Parliamentary questions
Stephen Kerr
2,595 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
17 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to harmonise the reporting of violent and abusive behaviour towards teachers and staff in schools.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: The Scottish Government expects all incidents of violent and abusive behaviour towards staff to be recorded.In Scotland our local councils employ education staff and we expect all local authorities to be ensuring that their schools have policies in place whic…
17 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what national measures are being taken to address reported increasing concerns over poor pupil behaviour and abuse towards staff in schools, in light of the industrial action at Kirkintilloch High School.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: Violent and abusive behaviours towards pupils or staff is unacceptable. Schools should be safe and consistent learning environments for all.Concerns about behaviour at specific schools are a matter for the relevant local authority. We expect local authorities…
17 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on what guidance it provides to local authorities regarding appropriate disciplinary measures for violent or abusive behaviour by pupils towards teachers and school staff.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: The national action plan on relationships and behaviour published in August 2024. The first published progress report will publish in the coming weeks.
17 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what plans it has to review existing policies on classroom discipline and pupil behaviour management, in light of reported concerns raised by teachers about insufficient consequences for disruptive behaviour.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: The national action plan on relationships and behaviour published in August 2024. The first published progress report will publish in the coming weeks.
17 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what resources it is making available to support teachers dealing with violence and abuse in schools, and what plans are in place to introduce further training or intervention strategies.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: Any form of violence is unacceptable and will not be tolerated. Schools should be safe and consistent learning environments for all.Since May 2023, we have responded to teachers’ concerns about relationships and behaviour in a number of ways. This inclu…
17 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will review the local government funding model to ensure that local authorities have a sustainable financial settlement.
Answer · Shona Robison: More frequent and meaningful budget engagement with COSLA and Councils was fundamental to informing the record funding settlement made available to Local Government in the Scottish Budget 2025-26. Scottish Ministers remain committed to deepening and broadenin…
17 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what measures it will implement to prevent any service reductions in local government as a result of reported funding shortfalls.
Answer · Shona Robison: The 2025-26 Scottish Budget will deliver record funding of over £15 billion for Local Authorities, a 4.7 per cent real terms increase, along with full discretion over Council Tax.More frequent and meaningful budget engagement with COSLA and Councils was…
17 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what analysis it has conducted on the potential consequences of rising council tax rates on low and middle-income households.
Answer · Shona Robison: I refer the member to the answer to question S6W-35046 on 5 March 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-committees/…
17 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports that local authorities are being forced to introduce significant council tax increases due to budgetary pressures.
Answer · Shona Robison: I refer the member to the answer to the question S6W-35046 on 5 March 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-c…
17 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the potential financial impact of the reported council tax freeze on local authorities.
Answer · Shona Robison: As part of the 2024-25 Scottish Budget, Scottish Government made available £144 million to councils who chose to maintain Council Tax liabilities at 2023-24 levels. This funding, equivalent to a 5 per cent increase nationally, ensured that councils agre…
17 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has had any discussions with South Lanarkshire Council regarding the potential impact of any reduction in funding for housing support services and whether it will intervene to ensure the continuation of these services.
Answer · Paul McLennan: The Scottish Government has not had any recent discussions with South Lanarkshire Council regarding funding for housing support services. As I understand, South Lanarkshire Council have engaged directly with both RSLs to help them prepare for this proposed tr…
17 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will publish an assessment of the potential increase in NHS and social care costs resulting from any reductions in local authority-funded housing support services.
Answer · Paul McLennan: Housing support is commissioned at a local level by Local Authorities and Health and Social Care Partnerships who are best placed to identify local needs. Any Local Authority who is considering a reduction in funding to housing support services should determi…
17 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it will take to ensure that older people in South Lanarkshire continue to receive the necessary housing support services they require to live safely and independently.
Answer · Paul McLennan: The Scottish Government recognises the importance of housing support services. These services can enable older residents to live as independently as possible in their own communities.Housing support is commissioned at a local level by Local Authorities and He…
10 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will consider establishing a new executive agency responsible for cutting wasteful spending, similar to the Department of Government Efficiency in the United States of America, and, if not, how it plans to reduce any wasteful spending in the public sector.
Answer · Ivan McKee: The Scottish Government is committed to maintaining public finances on a sustainable trajectory. Improving the efficiency and effectiveness of public services is a key strand of the Public Service Reform programme, which reports to Parliament on a regular bas…
10 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what assessment it has made of the effect of free tuition fees on the financial situation of universities in Scotland.
Answer · Graeme Dey: The Scottish Government’s resolute commitment to free tuition means that in Scotland access to university remains based on the ability to learn and not the ability to pay. Through the Scottish Funding Council, we invest over £1.1bn for teaching an…
10 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many Scottish Government staff participated in trainingcourses related to (a) diversity, (b) equality and (c) inclusion in 2024, andwhat the total cost for providing these courses was.
Answer · Kaukab Stewart: Mandatory annual Inclusive Culture training is the only formal training delivered by Scottish Government as an employer. This was introduced for Core Scottish Government following a recommendation made by the Equality and Human Rights Commission. It is self-d…
10 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many positions in the Scottish Government include (a) diversity, (b) equality and (c) inclusion in their job title, and what the total staffing cost is of these positions.
Answer · Kaukab Stewart: As at 30 September 2024, the date of the most recently published Scottish Government workforce statistics, the total number of job titles registered in our HR management information system including a) diversity (including neurodiversity) was 8 b) equality (i…
10 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many cybersecurity breaches it has experienced in each year since 2021.
Answer · Ivan McKee: While Scottish Government core corporately managed systems have had no cyber security breaches, on two occasions since 2021 locally managed services suffered (minor) attacks which were successfully remediated with no data loss or further service disruption.
10 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it anticipates that it will be able to meetits target to build 110,000 new affordable homes by 2032, in light of the Housing Statistics for Scotland Quarterly Update, which shows a 12% decline in new housebuilding starts in the year to September 2024.
Answer · Paul McLennan: Affordable housing has a clear priority in this year’s Programme for Government. We are investing nearly £600 million in affordable housing in 2024-2025, which includes the additional £40 million capital for acquisitions and voids announced …
10 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much funding it has provided to Intercultural Youth Scotland in each year since 2021, and what the objectives of that funding were.
Answer · Kaukab Stewart: Since 2021, the Scottish Government has provided £1,672,922 of funding to Intercultural Youth Scotland (IYS) across various funding streams.IYS receive funding from the Equality and Human Rights Fund (EHRF) to enable and support participation and repres…
10 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much funding it has provided to Scottish Trans in each year since 2021, and what the objectives of that funding were.
Answer · Kaukab Stewart: Scottish Trans is funded by the Equality and Human Rights Fund through the Equality Network. The Equality Network’s funding covers their general LGBTI project and the Scottish Trans Alliance project. The Equality Network received £503,322 in 2021-…
10 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what the average length of the local authority funding settlement has been since 2014-15, and what consideration it has had to introducing three-year settlements.
Answer · Shona Robison: The average length of the local authority funding settlement since 2014-15 has been one year.The opportunities of introducing three-year settlements are well understood but there are significant financial risks of doing so without the equivalent clarity from …
10 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what proportion of the money that it allocates tolocal authorities is ring-fenced, and how this compares with (a) 1999-00 and(b) 2006-07.
Answer · Shona Robison: While ring-fenced funding is provided to support increased investment in services such as our schools, inter-island connectivity and criminal justice social work, this represents only 2.7% or £0.4 billion of the overall Local Government Settlement in 20…
10 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many public services have been transferred from local authorities to its agencies or non-departmental public bodies since 1999, and which services have been affected.
Answer · Shona Robison: The information requested is not currently held centrally and could only be obtained at disproportionate cost.
10 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what percentage of its budget is allocated to local authorities, and how this compares with 1999-00.
Answer · Shona Robison: Given the changes in the Scottish Government's devolved powers since devolution it is not possible to apply a direct like with like comparison in Scottish Government funding levels between 1999-00 and 2025-26. Similarly, the powers and responsibilities of Loc…
10 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many non-departmental public bodies there are, and how this compares with May 1999.
Answer · Ivan McKee: Currently there are a total of 58 non-departmental public bodies (NDPBs). This compares to a total of 130 NDPBs in 1999.
10 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government on what date its most recent stroke awareness campaign was launched, and what evaluation it carried out on its effectiveness.
Answer · Jenni Minto: The Scottish Government provided funding to Chest Heart and Stroke Scotland in 2018 to support a stroke awareness campaign. This was managed by Chest Heart and Stroke Scotland and delivered via NHS Boards. Scottish Government does not hold an evaluation of th…
10 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much it allocated to public health campaigns for stroke awareness in each of the last five years.
Answer · Jenni Minto: The Scottish Government has not allocated funding to stroke awareness campaigns in the last five years.
10 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many meetings it has held in the last 12 months to discuss the Scottish Education Exchange Programme (SEEP), broken down by (a) date and (b) attendees; whether it will publish (i) the agenda of each meeting and (ii) any documents, briefings or correspondence it has shared with or pro…
Answer · Graeme Dey: The Scottish Education Exchange Programme is a priority action within Scotland’s International Education Strategy and as such, progress is regularly discussed by IES Governance Group which is chaired by the Minister for HE/FE and includes representative…
10 Feb 2025 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how many meetings the Cabinet Secretary for Education and Skills has held with the (a) chief executive of (i) the SQA and (ii) Education Scotland and (b) general secretary of the EIS since March 2023.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: I undertake regular engagement with Scotland’s national education bodies and teaching professional associations at Chief Executive/General Secretary and official level. Details of these engagements are published on the Ministerial engagements, travel an…