Parliamentary questions
Stephen Kerr
2,595 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish all internal modelling and scenario planning that it has carried out on the financial viability of full fiscal autonomy, particularly in light of the reported £22 billion gap between Scotland's tax revenues and public spending.
Answer · Shona Robison: I refer the member to the answer to the question S6W-36472 on 1 May 2025. 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-com…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has carried out of the long-term fiscal implications of full fiscal autonomy, including any projected reduction in Barnett consequential funding.
Answer · Shona Robison: I refer the member to the answer to the question S6W-36472 on 1 May 2025. 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-com…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what impact full fiscal autonomy could have on its commitments to protect (a) the NHS, (b) education and (c) local authority budgets.
Answer · Shona Robison: I refer the member to the answer to the question S6W-36472 on 1 May 2025. 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-com…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has had discussions with (a) the Scottish Funding Council and (b) individual universities regarding any implications of the recent Office for Students’ ruling concerning the University of Sussex.
Answer · Graeme Dey: The Scottish Government has not had any discussions with the Scottish Funding Council, or individual universities, regarding the Office for Students’ ruling concerning the University of Sussex in March 2025.
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will consider introducing a statutory duty onuniversities to uphold freedom of speech, similar to that set out by the HigherEducation (Freedom of Speech) Act 2023 in England.
Answer · Graeme Dey: The Scottish Government has no plans to introduce legislation in relation to freedom of speech at universities, however it fully supports individuals’ rights to freedom of expression, and believes universities to be places where freedom of expression sh…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many formal complaints it has received in each of thelast five years relating to concerns regarding freedom of speech on universitycampuses.
Answer · Graeme Dey: The Scottish Government has received six complaints in the last five years relating to concerns regarding freedom of speech on university campuses.
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it has taken to monitor compliance by NHS Forth Valley with Health and Safety Executive improvement notices issued in relation to ligature risks.
Answer · Maree Todd: I refer the member to the answer provided in S6W-36463 on 29 April 2025 with reference to this question.NHS Forth Valley is responsible for assessing patient safety risks in its mental health facilities, including those posed by ligature anchor points, and fo…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many formal (a) warnings, (b) notices and (c) interventions regarding suicide risks linked to infrastructure in mental health units have been issued since 2020, broken down by NHS board.
Answer · Maree Todd: The information requested could only be obtained at disproportionate cost as it is not held centrally.
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it considers the (a) capital and (b) maintenance funding available to NHS boards is adequate to ensure that mental health facilities are safe and comply with Health and Safety Executive standards.
Answer · Neil Gray: The Scottish Government is committed to ensuring that all NHS facilities, including mental health units, provide a safe and therapeutic environment that complies with Health and Safety Executive (HSE) standards, though the size, age and complexity of the NHS …
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many patients have died by suicide in NHS mental health facilities in each of the last five years, and what proportion of those deaths occurred in settings that had previously been identified for ligature risks.
Answer · Maree Todd: Information on patient suicide in NHS mental health facilities is not held centrally.Any suicide is a tragedy and should not happen when someone is in the care of the state. We are determined to do all we can to improve patient safety, and to reduce suicide d…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government when it first became aware of risks to patient safety posed by ligature anchor points at Forth Valley Royal Hospital, and what actions were taken at that time.
Answer · Maree Todd: Patient safety is of the utmost importance and everyone in Scotland has the right to expect high quality, safe, and appropriate healthcare. NHS Forth Valley is responsible for assessing patient safety risks in its mental health facilities, including those pos…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what immediate action it is taking to identify and close any legal loopholes that leave domestic abuse victims without safe accommodation following court proceedings.
Answer · Paul McLennan: The Scottish Ministers keep the law that sits within the powers of the Scottish Parliament under review to ensure it is fit for purpose.The Scottish Law Commission’s aspects of family law project is focusing on a review of the civil remedies available f…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what steps it is taking to ensure that non-harassment orders are effectively enforced in all circumstances, including when the offender has legal title to the shared home.
Answer · Siobhian Brown: A non-harassment order is an order requiring the person against whom it is made requiring them to refrain from such conduct in relation to another person as may be specified in the order. A civil court can make a non-harassment order under section 8 or sectio…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what procedures are in place to ensure that sheriffs and courts have the powers and guidance necessary to override property title issues in the interest of victim safety.
Answer · Siobhian Brown: Under section 2 of the Judiciary and Courts (Scotland) Act 2008, the Lord President as head of the Scottish judiciary is responsible for "making and maintaining appropriate arrangements for the welfare, training and guidance of judicial office holders". Train…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many STEM teacher vacancies currently exist in schools, broken down by (a) subject and (b) local authority area; what consideration it has given to targeted financial incentives to attract and retain STEM teachers in hard-to-fill subjects; what proportion of STEM probationer teachers…
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: Our Teaching Bursary Scheme provides £20,000 bursaries for career changers wishing to undertake a one year Postgraduate Diploma in Education (PGDE) in the hardest to fill teaching subjects. These subjects include: Physics, Maths, Technical Education, Co…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish its analysis of how many families are currently adversely affected by the “cliff-edge” withdrawal of the Scottish Child Payment.
Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The Scottish Government published analysis of the impact of the Scottish Child Payment (SCP) on Scotland’s labour market in July 2024; Scottish Child Payment and the labour market - gov.scot and concluded it had not negatively affected labour market out…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of any impact of the current interaction between the Scottish Child Payment and Universal Credit on work incentives for low-income families.
Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville: The Scottish Government published analysis of the impact of the Scottish Child Payment (SCP) on Scotland’s labour market in July 2024; Scottish Child Payment and the labour market - gov.scot and concluded it had not negatively affected labour market out…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the resilience of power supply infrastructure at Scottish airports, in light of the recent disruption at Heathrow Airport.
Answer · Jim Fairlie: In general, the Scottish Government has no role in day to day operations at airports in Scotland as these are regulated by the UK Government and its associated agencies.Officials engaged regularly with Scottish airports during the disruption affecting Heathro…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish a summary of contingency plans for power loss at government-owned or supported airports, including any recent risk assessments or drills conducted.
Answer · Jim Fairlie: In general, the Scottish Government has no role in day to day operations at airports in Scotland as these are regulated by the UK Government and its associated agencies. For power loss specifically, this would be a matter for the electricity distribution netw…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with (a) the Civil Aviation Authority, (b) the National Grid and (c) airport operators regarding the adequacy of back-up systems at Scottish airports.
Answer · Jim Fairlie: I refer the member to the answer to the question S6W-36449 on 24 April 2025. 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-…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of the NHS budget is currently allocated to general practice, and whether it plans to increase this in light of the reported decline in access.
Answer · Neil Gray: £1,116.7m was allocated to General Medical Services in Scotland for the financial year 2025-26, an increase of 7.1% on the previous year.We will continue to focus on reform and improvement of the performance of our services by deploying existing resourc…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much it has spent since 2021 on administrative NHS restructuring, and what its position is on whether this spending could have instead been used to increase frontline GP provision.
Answer · Neil Gray: NHS Boards are responsible for the management of their administrative assets and for identifying restructuring requirements. Any such costs would be met from Boards’ delegated budgets.The Scottish Government is committed to the sustainability of frontli…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its position is on whether the reported shift towards e-consultations and telephone triage in healthcare has adversely impacted patient outcomes, and whether it will review this policy.
Answer · Neil Gray: With respect to the use of e-consultations and telephone triage, while the Scottish Government sets the strategic direction, it is for Health Boards to plan their services based on local need. What is most important is appointments are agreed through shared d…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many violent incidents involving weapons have been recorded in schools in each year since 2020.
Answer · Angela Constance: Information is not held centrally on the total number of violent incidents within schools that involve the use of a weapon. Some information is available where any such use of a weapon resulted in either the exclusion of a pupil or the recording of a weapon p…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will commit to publishing quarterly data on school violence, exclusions and staff assaults.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: Local authorities employ education staff and must ensure their schools have policies in place that determine clearly what action should be taken to address challenging behaviour and protect their staff in the workplace. This includes having processes in place…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many staff absences due to violence or distressed pupil behaviour have been reported in each local authority since August 2023.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: The Scottish Government does not hold this information, as teachers' absenteeism is a matter for local authorities as the employer.I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-35738 on 17 March 2005. All answers to written Parliamentary Questions are avai…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what measurable improvements in pupil behaviour have resulted to date from the implementation of the 2024-27 relationships and behaviour action plan.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: In August 2024, I published the national relationships and behaviour in schools action plan as part of our response to the Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research report published in November 2023. The plan is jointly owned with COSLA, given the statutory resp…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it is monitoring the effectiveness of the £900,000 provided to local authorities to provide professional learning for support staff to improve skill levels in responding to distressed behaviour in schools.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: Our announcement of £900,000 for local authorities to aid training of support staff was made in direct response to the findings of the Behaviour in Scottish Schools Research, which indicated that it is school support staff who have the most challenging …
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many incidents involving vaping in schools have been reported since the roll-out of the Tobacco and Vaping Framework.
Answer · Jenni Minto: Scottish Government is clear that children and young people should not be using vapes as these are an age-restricted product. Our ‘Take Hold’ marketing campaign educated parents, carers and children about the dangers of vaping and increased the aw…
31 Mar 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its plans are to bring land and property currently held by its agencies into productive economic or housing use, and what progress has been made in this area since 2022.
Answer · Ivan McKee: The Scottish Public Finance Manual (SPFM) requires that all land or property not needed are declared as surplus and should be disposed of as quickly as possible. The SPFM sets out a number of ways disposals can achieve best value for money and wider public be…