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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: S5W-35310

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 February 2021
Current Status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 25 February 2021

To ask the Scottish Government for what reason garden centres have been closed under the current COVID-19 restrictions when other larger retailers that sell garden products and equipment are permitted to remain open.

In order to the reduce the opportunities for transmission of Covid-19, people should only be leaving their homes for an essential purpose which includes for essential shopping.

For those stores that are considered essential retailers and able to remain open, it is for them to determine what goods are on offer in their stores.

Garden centres are currently able to fulfil orders online, by telephone and through a permitted collection service.

Question reference: S5O-05075

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 February 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 3 March 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what the most recent estimate is of the cost of establishing Social Security Scotland.

Question reference: S5W-35308

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 February 2021
Current Status: Answered by Clare Haughey on 22 February 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what role it believes gardening can play during the COVID-19 pandemic in helping people maintain good mental health and wellbeing.

The Scottish Government recognises the benefits of connecting with nature and exercising outdoors for physical and mental health and wellbeing. We appreciate the value of gardening as one of the many ways that people can be more active. Doing exercise and other physical activity can have a positive impact on your mood, improve your sleep, and reduce stress and anxiety.

The joint UK Chief Medical Officer Guidelines on Physical Activity specifically notes the role that heavy gardening can play in helping adults to do activities to develop or maintain strength in the major muscle groups and, for older adults, light activity such as easy gardening can help break up prolonged periods of being sedentary.

Reflecting the importance of the fundamental relationship between physical and mental health, the Scottish Government has committed to build on positive physical activity behaviour changes observed during the pandemic as part of the Mental Health Transition and Recovery plan.

In April 2020, we launched the Clear Your Head campaign, to help the population look after their own mental health and wellbeing. The campaign highlights the practical things people can do to help them feel better and cope with the restrictions during the coronavirus outbreak. The campaign encourages people to keep active and embrace nature, suggesting that this can be achieved through a variety of physical activities including gardening, or taking part in a virtual class when it is hard to get out.

Question reference: S5O-05062

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 17 February 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 25 February 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how many new staff will be required to meet the mental health needs of people following the COVID-19 pandemic.

Question reference: S5W-34821

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 28 January 2021
Current Status: Answered by Jeane Freeman on 11 February 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to introduce a medical exemption card to those who cannot wear a face covering.

A Scottish Government face covering exemption card came into operation at the end of October 2020.

The card is a tool to support people to feel more confident and safe when accessing public spaces and using public services but is not intended as proof of exemption. To require individuals to seek medical proof that they are exempt would put undue burden on the NHS services at this critical time in the pandemic.

The card was developed to support people to feel more comfortable showing something that says they do not have to wear a face covering without having to explain they are exempt.

The exemption card is branded with the NHS Scotland and Healthier Scotland logo and produced under the FACTS for a safer Scotland campaign.

The Scottish Government is committed to promoting equality; and hate crimes against those who are exempt from wearing a face covering are unacceptable and will not be tolerated.

The service is delivered by Disability Equality Scotland (DES) and a physical or digital exemption card can be requested at www.exempt.scot or via a helpline on 0800 121 6240.

Question reference: S5O-05027

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 10 February 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 18 February 2021

To ask the Scottish Government how it is supporting court services during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Question reference: S5O-04987

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 27 January 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 4 February 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how it supports older people.

Question reference: S5W-34588

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 14 January 2021
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 22 January 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what (a) bills, (b) regulations and (c) consultations it has postponed since March 2020 due to the impact of COVID-19, broken down by portfolio area.

In order to respond to the unprecedented challenges presented by the COVID-19 pandemic, the Scottish Government has since March 2020 re-prioritised its legislative programme to ensure that Government resources and Parliamentary time could be freed up to respond to the implications for Scotland of the global pandemic.

As previously set out to Parliament, the re-prioritisation process led to the following Bills being postponed:

Name of Bill	Portfolio
Transient Visitor Levy	Finance
Good Food Nation	Rural Economy & Tourism
Circular Economy	Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform
Moveable Transactions	Justice
Gender Recognition	Social Security and Older People
Fox Hunting	Environment, Climate Change and Land Reform
Restricting Foods Promotions	Health & Sport

The programme of Government SSIs was also re-profiled during 2020 to free up Government and Parliamentary resources for the COVID-19 response. However, that re-profiling exercise has now been completed and all necessary SSIs have been brought forward.

Information on consultations that may have been postponed as a consequence of COVID-19 is not held centrally. The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.

Question reference: S5W-34589

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 14 January 2021
Current Status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 21 January 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of the responses from local authority stakeholders to the consultation on short-term lets, whether it will provide grants or loans to councils to assist with the costs of setting up a licensing scheme, and how many have (a) requested and (b) indicated that they might require additional funding.

Local authorities will be able to charge fees to cover the cost of establishing and running their short-term lets licensing scheme. The Scottish Government has no plans to provide grants or loans to local authorities to do so.

A total of 23 local authorities responded to the Short Term Lets: Consultation on a licensing scheme and planning control areas in Scotland (14 September 2020); see www.gov.scot/publications/short-term-lets/ for the consultation paper and report. Three of those responses expressed the opinion that the Scottish Government should provide grant or loan funding to support the establishment of the licensing scheme. Outside of the consultation, no formal requests for additional funding have been received.

Question reference: S5O-04959

Asked by: Finlay Carson, MSP for Galloway and West Dumfries, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 20 January 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 27 January 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the support being provided to businesses that have been affected by the COVID-19 pandemic.