Chamber and committees

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: S6W-09058

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 10 June 2022
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 29 June 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports stating that it is only planning to facilitate the treatment of 15 mesh-injured women from Scotland in the United States by the mesh removal surgeon, Dr Dionysios Veronikis.

Question reference: S6W-08082

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 14 April 2022
Current Status: Answered by Jamie Hepburn on 10 May 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how many of Scotland’s universities and colleges have formally adopted the IHRA definition on antisemitism, and what steps it is taking to encourage more higher education providers to endorse this definition.

The Scottish Government is committed to tackling all forms of racism, including antisemitism. We adopted the IHRA definition of antisemitism in June 2017. This is the Scottish Government position and it applies to all Ministers.

Institutions are aware of the IHRA definition of antisemitism and many are actively consulting within their communities on it. I understand that five institutions have made the decision to adopt the definition following detailed consideration. However, as autonomous bodies, adoption of the IHRA definition of antisemitism remains a matter for each institution to consider individually, with its staff and student communities.

Importantly, Universities Scotland and all 19 higher education institutions have been clear that there is absolutely no place for antisemitism nor racial or religious intolerance of any kind, in higher education.

Universities Scotland is actively engaging with the Union of Jewish Students (UJS) and the Scottish Council of Jewish Communities (SCoJeC) and has welcomed the opportunity to discuss the IHRA definition of antisemitism and current issues faced by Jewish students. It has confirmed that it is working with SCoJeC on a programme of action to share good practice across institutions and to find ways of offering more support to Jewish students across the sector, particularly where communities are very small in number.

UJS offers training to students and most recently, following a successful pilot at an English institution, to university staff on antisemitism. Universities Scotland has advised that this is something that several Scottish HEIs are interested in exploring. You may also be aware that Universities UK produced a practical guide to tackling antisemitism in collaboration with UJS in 2021.

The Scottish Government is actively engaged in consultation with Jewish students, Jewish community organisations, and stakeholders in higher education as part of our wider approach to tackling antisemitism.

On 23 February 2022, I held a round table discussion on antisemitism in higher education with Jewish students, representatives from the Jewish community, and stakeholders from the higher education sector. The event was organised in response to a letter from UJS regarding universities and the IHRA definition of antisemitism.

It was an opportunity for students to share their experiences of antisemitism and also to hear from stakeholders about the work they are doing to confront this issue in practice. The discussion was very productive, with all parties agreeing to undertake positive actions to address antisemitism on campus going forward. A summary of the meeting will be published on the Scottish Government website, and made publicly accessible, in due course.

Question reference: S6O-00981

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 13 April 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 21 April 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on its progress in increasing the number of permanent teaching roles available.

Question reference: S6W-07508

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 22 March 2022
Current Status: Answered by Maree Todd on 4 April 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-01369 by Maree Todd on 30 July 2021, whether it will provide an update on when the temporary suspension of the breast screening self-referral service for all women aged 71 and over is expected to be lifted.

Question reference: S6W-07057

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 04 March 2022
Current Status: Answered by Kevin Stewart on 21 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on facilitating care for people, who are living with an eating disorder, at specialist centres in other parts of the UK, when treatment provided by NHS Scotland has not improved a patient's health in the long term.

On rare occasions, where patients require very specialist treatment that cannot be provided in Scotland, cross border transfers are used to facilitate care and treatment in other parts of the UK. Decisions about cross border transfers to specialist centres in other parts of the UK are a clinical decision that needs to be discussed and agreed with the involvement of the patient and their family, taking into account a range of factors.

Question reference: S6O-00826

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 March 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 9 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on the Transvaginal Mesh Case Record Review, led by Professor Alison Britton, and anticipated timescale for its completion.

Question reference: S6O-00811

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 23 February 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 3 March 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how the 2022 regulations on the prohibition of fishing in the Firth of Clyde will impact fishing businesses.

Question reference: S6W-05881

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 January 2022
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 8 February 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what communication it has had with (a) East Renfrewshire Council and (b) other local authorities about (i) any financial support that will be made available and (ii) the process for delivering such funding to close contact service businesses, including hairdressers and beauticians, that have been impacted by the restrictions put in place in response to the Omicron variant of COVID-19.

All local authorities, including East Renfrewshire Council, have been involved in discussions around delivery of this funding and it has been agreed funding for close contact businesses will be distributed by our delivery partner NEC.

We have published initial guidance which includes eligibility for the Close Contact Fund. This information is available on the Scottish Government website: Coronavirus (COVID-19): funding for businesses affected by Omicron control measures - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) and the Find Business Support website:

Close Contact Services Fund (findbusinesssupport.gov.scot) . Businesses will be able to apply for the close contact fund from Monday 14 th February.

Question reference: S6W-05880

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 January 2022
Current Status: Answered by Kate Forbes on 8 February 2022

To ask the Scottish Government when it will confirm and publish on its website the (a) application process and (b) eligibility criteria for support for close contact service businesses, including hairdressers and beauticians, that have been impacted by the restrictions put in place in response to the Omicron variant of COVID-19, and how much support will be available per business.

We have published guidance which includes eligibility criteria for the Close Contact Fund and this information is now available on the Scottish Government website: Coronavirus (COVID-19): funding for businesses affected by Omicron control measures - gov.scot (www.gov.scot) and the Find Business Support website:

Close Contact Services Fund (findbusinesssupport.gov.scot) . Businesses will be able to apply for the close contact fund from Monday 14 th February. We have been working with relevant industry representatives to understand how best to target this funding as the sector includes a large number of businesses who do not have premise so cannot use non-domestic rates as a way of validating business details .

Eligible Businesses must be registered as a beauty service, hairdressing and hair removal service or a spa and wellness service and provide services listed in the guidance such as, hair trimming and cutting, laser hair removal, nail treatments etc.

The Close Contact grant is a one-off payment at the rate of £1,000 for self-employed businesses and £1,500 for NDR registered premise based business owners.

Question reference: S6W-04308

Asked by: Jackson Carlaw, MSP for Eastwood, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Thursday, 18 November 2021
Current Status: Answered by Clare Haughey on 3 December 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure that local authorities adhere to the Funding Follows the Child guidance, which states that local authorities should give appropriate consideration to the potential impact of their recruitment activity on the sustainability of funded providers.

Local authorities have worked with local partners to undertake a significant workforce expansion to support delivery of the 1140 commitment and we have seen an increase in the availability of funded early learning and childcare (ELC) places across the local authority, private, third and childminding sectors.

The underpinning policy framework for the ELC expansion, Funding Follows the Child, was developed jointly between the Scottish Government and COSLA. Local authorities are responsible for adhering to the guidance and ensuring they undertake appropriate impact assessments to support their policy and investment decisions, as they do routinely.

Implementation of Funding Follows the Child is overseen by the ELC Joint Delivery Board which is chaired by the Minister for Children and Young People and the COSLA Spokesperson for Children and Young People. The Joint Delivery Board regularly reviews the risks and impacts of the ELC expansion programme, including any issues with adherence to the Funding Follows the Child and National Standard guidance.