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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-29174

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 20 August 2024
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 4 September 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the actionable steps outlined in the Zero Waste Scotland report, Scotland’s Circular Economy Practices Ecosystem: Barriers to businesses being more circular.

I welcome this report from Zero Waste Scotland, alongside its ongoing circular economy business support service. It is vital that we understand and tackle the barriers Scottish businesses face in adopting more circular operating models, ensuring we value materials and keep them in use for as long as possible. This is key for our efforts to address the climate emergency and nature crises, and create opportunities for investment and economic growth.

The report reinforces the key findings and actions proposed in our draft Circular Economy and Waste Route Map, published earlier this year. This includes work to identify ways to expand business models that prolong product lifespan, complementing our focus on producer stewardship for priority products. The sustainable, circular choices are still not the easy choices for different parts of society, including businesses, and large-scale, and rapid system change is required to ensure a more rapid transition to net zero and a fully circular economy in Scotland.

Supporting businesses to become more circular is a key part of this transition. As we finalise the Route Map for publication later this year, and develop our first statutory Circular Economy Strategy, the Scottish Government will carefully consider the report’s findings and insights.

Question reference: S6O-03665

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 28 August 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 September 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to fund any pay increases for local government employees.

Question reference: S6W-28585

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 31 July 2024
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 13 August 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-28234 by Gillian Martin on 5 July 2024, whether it will provide the information requested regarding for what reason the timeframe for the (a) Nitrogen Impacts on the Natural Environment (NINE) project and (b) assessment of potential costs for implementing site conditioning monitoring improvements has been extended beyond 2024 to 2026 instead of providing revised completion dates.

Cleaner Air for Scotland 2 (CAFS2) was published in July 2021 with two actions on the topic of nitrogen deposition. At the time of publication these actions were assigned a medium term timescale for delivery by 2024.

In April 2022 the Nitrogen Impacts on the Natural Environment (NINE) project led by the James Hutton Institute commenced as part of the Strategic Research Programme for air quality. In considering how to take the CAFS2 actions forward, Scottish Government worked with the NINE project team to ensure it would deliver the CAFS2 evidence needs. Following commencement of the NINE project we revised the delivery milestones for the CASF2 actions to align with the project deliverables.

The NINE project was commissioned on time and continues to be on track for delivery by 2027, with CAFS2 elements to be delivered in 2026.

Question reference: S6W-28672

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 22 July 2024
Current Status: Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 7 August 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment has been made of any impact on small businesses of the introduction of restricted pavement parking.

During the development of the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019, which brought in the ban on pavement parking, Transport Scotland convened a Parking Standards Group to seek views on the policy. This group comprised of a wide range of key stakeholders, including the Federation of Small Businesses.

This group continued to meet during the evolution of the Act, along with the development of secondary legislation that was required to bring the ban into force. No concerns were raised by the Federation of Small Businesses during this process. A number of consultations were undertaken throughout this period and no concerns were highlighted regarding small businesses, either from the Federation of Small Businesses or any other parties.

Particular consideration was given to small businesses during the development of the Act which allows for a 20 minute exception for goods to be loaded or delivered, where 1.5 metres of clear pavement is left for the passing of pavement users.

Furthermore, statutory Business and Regulatory Impact Assessments were carried out for each piece of legislation and no impacts to small businesses were identified.

Question reference: S6W-28467

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 July 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 30 July 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the reported number of school buildings containing asbestos, and how many have had asbestos removed in each of the last three years, broken down by local authority.

The Scottish Government does not hold information regarding how many schools have had asbestos removed in the last three years. Local authorities have statutory responsibility for the control and management of asbestos within their schools.

Although health and safety is not devolved to the Scottish Government, we take the issue of asbestos within schools very seriously and expect local authorities to strictly follow the Health and Safety Executive's recommendations. Moreover, we have recently engaged with local authorities and the Health and Safety Executive regarding asbestos in schools.

Question reference: S6W-28415

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 28 June 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 25 July 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment has been made of teaching staff at all levels with food allergy awareness training.

The responsibility for staff training in schools is a matter for local authorities.

The Scottish Government has published guidance on supporting children and young people with healthcare needs in schools. Annex B of this guidance focuses upon UK-wide Regulations which allow schools to buy and hold spare adrenaline auto-injector (AAI) devices to treat pupils suffering from allergic reactions in emergency situations where their own prescribed device is unavailable. This guidance is available through the following web link: Supporting children and young people with healthcare needs in schools: guidance - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) .

Our guidance states that schools must arrange specialist anaphylaxis training for staff where a pupil in their school has been diagnosed at risk of anaphylaxis. The specialist training should include practical instruction in how to use the different AAI devices available.

Question reference: S6W-28379

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 27 June 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 25 July 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether any further official data on incidents of dog theft have been collated since Police Scotland produced the document, Recorded Theft of Dogs in Scotland April 2019 – March 2021, in June 2021.

The Recorded Theft of Dogs in Scotland April 2019 - March 2021 was published by Police Scotland in response to queries they were receiving relating to dog theft. The data published revealed once ownership disputes arising over dogs were excluded from the data, the number of dogs thefts recorded in 2019-20 was 48 and the number of dog thefts recorded in 2020-21 was 60. It is an operational matter for Police Scotland as to information they publish as contained on their internal management information systems and any query as to whether Police Scotland will publish further information in this area would therefore best be directed to Police Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-28416

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 28 June 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 25 July 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide a breakdown of food allergy training initiatives that it has funded for (a) nursery, (b) primary school and (c) secondary school staff in each of the past three years.

The Scottish Government is providing record funding of over £14 billion to local authorities in the 2024-25 financial year, including £600.6 million of additional revenue funding for day to day services.

It should be noted that the vast majority of funding available to councils is provided by means of a block grant from the Scottish Government. It is then the responsibility of individual local authorities to manage their own budgets and to allocated the total financial resources available to them on the bases of local needs and priorities, having first fulfilled their statutory obligations and the jointly agreed set of national and local priorities.

Question reference: S6W-28380

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 27 June 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 25 July 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what steps have been taken to enable Police Scotland to record and retrieve information on incidents of pet theft more easily.

Question reference: S6W-28469

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 03 July 2024
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 22 July 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the reported number of NHS buildings containing asbestos, and how many have had asbestos removed in each of the last three years, broken down by NHS board.