Parliamentary questions
Stephen Kerr
2,595 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
12 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on how many homes have been assessed as below the legal tolerable standard in each of the last five years.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: The Scottish House Condition Survey (SHCS) (link here: Scottish House Condition Survey - gov.scot) provides a snapshot of the domestic housing stock in each survey year, including the construction age, built form and the estimated number of dwellings falling …
12 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many formal enforcement actions it has taken against landlords providing unsafe or unfit housing in the last three years.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: The information requested is not held by the Scottish Government.Private landlords in Scotland are required to register with their local authority which has responsibility to investigate and take any necessary action arising from complaints from tenants of pr…
12 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether it is appropriate that theFirst Minister has appointed 16 special advisers, and how this compares to thenumber of special advisers appointed by former First Ministers.
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: Special Advisers are appointed by the First Minister to provide important assistance to Scottish Ministers on the development of policy and its presentation. Their appointment is designed to reinforce the political impartiality of the permanent Civil Service …
12 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the total cost to the taxpayer has been of all special advisers since the appointment of the current First Minister.
Answer · Jamie Hepburn: In line with the requirements of Section 16 of the Constitutional Reform and Governance Act 2010, the Scottish Government discloses to the Scottish Parliament the number and total cost of employing special advisers on an annual basis. The latest report, perta…
12 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what funding has been allocated to the cladding remediation programme to date, and how much of this funding has been spent.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: Scottish Government Ministers have said they expect to spend at least the equivalent of the £97.1 million received in consequential funding on Cladding Remediation, and will do so.Information on expenditure is published quarterly on the Scottish Governm…
12 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what contingency plans it has in place to maintain legal representation services in the event of industrial action by the Solicitor Contact Line.
Answer · Siobhian Brown: I have asked Colin Lancaster, Chief Executive of the Scottish Legal Aid Board to respond. His response is as follows:-Business continuity arrangements already exist for the Solicitor Contact Line (SLC). Should the GMB Union notify SLAB that their SCL members …
12 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that almost 1,500 buildings remain "at risk" due to unsafe cladding, eight years after the Grenfell Tower fire.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: The figures published by Scottish Government on 5 June (available here: Key points - Scotland’s cladding remediation estimates: June 2025 - gov.scot) are estimates of the number of residential buildings in Scotland 11 metres or more in height, across al…
12 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what impact the reported potential industrial action by Solicitor Contact Line staff would have on the rights of individuals in police custody.
Answer · Siobhian Brown: I have asked Colin Lancaster, Chief Executive of the Scottish Legal Aid Board to respond. His response is as follows:-The Solicitor Contact Line (SCL) is a team of publicly funded criminal defence lawyers who provide telephone advice and in-person representat…
12 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the long-term health impacts of any delayed or inaccessible dental care in deprived communities.
Answer · Jenni Minto: Scottish Government utilises the National Dental Inspection Programme (NDIP) to both assess children’s oral health over the longer-term, and to understand the impact of dental policy and services, including Childsmile. As part of dental payment reform, …
12 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of hate crime allegations under the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021 have resulted in prosecution or conviction.
Answer · Angela Constance: The information requested is not held centrally.Whilst the Scottish Government publish data on both Recorded Crime in Scotland and Criminal Proceedings in Scotland, these are based on distinct and unlinked data sets and it is not possible to directly compare …
12 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many hate crime complaints have been received since the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021 came into force, broken down by (a) month and (b) protected characteristic.
Answer · Siobhian Brown: This information is not currently held centrally.As part of delivering Section 15 of the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021, we will prepare an annual report for parliament later this year covering the year of 2024-25. This will include both the …
12 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish a timeline for completing all necessary remedial works on buildings deemed to be at risk of fire.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: The Scottish Government is committed to the safe assessment of and remediation of buildings identified as at risk through the cladding remediation programme. However, it is important to clarify that fire safety remains the legal responsibility of the owner.Th…
12 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has received any concerns from Police Scotland about the volume of potentially spurious complaints arising under the Hate Crime and Public Order (Scotland) Act 2021.
Answer · Siobhian Brown: The Scottish Government engages regularly with Police Scotland on matters of relevant and shared interest, including preventing and tackling hate crime in Scotland.We have not received concerns from Police Scotland about the volume of potentially spurious com…
10 Jun 2025 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether policies such as culling livestock and promoting less meat consumption could have a detrimental impact on the rural economy.
10 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to publish results and outcomes from the Scotland-Flanders joint working action plan.
Answer · Angus Robertson: There are no agreed plans at present but we will continue to consider the appropriate reporting on actions related to the Memorandum of Understanding, with the government and public agencies of Flanders.
10 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what resources have been made available for the Scotland-Flanders joint working action plan.
Answer · Angus Robertson: The stated aim of the Flanders-Scotland Memorandum of Understanding is further cooperation between the Scottish Government and Government of Flanders. The Joint Working Action Plan sets out specific areas for further cooperation. This will therefore be progre…
10 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many older people are currently on waiting lists for a social care assessment.
Answer · Tom Arthur: Information on the number of individuals awaiting a social care assessment is published monthly by Public Health Scotland (PHS) and is available at: Dashboard - People requiring a social care assessment and care at home services.Public Health Scotland does no…
10 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what information it holds on how many incidents of aggression or violence towards female teachers in schools have been recorded in the past five years.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: The Scottish Government does not hold this information centrally as local authorities are the employer of school staff. Local authorities may hold this information.
10 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, further to the answer to question S6W-36873 by Neil Gray on 1 May 2025, whether it will provide an update on the programme of work being undertaken to understand and respond to the current financial viability pressures in the social care sector and the impact that this ch…
Answer · Neil Gray: The Scottish Government remain deeply concerned about the current financial pressures facing the social care sector. We fully recognise the anxiety and growing concerns within the social care sector in light of the increasing financial viability pressures.The…
10 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, in the last five years, how many teachers have left the profession early due to safety concerns or lack of support.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: Local Government have the statutory responsibility for education so this information is not held centrally.
10 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the reasons for the 16% annual rise in reported sex crimes in Scotland in 2023-24.
Answer · Angela Constance: Annual bulletins containing accredited official statistics and information on the number of crimes and offences recorded by the police in Scotland are published by the Scottish Government. Recorded Crime in Scotland, 2023-24 shows that the number of sexual cr…
10 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many drug-related deaths have occurred within 500 metres of the Thistle safer drug consumption facility in Glasgow since it was established.
Answer · Maree Todd: The Scottish Government does not routinely collect or publish data on drug deaths within a specified radius of individual facilities, including the Thistle facility in Glasgow.Accredited official statistics on drug deaths in Scotland are published annually by…
10 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what economic justification it used in determining that the Flamingo Land Lomond Banks development should proceed.
Answer · Ivan McKee: The Scottish Ministers have decided to recall the Lomond Banks appeal as the proposed development raises issues of national significance in view of its potential impact on Loch Lomond and the Trossachs National Park. Ministers will make the decision on this a…
10 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will suspend the expansion of safer drug consumption facilities pending an independent evaluation.
Answer · Maree Todd: At this time, no other proposal for any additional facilities has been brought to the Scottish Government for consideration. Any future proposals will be subject to careful assessment, must align with public health priorities and reflect local collaboration. …
10 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many planning applications have been approved by its ministers, after having been rejected locally, in each of the last five years.
Answer · Ivan McKee: The following table sets out the number of determined planning appeals in each of the last five years which have been recalled for a decision by Ministers, instead of being delegated to a reporter. These planning applications were appealed after having been r…
10 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what share of the £1.64 billion policing budget is allocated to specialist sex crimes units.
Answer · Angela Constance: Despite unprecedented challenges to public finances, the 2025-26 Scottish Police Authority budget has increased to £1.64 billion, an increase of almost £90 million when compared to the 2024-25 budget.The operation of Police Scotland, including dec…
10 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether small developers will be exempt from the proposed building safety levy.
Answer · Ivan McKee: A study by the Competition and Markets Authority on the housebuilding industry noted that small and medium housebuilders face higher costs, in per-plot terms, than larger competitors, due to the small-scale nature of their developments. The Scottish Governmen…
10 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reported concerns from the industry that the proposed building safety levy may worsen the housing crisis.
Answer · Ivan McKee: The Scottish Government recognises the current pressures on housebuilding and the importance of building more homes. We are aware of opposition from industry to the Scottish Building Safety Levy (SBSL). However, no immediate alternative solutions are being of…
10 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it will ensure that cladding remediation costs do not worsen housing affordability or new build viability.
Answer · Mairi McAllan: The Scottish Government recognises the current pressures on the sector including affordability and ensuring the right conditions are created for building new homes.The funding of cladding assessment, mitigatory and remedial works in Scotland will require coll…
10 Jun 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what information it has on the long-term recovery outcomes for patients on state-funded methadone programmes.
Answer · Maree Todd: Treatment outcomes for people on medication assisted treatment are recorded on the Drugs and Alcohol Information System.Public Health Scotland uses its DAISy system as the basis for many regular reports.The Scottish Government holds no information on long ter…