Laura Mitchell

Answer · Stephen Gethins · 4 Jun 2026

The conflict in the Middle East has had a significant impact on rural communities who rely on heating oil, including in Moray. That is why we established the Scottish Emergency Heating Oil Scheme, enabling eligible households to apply for £300 towards their bills. Former Cabinet Secretary for Housing, Miri McAllan, engaged with UK Government on this issue prior to the election and official level engagement is ongoing.We have repeatedly urged the UK Government to take their responsibility for energy pricing and market regulation seriously. This means putting in place robust and effective consumer protection and support in the heating oil sector as a matter of urgency.In order to make use of Scotland’s abundant homegrown renewable resources, and ensure communities like Moray are not reliant on volatile global markets, we have formally requested the devolution of energy powers to the Scottish Parliament. This will allow us to take decisive action to bring down energy bills.

Answer · Angela Constance · 5 Jun 2026

A business case was submitted to the Scottish Government requesting funding for the provision of MRI services at Dr Gray’s Hospital under the National Treatment Centre (NTC) programme. The Business case process was subsequently paused in line with the decision in early 2024, due to capital funding constraints to pause all new capital infrastructure projects that were not already under construction including NTC projects.The Scottish Government is working with all Health Boards to develop a Whole System Infrastructure Plan (WSIP), which will identify investment priorities across NHS Scotland. Projects previously paused, such as the MRI scanner at Dr Gray’s, will be considered within this process, with priorities determined through a national strategic assessment of the NHS estate and linked to capital funding availability. Ministers are expected to decide priorities next year, once this process concludes.

Answer · Angela Constance · 1 Jun 2026

The Scottish Government does not hold this information. We would direct the member to the NHS Grampian health board to obtain this information.In order to support the reduction of waiting times, patients may be asked to travel to appointments out with their local health board. It is expected that most patients will be seen and treated locally wherever possible and appropriate, based on clinical need and operational effectiveness. However, it may not always be possible for Health Boards to provide access locally, for all patients and for all services, where Health Boards are, for example, constrained by geography or specialist services.

Answer · Angela Constance · 1 Jun 2026

I refer the member to the answer to question S7W-00228 on 1 June 2026. 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/written-questions-and-answers.

Answer · Shirley-Anne Somerville · 28 May 2026

On 27 May, the Scottish Government announced that the first round of applications for the First Homes Fund will open by the end of June, providing first-time buyers with a £10,000 contribution towards a deposit on their first home at a property value of up to £300,000.It is expected the first round of the fund will support 2,000 households, supporting young people and families, over the first 100 days of this Government and 50,000 over the course of this Parliament.Information on how to apply will be available ahead of the first round opening in June.

Answer · Stephen Flynn · 28 May 2026

The Scottish Government takes seriously the contribution the whisky sector makes to our national economy and its strategic importance as the provider of high paid, skilled employment in many rural communities. This is particularly true of Speyside with the concentration of some of the most renowned distilleries in Scotland situated in the Speyside area. The previous Deputy First Minister saw first hand when opening the Cabrach distillery just how the whisky sector can provide the catalyst for local regeneration and bringing employment and tourism to some of our most rural communities.Most recently, the First Minister was thanked by President Trump for making the case of the symbiotic partnership between the Scotch and US whisky industries. This helped in securing the commitment by the US President to remove whisky tariffs, in a significant boost for the Scottish whisky sector, helping to safeguard exports to this vital market. The US is the single most valuable country for Scotch whisky exports worth nearly £933m last year.The Scottish Government has invested over £20 million to the “Sustaining Scotland Supplying the World” food and drink industry strategy since 2023 to drive growth across the entire food and drink sector, including whisky. This is supporting innovation, expanding market opportunities, and helping the industry accelerate progress towards our net-zero ambitions. In March 2026, we also launched the Food and Drink Processing Scheme Scotland as a key part of a £9 million package of capital funding to strengthen production and resilience across the country’s food and drink businesses.The Six-Point Export Plan, delivered through the 2025-26 Programme for Government, strengthened support for businesses to access international markets, diversify their export destinations, and build global partnerships. These improvements now sit firmly within our export growth plan, A Trading Nation, as we continue to deliver and invest in the practical support that underpins export growth.For the food and drink sector specifically, we have also provided over £7m since 2014 towards delivering the Scotland Food & Drink Export Plan, an SDI-led plan to help the industry exploit the most significant opportunities for Scotland with a team of food and drink specialists situated in our key markets around the globe.Ministers and officials will continue to meet with the sector to understand the issues facing the industry and opportunities the sector can better leverage, in Speyside and across Scotland.

Answer · Stephen Gethins · 28 May 2026

Storage requirements for offshore wind are project-specific and vary depending on a wide-range of factors such as: the type of foundations, whether floating or fixed; project location; infrastructure availability; and deployment timelines. Each offshore wind developer will determine specific construction and storage solutions specific to their project.