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-00213

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 May 2021
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 3 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to ensure the provision of accessible toilets on the public transport network.

Scottish Government officials work closely with transport operators and disabled peoples organisations to improve the experience of disabled passengers and remove the barriers which prevent them from travelling, or make their journey an unpleasant experience.

Significant progress has been made since the creation of the Accessible Travel Framework in 2016 to remove or reduce barriers to travel but we are cognisant that more can still be done. Through engagement with disabled people and their organisations we are aware that the lack of accessible toilets in and around transport hubs can be a contributing factor to preventing people from travelling.

The Ferries Accessibility Fund awarded funding of around £427,000 towards a range of projects to improve accessibility across the ferry network which included changing places facilities on vessels on both the Northern Isles and Clyde & Hebrides ferry networks. Rail accessibility remains a reserved matter to the UK Government under the Devolution Settlement, however Transport Scotland continues to work closely with Train Operating Companies and Network Rail to ensure the provision of accessible toilets in rail stations and rolling stock remains compliant with the Design Standards for Accessible Railway Stations and Rail Vehicle Accessibility Regulations.

Question reference: S6W-00145

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 21 May 2021
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 3 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government when the £400 payment to secondary school teachers and lecturers involved in awarding national qualifications will be made.

Question reference: S6W-00121

Asked by: Maurice Golden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Friday, 21 May 2021
Current Status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 3 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government by what date it will introduce the Circular Economy Bill.

Question reference: S6W-00099

Asked by: Oliver Mundell, MSP for Dumfriesshire, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 19 May 2021
Current Status: Answered by Shirley-Anne Somerville on 3 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with Dumfries and Galloway Council in response to the reported parental and staff concerns regarding its policy on staff thresholds in small rural schools.

Question reference: S6W-00248

Asked by: Murdo Fraser, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 May 2021
Current Status: Answered by Mairi Gougeon on 3 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government, in light of a colony of honeybees having to be destroyed in the Stanley area of Perthshire due to the discovery of a hive at an apiary being infected with American Foulbrood (AFB), how common is AFB in Scotland, and what measures it is taking to limit how often it occurs.

American foulbrood (AFB) is a notifiable disease of honey bees. Figures of the disease incidence in GB are publically available in BeeBase, the database used by Scottish Government and the National Bee Unit in England and Wales. Last season in 2020, AFB was found in 8 honey bee colonies in 5 different apiaries.

Since 2015 there has been 60 honey bee colonies diagnosed with AFB in Scotland.

For context the number of inspections in Scotland recorded in BeeBase varies between 3,000 and 8,000 per year and there are currently 2830 beekeepers with a total of 17,783 honey bee colonies in 3,754 apiaries registered.

The Scottish Government takes the matter of honey bee health extremely seriously. Our honey bee health team continues to work with the affected beekeepers on disease control measures and has established a surveillance area to detect possible spread of disease to other colonies.

Although AFB has been historically present in Scotland, the work of the Scottish honey bee health team has achieved a significant reduction in the incidence and spread of the disease in Scotland. Unfortunately, as the causative bacterium is spore forming it can remain dormant on infected equipment and outbreaks continue to occur.

Beekeepers have a significant role to play in preventing and controlling disease within their apiaries and they have a legal obligation to report suspicion of a notifiable disease to their bee inspector. Training and education in biosecurity, good hygiene best practice and the ability to recognise diseases are essential aspects of beekeeping which are supported by Scottish Government.

Question reference: S6W-00221

Asked by: Beatrice Wishart, MSP for Shetland Islands, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 May 2021
Current Status: Answered by Tom Arthur on 3 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether consideration will be given to updating the COVID-19 guidance for businesses that provide close contact services, to reflect the different levels of restrictions that are in place across the country.

The COVID-19 sectoral guidance for close contact services is kept under constant review to reflect the latest public health advice and the latest information for all Strategic Framework levels. All close contact services are able to operate in Level 3 and below, in line with this guidance. The guidance was last updated on 26 May 2021 to reflect the outcome of the recent rapid review on face coverings in the sector.

Question reference: S6W-00235

Asked by: Graham Simpson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 May 2021
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 3 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government when provisions in the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019 to allow local transport authorities to propose bus services will be implemented.

Following a necessary pause to the implementation of Part 3 (Bus Services) of the Transport (Scotland) Act 2019 last year owing to the reallocation of national and local government resources to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic, work resumed with a virtual stakeholder event held in March this year.

The outputs of that and ongoing engagement will feed into a consultation paper for launch later this year. That will inform the development of secondary legislation and supporting guidance. The timetable for the introduction of secondary legislation will be dependent, to an extent, on parliamentary process.

Question reference: S6W-00237

Asked by: Graham Simpson, MSP for Central Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Tuesday, 25 May 2021
Current Status: Answered by Graeme Dey on 3 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on a solution to prevent the build-up of ice on the Queensferry Crossing.

Ice accretion and precipitation sensors were installed on the towers and deck in 2020. Weather forecasting, bridge monitoring and traffic management procedures have been continuously improved, and the mechanism of ice accumulation specific to the Queensferry Crossing is now better understood. A working group comprising Transport Scotland, the bridge Operating Company BEAR Scotland and a number of expert consultants has been established. A number of possible solutions are under consideration in terms of their feasibility.

Question reference: S6O-00007

Asked by: James Dornan, MSP for Glasgow Cathcart, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 June 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 9 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government when the last meeting of the Oil and Gas and Energy Transition Strategic Leadership Group was held.

Question reference: S6O-00009

Asked by: Liz Smith, MSP for Mid Scotland and Fife, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 02 June 2021
Current Status: Taken in the Chamber on 9 June 2021

To ask the Scottish Government what discussions the rural affairs secretary has had with the land reform minister regarding measures to be put in place to introduce regional land use partnerships.