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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-31038

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 04 November 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 13 November 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will renew the legal aid trainee fund.

The current Traineeship Fund is due to end in March 2025. Learning lessons from previous grant funding projects such as this is extremely important, and the outcome of the evaluation will help shape and inform any decisions with regards to a future Traineeship Fund.

It is important that before any decisions are taken, we continue to have constructive and meaningful dialogue with our stakeholders, particularly the Law Society of Scotland.

The Scottish Government needs to ensure that funding is targeted where it is most needed. It is also essential that there is a clear evidence base of that need and that value for money for the use of public funds can be demonstrated in line with the Scottish Government’s Public Financial Manual.

Question reference: S6W-31039

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 04 November 2024
Current Status: Answered by Siobhian Brown on 13 November 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of reports that the legal aid budget has reduced by 45%, allowing for inflation, over the last 10 years, whether it plans to restore it to the level that it would have been were it to have been uprated each year by inflation, or to otherwise increase it.

The Legal Aid Fund is demand-led and directly linked to application numbers and all eligible costs are met. The Scottish Legal Aid Board’s Annual Accounts and Report 2023-24 show that the total cost of legal aid has increased 12% on the previous year to £151 million, 16% higher than the pre-pandemic year of 2019-20 and just under £10 million above the Scottish Legal Aid Boards’s budget of £141.3 million. Indications for this financial year show that expenditure levels are predicted to rise to around £171 million which will be the highest ever recorded.

Fees were uprated in 2019 by 3% and in 2021 by 5% and a further 5% came into effect in April 2022. Fees were increased most recently in April 2023 implementing an £11 million package of legal aid reforms and an uplift worth 10.25%. The compound effect of these increases is just over 25% and is a year-on-year increase in expenditure and investment in legal aid.

The most recent increase came into force on 29 April 2023, taking the total additional funding in legal aid to £31 million since April 2021.

In addition to fee increases, other forms of investment have been delivered by the Scottish Government. In 2021 a further £9 million in funding was also made available to assist legal aid providers through the pandemic.

The Scottish Government also provided funding to establish 40 traineeships in legal aid firms during 2021. The total additional funding package for legal aid providers between 2021-22 was worth £20 million.

The Scottish Legal Aid Board’s Annual Accounts and Report 2023-24 can be found here: Annual Report and Accounts - Scottish Legal Aid Board (slab.org.uk).

Question reference: S6W-30922

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 29 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 11 November 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what the capacity is of the new HMP Glasgow, and whether each cell will accommodate one prisoner only.

Question reference: S6W-30923

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 29 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 8 November 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what the capacity is of the new HMP Highland, and whether each cell will accommodate one prisoner only.

Question reference: S6W-30286

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 29 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-26191 by Jenny Gilruth on 9 April 2024, whether it will provide the latest timescales and developments regarding the establishment of a Centre for Teaching Excellence, including whether the co-production of the Centre concluded "by the summer [2024]" as planned, and in relation to the "formal process to determine hosting arrangements".

The Co-Production Group had their final meeting in June 2024. The group provided advice on the functions of the Centre and the principles that will underpin its operation.

The host of the Centre will be determined through a competitive grant process which will be assessed in two stages. The first stage of applications for interested Scottish education institutions to apply for funding to set up and host the Centre for Teaching Excellence opened on 9th September 2024 and closed on 7th October 2024. Applicants successful at that first stage will be invited to provide more information at stage two which opens in November 2024.

The intention is to appoint and announce a host of the Centre by the end of 2024.

Question reference: S6T-02150

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 28 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 29 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason it launched a court appeal against a ruling by the Scottish Information Commissioner, in light of this costing tens of thousands of pounds and it reportedly receiving legal advice that it was likely to fail.

Question reference: S6W-30285

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 01 October 2024
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 28 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-21980 by Graeme Dey on 31 October 2023, whether it has concluded and published the findings of the Student Finance and Wellbeing Study, and, if not, when it will do so.

Question reference: S6O-03875

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 31 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on Police Scotland’s extension across Scotland of the north east pilot of not investigating "low-level" crime.

Question reference: S6O-03840

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 October 2024
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 10 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what impact it anticipates that the planned closure of Grangemouth oil refinery will have on the Forties Pipeline System and associated jobs and businesses.

Question reference: S6W-29925

Asked by: Liam Kerr, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 17 September 2024
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 1 October 2024

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason it reportedly removed funding for upskilling and reskilling Scotland's workforce in its Budget 2024-25; what assessment it has undertaken of any impact of this on (a) equalities and (b) the future economy, and whether it has any plans to reintroduce any such funding in the remainder of the current parliamentary session.

Despite facing the most challenging fiscal position since devolution, the 2024-25 Budget allocates around £2bn to both colleges and universities – supporting their delivery of high-quality education, training and research.

In this challenging fiscal environment, decisions have been made regarding specific individual funds, in the current and previous financial years, including the Flexible Workforce Development Fund (FWDF) and the Scottish Funding Council’s Upskilling Fund. These decisions were not taken lightly but aimed to minimise the impact on frontline allocations for learning, teaching, and support for students.

Colleges and universities can continue to deliver short courses to meet employer and business needs including those developed using FWDF and Upskilling Fund resources. Across all funded delivery, we fully expect that they will continue to prioritise actions to address inequality. Despite the ongoing fiscal challenges, the Scottish Government remains committed to ensuring equalities underpin all our work.

In taking forward our long term plans for reform of post-school education, a priority will be the need for accessible, high quality learning which meets our economic, environmental and social needs and ambitions.