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-27138

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 13 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reported comments by Sheriff James McDonald that Scotland’s legal system has gone "soft on drug offenders".

Question reference: S6W-27137

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 13 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what plans are in place to expand the provision of the reported new digital chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD) diagnosis service, developed by NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde, to other NHS boards.

We recognise the importance of having access to appropriate diagnostic tests for lung conditions and welcome the development of this service in NHS Greater Glasgow and Clyde. As this is a new programme, we will work closely with all key stakeholders to determine if there are scale up options for the rest of Scotland.

Improving access to diagnostics is a key commitment in the Respiratory Care Action Plan and we will seek evidence from this programme and ensure it is shared with all appropriate stakeholders.

Question reference: S6W-27006

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 30 April 2024
Current Status: Answered by Angela Constance on 13 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many cases of (a) online extortion and (b) threats to disclose an intimate image have been (i) reported to and (ii) investigated by Police Scotland in each year since records began, and whether there are any plans to begin recording incidents of sextortion.

Sextortion is sexual extortion and involves the threat of having sexual information, photos or videos shared with others. It is carried out to extort money or force a victim to do something against their will, control behaviour or obtain further images.

Where a reported sextortion-related crime involves the perpetrator making demands for money or other valuables, Police Scotland will record and investigate it under Threats and extortion. Table 1 shows the estimated volume of threats and extortion committed online, from 2019-20 to 2022-23. This is based on an annual review of crime records (commenced in 2019-20) which aims to estimate how many cyber-crimes are recorded in Scotland. It should be noted the figures below are based on a sample of police records (rather than all police records), so should be seen as providing a broad estimate of the volume of this type of crime, rather than an exact count.

Whilst not all online threats and extortion will necessarily have a ‘sextortion’ based element, it is very likely a high proportion (and certainly the majority) of the cases shown in Table 1 do. Figures for 2023-24 will be published in June 2024.

Where a reported sextortion-related crime involves a motive other than financial gain (for example a demand of a physical sexual nature or some other attempt to exert control over the victim), Police Scotland will record and investigate it under Threatening to disclose an intimate image. Table 2 below shows the number of these crimes recorded since the associated Abusive Behaviour and Sexual Harm (Scotland) Act was implemented on 3 July 2017. Again, figures for 2023-24 will be published in June 2024.

Table 1 - Estimated volume of threats and extortion committed online: 2019-20 to 2022-23

	Estimated volume committed online
Crime type	2019-20	2020-21	2021-22	2022-23
Threats and extortion	290	730	1,260	1,830

Source: Recorded Crime Accredited Official Statistics, Police recorded cyber-crime in Scotland

Table 2 – Count of crimes of Threatening to disclose an intimate image: 2017-18 to 2022-23

Crime type	2017-18	2018-19	2019-20	2020-21	2021-22	2022-23
Threatening to disclose an intimate image	193	255	275	337	382	302

Source: Recorded Crime Accredited Official Statistics, Scotland

Question reference: S6W-27177

Asked by: Carol Mochan, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 May 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 13 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether the First Minister's priority of prevention in health is being delivered.

Our prevention agenda has seen the implementation of various strategies, addressing the fundamental drivers of inequality; encouraging early intervention and support; and promoting environments that support healthy lifestyles.

This has included tackling some of the root socioeconomic drivers of heath inequalities with the allocation of around £3 billion a year to a range of actions to tackle poverty and mitigate the impacts of the cost-of-living-crisis. We are also delivering Community Link Workers and Welfare Rights Advisors to offer advice on housing, social security and employability issues within GP practices across our rural and deprived communities.

To support and encourage positive health behaviours SG has continued to take forward a range of actions. This includes the implementation and subsequent expansion of Minimum Alcohol Pricing to reduce drinking at harmful levels by setting a floor price for each unit of alcohol. We are tackling the adverse effects of smoking through our Tobacco and Vaping Framework. We continue work to ensure that everyone eats well and has a healthy diet through our Diet and Healthy Weight Delivery Plan, we are currently consulting on a set of proposed regulations to restrict promotions of less healthy food and drink.

The Scottish Government remains committed to our ambition to improve the health of our population and tackle health inequalities. We know that to achieve this we must focus on preventing illness and promoting wellbeing and tackling some of the wider determinants of health. Going forward, we will build on this progress and continue to prioritise prevention as a key component of our wider healthcare strategy.

Question reference: S6W-27166

Asked by: Michael Matheson, MSP for Falkirk West, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 01 May 2024
Current Status: Answered by Gillian Martin on 13 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what progress has been made in supporting a growing Scottish skills base in hydrogen for transport, as set out in its Hydrogen Action Plan.

The Scottish Government is working with many partners to develop Scotland’s skills base in hydrogen for transport.

These include working with the Energy Skills Partnership (ESP) on the Hydrogen Skills Project (HSP). HSP Automotive and Hydrogen Training Networks now have access to cutting edge hydrogen fuel cell technology learning resources. The networks have conducted learning and development activities across Scotland, showcasing their capabilities at the annual All-Energy Conferences in Glasgow.

Support from Transport Scotland enabled the ESP to acquire a hydrogen fuel cell trainer , a hybrid hydrogen energy lab system and related kit to be sited at Dundee’s Michelin Scotland Innovation Parc (MSIP) skills academy. Available to colleges within the HSP training network, this is part of a larger plan to have a range of training equipment at MSIP to help support hydrogen skills within Scotland.

The ESP has also worked with Aberdeen City Council , H2 Aberdeen , H2 Accelerator , HyTrEc2 and SMART-HY-AWARE to produce an accessible Hydrogen for Transport Course aimed at those joining a hydrogen transport industry, including school and college students. In the maritime sector, the University of Highlands and Islands Orkney took their first cohort of seafarers to be trained to work on hydrogen powered vessels in 2021.

Question reference: S6W-27307

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 May 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 13 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it can confirm which local authority areas each member of the Young Islanders Network is from.

Question reference: S6W-27305

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 07 May 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 13 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it can provide the dates on which the Young Islanders Network has met since its establishment.

To date, the Young Islanders Network has held online sessions on:

10-03-2022

31-03-2022

28-04-2022

12-05-2022

26-05-2022

09-06-2022

23-06-2022

11-08-2022

29-09-2022

17-11-2022

08-12-2022

18-01-2023

09-02-2023

02-03-2023

23-03-2023

20-04-2023

08-06-2023

28-06-2023

20-07-2023

07-09-2023

19-10-2023

09-11-2023

30-11-2023

18-12-2023

25-01-2024

29-02-2024

21-03-2024

22-04-2024

25-04-2024

Further on-line activities involving Young Islander Network members took place on:

01-11-2022

08-11-2022

15-11-2022

02-02-2023

08-02-2023

15-03-2023

23-11-2023

09-01-2024

Residential in-person events took place on:

30-07-2022 - 02-08-2022

26-01-2023 - 30-01-2023

Further in-person activities involving Young Islander Network members took place on:

13-06-2022 - 17-06-2022

26-08-2022 - 29-08-2022

30-08-2022 - 01-09-2022

06-02-2023

10-03-2023 - 12-03-2023

20-03-2023 - 21-03-2023

07-05-2023

05-07-2023

12-07-2023 - 15-07-2023

12-08-2023 - 14-08-2023

24-08-2023 - 29-08-2023

31-08-2023 - 02-09-2023

18-09-2023

20-09-2023

03-10-2023

01-11-2023 - 03-11-2023

18-01-2024

22-02-2024 - 23-02-2024

26-02-2024

02-04-2024 - 08-04-2024

17-04-2024

Question reference: S6W-27325

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 08 May 2024
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 13 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how much funding has been (a) allocated to and (b) awarded through the Islands Programme in each year since it was established.

To date, £12,351,185 of capital investment has been awarded via the Scottish Government’s Islands Programme across 61 projects and 50 islands.

2021-22

The 2021-2022 Islands Programme was delivered through the Islands Infrastructure Fund and was allocated £5 million. The final amount awarded to capital projects was £3,901,192.

2022-23

The 2022-2023 Islands Programme was allocated £4.45 million. The allocation was awarded in full.

2023-24

The 2023-2024 Islands Programme was allocated £4 million. The final amount awarded to capital projects was £3,999,993.

Question reference: S6W-27400

Asked by: Russell Findlay, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 10 May 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 28 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it is aware of any concerns raised by firefighters and/or their representatives regarding the reportedly alleged unsuitability of new Ford Ranger vehicles purchased by the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service.

Question reference: S6W-27454

Asked by: Gillian Mackay, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Friday, 10 May 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 28 May 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-26372 by Siobhan Brown on 16 April 2024, which local authorities have (a) applied for funding from the Scottish Government relating to the implementation of firework control zones and (b) opened the application process for firework control zones so that they are in place by bonfire night 2024.