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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: S6O-02876

Asked by: Ash Regan, MSP for Edinburgh Eastern, Alba Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 06 December 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 13 December 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to allocate funding to local authorities in its 2024-25 Budget to facilitate the cancellation of any school meal debt and expand universal free school meal provision to those age groups that are not currently entitled.

Question reference: S6W-22931

Asked by: Ash Regan, MSP for Edinburgh Eastern, Alba Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 15 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 4 December 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what consultation was carried out with the Catholic Church in the preparation of its draft document, Guidance on the Delivery of Relationships, Sexual Health and Parenthood (RSHP) Education in Scottish Schools, and, in light of reported calls for "the re-insertion of the paragraphs relating to Denominational Education from the previous iteration of the guidance, which would reflect both the legal protection for schools with a Religious Character, and the previously supportive position of Scottish Government for Catholic schools", for what reason such paragraphs have been removed from the guidance.

Work to revise the current RSHP teaching guidance was taken forward with a group of key stakeholders, including the Scottish Catholic Education Service. This engagement included meeting to consider the basis of a section in the revised guidance relating to faith and belief, and sharing iterations of the revised guidance before the revised guidance was finalised ahead of public consultation.

The draft revised guidance makes direct reference to denominational schools, recognising that religious authorities with a role in education provide additional and complementary guidance on RSHP education. Links to resources provided by the Scottish Catholic Education Service are contained in the revised guidance. The new section on faith and belief also takes into account an inclusive approach to all faiths and makes clear that educational practitioners in all schools should ensure that RSHP teaching and learning is delivered sensitively and respectfully to faith groups.

Catholic schools in Scotland play a crucial and valued role in the education system. In recognition of the concerns raised, officials met with the Scottish Catholic Education Service in November and made it clear they will reinstate the text on denominational schools into the revised guidance.

Question reference: S6W-22992

Asked by: Ash Regan, MSP for Edinburgh Eastern, Alba Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 16 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 28 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what steps it will take to prevent the sale of illegal fireworks, following the recent fireworks-related disorder in the Edinburgh Eastern constituency.

Product safety is a reserved matter; however, the Scottish Government provides grant funding to the Society of Chief Officers of Trading Standards in Scotland (SCOTSS) to undertake a program of enforcement against the sale of illicit fireworks in Scotland. This work extends to ports and fast parcel outlets, as well as online sales from outwith Scotland. The Fireworks and Pyrotechnic Articles (Scotland) Act 2022 also includes a proxy purchase and supply offence, to prevent the illegal supply of fireworks to those under the age of 18.

Question reference: S6W-22835

Asked by: Ash Regan, MSP for Edinburgh Eastern, Alba Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 21 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government what the implementation timetable is for the Fireworks and Pyrotechnic Articles (Scotland) Act 2022, and on what date the licensing scheme provided for in the Act will come into effect.

Four of the six key provisions in the Fireworks and Pyrotechnic Articles (Scotland) Act 2022 have been implemented to date.

The prohibition on supply to children came into effect on 10 October 2022 alongside the aggravation of offences for emergency workers. New offences relating to pyrotechnic articles in public places and at designated venues and events came into force on 6 June 2023, and firework control zones provisions commenced on 22 June 2023. For the remaining measures:

Our ambition is to have the firework licensing scheme operational ahead of Bonfire Night next year. A specific date has not yet been identified for this.
The implementation of the restricted days of supply and use provisions is paused to a future financial year. This includes the compensation regulation making power, which is attached specifically to restricted days of supply.

Question reference: S6W-22837

Asked by: Ash Regan, MSP for Edinburgh Eastern, Alba Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 21 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government how many arrests were made in (a) October and (b) November 2023 to date, in connection with fireworks-related disorder, and how these figures compare to the same period in 2022.

There were 16* detected firework related crimes in Scotland in October 2023. As of 15 November there has been 22* detected firework related crimes for November 2023. This figure is expected to rise as Police Scotland continue their investigations.

This compares with 6* detected firework related crimes in October 2022. And 33* from November 2022.

*Please note that this figure includes both arrested or charged individuals.

Question reference: S6W-22836

Asked by: Ash Regan, MSP for Edinburgh Eastern, Alba Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 09 November 2023
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 21 November 2023

To ask the Scottish Government (a) what correspondence it has had with and (b) what representations have been made to it by the City of Edinburgh Council regarding firework control zones in Edinburgh.

The City of Edinburgh Council formed a part of the Firework Control Zones Working Group, which co-developed the Guidance for Local Authorities.

Representatives from City of Edinburgh Council attended information sharing sessions for local authorities held by the Scottish Government, in partnership with the Scottish Community Safety Network.

Formal representations have been made by the City of Edinburgh Council to the Scottish Government to express interest in availing themselves of the funding for firework control zones.

Question reference: S6W-18646

Asked by: Ash Regan, MSP for Edinburgh Eastern, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 22 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 19 July 2023

To ask the Scottish Government, regarding the Scottish Prison Service's gender identity and gender reassignment policy, which potentially allows for males who have been convicted of violent offences against other males to be placed in a female establishment, what evidence it has regarding whether males who commit violent offences against other males only commit such offences against males.

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

SPS’s approach to the placement and management of all transgender individuals seeks to protect the rights and safety of everyone in prison custody.

Decisions regarding the management and placement of transgender prisoners are taken at a multi-disciplinary case conference where evidence of any risks the individual may present to others and vulnerabilities they may face, are fully considered.

Question reference: S6W-18557

Asked by: Ash Regan, MSP for Edinburgh Eastern, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 02 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 16 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it can provide a detailed breakdown of how much the Scottish Prison Service gender identity and gender reassignment policy review has cost to date.

I have asked Teresa Medhurst, Chief Executive of the Scottish Prison Service (SPS), to respond. Her response is as follows:

Apart from costs of a transcription service used to transcribe interviews and surveys during the engagement phase of the review, all costs relating to the Gender Identity and Gender Reassignment (2014) policy review have been absorbed as part of the overall annual SPS Delivery Plan resourcing budget.

For information, the cost of the transcription service was £2,153 including VAT.

Question reference: S6O-02418

Asked by: Ash Regan, MSP for Edinburgh Eastern, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 14 June 2023
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 22 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the visual recorded interviews pilot, which involves Police Scotland recording the witness statements of adult and 16- and 17-year-old complainers involving allegations of rape and attempted rape, including any learning from the cases involved as they progressed through the courts.

Question reference: S6W-18553

Asked by: Ash Regan, MSP for Edinburgh Eastern, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Friday, 02 June 2023
Current Status: Answered by Emma Roddick on 14 June 2023

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the commissioning of research into the so-called Tinker Experiment.

The Scottish Government has committed to undertaking independent research to understand the impact of 20 th century policies on the Gypsy/Traveller community in Scotland. We developed specifications for two research projects to gather further information, with one focussing on archival analysis and the other on community engagement and lived experience. We successfully appointed an appropriate contractor to take forward the archival project, and are working to re-tender the community engagement and lived experience project as no compliant bids were received for this. We expect to receive initial findings from the research next year, at which point we will consider next steps and respond.