Parliamentary questions
Pam Gosal
490 questions tabled in the Scottish Parliament, most recent first.
20 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will provide an update on progress on the provision of guidance to businesses on the Visitor Levy (Scotland) Act 2024.
Answer · Ivan McKee: Under the Visitor Levy (Scotland) Act VisitScotland have a duty to prepare and publish guidance for local authorities on the introduction and administration of a visitor levy. Whilst that guidance is for local authorities, it will be of interest to businesses…
20 Sep 2024 · First Minister's Question
To ask the First Minister whether the Scottish Government plans to embed domestic abuse experts in 999 control rooms, similar to plans announced by the UK Government for England and Wales.
13 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what engagement it has had with Natural Power regarding the Climate Neutral Milngavie project.
Answer · Gillian Martin: The Scottish Government has not had any direct engagement with Natural Power regarding the Climate Neutral Milngavie project.We did fund a feasibility study via our CARES (Community and Renewable Energy Scheme) programme, delivered by Local Energy Scotland. T…
13 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to help East Dunbartonshire Council to reach its climate targets.
Answer · Gillian Martin: The Scottish Government continues to work closely with all local authorities to help deliver our ambitious climate targets. The establishment of the joint Climate Delivery Framework will enable better alignment of our respective targets and collective decisio…
13 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what statutory obligations community councils have to implement projects that help to meet climate targets.
Answer · Gillian Martin: Community Councils are not subject to statutory climate change duties.Public bodies have had statutory climate change duties since 2011. Section 44 of the Climate Change (Scotland) Act 2009 requires a public body, in exercising its functions, to: contribute t…
10 Sep 2024 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to reports of senior lawyers seeking the introduction of a domestic abuse register.
4 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government, regarding hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (hEDS) and hypermobility spectrum disorder (HSD), what discussions it has had with healthcare providers regarding (a) the development of and (b) equipping patients with high-quality self-management tools and resources early in their diagnosti…
Answer · Jenni Minto: The Progress Report on Scotland’s Action Plan for Rare Disease (August 2024) noted the discussions taken forward with NHS Scotland regarding the implementation of Future Care Planning, shared decision making and the Right Decision Service. These are all…
4 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to enhance the education and training of healthcare professionals on hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (hEDS) and hypermobility spectrum disorder (HSD).
Answer · Jenni Minto: Scotland’s Action Plan for Rare Diseases (2022) and Progress Report (August 2024) note awareness raising among healthcare professionals as the most important of our priorities, including making educational and training materials available for rare condi…
4 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to establish a pathway of care for individuals with hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (hEDS) or hypermobility spectrum disorder (HSD).
Answer · Jenni Minto: Discussions around the development of care pathways for rare conditions have taken place at Scotland’s Rare Disease Implementation Board (RDIB) and with our counterparts in the UK government and other devolved nations. We will continue doing so to explo…
4 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to create a coordinated approach for the treatment and care of people with hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (hEDS) or hypermobility spectrum disorder (HSD).
Answer · Jenni Minto: Scotland’s Action Plan for Rare Diseases (2022) set out actions to improve co-ordination of care for rare conditions. Our recent Progress Report (August 2024) noted progress including Future Care Planning, shared decision making and the Right Decision S…
4 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it is taking to improve the healthcare infrastructure for people with hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (hEDS) or hypermobility spectrum disorder (HSD).
Answer · Jenni Minto: Scotland’s Action Plan for Rare Diseases (2022) and Progress Report (August 2024) note awareness raising among healthcare professionals as the most important of our priorities, so that professionals are empowered to recognise rarer symptoms and have acc…
4 Sep 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what discussions it has had with healthcare providers regarding reducing any prolonged diagnosis times for individuals with hypermobile Ehlers-Danlos syndrome (hEDS) or hypermobility spectrum disorder (HSD).
Answer · Jenni Minto: Clinical geneticists are represented on Scotland’s Rare Disease Implementation Board (RDIB) where issues around the referral and diagnosis of individuals with hEDS and HSD have been discussed. RDIB are responsible for overseeing the implementation of Sc…
3 Sep 2024 · General Question
To ask the Scottish Government what its response is to the most recent Recorded Crime in Scotland statistics, which showed a 22% rise in crimes recorded under the Domestic Abuse (Scotland) Act 2018 in a single year.
30 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what projection it has made of the impact onresource levels in the private rented sector against future planned or proposedlegislative requirements, such as those relating to net zero.
Answer · Alasdair Allan: The First Minister confirmed the Scottish Government’s intention to bring forward a Heat in Buildings Bill in the recent Programme for Government. We will continue to work with businesses, including the private rented sector to understand the impacts an…
30 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it has mapped existing resource levels geographically against demand in the private rented sector.
Answer · Paul McLennan: The Scottish Government has not undertaken such a mapping exercise. Local Authorities, as the statutory housing authority for their area, are required to prepare Local Housing Strategies, informed by an assessment of Housing Need and Demand, which considers b…
30 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what action it takes to better understand theresource constraints associated with tradespeople in relation to the private rentedsector.
Answer · Paul McLennan: The Scottish Government engages regularly with stakeholders across the private rented sector to understand issues that may impact on landlords and their ability to fulfil their legal obligations.Where necessary, Business and Regulatory Impact Assessments (BRI…
30 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to providing training opportunities to support landlords in their awareness of their legislative requirements.
Answer · Paul McLennan: It is important that landlords and tenants are supported to understand their rights and responsibilities. Support for landlords and tenants, including the potential for training opportunities, will form part of our planning for the implementation of the new l…
30 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will expand the use of policy impact assessments to consider the cumulative effect of legislation covering the private rented sector in terms of costs, compliance behaviours and the availability of tradespeople and other enabling resources.
Answer · Paul McLennan: With respect to the effect of legislative change that will affect the private rented sector, the Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment for the Housing (Scotland) Bill will be published shortly and considers the cumulative impact of policy covering the pri…
30 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will carry out a review of the support required by local authorities to ensure that there is robust enforcement of the legislation that covers the private rented sector.
Answer · Paul McLennan: The Housing (Scotland) Bill includes a package of reforms to the private rented sector which are in the interests of both tenants and responsible landlords. Should Parliament pass the legislation, it is intended that a full review will be undertaken of the su…
30 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will carry out a review to identify any changes required to allow the private rented sector to fulfil the role that it envisages for the sector.
Answer · Paul McLennan: We consulted in 2022 on A New Deal for Tenants – draft rented sector strategy. This set out the Scottish Government commitment to deliver a successful and high quality, affordable and fair rented sector and invited views on how we can deliver this for t…
30 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it will carry out a review of the cumulative impact of legislative changes on the private rented sector in the current parliamentary session.
Answer · Paul McLennan: With respect to prospective legislative change that will affect the private rented sector, the Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment for the Housing (Scotland) Bill will be published shortly and this considers the cumulative impact of policy on the privat…
30 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to remove any uncertainty and improve communication between it and landlords.
Answer · Paul McLennan: We will continue to engage and listen to the views of landlords, tenants and investors, through the Private Rented Sector (PRS) Stakeholder Group, the Housing Investment Taskforce, as well as ongoing targeted stakeholder engagement.
30 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to create a nationally representative landlord panel, which can be consulted when sector developments, including legislative changes, are considered.
Answer · Paul McLennan: We are committed to continuing to consult and engage with landlords. There are no current plans to create a nationally representative landlord panel.
30 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government whether it plans to undertake a comprehensive review of the landlord registration system, spanning people, processes and systems.
Answer · Paul McLennan: The Scottish Government regularly engages with local authorities on the processes and operation of the landlord register digital platform, which is maintained and updated on an ongoing basis.The Housing (Scotland) Bill includes a package of important reforms …
30 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to issuing a national representative landlord survey at regular intervals.
Answer · Paul McLennan: We are committed to improving our data and understanding of the private rented sector including through the use of surveys. A national representative landlord survey is one of a number of approaches that could support this, however, there are no current plans…
30 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it will encourage engagement and relationship-building between policymakers and landlords.
Answer · Paul McLennan: We are committed to working constructively with landlords, tenants and investors in policy development and implementation. The Private Rented Sector (PRS) stakeholder group, established in March 2023 and the Housing Investment taskforce, established in April …
30 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what consideration it has given to identifying a strategy for the private rented sector that establishes the (a) optimum size of the sector, (b) markets that it should serve and (c) arrangements/levers for reducing, sustaining, growing or otherwise re-aligning the sector within these mar…
Answer · Paul McLennan: We consulted in 2022 on A New Deal for Tenants – draft rented sector strategy. This set out the Scottish Government commitment to deliver a successful and high quality, affordable and fair rented sector and invited views on how we can deliver this for t…
30 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government what role it envisages for the private rented sector, from an investment perspective, to enable long-term decision-making and stabilise investment patterns.
Answer · Paul McLennan: Many people find a home in the private rented sector and we recognise the contribution that it makes to housing supply in Scotland.Our New Deal for Tenants consultation set out our vision for a rented sector where all tenants, whether living in private or soc…
28 Aug 2024 · Portfolio Question
To ask the Scottish Government how it plans to assist local authorities with repairing potholes, in light of reports of the detrimental impact that large numbers of potholes are having on drivers across Scotland.
22 Aug 2024 · Written Question
To ask the Scottish Government how much it has allocated to financially support the 19 Afghan medical students that are completing their medical degrees in Scotland.
Answer · Jenny Gilruth: The Afghan medical students are eligible for support under paragraph 12B of the Student Support (Scotland) Regulations 2022, as amended by the Education (Fees and Student Support) (Miscellaneous Amendments) (Scotland) Regulations 2024. This provision enables …