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 40828 questions Show Answers

Order by |

Question reference: S6W-37565

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 May 2025
Current Status: Initiated by the Scottish Government. Answered by Fiona Hyslop on 8 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government when it will decide on the award of the next Clyde and Hebrides Ferry Services contract (CHFS3).

I can announce today that Scottish Ministers have decided that a direct award should be made to CalMac Ferries Limited. The due diligence work has concluded there is no financial, operational or legal impediment to proceeding with a Teckal-compliant direct award of CHFS3.

This is a unique opportunity to change the emphasis from a commercially driven arrangement to a public-focused service wholly directed at meeting the important and particular needs of the communities it serves. Discussions will continue with staff, island residents, businesses and communities and trade unions on the arrangements so that the new contract reflects local needs and interests. Transport Scotland is now working closely with CalMac Ferries Ltd on the necessary arrangements for commencement of the new contract on 1 October 2025. I will ensure that Parliament is kept updated about progress on those new arrangements.

Taken together with our ongoing investment in new vessels and infrastructure, this will improve the overall resilience and capacity of these services, particularly for the future, as set out in the recently published Islands Connectivity Plan.

Question reference: S6W-37428

Asked by: Jeremy Balfour, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 May 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 21 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has plans to make the Scottish Kept Birds Register publicly searchable, and, if not, for what reason.

Question reference: S6W-37431

Asked by: Alex Cole-Hamilton, MSP for Edinburgh Western, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 May 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 21 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government whether it has plans to provide additional training to newly qualified teachers on how to deal with violence in schools.

Question reference: S6W-37093

Asked by: Emma Roddick, MSP for Highlands and Islands, Scottish National Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 May 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 21 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many wind farms are located on land owned by it, and what the total installed capacity, in megawatts, of those wind farms is.

Question reference: S6W-37384

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 May 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 21 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on the estimated annual number of seabird and raptor collisions at operational (a) onshore and (b) offshore wind farms, broken down by (i) species and (ii) year in each of the last five years.

Question reference: S6W-37389

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 May 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 21 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on the proportion of new wind farm consents granted since 1 January 2022 that include legally enforceable conditions requiring (a) bird-strike monitoring, (b) adaptive management plans and (c) financial bonds for remedial action.

Question reference: S6W-37381

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 May 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 21 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what engagement it has had with consumer representative groups to assess any perceived fairness issues in relation to the potential introduction of zonal electricity pricing in Scotland, and what timeline it has set for any such engagement.

Question reference: S6W-37429

Asked by: Jeremy Balfour, MSP for Lothian, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 May 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 21 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government how many people have registered under the Scottish Kept Bird Register, and whether it will provide a breakdown of the number of (a) poultry, (b) birds of prey and (c) other captive birds.

Question reference: S6W-37391

Asked by: Douglas Lumsden, MSP for North East Scotland, Scottish Conservative and Unionist Party
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 May 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 21 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what the implications are of its Scottish Biodiversity Strategy to 2045 for the consenting and operation of wind farm developments in areas of high ornithological sensitivity.

Question reference: S6W-37433

Asked by: Jamie Greene, MSP for West Scotland, Scottish Liberal Democrats
Date lodged: Wednesday, 07 May 2025
Current Status: Answer expected on 21 May 2025

To ask the Scottish Government what is being done to tackle reported digital exclusion, especially among low-income households and older people, as essential services increasingly move online.