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 32813 questions Show Answers

Order by |

Question reference: S6F-00720

Asked by: Jackie Baillie, MSP for Dumbarton, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 January 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 27 January 2022

To ask the First Minister how much has been spent on private sector contracts in the preparation of the proposed national care service.

Question reference: S6F-00715

Asked by: Gillian Martin, MSP for Aberdeenshire East, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Monday, 24 January 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 27 January 2022

To ask the First Minister what the Scottish Government's response is to the findings of a recent report by the Virtual Trials National Project Board, which states that specialist online courts should be set up to deal with domestic abuse cases.

Question reference: S6F-00711

Asked by: Douglas Ross, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Monday, 24 January 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 27 January 2022

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6F-00712

Asked by: Anas Sarwar, MSP for Glasgow, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Monday, 24 January 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 27 January 2022

Question to be taken in Chamber.

Question reference: S6F-00713

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Monday, 24 January 2022
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 27 January 2022

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

Question reference: S6W-05404

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 24 December 2021
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 24 January 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what mitigations are in place to ensure that local authorities can safely meet the new duty to inspect short-term let properties in their area.

Question reference: S6W-05411

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 24 December 2021
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 24 January 2022

To ask the Scottish Government how many bed and breakfasts it estimates will close as a result of the implementation of new regulations for them and short-term lets.

The licensing scheme will introduce a system to ensure basic safety standards are being adhered to across short-term let accommodation in Scotland, the definition of which includes bed and breakfast businesses, as well as guest houses.

We have met with interested parties throughout development of the scheme, including meetings with the Scottish Guest House and B&B Alliance and Fergus Ewing MSP and one of his constituents, a local B&B owner. The Scottish Bed & Breakfast Association were also part of the Scottish Government’s short-term lets stakeholder working group until they resigned on 4 August 2021.

Many short-term let hosts and operators will already be following the mandatory safety conditions as a matter of compliance with existing law or best practice. We do not consider them to be onerous. We do not anticipate the scheme will have a detrimental impact on responsible operators. Instead we consider the scheme could boost overall demand for short-term lets by providing consumers with increased confidence in the functioning of the short-term lets market in Scotland, which will help to clamp down on dodgy operators, unsafe accommodation and poor practice.

Scotland’s ability to have sufficient accommodation options to host international events is accounted for, with licensing authorities having wide discretion in granting temporary exemptions or temporary licences within the powers of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982 and the Licensing Order. We will update and publish guidance on granting temporary exemptions and temporary licences, involving our stakeholder working group.

We have already committed to working with local authorities to undertake a review of short-term let activity in hotspot areas in summer 2023, to ensure the wider sector is still healthy and unintended consequences have been avoided, and to identify whether any further measures are required to control numbers.

Question reference: S6W-05363

Asked by: Neil Bibby, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Labour
Date lodged: Friday, 24 December 2021
Current Status: Answered by Humza Yousaf on 24 January 2022

To ask the Scottish Government, further to the offer by the Cabinet Secretary for Health and Social Care, during General Question Time on 18 November 2021, to visit the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley, when he plans to do so.

On 18 November, I confirmed with Mr Bibby that I will visit the Royal Alexandra Hospital in Paisley when it is the appropriate time to do so. This continues to be my intention.

Ministerial visits are being carefully considered at present in light of the implications for Health and Social Care services from the Omicron variant. I continue to maintain strong communication with Trade Union representatives and Health Boards to understand the experiences of our Frontline Health and Social Care staff.

Question reference: S6W-05422

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 24 December 2021
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 24 January 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to Scotland’s ability to host international events if there is a significant reduction in the number of short-term lets as a result of further regulations.

Question reference: S6W-05419

Asked by: Miles Briggs, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 24 December 2021
Current Status: Answered by Shona Robison on 24 January 2022

To ask the Scottish Government what advice it has received on the legal compatibility of its plans to introduce licensing for short-term lets with plans, under discussion by the European Commission, to introduce a registration system for short-term lets across the EU.

Before the licensing legislation, or any other Government legislation, is laid at the Scottish Parliament, government lawyers carry out robust analysis to ensure that it is competent. For the licensing legislation, that means ensuring that the SSI is made within the parameters and powers of the Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982.

The licensing SSI also makes modifications to the 1982 Act itself, in order to give effect to the licensing scheme. This too was carefully considered in terms of whether the changes proposed were legally competent.

The tourist services – short-term rental initiative consulted on by the European Commission between September and October 2021 is still at an early stage and further details have not been confirmed. The consultation notes that the general proposal is for regulation, which would be in line with the approach we have set out in our legislation.