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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-35731

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 27 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many young people have received music tuition in schools in each local authority area in each year since 1999.

Whilst data from 1999 is not held by Scottish Government, the Improvement Service’s annual Instrumental Music Survey of local authorities contains data on the number of pupils that participated in instrumental music lessons from academic year 2013-2014 to 2023-24.

The most recent Instrumental Music survey published in January 2025 confirmed that uptake in 2023-24 was the highest proportion of the school roll participating in IMS since 2017. Page 9 of the document contains a table with the number of instrumental music pupils per authority from 2016-17 until 2023-24.

In order to access data from 2012-13 you can access the 2021 Instrumental Music survey report.

Question reference: S6W-35738

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 17 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 27 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what the rate of absenteeism has been for teachers in each local authority area in each year since 1999.

Question reference: S6W-35739

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 17 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 27 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how much has been spent on school bus transport by each local authority in each year since 1999.

Question reference: S6W-35736

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 17 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 26 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how much has been spent on anti-drug campaigns in schools in each year since 1999, broken down by local authority area.

While some schools or local authorities may run localised campaigns, Scottish Government paid-for marketing channels are not used within the school setting. Therefore, there is no recorded spend for Scottish Government marketing for drugs campaigns within schools during this time frame.

We want all young people to be appropriately educated about the harms of substance use, both to themselves and others.

In 2016 the Scottish Government published ‘What works in drugs education and prevention’: 'What Works' in Drug Education and Prevention? - gov.scot

The What Works review advises against mass campaigns about illegal drugs and instead recommends that: … wider programmes that are delivered in schools, which target multiple risk behaviours, help build self-esteem and life skills are more likely to be effective in preventing drug use. This suggests a departure from drug specific education. Generic programmes, such as the Good Behaviour Game, which do not focus on drug/substance use, can be effective in reducing substance use and other problematic behaviours in the long term.

This is why children and young people learn about a variety of substances including alcohol, medicines, drugs, tobacco and solvents in a way that focuses on identifying safe and unsafe behaviours, and learning about the impact that ongoing use can have on a person’s health, future choices and options.

Through application of Curriculum for Excellence they learn that alcohol and drugs can affect people’s ability to make decisions. The aim is to help children and young people make informed personal choices which will help them lead healthy lifestyles now and in the future.

Question reference: S6W-35740

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 18 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 26 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to review the support provided to parents receiving cancer treatment.

We take a comprehensive approach to reviewing support provided to people receiving cancer treatment, which includes those who are parents. We published our Cancer Strategy for Scotland 2023-2033 and initial three year Cancer Action Plan for Scotland 2023 – 2026 along with a Monitoring and Evaluation Framework in 2023. Our aim is that every person with cancer will have access to the support they need, clinical and non-clinical, reflecting what matters to them.

We are also committed to reviewing patients’ experiences through the Scottish Cancer Experience Survey, Care Opinion and the Patient-Reported Outcomes Measures Programme.

Question reference: S6W-35745

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 March 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 22 April 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many (a) birth to two-, (b) three- to five- and (c) six- to 12-year-olds have been supported as part of the Childsmile campaign in each year since 2006, broken down by local authority area.

Question reference: S6W-35743

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 March 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 22 April 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many exclusions of (a) primary and (b) secondary school pupils have taken place in each year since 1999, broken down by (i) local authority area and (ii) pupil year group.

Question reference: S6W-35744

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 March 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 22 April 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how much has been spent from Pupil Equity Funding (PEF) on mental health in schools in each local authority area in each year since 1999.

Question reference: S6W-35735

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 17 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 25 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how much has been spent on anti-smoking campaigns in schools in each year since 1999, broken down by local authority area.

Currently children and young people learn about a variety of substances including alcohol, medicines, drugs, tobacco and solvents in the school curriculum. They explore the impact risk taking behaviour has on life choices and health.

Paid for marketing channels are not used within the school setting. There is no recorded spend for Scottish Government marketing for anti-smoking campaigns within schools during this time frame.

ASSIST was a licensed, peer-led, school-based smoking prevention programme that encouraged the dissemination of non-smoking norms. The ASSIST pilot ran between 2014-2015 and 2016-2017.

Financial Year	Spend
2014-2015	£216,599
2015-2016	£65,000
2016-2017	£65,958

Funding was provided to Health Boards to pilot the programme in Glasgow city, across Lothian and Tayside Boards. It is not possible to provide Local Authority funding breakdown.

Question reference: S6W-35538

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 March 2025
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 24 March 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many external tutors have been employed in (a) primary and (b) secondary schools in each year since 2004, also broken down by what the associated costs were each year.