, human trafficking and human rights abuses in the fishing sector.

REM involves the use of imagery, sensors and Vessel Positioning Systems (VPS) to independently monitor fishing operations and data that is produced is used for fisheries compliance and scientific purposes. The views of the cameras are fixed on key areas of the boat where fishing operations take place; they are not set up to monitor or identify people.

Question reference: S6W-30045

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 20 September 2024
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 4 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown of the external consultants that have advised (a) CMAL and (b) Transport Scotland on the design and build contract for seven new ferries on Clyde and Hebrides network routes under phase 1 of the Small Vessel Replacement Programme.

Question reference: S6W-30103

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 23 September 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 1 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) charges and (b) convictions for kerb crawling offences there have been in each local authority area in each year since 2018, including 2024 to date.

As there isn’t a specific offence of ‘kerb crawling’, information has been provided in the following table on the number of charges and convictions for (i) Prostitution (Public Places) (Scotland) Act 2007 S1 (1) – Person solicits relevant place for purpose of obtaining services of prostitute and (ii) Prostitution (Public Places) (Scotland) Act 2007 S1 (3) – Person loiters in relevant place so that infer purpose obtain services of prostitute.

(a) Charges reported to COPFS, 2018-19 to 2024-25*.

Charge	Reported to Procurator Fiscal Office:-	2018-19	2019-20	2020-21	2021-22	2022-23	2023-24	2024-25
Prostitution (Public Places) (Scotland) Act 2007 S1(1) - Person solicits relevant place for purpose of obtaining services of prostitute	Aberdeen	10	9	8	5	13	5	1
	Dundee	1	2	0	0	0	0	0
	Edinburgh	3	5	2	0	0	1	0
	Glasgow	51	33	1	2	9	7	1
Total		65	49	11	7	22	13	2
Prostitution (Public Places) (Scotland) Act 2007 S1(3) - Person loiters in relevant place so that infer purpose obtain services of prostitute	Aberdeen	3	3	0	2	2	1	2
	Dundee	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
	Dunfermline	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
	Edinburgh	1	0	0	0	0	1	0
	Glasgow	52	13	0	2	7	6	1
	Inverness	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
Total		57	16	0	4	9	10	3
Grand Total		122	65	11	11	31	23	5

Source: COPFS

Please note:

The Crown Office and Procurator Fiscal Service does not hold local authority data. The location of the PF office has been provided as an alternative.

*Data for 2024-25 covers only a partial year - specifically the period 1 April 2024 to 31 August 2024

(b) People convicted, where main crime, by crime type, 2018-19 to 2021-22.

		2018-19	2019-20	2020-21	2021-22
PROSTITUTION (PUBLIC PLACES)(SCOTLAND) ACT 2007 SECTION 1(1)	Aberdeen City	3	5	-	3
	Dundee City	-	1	-	-
	Edinburgh, City of	1	1	1	1
	Glasgow City	8	23	4	3
Total		12	30	5	7
PROSTITUTION (PUBLIC PLACES)(SCOTLAND) ACT 2007 SECTION 1(3)	Aberdeen City	-	1	1	-
	Edinburgh, City of	1	-	-	-
	Glasgow City	13	7	1	1
Total		14	8	2	1
Grand Total		26	38	7	8

Source: Scottish Government Criminal Proceedings database

Please note:

The Criminal Proceedings local authority data is based on court location.

Data for 2020-21 and 2021-22 are affected by the pandemic, subsequent court closures, reduced court capacity due to physical distancing measures and delays to cases where key participants were forced to self-isolate after testing positive for COVID-19, and should not be considered indicative of long term trends.

The latest available data is for 2021-22. Information for 2022-23 will not be available until publication of the Criminal Proceedings in Scotland, 2022-23 Statistical Bulletin. This is planned to be published in late 2024.

Question reference: S6W-29799

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 11 September 2024
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 26 September 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on whether it remains committed to dualling the A96.

The Scottish Government remains committed to improving the A96. This is despite stark challenges we face due to severe budgetary restrictions, as a result of the UK Government’s cut to our capital funding of almost 9% over five years.

The current plan is to fully dual the route and as part of this process we are undertaking a transparent, evidence-based review of the programme, which includes a climate compatibility assessment and other statutory assessments.

The significant interest in the review’s initial consultation, with nearly 4,600 responses, generated 11,000 options to improve the corridor. It is only right that appropriate time has been taken in order to properly examine and fully appraise these.

It is expected that the draft outcomes from the Review, including the climate compatibility assessment, will be consulted on this Autumn, before a final decision can be reached.

Question reference: S6W-30000

Asked by: Rhoda Grant, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 18 September 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 26 September 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-29379 by Siobhian Brown on 13 September 2024, whether it will provide an update on progress on the delivery of the four components outlined in Scotland’s strategic approach to challenging and deterring men’s demand for prostitution and supporting the recovery and sustainable exit of those involved in prostitution.

The primary aim of the Strategic Approach is to improve support for those with experience of prostitution, from crisis support through to support to exit from prostitution. We remain focussed on progressing this and the strategy’s wider components.

Since publishing the Strategy in February 2024 we have worked across Scottish Government, the wider public and third sectors, to identify opportunities to move forward with its implementation. This includes hosting a workshop earlier this month involving key stakeholders to discuss some of the challenges around capacity and resource in the current fiscal environment.

Over the coming weeks I will be announcing the key next steps we will be taking to progress this work.