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.

Find out more about parliamentary questions

Filter your results Hide all filters

Displaying 31531 questions Show Answers

Order by |

Question reference: S6W-28133

Asked by: Ross Greer, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Green Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 June 2024
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 25 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether the Scottish Funding Council has taken any formal action as a result of any college failing to meet the fair work criteria set out in its outcome agreement, in the period since the Post-16 Education (Scotland) Act 2013 came into force.

Question reference: S6W-28048

Asked by: Tim Eagle, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 05 June 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenny Gilruth on 25 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to the question S6W-25696 by Jenny Gilruth on 5 March 2024, whether it is still the case that its report following the consultation on draft guidance on the Delivery of relationships, sexual health and parenthood (RSHP) education in Scottish schools will be published in spring 2024.

Question reference: S6W-28121

Asked by: Pam Gosal, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 12 June 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 25 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how much funding it has allocated to organisations and charities that support people with epilepsy, in each financial year since 2019-20.

Question reference: S6W-28154

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Thursday, 13 June 2024
Current Status: Answered by Neil Gray on 25 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to expand the clinical radiology workforce, in light of projections in the Royal College of Radiologists’ 2023 Clinical Radiology Workforce Census that the shortfall of clinical radiologists in Scotland could rise to 36%, or 263 radiologists, by 2028.

As stated previously in answer to S6W-28153 on 25 June 2024, there has been an expansion of 68 posts in Clinical Radiology specialty training since 2014. Clinical Radiology is a competitive specialty which has historically filled at 100%. The 2025 expansion process is currently underway and will conclude later this year. This will consider the need for expansion in all medical specialties, including clinical radiology and clinical oncology, with the overall aim of ensuring Scotland has a sufficient supply of trained doctors coming through the system to meet anticipated future demand.

All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are available on the Parliament's website, the search facility for which can be found at https://www.parliament.scot/chamber-and-committees/written-questions-and-answers .

Question reference: S6W-28113

Asked by: Collette Stevenson, MSP for East Kilbride, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 June 2024
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 25 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Government how many children and young people it estimates, in the current financial year, are (a) eligible and (b) receiving payments for the (i) Scottish Child Payment and (ii) Best Start Grants, broken down by constituency.

In their published December 2023 Economic and Fiscal Forecasts, the Scottish Fiscal Commission forecast 368,000 children will be eligible for the Scottish Child Payment in Scotland in 2024-2025 and that 329,000 children will receive payments.

They also forecast Best Start Foods will be paid for 51,000 children and pregnant women in Scotland in 2024-2025 and 58,000 Best Start Grant payments will be made, 16,000 for Pregnancy and Baby Payment, 20,000 for Early Learning Payment and 22,000 for School Age Payment.

The Scottish Fiscal Commission do not publish forecasts of the number of children eligible for Best Start Grant or Best Start Foods, or the number of children receiving Scottish Child Payment, Best Start Grant or Best Start Foods by constituency.

Social Security Scotland routinely publish Official Statistics for Best Start Grant and Best Start Foods, and Scottish Child Payment. The latest statistics, covering the period to the end of March 2024, do not currently include information by Scottish Parliament constituency. These also do not include information on the number of children benefitted from Best Start Grant and Best Start Foods.

The latest statistics show that, as of 31 March 2024, 329,055 children and young people aged 0-15 years were actively benefitting from Scottish Child Payment. This information along with further breakdowns including local authority area, and individual child age can be found at Social Security Scotland - Scottish Child Payment: high level statistics to 31 March 2024 .

The latest statistics show that, in the 2023-2024 financial year covering April 2023 to March 2024, 56,455 individual parents or carers were paid for Best Start Grant. For comparison, 204,460 parents or carers received at least one Scottish Child Payment.

The latest publication for each benefit can be found at: Social Security Scotland - Statistics .

Question reference: S6W-28109

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 June 2024
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 25 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Government whether it is planning to implement minimum standards of psychosocial care to ensure that all patients living with chronic kidney disease receive equal access to the care that they need, regardless of geography.

The Scottish Government expects all NHS Boards in Scotland to adhere to current guidelines and follow best practice when providing psychosocial care for people with chronic kidney disease.

Our Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy published in 2023, sets out a long-term vision, and a set of outcomes, for the mental health and wellbeing of the population.

We published the National Specification for Psychological Therapies and Interventions in September 2023, and Public Health Scotland updated the national waiting times guidance , to ensure that PT is delivered to a high quality and measured consistently across Scotland.

Question reference: S6W-28115

Asked by: Monica Lennon, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 June 2024
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 25 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-26234 by Maree Todd on 15 April 2024, whether it can provide details of its work in implementing the recommendations relating to bereavement in the Health, Social Care and Sport Committee's 1st Report, 2022 (Session 6), Inquiry into perinatal mental health (SP Paper 104), which was published on 8 February 2022.

The Scottish Government committed through the Programme for Government 2021-2022 and 2023–24 to improve miscarriage care, part of this work includes the provision of separate spaces in maternity wards in hospitals for those experiencing a pregnancy or baby loss.

We also funded Sands UK to develop and implement the National Bereavement Care Pathway for pregnancy and baby loss in Scotland (NBCP). All 14 NHS Boards are now signed up to the Pathways and implementation is ongoing with continued support from Sands.

The pathways acknowledge that bereavement care is the responsibility of all health professionals working in maternity services. While some NHS Boards have specialist bereavement midwives, all midwives, consultants and other workforce are trained in bereavement care. The maternity workforce, aim to have an informed, skilled team who are all able to provide the specialist care that bereaved parents need.

In addition to wider maternity bereavement supports, perinatal mental health services have a role in ensuring continuity, appropriate support, and signposting/transition for any parent who is within the perinatal period, is in receipt of perinatal mental health services and experiences bereavement.

Question reference: S6W-28110

Asked by: Sandesh Gulhane, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 11 June 2024
Submitting member has a registered interest.
Current Status: Answered by Jenni Minto on 25 June 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of preliminary data collected by Kidney Care UK, which currently suggests that there is a severe lack of designated psychosocial support for adults and children with kidney disease in Scotland, what steps it is taking to improve NHS psychosocial support provision for people with chronic kidney disease.

The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that all people living with kidney disease in Scotland are able to access the best possible care and support, and benefit from healthcare services that are safe, effective and put people at the centre of their care.

We expect all NHS Boards in Scotland to adhere to current guidelines and follow best practice when providing psychosocial care for people with chronic kidney disease.

Our Mental Health and Wellbeing Strategy published in 2023, sets out a long-term vision, and a set of outcomes, for the mental health and wellbeing of the population.

In September 2023, we published the National Specification for Psychological Therapies and Interventions , to ensure effective, equitable, efficient and high-quality person-centred Psychological Therapies (PT) are delivered consistently across Scotland. The Specification sets out the standards to which we expect Psychological Therapies to be delivered, including appropriate staffing

We recently met with Kidney Care UK and welcome and value their work and remain committed to engaging with them on these important matters.

Question reference: S6W-28314

Asked by: Ash Regan, MSP for Edinburgh Eastern, Alba Party
Date lodged: Monday, 24 June 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 22 July 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-27929 by Angela Constance on 18 June 2024, whether it has yet to engage with (a) the Scottish Solicitors Bar Association, (b) legal firms and (c) judicial officeholders; if so, for what reason it has not yet done so, and whether it plans to do so in advance of stage 2.

Question reference: S6W-28315

Asked by: Ash Regan, MSP for Edinburgh Eastern, Alba Party
Date lodged: Monday, 24 June 2024
Current Status: Answer expected on 22 July 2024

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-28018 by Ivan McKee on 18 June 2024, whether it will outline the non-consolidated performance payments awarded to chief executives since 2016, including the (a) amount and (b) reason for award.

Financial Year	Total
2019-2020	£100,000
2020-2021	£225,574
2021-2022	£64,172.83
2022-2023	£127,191.57
2023-2024	£162,688