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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: S6F-00531

Asked by: Paul O'Kane, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 29 November 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 December 2021

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to the report, Towards a Scotland that cares: a new National Outcome on Care for the National Performance Framework, by the University of the West of Scotland, which is supported by Oxfam Scotland, Carers Scotland, Scottish Care, the Scottish Women’s Budget Group and One Parent Families Scotland.

Question reference: S6F-00526

Asked by: Graham Simpson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 29 November 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 December 2021

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government’s response is to the Union Connectivity Review.

Question reference: S6F-00528

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 29 November 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 December 2021

To ask the First Minister when the Cabinet will next meet.

Question reference: S6F-00523

Asked by: Douglas Ross, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 29 November 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 December 2021

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6F-00524

Asked by: Anas Sarwar, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 29 November 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 December 2021

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6F-00525

Asked by: Karen Adam, MSP for Banffshire and Buchan Coast, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 29 November 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 2 December 2021

To ask the First Minister whether she will provide an update on the advances that the Scottish Government has made in relation to the British Sign Language National Plan.

Question reference: S6T-00328

Asked by: Willie Rennie, MSP for North East Fife, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 29 November 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 30 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the reported number of deaths of homeless people in 2020.

Question reference: S6T-00329

Asked by: Pauline McNeill, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 29 November 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 30 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that people are shutting down their electric and rationing their energy use in the face of rising charges.

Question reference: S6W-04424

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 15 November 2021
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 29 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what research it has undertaken in response to reports that fewer disabled people are accessing employment opportunities in Scotland, compared with other parts of the UK.

The Scottish Government routinely publishes official labour market statistics for disabled people and analysis of how their labour market barriers and outcomes are changing over time.

We know the disability employment gap - the difference between the employment rates of disabled and non-disabled people - narrowed over the latest year to July 2020 – June 2021 by 1.5 percentage points in Scotland, to 32.0 percentage points. This was a larger narrowing of the disability employment gap than in the UK, where it narrowed by 0.6 percentage points. Scotland’s disability employment gap was also smaller than the disability employment gap in both Wales and Northern Ireland in the latest year.

We remain on course to reach our ambition to at least halve the disability employment gap in Scotland by 2038, however, we know there is much more work to do. For example, we continue to work closely with our partners in Disabled People’s Organisations to hear directly from disabled people themselves what changes they are experiencing in the labour market. This includes their representation on our Short Life Working Group for the refresh of our employment action plan, ensuring disabled people’s lived experiences are shaping this work.

Latest data and analysis are published at:

Labour market monthly briefing: November 2021 - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

Fairer Scotland for disabled people - employment action plan: progress report - year 2 - gov.scot (www.gov.scot)

Question reference: S6W-04428

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 15 November 2021
Current Status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 29 November 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had regarding the development of an Edinburgh-specific rate of pay, to help address the reported high cost of living in the city.

The Scottish Government has not been involved in any discussions regarding the development of an Edinburgh specific rate of pay.

Employment law remains reserved to the UK Government therefore, the Scottish Government cannot currently legislate on this matter. We continue to promote payment of at least the real Living Wage and welcome the increase to £9.90 per hour for workers over 18 announced on 15 November.

I was pleased to note that City of Edinburgh Council has achieved Living Wage City recognition and is promoting payment of the real Living Wage in the region.