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-27004

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 2 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how much of the £500,000 that it made available to help older and disabled people install fire alarms has been allocated.

The Scottish Government provided a total of £2.1 million between Care and Repair (£1.1 million) and Scottish Fire and Rescue Service (£1 million) during 2021-22 to support those in greatest need or at greatest risk of fire, to meet the new standard.

An announcement was made on 22 January 2022 about the original funding for Care and Repair being doubled to just over £1.1 million to meet demand. All the money has been allocated and spent.

Question reference: S6W-27014

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 2 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on how many key workers are living in tied accommodation, broken down by (a) local authority and (b) NHS board area.

The Scottish Government does not hold this information.

Unlike the mainstream rental sector, people who live in accommodation tied to their employment do not have a tenancy agreement such as the Private Residential Tenancy. Instead their rental conditions are included as part of the individual terms of their employment.

No information is held by the Scottish Government on those living in tied accommodation in Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-27008

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 30 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many applications for a short-term let licence have been rejected in each local authority area.

Question reference: S6W-27007

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 24 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Paul McLennan on 30 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many short-term let licences have been granted in each local authority area.

Question reference: S6W-26819

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 12 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 29 April 2024

To ask to the Scottish Government for what reason social landlords reportedly have access to grants and additional time to support Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) compliance, in light of reports that many private landlords, who are struggling with rising mortgage costs and subject to rent control measures, limiting the ability to recoup any associated costs, do not have access to the same level of support.

Private rented homes have a poorer standard of energy efficiency and the tenants who live there are usually unable to make improvements. That’s why our consultation on proposals for a Heat in Buildings Bill asked for views on private rented homes reaching a good standard of energy efficiency before the end of 2028.

Our Private Rented Sector (PRS) Landlord Loan Scheme – launched in April 2020 – offers landlords interest free or low interest loan funding to support the installation of energy efficiency, clean heating and renewable systems. The scheme offers funding of up to £38,500 per property, including £15,000 for energy efficiency measures, £17,500 for the installation of clean heating and renewable systems, and up to £6,000 for the installation of energy storage systems.

The main aim of our Energy Efficiency Standard for Social Housing (EESSH) when introduced ten years ago was to remove poor energy efficiency as a driver for fuel poverty. The sector also has a role in achieving our climate change targets which require net zero heat in buildings by 2045. This is why we have recently consulted on proposals to establish a new Social Housing Net Zero Standard.

We are making £200 million available up to 2026 to support the installation of zero direct emissions heating systems and energy efficiency measures across the social housing stock.

Question reference: S6W-26624

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 24 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an indicative timeline for when (a) it will respond to the proposed consultation on fire safety, following the work of the Building and Fire Safety Expert Working Group, and (b) it will look to implement any recommendations resulting from such a consultation.

Question reference: S6W-26623

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 24 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will consult on fire safety in autumn 2024, based on the work of the Building and Fire Safety Expert Working Group, and, if so, whether any such consultation will cover all of the objectives that the working group is reviewing.

Question reference: S6W-26622

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 24 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has done any work with the hospitality sector to look at the economic and social impacts of fires affecting hotels.

Question reference: S6W-26621

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 02 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Patrick Harvie on 24 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on the use of BS 8414 testing still being allowed as a route to compliance for combustible façade materials to be used on certain buildings, such as hotels, over 11 metres in height.

Hotels are not listed as ‘relevant buildings’ within the meaning of the Building Scotland (Amendment) Regulations 2022. All new and converted hotels having a storey, or creating a storey at a height of 11 metres or more above the ground, must comply with the relevant mandatory functional standards, including mandatory standard 2.7 that requires the fire spread on external walls to be inhibited.

BS 8414 testing and the assessment criteria in BR 135 may be used for hotels as an alternative route to compliance with the mandatory standards. The continued use of this alternative solution for hotels over 11 metres in height is currently being considered by the Building and Fire Safety Expert Working Group.

Question reference: S6W-26704

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 05 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 23 April 2024

To ask the Scottish Government when the most recent cancer mortality statistics will be published, in light of annual figures reportedly not being published in autumn 2023 in line with the normal publication schedule.

Mortality data up to 2022, including breakdowns of deaths caused by cancer, has been published to its usual annual timetable by National Records of Scotland at https://www.nrscotland.gov.uk/files//statistics/vital-events-ref-tables/2022/vital-events-22-ref-tabs-6.xlsx . This includes crude (unadjusted) death rates.

Public Health Scotland will publish further statistics on cancer mortality, including age-adjusted mortality rates and time series comparisons, in late 2024. This work has been delayed whilst the population figures for previous years are rebased by National Records of Scotland.